Announcements and Events

CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT
Hearts, Minds and Airspace: Air Power,
Humanitarianism and Counterinsurgency
Thursday 10-Friday 11 September 2026
 
Hosted at the Royal Air Force Museum, London, the two-day conference will critically examine the entanglements of Air Power, counterinsurgency (COIN) and humanitarianism. The conference will have an interdisciplinary approach, including papers from history, international relations and defence studies among other disciplines.
 
Air Power has become a central – yet often underexamined – dimension of contemporary counterinsurgency and humanitarian practice. From airstrikes, drones and surveillance platforms to humanitarian airlifts, medical evacuations, and “hearts and minds” campaigns conducted from above, the sky has emerged as a key site where violence, care, governance and legitimacy intersect.
 
The conference aims to explore how Air Power shapes counterinsurgency strategies and humanitarian practices across historical and contemporary contexts, and how these dynamics are experienced, justified, contested and resisted.
 
Full details can be found in the attached PDF.


CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT
BCMH Summer Conference: ‘Whither Operational Art’

The British Commission for Military History (BCMH) is pleased to announce its summer conference ‘Whither Operational Art’, will be held on 20 June at the Oxford University Training Corps, Falklands House, Oxpens Road, Oxford, OX1 1RX, United Kingdom.

Panels will examine the following:

  • Introductory Plenary – Professor William Philpott – Filling ‘The Grey Area between Strategy and Tactics’: What is the Operational Level of War?
  • Panel 1 – Between Strategy & Tactics; Military History, Doctrine and Dogma since 1982
  • Panel 2 – Operational Art on the Western Front 1914-1918
  • Panel 3 – From AA Svechin to the War in Ukraine
  • Panel 4 – Operational Art on the Second World War Eastern Front and in the 1967-1973 Middle East Wars
  • Panel 5 – British Operational Art in the Second World War
  • Panel 6 – Operational Art in different domains: COIN, sea power, and the grey zone
  • Panel 7 – Operational Art before Napoleon
The full agenda is available here – https://www.bcmh.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Operational-Art-Conference-Agenda-2026.pdf

Tickets can be bought here – Whither Operational Art BCMH Conference Tickets, Saturday, June 20  •  9 AM – 7 PM | Eventbrite

Tickets are £35 for BCMH members and £40 for non-members.


RAF MUSEUM ACADEMIC AWARDS 2026

The RAF Museum is delighted to announce that it is again sponsoring a series of academic awards designed to inspire and reward high-quality research by up and coming scholars. Applications which consider the historiography of the RAF are particularly welcomed.

The awards are not, however, confined to works focused on the RAF and are open to students whose studies will further the Museum’s knowledge in relevant areas of archaeology, international relations, strategic studies, law and ethics, museology or air power. Works which help expand knowledge of operational conditions, adversaries or the context of the RAF’s history are also eligible.

Applications open on Friday 8 May 2026 for the RAF Museum’s:

  • PhD Bursary (£3,000)
  • Masters Prize (£350)
  • Undergraduate Prize (£250)

Applications close on Friday 23 October 2026.
 
If you are considering applying or have questions regarding your eligibility then you are warmly encouraged to email the Museum’s Historian and Academic Access Manager Dr Megan Wang (ResearchNews@rafmuseum.org) for an informal discussion of the awards.
 
To apply for one of this year’s academic awards, please download the appropriate documents below:
 
The prizes are granted on the recommendation of a selection panel consisting of the following members of the Museum’s Research Advisory Board:
  • Mr Seb Cox OBE (Chair, RAF Museum Research Advisory Board)
  • Baroness Sophy Antrobus MBE PhD (King’s College London)
  • Dr Maria Burczynska (King's College London)
  • Dr Emma Hanna (University of Portsmouth)
  • Professor Richard Morris OBE (University of Huddersfield)
 
Details of last year’s winners can be found at https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/news/academic-prizes-for-2025-announced/.


PUBLISHING OPPORTUNITY

The Pritzker Military Museum and Library (PMML - https://www.pritzkermilitary.org) is looking to expand its traditional publishing program in conjunction with Master Wings Publishing (MW - https://masterwingspublishing.com).

The two partners are currently accepting submissions at https://masterwingspublishing.com/submissions/ that are veteran-authored or veteran-centered with a strong connection to the PMML’s Citizen Soldier mission and lived experience.

These can be biographies, memoirs, or history. Perspectives on the Cold War (1945–1991) are particularly welcomed. They are open to pitches, proposals, not-yet published books anywhere in the creation process, and are willing to support throughout.


PAPER PRIZE COMPETITION

The International Journal of Military History and Historiography’s 2026 Early Career Prize

https://brill.com/fileasset/downloads_products/36846_flyer_ijmh_prize_2026.pdf

The International Journal of Military History and Historiography (IJMH) publishes scholarship on military historical topics from antiquity to the contemporary period that appeal to an international readership. The journal is interested in the history of the military, of military doctrine, of strategy, and of warfare in all its forms, and in all aspects and themes of warfare throughout history. This includes the interactions between political, economic, social, and cultural history with military history. The IJMH is published in collaboration with the Military History Consortium. Until 2025, it was published in collaboration with the International Commission of Military History (from 1978 to 2015 as the International Bibliography of Military History).

The Prize will be awarded to an academic article of outstanding quality in the field of international military history written by a graduate student or an early-career scholar, which will have been published in the IJMH in 2026, either in print or as an advance article online. The author of the winning article will be officially announced in the journal and on the journal’s website, and receive a €500 cash prize.

In line with IJMH’s general guidelines, submissions should be an original contribution to the field of military history that is of interest to an international readership, e.g., a topic involving more than one nation and, preferably, based on multi-archival research. There is no chronological limitation. IJMH publishes articles ranging from antiquity to the contemporary period, provided that the subject is historical and the methodology fulfils academic standards.

Submission Requirements
The prize is open to graduate students who are currently registered at a higher education institution, or to those who have obtained their doctoral degree after January 1, 2021. Submissions for the 2026 prize are accepted on a rolling basis, but should be sent by 30 September 2026 by the latest. Please see the journal webpage for information on how to submit. In case of questions, contact the Editor-in-Chief, Prof. Marco Wyss.


FACULTY SEMINAR IN WWII HISTORY, JANUARY 3-9, 2027

The National WWII Museum invites applications for its Faculty Seminar in WWII History to be held in New Orleans, Louisiana, on January 3–9, 2027.

This weeklong intensive study is designed for any college-level instructors or professors who desire a stronger historical background in the American experience in World War II. This seminar is intended to develop the knowledge and understanding of the American experience of World War II for college and university faculty who are actively teaching.

The program consists of a series of content and pedagogical seminars led by the Museum’s expert faculty covering the war’s major themes, campaigns, outcomes, and legacies. Lodging for six nights, select meals, and course materials are provided. Travel costs to and from New Orleans are the responsibility of the attendee or their institution.

If you are unable to obtain financial assistance from your institution and would desire consideration for a travel grant, limited funds may be available on a case-by-case basis. Further information on such requests will be made available upon invitation to the program.

Applicants will be selected based upon their potential contributions to the teaching of WWII history and the impact they can make at their institutions. A selection committee will consider each applicant’s packet on its own merits.

The deadline for applications is August 16, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. CT. All applicants will be informed of their status by September 14, 2026.  

Interested applicants should submit:
1. A completed application form
2. Curriculum Vitae
3. One letter of recommendation from a chair or colleague that addresses the applicant’s teaching abilities and skills

Any questions should be directed to taylor.lindner@nationalww2museum.org for more information.

The Call for Applications can be found at: https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/jenny-craig-institute-study-war-and-democracy/faculty-seminar-wwii-history


MAPPING VICTORY: US ARMY SOUVENIR MAPS FROM THE EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS, 1944-46

Announcing the publication of a new digital resource that may be of interest to the SMH community. Mapping Victory: US Army Souvenir Maps from the European Theater of Operations, 1944-46 is now live at mappingvictory.org.

At the end of World War II in Europe, hundreds of US Army units created souvenir maps for their soldiers to send or bring home.  These maps tell the story of the war from the perspective of soldiers and officers from a wide range of units.  They are sometimes funny, often tragic, and beautifully rendered.  These maps represent some of the earliest written testimonies that narrate the experience of the Army at war.  We can find some of the first accounts of the encounter with Nazi crimes, complex and vivid descriptions of relations between soldiers and civilians, and first impressions of young Americans who experienced Europe as part of an Army at war.

Texas A&M University's Cushing Memorial Library holds a large collection of these maps.  Working with the Libraries, the Center of Digital Humanities Research (CoDHR), and a group of students, our team digitized these remarkable objects and provided rich data about the maps, their creators, and the stories that they tell.  You can search the site by units, events, themes, and even locations depicted on the maps.  We hope that this resource will be valuable to scholars, students, and members of the public who want to know more about the war and how American soldiers experienced it.

The Director of this project is Professor Adam Seipp (Texas A&M).  Queries can be sent to mappingvictory@tamu.edu.


AI TRANSCRIPTION GRANTS
Leo is a document management and transcription platform designed for historians, archivists, and family researchers by a fellow historian. It uses cutting-edge AI to transform manuscript images into accurate, searchable plain text.

Leo invites applications for the Leo Transcription Grant, which offers up to 100,000 free credits, sufficient to transcribe as many as 200,000 pages of handwritten manuscripts. The grant is open to students, academics, and institutions. The only condition of the award is that grantees publish the images and transcriptions online free of restriction and copyright. Further information and the application form are available at https://blog.tryleo.ai/2025/09/05/leo-transcription-grant-2025/.


SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITY
10th MOUNTAIN DIVISION
CHARLES A. and LOYOLA M. MURPHY ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIP FOR THE STUDY OF MILITARY HISTORY

The 10th Mountain Division Foundation, Inc. (the Foundation) has established the Charles A. and Loyola M. Murphy Endowed Scholarship for the Study of Military History to promote development of a broad understanding of military mountaineering or skiing history and contributions of the WWII Mountain Troopers within the American national experience. This historical knowledge can be an invaluable tool for the decision-making process in many professional fields.

WHAT: This scholarship provides a maximum of one $5,000 cash award annually to one selected doctoral candidate or graduate level student with high academic qualifications who is beginning or currently pursuing post graduate study in military history, U.S. history, international relations, or a related field.  The focus of study must directly relate to the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division and affiliated units, from 1941 through the current active-duty actions, or to the post WWII contributions of these soldiers.  The award will help pay for expenses related to the costs of education, research, travel, and the purchase of books or other educational materials, as administered by the academic institution within the limits of applicable law and program limitations.

WHO: This scholarship is available for post graduate level scholars (Masters, Specialist or Doctoral level) having been accepted to or currently attending accredited universities or colleges in the United States, or solely at the discretion of the Foundation, distinguished universities or colleges abroad.  No historical or biological ties to any previous or current 10th Mountain Division soldier are required.

HOW: Students desiring to compete for the Charles A. and Loyola M. Murphy Endowed Scholarship for the Study of Military History to be awarded for study beginning in the coming fall, should submit a letter of application to the Foundation at the address noted on the application packet.

APPLICATION: Applications must be received no later than July 15th and include the following information:

  • Completed application form.
  • University presently attending or to which application has been made and the current status of that application (acceptance into an accredited program is a condition of any award).
  • Copy of student’s personal and academic biography in your own words (limit to one printed page at 10 point font, please).
  • A statement from the applicant that includes an outline of that proposed education program, the degree objective, major of study, and proposed thesis, dissertation or capstone project topic.   (Include the degree to be earned, department or college, etc.)
  • A copy of all official college/university undergraduate and post-graduate transcripts.
  • A statement not to exceed 1000 words concerning the relationship of the Tenth Mountain Division History Scholarship to the applicant's field of study and the value to be derived both by the individual and the general public.
  • Upon acceptance into an accredited program, it is required that the thesis advisor, department chair or dissertation committee chair contact information be added to this packet.
SELECTION:  The Foundation will make the final selection of the Charles A. and Loyola M. Murphy Endowed Scholarship for the Study of Military History scholar by July 30.  Selection of finalist will be based on the following criteria:
  • Relevance of the chosen area of study to contributions by the soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division.
  • Academic ability including baccalaureate record.
  • Viability of a publishable final paper, dissertation, thesis or capstone project on the impact of the 10th Mountain Division soldiers on the field of study.  Publication of a final paper is not a requirement for this scholarship, but it is expressly stated that a courtesy copy of any relevant final paper, dissertation, thesis or capstone project will be provided to the Foundation to be placed on file with the Tenth Mountain Division Resource Center in Denver, Colorado for reference by future generations. All publication rights will remain with the scholar.  
Students not accepted for the current award cycle are invited to reapply for the following award cycle.  Students residing or attending university outside of the United States may be considered based on relevance, potential impact on the citizens of the United States and on the citizens of their country of residence.  All applications and papers shall be submitted in English, to be considered.

SCHOLARSHIP AWARD: The total award is $5000. The award will be disbursed directly to the selected scholar. Documentation or receipts indicating proper use of the monies is requested for submission to the Foundation.

It is the earnest belief of the Tenth Mountain Division Foundation, Inc. that this scholarly study will help perpetuate the legacy of these soldiers and will enhance the love of the mountains that their service has inspired. We ask that you share what you have learned and help future generations “Climb to Glory”.

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