NHSA

The Challenges faced by Russia's High Command in the 1812 Campaign
2023-10-05 14:00 - 15:30 (Europe/London) | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
As part of the NHSA week of talks, exhibitions and tabletop simulations in which we study the momentous campaign of 1812 – the invasion of Russia by the largest army Napoleon ever commanded, we are once again honoured and privileged to welcome Professor Alexander Mikaberidze as one of our speakers. Alexander Mikaberidze is Professor of History and the Ruth Herring Noel Endowed Chair at Louisiana State University Shreveport. He is an internationally renowned historian of the Napoleonic Wars having been the author and editor of over 20 books, including the critically acclaimed “The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History” (Oxford, 2020). He has published extensively on the 1812 campaign and has a particular interest in the Russian commanders with his very recent work including “Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace”, (Oxford, 2022). The talk will be held at 2 pm on Thursday 5 October at 24 Kingfisher Court, Newbury RG14 5SJ . Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend

The Battle of Borodino: New Perspectives
2023-10-04 09:00 - 17:00 | Berkshire
As part of its 1812Week the NHSA is delighted to welcome back Rohan Saravanamuttu, as our speaker for a talk on the great battle of Borodino. Rohan graduated with distinction from the Department of War Studies, Kings College, London and taught as an assistant to Professor Philip Sabin. He is a contributor to “The Encyclopaedia of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars” (Fremont-Barnes, G. (ed), ABC Clio, Santa Barbara 2006) and has recently published on the Leipzig Campaign with Helion last year. He is very familiar with the Borodino battlefield and will provide a new perspective from his most recent visit to the site. The talk will take place on Wednesday 4 October at 9.15 am at the NHSA. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 or through the contact page if you would like to attend.

The Logistics and Attrition of the Grande Armée in the 1812 Russian Campaign
2023-10-02 09:00 - 17:00 | Berkshire
As part of our sequence of talks on Napoleon’s Invasion of Russia in 1812, the NHSA are extremely pleased to welcome Dr Stephen Summerfield as our first speaker. Stephen has written extensively on the Napoleonic period with lavishly illustrated works on the artillery, flags, organisation, tactics, and uniforms of the Austrian, British, French, Prussian, Russian, Spanish and Westphalian Armies among many of the other protagonists. He has covered aspects of the 1812 campaign in detail with co-author, Paul Richardson, in (2024) Russia 1812, The Death of Napoleon’s Grande Armée and (2021) Vilnius 1812: Ghosts of Napoleon’s Grande Armée through their Artifacts. He is an acknowledged expert on artillery of the period with consultancies with the Channel 5, Fort Amherst, Royal Armouries and the Shorncliffe Trust among others. He is the editor of the Smoothbore Ordnance Journal that deals with the technical aspects of 18th and 19th warfare. Stephen has recently carried out extensive research on the logistics of the 1812 campaign and his talk will address this subject. The talk will take place at 9.15 am on Monday 2 October 2023. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 or through the contact page on this site if you would like to attend

1812 Week
2023-10-01 14:00 - 2023-10-06 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
The NHSA will be hosting a sequence of talks, exhibitions and simulations of Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in 1812, the largest and most ambitious campaign in his reign as Emperor. Further details of the individual talks will follow. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 or through the website contact page if you would like to attend.

Stalingrad: The Defence of the Factories
2023-09-30 09:00 - 2023-10-01 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
This will be a repeat of the event held on 23 and 24 September 2023 in which we study the assault on the Tractor and Barrikady Factories. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend.

Stalingrad: The Defence of the Factories
2023-09-23 09:00 - 2023-09-24 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
The NHSA are extremely pleased and honoured to have Dr Michael Jones as our speaker for this special event in which we focus on aspects of the Battle of Stalingrad and in particular the defence of the factory area of the city in September and October 1942. Michael is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a member of the British Commission for Military History. He has taught at the University of South West England, Glasgow University, and Winchester College. As a leading expert on Stalingrad and the Eastern Front more generally his critically acclaimed works include “Stalingrad: How the Red Army Triumphed”, “Total War: From Stalingrad to Berlin”, “Leningrad: State of Siege” and “The Retreat: Hitler’s First Defeat”. He has also conducted battlefield tours of the Eastern Front for several years. The talk will take place at 9.15 am on Sunday 24 September and will be accompanied by an exhibition and a simulation of the assault on the Tractor and Barrikady Factories. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend

The Battle of Shiloh - First Clash in the West
2023-08-19 09:00 - 2023-08-20 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
The NHSA are delighted and honoured to welcome Scott L. Mingus, Sr. as our speaker for this event in which we study the early American Civil War battle of Shiloh. Scott is a multiple award-winning author on the Civil War whose many critically acclaimed works include “If we are Striking for Pennsylvania” and “The Second Battle of Winchester” both co-authored with Eric J. Wittenberg and covering aspects of the Gettysberg campaign, and “Gettysberg Glimpses: True Stories from the Battlefield” . The talk will take place at 12.30 pm on Saturday 19 August and will be accompanied by an exhibition and a tabletop simulation of the battle. Please contact Philip Marshall if you would like to attend.

The Ebro 1938: Republican Denouement?
2023-07-29 09:00 - 2023-07-30 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
For this event, in which we study the last Republican offensive of the Spanish Civil War, the NHSA is very pleased to welcome Colonel Ray Wilkinson as our speaker. He is a retired Regular and Army Reserves Officer and an accredited member of the International Guild of Battlefield Guides and the Guild’s Chief Validator He is a former Council Member of the Army Records Society and is deeply interested in the actions of the British Battalion of the International Brigades during this conflict. He has been leading tours to Spanish Civil War battlefields since 2007. Colonel Wilkinson’s talk will focus on the last gasp gamble of the ill fated Republican Government of Spain against the Nationalist Forces, in a war described by many as the opening round of World War 2. The talk will commence at 9.15 am on Sunday 30 July 2023 at 24 Kingfisher Court, Newbury RG14 5SJ and be preceded and accompanied by an exhibition and a simulation of part of the battle in 1/35 scale which starts on the previous day. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946041733 if you would like to attend.

Vitoria: Wellington's decisive peninsular victory?
2023-07-08 09:00 - 2023-07-09 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
This topic has proved extremely popular and NHSA is both privileged honoured to welcome Carole Divall as our speaker for further study of the battle of Vitoria. Carole Divall has published extensively on the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars, especially with reference to the British army in the Peninsula. Her recent works have included “Wellington’s Worse Scrape: The Burgos Campaign 1812” and, most pertinently, the masterly “Wellington and the Vitoria Campaign 1813: Never a Finer Army”. She has also just published the first comprehensive study of the Fifth Division in the Peninsula “Wellington’s Unsung Heroes: the Fifth Division in the Peninsular War 1810-1814”. A Council Member of the Society for Army Historical Research she must now rank among the outstanding British historians of Wellington’s campaigns in Spain. The talk will be held at 12 noon on Sunday 9 July 2023 at 24 Kingfisher Court, Newbury RG14 5SJ and will be accompanied and preceded by an exhibition and simulation as with all other NHSA events which will commence at 9.15 am on the preceding day. Please contact Philip Marshall either via the enquiry link or on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend

Vitoria: Wellington's decisive peninsular victory?
2023-06-24 09:00 - 2023-06-25 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
NHSA is delighted and honoured to welcome Professor Charles Esdaile as our speaker for this event in which we analyse the battle of Vitoria. Professor of History at Liverpool University, Charles Esdaile has been prolific in his publications on the Peninsular War and is a specialist on Spain in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic era. His many works include “The Peninsular War: A New History” and “Peninsular Eyewitnesses: the Experience of War in Spain and Portugal 1808-1813”. He must now stand as the most authoritative British source on what has been called “Napoleon’s Spanish Ulcer”. He also has a strong interest in the simulation of historical battles and is about to publish a new work “Wargaming Waterloo”. The talk will be held at 9.15 am on Saturday 24 June 2023 at 24 Kingfisher Court, Newbury RG14 5SJ and will be accompanied by an exhibition and simulation as with all other NHSA events. Please contact Philip Marshall either via the enquiry link or on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend

Alesia: Caesar's Greatest Victory
2023-05-13 09:00 - 2023-05-14 16:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
The NHSA is delighted to welcome Gregory Coates as our speaker for this event in which we study Caesar’s famous siege of Alesia, which formed the culmination of his campaigns in Gaul. Gregory will be attending as part of our programme of speakers engaged in doctorate research. Having graduated with first class honours from Oxford University, Gregory is currently a doctorate candidate in Classics at King’s College, London and specialises in the political and military history of the Roman Republic, with an emphasis on the Civil Wars of the first century BCE. He has published already on the dictatorship of Lucius Cornelius Sulla and has a particular interest in the career of Julius Caesar. This event will take place at 9.15 am on Saturday 13 May 2023 and will be accompanied by a small exhibition and a simulation of the great siege. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend.

Pendulum of War: the First Battle of El Alamein
2023-04-01 09:00 - 2023-04-02 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
NHSA is delighted and honoured to welcome Niall Barr as our speaker for this event in which we study the First Battle of El Alamein. Professor of Military History at King’s College, London and Dean of Academic Studies of the Defence Studies Department, Niall Barr has published extensively on the Second World War and is a leading expert on the Western Desert campaign and on relations between the western allies during the conflict. His Pendulum of War: The Three battles of El Alamein is one of the most detailed and incisive studies of the turning point in North Africa. Educated at the University of St Andrews, he has previously taught at St Andrews and the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. He joined the Staff College in 2000, where he teaches on a wide range of military courses, including the Higher Command and Staff Course. The talk will be held at 9.15 am on Saturday 1 April 2023 at 24 Kingfisher Court, Newbury RG14 5SJ and will be accompanied by an exhibition and simulation as with all other NHSA events. Please contact Philip Marshall either via the enquiry link or on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend

The Battle of Friedland: New Russian Perspectives
2023-02-25 09:00 - 2023-02-26 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
It is once again an honour and privilege to welcome Professor Alexander Mikaberidze as our speaker for an event in which we study the decisive Napoleonic battle of Friedland in 1807 in light of Russian materials recently made available in English. Alexander Mikaberidze is Professor of History and the Ruth Herring Noel Endowed Chair at Louisiana State University Shreveport. He is an internationally renowned historian of the Napoleonic Wars having been the author and editor of over 20 books, including the critically acclaimed “The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History” (Oxford, 2020), “The Berezina 1812” published by Osprey, a trilogy on Napoleon’s invasion of Russia and the very recent “Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace”, (Oxford, 2022). He is shortly to publish “Confronting Napoleon, Volume 1, Pultusk to Eylau”, an edited translation of the memoir of Levin von Bennigsen, which will be followed by a further work on the battle of Friedland. The talk will be held at 2 pm on 25 February 2023 at 24 Kingfisher Court, Newbury RG14 5SJ and will be accompanied by an exhibition and simulation as with all other NHSA events. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend.

Boston 1775: Myths and Reality
2023-02-12 09:00 - 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
Continuation of the study of the 1775 siege of Boston, a linked event to that of 15 January 2023. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend.

Boston 1775: Myths and Reality
2023-01-15 09:00 - 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
The NHSA is delighted and honoured to welcome distinguished author and leading expert on the American Wars of Independence, Brendan Morrissey, as our speaker for this event. Brendan trained for a legal career and worked in the defence industry before turning to writing. He is the author of a sequence of illustrated works on this American conflict including “Boston 1775: The Shot Heard Around the World”, “Saratoga 1777: Turning Point of a Revolution” and “Yorktown 1781”. This talk will take place on Sunday 15 January 2023 at 9.15 am and be accompanied by an exhibit and simulation of the key battle for Breed’s or Bunker Hill. Continuing the theme, there will be a further exhibit and simulation of other aspects of the Boston campaign on Sunday 12 February 2023. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend on either date.

The Battle of Eylau 1807: A Napoleonic Enigma
2022-12-17 09:00 - 2022-12-18 15:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
It is an honour and privilege to welcome Professor Alexander Mikaberidze as our speaker for an event in which we study the epic Napoleonic battle in the snow at Eylau in 1807. Alexander Mikaberidze is Professor of History and the Ruth Herring Noel Endowed Chair at Louisiana State University Shreveport. He is an internationally renowned historian of the Napoleonic Wars having been the author and editor of over 20 books, including the critically acclaimed “The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History” (Oxford, 2020), “The Berezina 1812” published by Osprey, a trilogy on Napoleon’s invasion of Russia and the very recent “Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace”, (Oxford, 2022). He is shortly to publish “Confronting Napoleon, Volume 1, Pultusk to Eylau”, an edited translation of the memoir of Levin von Bennigsen, which will be followed by a further work on the battle of Friedland. The talk will be held at 2 pm on 17 December 2022 at 24 Kingfisher Court, Newbury RG14 5SJ and will be accompanied by an exhibition and simulation as with all other NHSA events. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend.

Ardennes 1944 - New Perspectives
2022-11-12 09:00 - 2022-11-13 15:30 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
The NHSA is delighted and honoured to have Christer Bergstrom as our speaker for this event. Christer is a renowned author on World War II . He has published 25 books on the subject, shortly to be supplemented with a new publication on Stalingrad. His mammoth The Ardennes 1944-1945 Hitler’s Winter Offensive , containing 400 photographs and numerous maps, is a masterpiece of research and must be classed as the definitive work on the subject. Having interviewed veterans, reviewed extensive archive material and performed on the spot research in the area of the conflict he has uncovered much previously unpublished material and made new findings giving the most incisive portrayal yet of what really happened from both the Allied and German perspectives. The talk will be held at 9 am on 12 November 2022 at 24 Kingfisher Court, Newbury RG14 5SJ and will be accompanied by an exhibition and simulation as with all other NHSA events. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you would like to attend.

The Battle of Chickamauga
2022-10-22 09:00 - 2022-10-23 17:00 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
Talk on the largest American Civil War battle in the Western sector which will be given by Major General John Drewienkiewicz (retired). He has had a long-standing and deep interest in the American Civil War. In conjunction with his co-author, Adam Poole, he has published three books on the subject, focussing on the battles of Gettysburg and First Bull Run as well as the Shenandoah Valley campaign of 1862 and which have all addressed their simulation. A particular area of interest has been the Western Theatre and specifically the battle of Chickamauga, a conflict he has had the opportunity to research in the course of an extended visit to the field itself. The talk will be followed by a simulation of the battle in miniature.Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you wish to attend.

New Perspectives on the Leipzig Campaign
2022-10-01 09:00 - 2022-10-02 17:30 | Berkshire
This will be a repeat of the event of 17 to 18 September. All welcome. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you wish to attend.

New Perspectives on the Leipzig Campaign
2022-09-17 09:00 - 2022-09-18 17:30 | NHSA, 24 Kingfisher Court, Hambridge Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5SJ, United Kingdom
Talk to be provided at 9.15 am at 24 Kingfisher Court by Rohan Saravanamuttu, to be accompanied by displays and followed by simulation of the battle of Lutzen 1813, the first major battle of the Leipzig Campaign.
Rohan graduated with distinction from the Department of War Studies, Kings College, London and taught as an assistant to Professor Philip Sabin. He is a contributor to “The Encyclopaedia of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars” (Fremont-Barnes, G. (ed), ABC Clio, Santa Barbara 2006). His book on Leipzig is scheduled to be published by Helion in the autumn of 2022.
This event will be repeated, given popular demand, on 1 to 2 October 2022. All welcome. Please contact Philip Marshall on 07946 041733 if you wish to attend.
