Pritzker Military Museum & Library Podcasts

When the first grenade landed near them, "Doc" Ballard was able to grab it and throw it away. But when the second came, he knew he didn't have enough time, and he knew his patients would be killed by the blast. So he threw himself on the grenade, and waited...

In the midst of widespread police corruption, can the Mexican government enforce the rule of law? What approach is the White House taking to address this growing threat to our national security? And what role do U.S. weapons - and demand for illegal drugs...

George Weller began reporting on Greece and the Balkans for the New York Times in the 1930s, and then made his name covering World War II for the Chicago Daily News. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1943 for his story of an emergency appendectomy on a submarine...

The first Medal of Honor was awarded to Private Jacob Parrott for a daring Civil War raid known as the Great Locomotive Chase. Led by Union agent James J. Andrews, the team slipped behind enemy lines and stole a locomotive named the "General".

As a high school student, Pittman was inspired by President John F. Kennedy's inaugural address, and decided that his call to service lay in the military. There was one significant obstacle, though: Pittman was legally blind in one eye.

For renowned military historian Allan R. Millett, the approaching 60th anniversary of the Korean War provides an opportunity to reflect on the inter-war years in the Koreas (1945-1950).

Most histories of World War II focus on the famous generals and major campaigns, the soldiers and heroic sacrifices - the combat narrative of the war, particularly as it involved Americans. But The Bitter Road to Freedom is a chronicle of the civilian experience.

As recent history has shown, economic turmoil can have unexpected consequences. While democracy in the United States narrowly emerged unscathed from the Great Depression, a similar crisis in Germany allowed the National Socialists to rise from a minority party...

First Lt. James A. Taylor was serving in South Vietnam as Executive Officer of B Troop, First Cavalry, Americal Division on November 8, 1967 when he was notified that his commander had been wounded in action.

"Operation Indiana," a blocking mission in the Quang Ngai Province of Vietnam, took place on March 28, 1966. When C Company, First Battalion, 7th Marines - known as "Suicide Charley" - arrived, they had only 112 men.

The central narrative of House to House is the Second Battle of Fallujah, a joint U.S.-Iraqi offensive in November 2004. Although infantry and officers alike had discussed the upcoming offensive in terms of Normandy and other famous battles of American military...

Nearly everyone knows what life on Her Majesty's Secret Service is like: martinis, danger, and the best gadgets England has to offer, with a Bond girl waiting at the end of the adventure. Aspiring members of Stalin's Secret Service would discover a few key...

James Nelson is the author of fifteen works of fiction and non-fiction, including Benedict Arnold's Navy and Thieves of Mercy: A Novel of the Civil War at Sea.

The British Royal Navy ruled the sea with a fleet of warships that could outrun and outgun any other nation with ease. At the outset of the American Revolution, General George Washington and the Continental Congress knew their small navy didn't stand a chance...

In recent years, Pakistan has assumed a major role in the international scene. But as a relatively new country - albeit one with ancient traditions - how is Pakistan dealing with the overwhelming political, military, and economic challenges it faces, all while...