War

John Basilone

American Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone was the only Marine to receive both the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross during World War II. At the Battle of Guadalcanal, Sergeant Basilone successfully defended a narrow pass with his gun team. Afterward, he was offered a safer, base training position but Basilone turned it down in favor of going back into action. At Iwo Jima, he gave his life on the battlefield.Flickr

What defines history's greatest war heroes? The answer isn't always simple. The normal attributes ascribed to heroes — like bravery — sometimes don't apply in war, where every day might offer the terrifying possibility of losing your life.

As World War II veteran William Carpenter once said, "You show me a man who says he was brave [during World War II], and I'll show you a liar. Every one of us was afraid. Even the Germans were afraid."

Like bravery, we might think that skill with a weapon is a key element of war heroes. However, some of the most remarkable war heroes never even picked up a weapon. Take Desmond Doss, a "consciousness objector" who abhorred weapons and violence. Nevertheless, he saved between 50 and 100 men during World War II at the Battle of Okinawa. Doss never wielded a gun and instead used his skills as a medic.

Then there are those who became war heroes only after changing their identities. Consider Deborah Sampson, who disguised herself as a man in order to fight in the Revolutionary War. Or the Irish-born Jennie Hodgers, who transformed themselves into a man named Albert Cashier and fought during the American Civil War.

Meanwhile, we have the soldiers who defied convention on their way to becoming war heroes. There's "Mad Jack" Churchill, who stormed into battle during World War II wielding a broadsword or a longbow, and or George Henry Thomas, a Southern general who fought for the Union Army.

Of course, there are controversial war heroes as well. John Rabe was a Nazi — an enthusiastic one — but he saved hundreds of thousands of Chinese people when the Japanese invaded Nanjing. And Japanese soldier Hiroo Onoda, who kept fighting World War II for three full decades after the war actually ended.

Some of the war heroes in the gallery above even operated in the shadows, like the spy Virginia Hall. Others proved their prowess in the sky, like "Ace of Aces" Richard Bong. They're all different. Yet, what all of these war heroes did was step up when they were called.

So, what makes a war hero? Look through the gallery above and learn about some of history's most interesting war heroes who fought, and sometimes died, for what they thought was right.

The story of the First World War has been told in fiction, film, and television many times since the Great War began in 1914. Previously, we gathered together some of the best poems about the First World War, but what about the novels and short stories that have been written? And what, for that matter, of the non-fiction memoirs from those who lived through the conflict?

"The King of Norway" by Cecelia Holland

Conn Corbansson fought for Sweyn Tjugas in his rise to King of Denmark. Sweyn had promised they would also take England, but now he's hesitant. Sweyn has his sights set on Norway, and has enlisted the help of the Jomsvikings. Conn is upset with the change. While feasting, many of the notables make public oaths. Caught up in the moment, Conn makes one himself.

"The Defense of Free Mind" by Desirina Boskovich

is working a shift in the greenhouse when the sirens go off. She grabs a rifle from the locker and sets up at the wall, along with the other Defenders. Five people are approaching on a boat marked with the City insignia. The city people all look the same, and they want to conquer Free Mind and control them. The Defenders fire on the boat.

1.Rebecca West, The Return of the Soldier.

West's debut novel, published in 1918 when she was just twenty-five, is a short narrative about a man, Chris Baldry, who returns from fighting in the First World War having lost his memory. His wife, Kitty, has to care for her shell-shocked husband while helping him to regain his memories of his life with her.However, when Chris's memory does start to return, it is Margaret, a woman he was romantically involved with some fifteen years before, whom he remembers. What follows is a new take on the eternal love triangle, but with some perceptive insight into the effect that shell-shock and PTSD had on the loved ones – especially the wives – of the men who returned from the Western Front.