Following the questionable 1804 Treaty, the fallout from the 1814 Battle of the Rock Island Rapids, and subsequent establishment of Fort Armstrong in 1816, tensions with local native populations were at a peak. Continued spats of engagements between settlers, Rangers, and Soldiers continued with isolated killings up thru 1832. FortContinue Reading
For months following the attacks on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the atmosphere was full of static and concern in the United States. Save for a few isolated breakthroughs, the Americans were largely on the defensive in the Pacific. The Doolittle Raid in April of 1942 was a lashing effort toContinue Reading
During the 1804 Pike expedition to survey the Mississippi river multiple islands had been noted as being strategically important. One of the islands that stood out from the rest due to its sheer size and composition; was Rock Island. The island known as Rock Island stood towering over the MississippiContinue Reading
On 13 DEC 2003, a joint task force consisting of multiple military and U.S. federal agencies commenced Operation RED DAWN near the Iraqi city of Tikrit. Task Force 121 was to search two locations in the town of ad-Dawr situated to the north of Tikrit on the Tigris River. TF121Continue Reading
The end of World War I signified the end of the last of the major old-world empires: the Ottoman Empire. As Ryan Gingeras wrote in his book The Fall of the Sultanate, “It is likely that no study can bridge the numerous divides and antagonisms that mar contemporary perceptions ofContinue Reading
A shaky agreement had been established in what used to be the Northwest Territory of the fledgling United States in 1804. It was during this time, after the Louisiana Purchase, that the United States had forged an agreement that ceded a large tract of land from the local Sauk andContinue Reading
Following Operations DESERT STORM and DESERT SHIELD, and preceding Operation IRAQI FREEDOM, the Clinton Administration was examining means and methods to reduce Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s ability to conduct war operations. This followed multiple interventions to include the Gulf War, and subsequent hostile actions against the neighboring nation of Kuwait. Continue Reading
On the morning of 7 December 1941, an organized and large-scale attack was carried out by the Imperial Japanese Military against American forces at Pearl Harbor. Perhaps one of the most infamous days in history, the attacks at Pearl Harbor and other locations in the Pacific Theater underscored the initiationContinue Reading
Atomic artillery was a staple in the United States deterrence doctrine since the early 1950s. Guns and howitzers of various calibers and carriages were developed with the added mission of delivering atomic payloads throughout the Cold War. These ranged from the 155 mm W33 shell in the M110 and M115Continue Reading
With a 2006 population of around 280,000, the city of Ramadi was a rapidly growing metropolitan area in Iraq. Situated about halfway between Tharthar Lake and Habbaniyah Lake, the city is located about 60 miles west of Baghdad on the Euphrates River. Ramadi is also a converging point for transit,Continue Reading
