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On this date delegates from across Virginia gathered in Richmond, still arguing over how far to push resistance to imperial authority. The colony had seen protests and organizing, but many leaders hoped a last compromise might avoid open war. Patrick Henry rose to argue that the time for half measures had passed, insisting that the colonies must prepare to fight if they wished to preserve their liberties.
In the shadow of the Cuban Missile Crisis, another October date marked a different kind of strategic turning point.
Two days after the United States garrison at Fort Sumter surrendered, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for seventy-five thousand state militia volunteers to put down the rebellion. The call, issued on April 15th, 1861, transformed a constitutional crisis into a full-scale civil war by forcing citizens, states, and officers to choose sides.
Four years after the war’s outbreak, the nation seemed on the brink of healing when a final shock struck. On the evening of April 14th, 1865, President Lincoln attended a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington City, only days after Confederate forces in Virginia had surrendered a major army. An assassin slipped into the presidential box and fired a pistol shot at close range, mortally wounding the commander in chief.
Just days after Monocacy, on July 12th, 1864, Confederate forces under Jubal Early probed the northern defenses of Washington near Fort Stevens. As skirmishers traded fire and Union troops manned the earthworks, President Abraham Lincoln came to the front lines to see the situation for himself, standing on the parapet within range of enemy rifles.
On December 29th, 1972, the United States halted the intense B-52 and tactical bomber campaign known as Linebacker II against targets around Hanoi and Haiphong in North Vietnam.
On January 9th, 1945, American forces surged ashore along the beaches of Lingayen Gulf on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. Supported by a powerful naval and air armada, soldiers of the United States Sixth Army waded through surf under the threat of mines, artillery, and kamikaze attacks that had already cost the fleet dearly during the approach.
In the late months of the Civil War, East Tennessee became a contested region where loyalty ran sharply divided.
A story of undersea reach and relentless pursuit, told through the crews who spent months in the dark hunting other submarines they hoped never to be seen by.
Off the New England coast, the nuclear-powered submarine USS Thresher was conducting deep-diving tests when something went catastrophically wrong. Communications suggested trouble with systems and attempts to surface as the boat descended beyond its safe limits. Moments later, contact was lost, and later analysis pointed to flooding and a reactor shutdown that left the submarine unable to recover.
On this date American negotiators in Paris agreed to purchase the vast Louisiana territory from France, a deal that nearly doubled the size of the young republic. For the United States Army, the treaty opened an enormous new frontier to explore, survey, and secure, from the Mississippi River out toward the Rocky Mountains. Army officers and enlisted soldiers would lead reconnaissance missions, escort surveyors, and e
The return to Luzon combined amphibious landings, the destruction and liberation of Manila, the recovery of the bay approaches and months of fighting in mountain defenses. Capturing the capital did not end the island campaign.
A story of mobile firepower and thin armor told through the crews who fought from its open turret and the enemies who tried to stop it.
A story of mobility under armor, told through the engineers and armored brigades that depended on a bridge to keep the advance moving.
A story of long-range firepower and survivability told through the crews who rode this tracked gun into modern armored battles.
A story of speed, improvisation, and thin armor told through the crews and battles that defined it.
A story of firepower and adaptation told through the crews who took the Pershing from the ruins of Germany to the hills of Korea.
A story of adaptation, reliability, and hard lessons in steel, told through the crews who fought from its turret.