Refine your search

The results of your search are listed below alongside the search terms you entered on the previous page. You can refine your search by amending any of the parameters in the form and resubmitting it.

Select all Deselect all Add selection to lightbox
Large Small
Thumbnails per page
Netherlands: 'The Battle of Scheveningen, August 10, 1653'. Ink and oil on canvas painting by Willem van de Velde the Elder (c. 1611-1693), 1657. The Battle of Scheveningen was the final naval battle of the First Anglo-Dutch War. In June 1653, the English fleet had begun a blockade of the Dutch coast. On August 10, English and Dutch ships engaged, resulting in heavy damage to both sides. The blockade was lifted, but Dutch Admiral Maarten Tromp's death was a severe blow, leading eventually to Dutch concessions in the Treaty of Westminster.
The First Sino-Japanese War (1 August 1894 - 17 April 1895) was waged between Qing Dynasty China and the Japanese Empire, primarily over control of the Korean peninsula. In China, the war is commonly known as the War of Jiawu, while in Japan it is called the Japan-Qing War, and in Korea, the Qing-Japan War.<br/><br/> The war lasted 8 months altogether, and saw more than six months of unbroken victories and success by the Japanese land and naval forces against the numerically superior but militarily inferior Chinese army. The Japanese eventually took over the Chinese port city of Weihaiwei and forced the Qing government to sue for peace in February 1895, though the war would continue until April.<br/><br/> The Sino-Japanese War highlighted the stark failure of the Qing Empire to modernise and advance its armed forces, and resulted in regional dominance in East Asia shifting for the first time from China to Japan. The Korean peninsula, Joseon, was removed from the Chinese sphere of influence and fell under Japanese vassalage instead.
The Taku Forts or Dagu Forts (Chinese: 大沽炮台; pinyin: Dàgū Pàotái; literally 'Taku batteries'), also called the Peiho Forts (Chinese:白河碉堡; pinyin: Báihé Diāobǎo) are forts located by the Hai River (Peiho River) estuary, in Tanggu District, Tianjin municipality, in northeastern China. They are located 60 km southeast of the Tianjin urban center.<br/><br/> In 1856, Chinese soldiers boarded 'The Arrow', a Chinese-owned ship registered in Hong Kong flying the British flag and suspected of piracy, smuggling and of being engaged in the opium trade. They captured 12 men and imprisoned them. Though the certificate allowing the ship to fly a British flag had expired, there was still an armed response. The British and French sent gunboats under the command of Admiral Sir Michael Seymour to capture the Taku Forts in May 1858. In June 1858, at the end of the first part of the Second Opium War, the Treaties of Tianjin were signed, which opened Tianjin to foreign trade.<br/><br/> In 1859, after China refused to allow the setting up of foreign legations in Beijing, a naval force under the command of British Admiral Sir James Hope attacked the forts guarding the mouth of the Peiho river. During the action US Navy Commodore Josiah Tattnall came to the assistance of the British gunboat HMS Plover,– commanded by Lt William Hector Rason, who was killed in the action – offering to take off their wounded.<br/><br/> Plover's commander, Hope, accepted the offer and a launch was sent to take off the wounded. Later, Tattnall discovered that some of his men were black from powder flashes. When asked, the men replied that the British had been short handed with the bow gun. His famous report sent to Washington claimed 'Blood is thicker than water'. This was the first time the British troops needed American assistance after suffering major casualties from the Taku cannon barrage, and the first time that British and American troops fought side by side.
The Taku Forts or Dagu Forts (Chinese: 大沽炮台; pinyin: Dàgū Pàotái; literally 'Taku batteries'), also called the Peiho Forts (Chinese:白河碉堡; pinyin: Báihé Diāobǎo) are forts located by the Hai River (Peiho River) estuary, in Tanggu District, Tianjin municipality, in northeastern China. They are located 60 km southeast of the Tianjin urban center.<br/><br/> In 1856, Chinese soldiers boarded 'The Arrow', a Chinese-owned ship registered in Hong Kong flying the British flag and suspected of piracy, smuggling and of being engaged in the opium trade. They captured 12 men and imprisoned them. Though the certificate allowing the ship to fly a British flag had expired, there was still an armed response. The British and French sent gunboats under the command of Admiral Sir Michael Seymour to capture the Taku Forts in May 1858. In June 1858, at the end of the first part of the Second Opium War, the Treaties of Tianjin were signed, which opened Tianjin to foreign trade.<br/><br/> In 1859, after China refused to allow the setting up of foreign legations in Beijing, a naval force under the command of British Admiral Sir James Hope attacked the forts guarding the mouth of the Peiho river. During the action US Navy Commodore Josiah Tattnall came to the assistance of the British gunboat HMS Plover,– commanded by Lt William Hector Rason, who was killed in the action – offering to take off their wounded.<br/><br/> Plover's commander, Hope, accepted the offer and a launch was sent to take off the wounded. Later, Tattnall discovered that some of his men were black from powder flashes. When asked, the men replied that the British had been short handed with the bow gun. His famous report sent to Washington claimed 'Blood is thicker than water'. This was the first time the British troops needed American assistance after suffering major casualties from the Taku cannon barrage, and the first time that British and American troops fought side by side.