From the Archives: Operation ‘Hermetic’: countering the threat to D-Day from the German surface fleet

DR TIM BENBOW It was a signal that Admiral Bertram Ramsay must have been longing to send, while being concerned at the potential consequences: ‘CARRY OUT OPERATION HERMETIC’. The issue of this simple order would have executed the contingency plan he had devised as Allied Naval Commander, Expeditionary Force to counter any attempt by the… Read More From the Archives: Operation ‘Hermetic’: countering the threat to D-Day from the German surface fleet

defenceresearch4 Comments

Informal Learning in the British Army in the Eighteenth Century

by DR HUW J DAVIES This is the first of several posts running on Defence-in-Depth over the next few weeks arising out of the Military Learning and Innovation Roundtable held at the Joint Services Command and Staff College on Wednesday 17 June 2015. The roundtable explored the various ways in which militaries have learned, adapted,… Read More Informal Learning in the British Army in the Eighteenth Century

huwjdavies4 Comments

Public Views of the Armed Forces in Britain: Misperceptions and Implications in 2015

by Dr. HELEN McCARTNEY A new survey by Ipsos MORI and King’s College London has provided a fascinating insight into the way publics view their armed forces. The international survey was conducted in Great Britain, Australia, Canada, France, and the US and compared public beliefs about the armed forces with reality. The results for Britain… Read More Public Views of the Armed Forces in Britain: Misperceptions and Implications in 2015

defenceresearchLeave a comment

“Nothing so Melancholy…” The Repercussions of Waterloo

by DR HUW J. DAVIES The repercussions of the Battle of Waterloo were many and varied. Principally, it was a victory for the peace treaty obtained at Vienna and secured the balance of power in Europe. It also gave Viscount Castlereagh the opportunity to propose the Concert of Europe, on which I have written about… Read More “Nothing so Melancholy…” The Repercussions of Waterloo

huwjdaviesLeave a comment

The Battle of Waterloo and its strategic context

DR TIM BENBOW The Battle of Waterloo is a military victory well worth commemorating, even celebrating. The brilliant generalship of the Duke of Wellington and the fighting skill of his coalition army (with its German, Belgian and Dutch as well as British troops) together with their Prussian allies achieved a famous victory. It deserves its… Read More The Battle of Waterloo and its strategic context

defenceresearch1 Comment

Clausewitz in Orbit: Spacepower Theory and Strategic Education

BLEDDYN BOWEN The politics of war and peace in space is an overlooked field. Space is a quiet and lonely place in war studies – despite space systems performing critical infrastructure roles in war, peace, politics, economics, and nuclear stability. In the mid-1990s John Sheldon and Colin Gray bemoaned the fact that there is no… Read More Clausewitz in Orbit: Spacepower Theory and Strategic Education

defenceresearch11 Comments

The Doctrine of ‘Understanding’ and the Illusion of Control

DR CHRIS TRIPODI In an era of supposedly unparalleled challenge and complexity (ignoring for one moment the fact that it isn’t in any way unparalleled), ‘Understanding’ appears to be the current doctrinal plat du jour for Britain’s armed forces. Particularly so for the Army, that service which by and large interacts most closely and personally… Read More The Doctrine of ‘Understanding’ and the Illusion of Control

defenceresearch4 Comments