This is the third year I am posting this Christmas Blog, which celebrates the moment in 1914 when the soldiers came out of their trenches to share drinks and sing carols together. It would be nice to imagine that the good side of human nature prevailed and peace was...

I wrote this blog a year ago but the image of men coming out of the trenches to greet each other on Christmas morning remains as vivid as ever. History is filled with acts of barbarity, and modern history has more than its share. One of the most barbaric battlefields...

My last blog was on strategic bombing. A bit grim! I want to set aside my usual historical themes for this blog. As they used to say on ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus:’ ‘now for something completely different.’ In 1949, a mere 70+ years ago, my brother and I received a...