Wars
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A Human Rights Breakthrough in Guatemala
A chance discovery of police archives may reveal the fate of tens of thousands of people who disappeared in Guatemala's civil war
October 2009 |
By Julian Smith
John Brown's Day of Reckoning
The abolitionist's bloody raid on a federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry 150 years ago set the stage for the Civil War
October 2009 |
By Fergus M. Bordewich
German POWs on the American Homefront
Thousands of World War II prisoners ended up in mills, farm fields and even dining rooms across the United States
September 16, 2009 |
By J. Malcolm Garcia
A Compass Saves the Crew
A WWII sailor's memento recalls the harrowing ordeal when his ship, the SS Alcoa Guide, was struck by a German U-Boat
September 2009 |
By Owen Edwards
Nikita Khrushchev Goes to Hollywood
Lunch with the Soviet leader was Tinseltown's hottest ticket, with famous celebrities including Marilyn Monroe and Dean Martin
July 2009 |
By Peter Carlson
Children of the Vietnam War
Born overseas to Vietnamese mothers and U.S. servicemen, Amerasians brought hard-won resilience to their lives in America
June 2009 |
By David Lamb
For General Patton's Family, Recovered Ground
Famed World War II Gen. George S. Patton's grandson finds his calling in the ashes of his fathers journals
June 2009 |
By Benjamin W. Patton
Before Rosie the Riveter, Farmerettes Went to Work
During WWI, the Woman’s Land Army of America mobilized women into sustaining American farms and building national pride
May 29, 2009 |
By Elaine F. Weiss
George Koval: Atomic Spy Unmasked
Iowa-born and army-trained, how did George Koval manage to steal a critical U.S. atom bomb secret for the Soviets?
May 2009 |
By Michael Walsh
Spies Who Spilled Atomic Bomb Secrets
As part of the Soviet Union's spy ring, these Americans and Britons leveraged their access to military secrets to help Russia become a nuclear power
April 20, 2009 |
By Marian Smith Holmes
Civil War Geology
What underlies the Civil War’s 25 bloodiest battles? Two geologists investigate why certain terrain proved so hazardous
April 14, 2009 |
By David Zax
Lincoln's Pocket Watch Reveals Long-Hidden Message
The Smithsonian opens one of its prized artifacts and a story unfolds
March 11, 2009 |
By Beth Py-Lieberman
Saving the Jews of Nazi France
As Jews in France tried to flee the Nazi occupation, Harry Bingham, an American diplomat, sped them to safety
March 2009 |
By Peter Eisner
Five Rescuers of Those Threatened by the Holocaust
Righteous good Samaritans came from across the world to save Jews and others from concentration camps
February 24, 2009 |
By Marian Holmes
Lincoln's Contested Legacy
Great Emancipator or unreconstructed racist? Each generation evokes a different Lincoln. But who was our sixteenth president?
February 2009 |
By Philip B. Kunhardt III
Lincoln as Commander in Chief
A self-taught strategist with no combat experience, Abraham Lincoln saw the path to victory more clearly than his generals
January 2009 |
By James M. McPherson
Samarra Rises
In Iraq, the restoration of the shattered Mosque of the Golden Dome brings together Sunnis and Shiites in an unlikely alliance
January 2009 |
By Joshua Hammer
Gettysburg Address Displayed at Smithsonian
Lincoln's timeless speech during the Civil War endures as a national treasure
December 2008 |
By Owen Edwards
Rewriting History in Great Britain
Recently uncovered documents in the British archives reveal dark secrets from World War II. One problem: they are forgeries
November 18, 2008 |
By Gregory Katz
One Man's Korean War
John Rich's color photographs, seen for the first time after more than half a century, offer a vivid glimpse of the "forgotten" conflict
November 2008 |
By Abigail Tucker
