Reasons for Dropping the Atomic Bomb

President Truman's decision to drop the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has always been a highly debatable topic. According to Truman himself, he did this from a purely military viewpoint: dropping the bomb would end the war quickly and effectively, with the least amount of…

What Were The Most Important Battles in History?

It is hard to say for sure which battles were the most important in the history of humankind, but the world may certainly have looked a lot different if certain battles were not fought and won by the right people... Battle of Marathon, 490 BC The Battle of Marathon was…

The Bloodiest Battle In History

The Battle of Stalingrad was arguably the bloodiest battle in history, claiming a total of 1,971,00 lives, of which 841 000 on the German side and 1 130 000 Soviet. Fought during WW2, between August 1942 and February 1943, this battle was all about gaining control of Stalingrad (now known…

Where did the Civil War Begin?

The Civil War started on the 12th of April, 1861 in Charleston Bay, South Carolina, when the Confederates opened fire on the Union-controlled Fort Sumter. Why Fort Sumter? After seven Southern states declared secession, South Carolina demanded that the United States Army abandon all of its facilities in the harbor…

What Was the Iron Curtain and How Did It Collapse?

The Iron Curtain is a term that received prominence after Winston Churchill's speech in which he said that an "iron curtain has descended" across Europe. He was referring to the boundary line that divided Europe in two different political areas: Western Europe had political freedom, while Eastern Europe was under…

What Was The Final Solution?

The "Final Solution" was an euphemism for Nazi Germany's plans to solve what they called the "Jewish problem" by annihilating the Jewish population. Stages Whether it was planned like this from the beginning is uncertain, but the Final Solution was implemented in stages. Firstly, Nazi Germany implemented anti-Jewish legislation, boycotts, the ghetto-system and Jews were…

How Many Presidents Have Been Impeached?

How many presidents have been impeached? This article lists those presidents and describes the conditions of their impeachment. A total of three U.S. Presidents have been impeached by the House of Representatives. The first was Andrew Johnson, in 1868, for dismissing Edwin M. Stanton as secretary of war. The second…

Why Did the Battle of Gettysburg Happen?

The Battle of Gettysburg, which became the largest battle ever fought in the U.S., started out as a chance encounter between the Union and Confederate Forces. After his victory at Chancellorsville in Virginia, Confederate commander Lee decided to focus on invading the North in what he called the Gettysburg Campaign. The…

Why Was Andrew Johnson Impeached?

Andrew Johnson was impeached in 1868 because he decided to dismiss Edwin M. Stanton (a radical Republican) and appoint Ulysses S. Grant in his place as secretary of war. Why Such A Big Fuss About a Dismissal? President Johnson had a Reconstruction program that was very lenient toward the defeated South…

What was the Bonus Army?

The Bonus Army consisted of a group of around 43,000 people, among which 17,000 WW1 veterans with their families who gathered during the spring and summer of 1932 in Washington D.C. They called themselves the "Bonus Expeditionary Force," set up camps around the city and waited for Congress to decide…