The Romans were, without a doubt, the most dominant force in the Western Mediterranean throughout most of their history. However, these titans still had their share of catastrophic defeats. The four most notable being: * Battle of Lake Trasimene (217BC): Hannibal, being pursued by Flaminius of Rome, hides in the forests to the north of Lake Trasimene. He then ambushes Flaminius, surrounds him, and easily defeats him. * Battle of Cannae (216BC): Hannibal proves that superior tactics can make up for inferior numbers. Hannibal, using a pincer motion, surrounds the slow Roman forces and slaughters them. * Battle of Arausio (105BC): Boiorix of the Cimbri takes advantage of the two un-cooperative Roman commanders and easily defeats them. * Battle of Teutoberg Forest (9AD): Ariminus of the Germans conducts many hit-and-run attacks on the Romans until every single one of their 24,000 man force is dead. To learn more, read Extreme War by Terrence Poulos Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine

The Battle of Chaldiran was fought in northwestern Persia in 1514. It was fought between the Ottomans (dominant Sunni Muslims from Turkey) and the Safavids (inexperienced Shiite Muslims from Persia). The Ottomans, who had both a numerical advantage and a technological advantage, easily won the battle. However, they chose not to continue the campaign into the Safavid capital. After this battle, the Ottomans experienced a short period of growth, followed by centuries of decline. They were eventually defeated in WWI. As for the Safavids, they experienced a long period of growth until they too were finally overcome by Afghan clans in 1722. For more information, read Worlds Together, Worlds Apart by Robert Tignor et. al. Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine

The Gulf War (lasting from 1990-1991) began when Iraq invaded its neighbor Kuwait. This was the second invasion launched by Iraq in the past decade, with the first being the Iran-Iraq War. It can be divided into four phases: * Desert Shield: Buildup of US and coalition troops in Saudi Arabia * Desert Storm: Incredibly successful air strike on key Iraqi missile installations and SCUD missile launchers. The Smart Bomb became a keynote image of this phase. * Desert Sabre: A tank charge through Kuwait and into Iraq. The US M1A2 Abrams tanks encountered little opposition. * Desert Farewell: A withdrawal of coalition troops after securing the independence of Kuwait. Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine

Cyrus the Great, though he did not found the First Persian Empire, did conduct four expeditions which made it the sole power in the Middle East and Anatolia. His empire would last for the next 200 years until the coming of Alexander the Great. The four campaigns were: 1. Conquering Media: With the help of Harpagus, Cyrus invaded Media currently ruled by Astyages. Astyages was his grandfather and his attempted-murderer. 2. Conquering Lydia: Cyrus conquers Sardis, the capital of the Lydian Empire (under the rule of Croesus). After the Lydian Empire fell, Croesus became an adviser to Cyrus. 3. Conquering Assyrians: Cyrus conquered Babylon, the capital of the Assyrian Empire. He entered the city via draining the Euphrates River. 4. Conquering the Massegatai: Cyrus attempted to conquer Queen Tomyris of the Massegatai (a Scythian Tribe), but was tragically killed by a volley of arrows For more information, read The Histories by Herodotus Military History Podcast is sponspored by Armchair General Magazine

The Battle for Iwo Jima, "sulfur island" of the Pacific, was a battle between the elite US marines and the stout-hearted Japanese defenders. The Japanese, after years of preparation, had created an extensive tunnel network that prevented them from being hurt by the naval bombardment. Consequently, when the Fifth Amphibious Corps (VAC) landed, they had to fight 22,000 well-entrenched Japanese, complete with banzai charges and other intimidating tactics. In the end, the US death toll was 10% and the Japanese death toll was 99% (with the other 1% being captured). For more information: Military History Magazine (February 2003): Marine Private's Iwo Jima Memories The Pacific War Companion by Daniel Marston

Non-lethal technology has always been a goal of military strategists. It provides the same effect of killing without all the horrible consequences (ethical, tactical, etc.). For example, Joshua's capture of Jericho in the bible is a prime example of non-lethal technology. Now, we have various methods of non-lethal warfare, both anti-personell and anti-material. * Lasers: Used to give the illusion of imminent death * Electromagnetic Pulse Weapons: Disables all electronic equipment in a given radius * A weapon that "turns off" all guns in its vicinity * Insect Sex Pheromones: Attracts all nearby insects to infest a certain enclosure * Netgun: Fires a strong net to disable people or vehicles, also serves as an obstacle * Acoustics: Vibrations caused from sound waves have many devastating effects Read Future War by John B. Alexander for more information

Christendom, the most powerful domain in the world for the past 1500 years, was frequently permeated and even brought to the brink of ruin many times. Three of these "close calls" include: * Battle of Tours (732AD): Charles the Hammer of Franks vs. Abd er Rahman of Moors in France * The Golden Horde (1230sAD): Batu Khan invades Eastern Europe, plans to invade Germany * Siege of Vienna (1529AD): Suleiman II of Ottomans vs. Charles II of Austrians at Vienna Each of these events could have ended Christendom prematurely and stunted important ages such as the Renaissance, Industrial Revolution, as Imperialism.

The First Persian War includes the Persians being defeated by the Athenians at the Battle of Marathon. The Persians started this war out of anger for the Athenians and their support of the Ionian Revolt. This battle is also where we get the name for our modern-day Olympic Game: The Marathon. The Second Persian War includes the famous Greek stand at Thermopylae, the brilliant Athenian naval victory at Salamis, and the catastrophic Persian defeat at the Battle of Plataea. Following this war, the Persians would not reenter Greek affair until briefly in the Peloponnesian Wars. This also set the stage for Alexander the Greats conquering of Persia in the 4th century BC.

Biological warfare has been a part of war since 1,000 BC when the Chinese burned toxic vegetables and hoped the fumes would travel towards the enemy. Since that time, biological warfare has become dealier and more precise, yet there is always the risk of collateral damage. In the past few decades, world powers have worked to outlaw biological weaponry for their gruesome effects and their "unfairness" in war. However, biological warfare continues to be a threat both in war, and at home.

Throughout modern history, snipers have had a prominent role as the forward observers and marksmen of any army. They are trained to camouflage themselves, shoot a high-ranking enemy soldier, and extract themselves from the area without the enemy ever knowing they were there. Snipers have a unique mindset in that they are highly solitary, must stay in the same position for hours, and must be able to kill an enemy without even giving them a chance. For these reasons, snipers have earned their fair share of medals and recognition.