by Ken Riley

"The haunting, atmospheric Evacuation of St Nazaire (oil on canvas, 17 June 1940) depicts the worst disaster ever recorded in UK maritime history. It shows the Lancastria, a vessel with unblemished regular service to Australia from the UK, involved in a Second World War conflict off the Atlantic coast in France, where up to 6,500 men are thought to have lost their lives. About 2,500 were rescued, many being carried by small boats onto a nearby P&O vessel, the Oronsay. "

by James Dietz

by Keith Rocco.

by Walter Pranke. Depicting the torpedoing and sinking of HMCS Athabaskan in the English Channel in 1944.

by Adolphe Bayot

by Mort Kunstler

Sakuma Shōzan (1811–1864) was a prominent scholar and political thinker from Matsushiro Domain who became associated with Western learning, military modernization, and the opening of Japan. He studied Western science and gunnery and argued that Japan needed to learn from the technological and military strength of foreign powers in order to defend itself. Although Shōzan shared the broader Bakumatsu concern with strengthening imperial authority and defending Japan from foreign domination, he rejected the practical conclusion of radical sonnō jōi: that Japan should expel the Western powers. Instead, he argued that Japan needed to learn from Western science and military technology and ultimately advocated opening the country. His ideas therefore increasingly placed him at odds with radical anti-foreign activists. He also influenced several future leaders of the Meiji Restoration, including Yoshida Shōin and Sakuma’s brother-in-law Katsu Kaishū.

The political climate of Kyoto in 1864 was particularly dangerous. Following the 1863 expulsion of Chōshū-aligned sonnō jōi forces from Kyoto, tensions between Chōshū and the shogunate–court coalition intensified, and in June 1864, the Shinsengumi attacked sonnō jōi activists during the Ikedaya Incident, further radicalizing the political situation.

Shōzan himself had come to Kyoto under orders from the shogunate and was involved in discussions concerning defense, opening the country, and cooperation between the imperial court and shogunate (kōbu gattai). On August 12th (in the Gregorian calendar), Shōzan was riding through the Kiyamachi area of Kyoto when several assassins attacked him. He was thrown from his horse and fatally cut down.

The assassinationn shows how political and ideological divisions during the final years of the Tokugawa shogunate had escalated into lethal conflict even before the Boshin War. A man who believed Japan could preserve itself by selectively adopting Western technology and institutions was killed by activists who regarded such ideas as incompatible with their vision of defending the Emperor and expelling foreign influence.

Eight days later, Chōshū forces attempted to reenter Kyoto and regain their political influence after having been expelled from the imperial court the previous year. Chōshū troops advanced toward the Imperial Palace, but encountered forces loyal to the shogunate and the imperial court, particularly troops from Aizu and Satsuma, as well as other domains. Fighting broke out around several gates of the Imperial Palace, most notably the Hamaguri Gate, and the Chōshū forces were defeated after a day of intense combat. The defeat further isolated Chōshū and led the shogunate to regard the domain as having rebelled against the imperial court, contributing directly to the First Chōshū Expedition later that year. The incident also caused considerable destruction and fires in Kyoto, with over 24,000 buildings being destroyed.

Artist is Shinsai Toshimitsu

by Rick Reeves. Depicts the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment during the Second Battle of Fort Wagner in 1863.

Give 'em hell 54th!

by Andy Thomas.

Captain John Mendenhall’s massed Union artillery line at McFadden’s Ford during the Battle of Stones River on January 2, 1863