https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/warfare/RSS feed for WarfareenThu, 24 Sep 2026 17:07:59 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-3000-year-old-warhorse-burial-and-a-ramses-ii-tablet-among-other-relics-have-been-discovered-in-an-ancient-egyptian-fortress-180989564/New excavations in the Nile Delta offer eye-opening clues about military and residential life in the New Kingdom eraThu, 24 Sep 2026 17:07:59 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-3000-year-old-warhorse-burial-and-a-ramses-ii-tablet-among-other-relics-have-been-discovered-in-an-ancient-egyptian-fortress-180989564/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/during-the-american-revolution-the-city-lancaster-pennsylvania-served-as-the-united-states-capital-for-just-one-day-180989544/The nascent nation's leaders fled to the inland city as the British advanced on Philadelphia in September 1777. They held one meeting at the local courthouse before moving on to YorkThu, 24 Sep 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/during-the-american-revolution-the-city-lancaster-pennsylvania-served-as-the-united-states-capital-for-just-one-day-180989544/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/researchers-in-turkey-have-unearthed-an-ancient-fragment-inscribed-with-the-worlds-oldest-peace-treaty-180989554/The piece of a clay tablet is marked with Akkadian cuneiform, and its text belongs to the Kadesh Peace Treaty, created by ancient Egyptians and Hittites in the 13th century B.C.E.Wed, 23 Sep 2026 18:39:01 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/researchers-in-turkey-have-unearthed-an-ancient-fragment-inscribed-with-the-worlds-oldest-peace-treaty-180989554/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/russia-sends-the-centuries-old-remains-of-a-medieval-warrior-prince-to-its-front-line-in-ukraine-hoping-to-spiritually-strengthen-troops-180989501/A reliquary containing part of the right hand of Dmitry Donskoy, whose crypt was discovered in August, has been dispatched to DonetskTue, 15 Sep 2026 18:41:30 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/russia-sends-the-centuries-old-remains-of-a-medieval-warrior-prince-to-its-front-line-in-ukraine-hoping-to-spiritually-strengthen-troops-180989501/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-hospital-ship-sank-off-albania-coast-during-world-war-ii-now-its-teeming-with-marine-life-180989468/A new survey of the "Po" has revealed a thriving underwater ecosystem, including rare Mediterranean monk sealsWed, 09 Sep 2026 17:57:33 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-hospital-ship-sank-off-albania-coast-during-world-war-ii-now-its-teeming-with-marine-life-180989468/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/to-defeat-the-royal-navy-during-the-american-revolution-a-rebel-inventor-designed-a-secret-weapon-a-bomb-carrying-submarine-180989400/David Bushnell developed the "Turtle" submersible as a student at Yale University. The vessel's attack on a British flagship failed, but the trailblazing boat's legacy endures 250 years laterThu, 03 Sep 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/to-defeat-the-royal-navy-during-the-american-revolution-a-rebel-inventor-designed-a-secret-weapon-a-bomb-carrying-submarine-180989400/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stones-from-one-of-henry-viiis-fortresses-spent-more-than-a-century-hidden-in-plain-sight-new-research-suggests-the-victorians-repurposed-them-as-building-materials-180989427/Recently discovered archival records indicate that workers constructing an extension of the Constable's Gate at Dover Castle in the late 19th century reused fragments of the Tudor-era Sandown CastleTue, 01 Sep 2026 12:52:03 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stones-from-one-of-henry-viiis-fortresses-spent-more-than-a-century-hidden-in-plain-sight-new-research-suggests-the-victorians-repurposed-them-as-building-materials-180989427/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-american-commando-parachuted-behind-enemy-lines-in-both-the-european-and-pacific-theaters-of-world-war-ii-180989396/A direct descendant of Thomas Jefferson, Francis Lowell Coolidge was an agent with the Office of Strategic Services, a predecessor to the CIA. Read his goodbye letter to his wife, published here for the first timeThu, 27 Aug 2026 12:33:42 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-american-commando-parachuted-behind-enemy-lines-in-both-the-european-and-pacific-theaters-of-world-war-ii-180989396/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/soccer-ball-used-for-diego-maradona-hand-of-god-world-cup-goal-sells-at-auction-180989392/Despite its role in one of the most famous games in soccer history, the historic piece of sports memorabilia fell short of its $10 million pre-sale estimateWed, 26 Aug 2026 17:02:31 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/soccer-ball-used-for-diego-maradona-hand-of-god-world-cup-goal-sells-at-auction-180989392/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/construction-in-austria-revealed-roman-era-mass-grave-beneath-soccer-field-new-research-suggests-that-the-mens-enemies-targeted-their-sensitive-areas-180989372/No written records mention a fight in this specific part of Vienna at the time of the men's deaths. But the brutal nature of their injuries, particularly to the pelvis area, indicates that these individuals died on the battlefieldThu, 20 Aug 2026 15:06:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/construction-in-austria-revealed-roman-era-mass-grave-beneath-soccer-field-new-research-suggests-that-the-mens-enemies-targeted-their-sensitive-areas-180989372/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/when-american-airplane-crashed-into-school-1944-english-village-lost-almost-all-of-its-youngest-children-why-has-wwii-worst-civilian-aviation-accident-been-forgotten-180989341/On August 23, 1944, a test flight over the village of Freckleton, located in northwest England, ended in disaster, claiming the lives of 61 people, including 38 students between the ages of 4 and 6Thu, 20 Aug 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/when-american-airplane-crashed-into-school-1944-english-village-lost-almost-all-of-its-youngest-children-why-has-wwii-worst-civilian-aviation-accident-been-forgotten-180989341/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/inside-fight-to-save-300-year-old-tree-that-survived-revolutionary-war-battle-180989357/Arborists are working to preserve the 45-foot-tall live oak in South Carolina's Eutaw Springs Battlefield Park. The historic tree suffered damage during a lightning strike 50 years agoTue, 18 Aug 2026 15:50:28 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/inside-fight-to-save-300-year-old-tree-that-survived-revolutionary-war-battle-180989357/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-connecticut-teenager-spied-on-the-british-during-the-american-revolution-succeeding-where-nathan-hale-failed-180989309/Newly uncovered documents reveal the story of David Maltbie, who relayed intelligence to the patriots in 1776, narrowly avoiding execution as a spyMon, 17 Aug 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-connecticut-teenager-spied-on-the-british-during-the-american-revolution-succeeding-where-nathan-hale-failed-180989309/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-medieval-mans-injuries-reminded-one-archaeologist-of-modern-day-car-crash-victims-they-turned-out-to-be-the-work-of-an-english-trebuchet-180989346/A skeleton unearthed in Scotland likely belongs to a soldier struck by a high-speed projectile during Edward I's 1304 siege of Stirling Castle. The man suffered more than 160 fracturesFri, 14 Aug 2026 19:49:12 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-medieval-mans-injuries-reminded-one-archaeologist-of-modern-day-car-crash-victims-they-turned-out-to-be-the-work-of-an-english-trebuchet-180989346/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/historic-submarine-restoration-reveals-a-hidden-connection-to-a-lost-sister-ship-that-sank-during-world-war-ii-180989340/Experts working on the USS "Silversides" found a flood valve that appears to have been destined for its sister ship, the USS "Trigger." The vessel sank in the East China Sea on March 28, 1945Fri, 14 Aug 2026 15:01:24 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/historic-submarine-restoration-reveals-a-hidden-connection-to-a-lost-sister-ship-that-sank-during-world-war-ii-180989340/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-hessians-were-supposed-to-quickly-end-the-american-revolution-instead-they-endured-years-of-battles-and-suffered-thousands-of-casualties-180989252/Some 30,000 German soldiers fought for the British during the war. Contrary to popular belief, they weren't mercenaries, and not all were actually HessiansThu, 13 Aug 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-hessians-were-supposed-to-quickly-end-the-american-revolution-instead-they-endured-years-of-battles-and-suffered-thousands-of-casualties-180989252/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-did-the-ancient-romans-bury-this-monumental-marble-statue-face-down-they-wanted-to-repurpose-it-as-a-paving-stone-180989302/Archaeologists discovered the roughly 2,500-year-old sculpture of a young man while conducting excavations at Sardis in western Turkey. The artwork reflects the different cultures that wielded control over the city in the first millennium B.C.E.Mon, 10 Aug 2026 18:01:20 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-did-the-ancient-romans-bury-this-monumental-marble-statue-face-down-they-wanted-to-repurpose-it-as-a-paving-stone-180989302/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-box-of-300-love-letters-showed-up-out-of-the-blue-who-was-the-whimsical-world-war-ii-soldier-who-wrote-them-180989300/Nobody knows who dropped Speedy Weber's correspondence at a USO office in 2022. Researchers have finally tracked down two living relatives who remember himMon, 10 Aug 2026 15:02:12 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-box-of-300-love-letters-showed-up-out-of-the-blue-who-was-the-whimsical-world-war-ii-soldier-who-wrote-them-180989300/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-world-war-ii-submaring-noted-for-its-success-sinking-enemy-ships-just-journeyed-across-lake-michigan-for-a-multimillion-dollar-makeover-180989269/The USS 'Silversides' earned a dozen battle stars for its work patrolling the Pacific Ocean. The Gato-class sub is now the star of a museum in MichiganThu, 06 Aug 2026 14:48:16 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-world-war-ii-submaring-noted-for-its-success-sinking-enemy-ships-just-journeyed-across-lake-michigan-for-a-multimillion-dollar-makeover-180989269/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/why-has-history-forgotten-world-war-iis-largest-prison-break-which-claimed-the-lives-of-more-than-200-japanese-pows-180989246/During the 1944 Cowra breakout, over 900 prisoners attempted to escape from an Allied camp in Australia. The uprising resulted in the deaths of 234 Japanese men and 5 AustraliansWed, 05 Aug 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/why-has-history-forgotten-world-war-iis-largest-prison-break-which-claimed-the-lives-of-more-than-200-japanese-pows-180989246/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-400-year-old-impenetrable-japanese-castle-that-survived-a-samurai-siege-just-crumbled-in-an-earthquake-180989248/In 1877, a force rebelling against Emperor Meiji attacked Kumamoto Castle on Japan's southern Kyushu islandMon, 03 Aug 2026 19:55:29 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-400-year-old-impenetrable-japanese-castle-that-survived-a-samurai-siege-just-crumbled-in-an-earthquake-180989248/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-man-used-this-civil-war-artifact-as-a-paperweight-on-his-desk-the-bomb-squad-told-him-it-was-actually-a-live-explosive-180989245/The device turned out to be an artillery shell designed for a Parrott rifle in the mid-1800s. Experts safely detonated it at a firing range near San AntonioMon, 03 Aug 2026 19:40:33 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-man-used-this-civil-war-artifact-as-a-paperweight-on-his-desk-the-bomb-squad-told-him-it-was-actually-a-live-explosive-180989245/