Where the course of history has been decided on the battlefield. These are the battles that made us -- a detailed, entertaining, and tangent-free program about ...
The Siege of Stalingrad, 1943. Hitler's Critical Error.
Germany’s failure to take Stalingrad did more than cost them a city, it collapsed the entire southern campaign. With the 6th Army destroyed and the line of advance broken, the push toward the Caucasus oil fields disintegrated. Those fields were the key to strangling the Soviet war effort, cut them off, and the Red Army’s engines would fall silent. But without Stalingrad, the route was dead. The Wehrmacht, now overextended and underfed, could not punch south. Hitler had lost the one chance to bleed the Soviet Union at its source. And from that moment forward, the Red Army would not be starved. It would be fueled. It would be armed. And it would come west like a hammer.Stalingrad. August 24, 1942 - February 2, 1943.Nazi Forces: 230,000 Soldiers.Soviet Forces: ~ 300,000 Soldiers.Additional Reading and Episode Research:Hayward, Joel. Stopped at Stalingrad.Zhukov, Georgi. Marshal Zhukov's Greatest Battles.Chuikov, V.I. The Battle for Stalingrad.Beevor, Antony. Stalingrad.Support the showSocial Media:www.HistorysGreatestBattles.comYoutube | TikTok Support The Show:https://covertwars.com
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The Siege of Boulogne, 1544. The Collapse of a Throne Built on Defiance.
King Henry, having taken Boulogne through sheer force of will, stood at the height of his final campaign, but he could not convert occupation into dominance. The victory, though real, yielded no strategic transformation. Faced with financial strain, dwindling supplies, and an unreliable ally in Emperor Charles, he abandoned further escalation. The peace he signed with France was not born of strength, but of exhaustion... a reluctant admission that the age of English conquest on the Continent had passed. With that treaty, Henry’s long pursuit of martial glory ended: not in triumph, but in limitation. It marked the quiet extinguishing of a military legacy forged in fury, but ultimately constrained by the realities of power.Boulogne. July 19 - September 18, 1544.English Forces: 16,000 Soldiers to take Boulogne, 4,000 to hold it.French Forces: ~ 2,000 Soldiers. Additional Reading and Episode Research:Scarisbrick, J.J. Henry VIII.Cornish, Paul. Henry VIII's Army.Ridley, Jasper. Henry VIII.Support the showSocial Media:www.HistorysGreatestBattles.comYoutube | TikTok Support The Show:https://covertwars.com
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19:07
The Siege of Basra, 1982-87. Chemical Warfare. Nerve Gas. A Million Casualties.
The fighting around Basra was the bloodiest of the Iran-Iraq War, grinding through thousands of lives as both sides hurled everything they had into the struggle. It was here that Iraq unleashed chemical weapons on a massive scale, forcing the world to take notice... not out of moral outrage, but out of the cold realization that modern warfare had crossed another line.Basra. July 13, 1982 - February 27, 1987.Iraqi Forces: ~ 285,000 Soldiers.Iranian Forces: Unknown, but Hundreds of Thousands.Additional Reading and Episode Research:Wagner, A.R. The Lessons of Modern War.Yengst, William. The Iran-Iraq War: The Siege of Basra.Support the showSocial Media:www.HistorysGreatestBattles.comYoutube | TikTok Support The Show:https://covertwars.com
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The Siege of Badajoz, 1812. Total Carnage, Absolute Gore. Napoleon's Spanish Divisions Decimated by Wellington.
When the guns fell silent and the blood-soaked ruins of Badahose lay under British control, the last obstacle between Wellington and Spain was gone. The fortress had been the key, the final lock on the door that led into Napoleon’s empire. Now, the British held that key, and there would be no turning back. The invasion of Spain had begun: not as a probing raid, not as a cautious advance, but as a declaration of war against the French occupation itself. The road to Madrid lay open, and with it, the future of the entire Peninsular War.Badajoz. March 17 - April 6, 1812.British Forces: 51,000 Infantry, 52 Siege Guns.French Forces: 4,700 Infantry, 140 Guns.Additional Reading and Episode Research:Lawrence, James. The Iron Duke.Myatt, Frederick. British Sieges of the Peninsular War.Glover, Michael. Wellington's Peninsular Victories.Support the showSocial Media:www.HistorysGreatestBattles.comYoutube | TikTok Support The Show:https://covertwars.com
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The Siege of Gibraltar, 1779- 1783. The Longest Siege in British History. Key to WWII Centuries Later.
The last great effort to reclaim Gibraltar ended in defeat, sealing Britain’s hold over the gateway to the Mediterranean. The Rock remained under the Union Jack, and with it, Britain maintained the power to dictate the movement of fleets, the flow of commerce, and the balance of influence in one of the world’s most contested waterways. Every empire that challenged British naval supremacy in the centuries that followed would have to contend with the fact that this fortress, at the crossroads of Europe and Africa, was still in British hands... and with it, command over the sea that shaped the course of history.Gibraltar. July 11, 1779 - February 2, 1783.British Forces: 5,380 Soldiers and Five Ships.Spanish Forces: 21,000 Soldiers and 19 Ships.Additional Reading and Episode Research:McGuffie, T.H. The Siege of Gibraltar, 1779-1783.Russel, Jack. Gibraltar Besieged, 1779 - 1783.Bradford, Ernle. Gibraltar: The History of a Fortress.Support the showSocial Media:www.HistorysGreatestBattles.comYoutube | TikTok Support The Show:https://covertwars.com
Where the course of history has been decided on the battlefield. These are the battles that made us -- a detailed, entertaining, and tangent-free program about history's greatest battles. In this podcast we journey through the constancy of human conflict, where the fates of nations and the course of global history have been decided on the battlefield. This podcast delves into our world-history's most significant and seminal battles, exploring not just the events themselves but their profound impact on the world we live in today. Each episode is meticulously crafted by ardent and dedicated history fans with a passion for military history and an appreciation for the art of storytelling. Join us as we unravel the strategies, heroics, and consequences that have shaped civilizations and forged the destiny of entire continents.
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