Caveat Academy course · Grades 9 to 12

Military History

How war has been fought and understood from Marathon to the present: strategy and the thinkers who defined it, phalanx, legion, castle and cannon, the revolutions that put whole nations in arms, the industrial world wars, deterrence and limited war, and the laws, soldiers and societies that war shapes. Causes, costs and consequences, at your own pace, with a certificate at the end.

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$19one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $19

Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the High school electives library, $119 for 66 items.

6 modules · 18 lessonsabout 13 hours$19

Six modules, eighteen lessons

Each module ends with a practice set that tracks mastery, an explain-it-back prompt, a short written response and a module exam. The final opens when every module is proficient; passing it earns a certificate with a verification code.

  1. Module 1: Thinking about war

    Distinguish strategy, operations and tactics, explain the ideas of Sun Tzu and Clausewitz, and analyze how logistics, technology, geography and morale shape campaigns.

    • Why study military history
    • Sun Tzu and Clausewitz
    • Logistics, technology, geography and morale
    about 2.1 h

  2. Module 2: Ancient, medieval and gunpowder warfare

    Compare the Greek phalanx and Roman legion, explain Cannae, Crécy and Agincourt, and trace how gunpowder changed fortification, tactics and state finances.

    • Phalanx and legion
    • Castles, knights and longbows
    • The gunpowder revolution
    about 2.1 h

  3. Module 3: Revolutions and nations in arms

    Explain how the American Revolution, Napoleon's nation in arms and the industrial Civil War changed the scale and conduct of war.

    • The War for American Independence
    • Napoleon and the nation in arms
    • The U.S. Civil War as an industrial war
    about 2.1 h

  4. Module 4: The world wars

    Analyze the trench stalemate of the First World War, the mix of maneuver and production in the Second, and the meaning of total war for civilians.

    • The First World War and the trenches
    • The Second World War: maneuver and power
    • Total war and the home front
    about 2.1 h

  5. Module 5: The Cold War and after

    Explain nuclear deterrence and the Cuban Missile Crisis, and compare conventional, limited and counterinsurgency wars from Korea to Afghanistan.

    • Nuclear weapons and deterrence
    • Limited wars: Korea and Vietnam
    • From the Gulf War to counterinsurgency
    about 2.1 h

  6. Module 6: War, law and society

    Apply the principles of distinction and proportionality, describe how war has shaped citizenship and veterans' lives, and evaluate conflicting sources about a battle.

    • The laws of war
    • Soldiers, veterans and society
    • How historians study war
    about 2.1 h

Try it before you start

This is how every lesson works: step through a worked example at your own pace, then answer a check and get the reason right away. Nothing here is saved; the course keeps your progress.

Module 4 · The First World War and the trenches

Worked example: why attackers could not exploit a breakthrough

  1. Hour 0: attackers break through the first enemy trench line after a bombardment.

A lesson check from each module

The checks need JavaScript turned on. The course itself works the same way.

What you get

Academics · High School$19 · included with the Academy pass and Whole-school licenses

What you finish with
A finished course in military history: you can sort decisions into strategy, operations and tactics, apply Clausewitz's ideas of politics and friction, estimate an army's supply needs, explain Cannae, Agincourt and the star fort, trace how mass armies and industry changed war from Napoleon to the world wars, explain deterrence and why limited wars and insurgencies are hard to win, apply distinction and proportionality, and weigh conflicting sources about a battle. Passing the final earns a Caveat certificate of completion.
Who it is for
Students in grades 9 to 12 interested in history, government or service academies and ROTC, students preparing for AP World or U.S. History who want depth on war and society, and homeschool families who want a complete course that studies war's causes, conduct and human costs without glorifying it.
Format
An online self-paced course: 6 modules and 18 lessons with worked examples you reveal step by step, 144 practice and exam items (multiple choice, numeric, fill-in and ordering), an explain-it-back prompt and a rubric-checked short response in every module, module exams with one retake, a 24-question final and a certificate with a verification code. About 13 hours in all; works on a phone or a computer.
Access
$19 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the course opens once you are signed in with it. Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Also in the High school electives library ($119) and the Academics Suite pass ($149), and 1 more bundle. Progress is saved in this browser on this device, and the certificate page lets you download your record.
Where it lives
The High School space in Caveat Academics.
Support
Access, a receipt, a refund or a correction to the course: team@caveatacademic.com.

How it works

  1. Open the course and start Module 1. Each lesson takes about 25 to 35 minutes; two or three a week finishes the course in about a semester.
  2. Answer the checks as you read. Every answer shows the reason, and a miss links you back to the lesson that covers it.
  3. Finish each module with its practice set and exam. Proficient on every module opens the final; 70 percent passes it.
  4. Print or download your certificate and record from the certificate page.

Start the course

Sources and accuracy

The lessons are original writing by Caveat Academic Services. Facts were checked against these free, open references, which are also good places to read further.

  1. U.S. Army Center of Military History, American Military History, volumes 1 and 2: history.army.mil
  2. National Park Service, histories of the battlefields of the War for Independence and the Civil War, including Saratoga, Yorktown and Gettysburg: nps.gov
  3. International Committee of the Red Cross, the Geneva Conventions and their commentaries: icrc.org
  4. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Holocaust Encyclopedia: encyclopedia.ushmm.org; The National WWII Museum: nationalww2museum.org
  5. Library of Congress, Veterans History Project: loc.gov; John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, the Cuban Missile Crisis: jfklibrary.org

Military History is a self-paced course from Caveat Academic Services. Casualty and production figures are historians' commonly cited estimates and are given as approximate; numbers marked as example numbers are for practice only. The course describes violence factually without graphic detail and does not take sides in current politics. It does not replace a school course and awards no credit. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.