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Dr Aimée Fox

@draefox.bsky.social
3.9K followers 1K following 41 posts

Senior Lecturer in IR at University of St Andrews | Historian of war | Award-winning author | Series editor, War & the British Empire (McGill-Queen's UP) | I research the First World War, military innovation & learning, and gossip in the armed forces.

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Reposted by Dr Aimée Fox
Huw Bennett @bennetthuw.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
No doubt Policy Exchange, the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail will now loudly condemn this vast obstruction of justice by the Ministry of Defence.
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Vanda Wilcox @vandawilcox.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
please share with anyone who might be interested!
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Stephen Collins @stephencollins.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
#TBT to this from 2012 in honour of Michael Gove starring as an invasion-battling leader in Sky's new show The Wargame. If you don't know what or who this comic is about... just count yourself lucky and scroll on, no worries.
[Opening scene is WESTMINSTER, LONDON. Over Downing Street a huge ALIEN SPACECRAFT hovers, silent, still, filling the whole sky a la Independence Day]. 

[Cut to INSIDE 10 DOWNING STREET. The (then) prime Minister DAVID CAMERON is looking out of his office window at the ship.]

VOICE FROM OFF-SCENE, BEHIND CAMERON:
Prime Minister…

CAMERON [addressing the person behind him, still keeping his eyes fixed ahead in dread at the spaceship]:
Yes?

[We see the speaker is MICHAEL GOVE, then Education Secretary]:

GOVE:
Let me do it.

CAMERON:
For God's sake, Michael, you're the Education Secretary! You've never flown a fighter plane in your life!

GOVE:
But I know I could do it, David. I could fly a fighter plane into the big space- ship...

...and shoot all the aliens.

CAMERON:
But you have no military training!

GOVE:
David

I haven't told you this, but...

I used to be a journalist. For The Times.

[Cameron reacts, turning to look at Gove with awe and respect, as if only now truly seeing him for the first time]. 

GOVE:
I wrote two articles about planes, David.

I've got strong opinions about aliens.

I know I can do this job.

[Cut to a title card panel]:

AND SO:

[Then cut again to Cameron on the roof of Number 10, watching a Michael Gove pilot a fighter jet up towards the spacecraft, and then completely miss it, careering towards Earth, as Cameron buries his face in his hands].

[Ends]
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Robert St John Smith @chance1234.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I've built quite a collection of #FWW #TrenchJournals, but this is the first time I have managed to get my hands on something from the #BoerWar. The similarities between the two wars in terms of soldier journalism are remarkably strong.
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Dónal Hassett @donalh.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Excited to finally get my hands on this. Having read the thesis on which it is based, I know im in for a great read.
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Emily Rowe @emilyrowe1.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Reading for the first time and wondering where has this book been all my life?? (pictured: Parallel Lives by Phyllis Rose)
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John Lovett @johnlovett.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
The official game of Academia.
The game “A Place for All My Books”
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Jonathan Boff @jfb1066.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
I have the great honour of delivering this. Please do come. www.bcmh.org.uk/richard-holm...
bcmh.org.uk
Richard Holmes Lecture 2026 | British Commission for Military History
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Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
This week on @ppfideas.bsky.social, we explore "Gladstone, Disraeli & the Bulgarian Horrors": the last great battle between the two towering politicians of the Victorian age. It's a story of empire, religion, mass protest & soaring oratory. Here's a quick taster...🧵 www.ppfideas.com/episodes/now...
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Jonathan Boff @jfb1066.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Reviewing the copy-edits for my new book (out in March 2027) global.oup.com/academic/pro...
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Richard Morris @ahistoryinart.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Gilbert Spencer once said that after witnessing hand-to-hand fighting during WW1 he tried to build about him 'a little globe of ease.' Painting this work of laundry drying gave him great contentment and peace of mind.
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Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
The "Bulgarian Horrors" would bring Gladstone roaring out of retirement to renew his long struggle with Disraeli. It's an amazing story, in which war with Russia, the future of India, the safety of the British constitution and the souls of the British people were all at stake. Hope you enjoy it!
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Elle Cordova @ellecordova.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Rough Draft vs Final Draft
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Dr Adam Prime @primeadam.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
It is that time of year again! The Western Front Association's PhD Grant Scheme is open for 2026. We want to hear from anyone studying any aspect of the Great War! #fwwhist #phdchat #ww1 #greatwar #grant
westernfrontassociation.com
Applications open for the WFA’s 2026 PhD Grant Scheme | The Western Front Association
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Christoph Harig @charig.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
Did you recently finish your PhD (or are about to do so) and have an interest in deterrence? Our @forsvarsakademiet.bsky.social colleagues from the Institute for Strategy and War Studies might have a job for you as Assistant Professor candidate.hr-manager.net/ApplicationI...
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Andrew Frayn @afrayn.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
I'm organising a Remembrance Lecture on Mon 9 November at Edinburgh Napier's Craiglockhart Campus- as a War Hospital, this was where Wilfred Owen & Siegfried Sassoon met. This year David Goldie will talk about Scottish Poetry of the First World War. Register: forms.cloud.microsoft/e/MTEHXf41Mf
The ubiquitous photo of the staff, nurses and patients of the Craiglockhart War Hospital on the lawn outside the historic front of the building, from 1917.  The men are in their khaki uniforms, with hats, and the women are in their nurses's uniforms and headdresses, flowing white.
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Chloë J. A. Pieters @cjapieters.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Interesting CfP exploring a fascinating set of questions in a great city. Unfortunately there's no way I can attend because of the dates, but YOU could apply - deadline 05/10 www.centrewarviolence.uliege.be/cms/c_129452...
centrewarviolence.uliege.be
War, Militarism, and Society: Organising Life for Destruction
Workshop - War, Militarism, and Society: Organising Life for Destruction - Call for Papers
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Duncan Weldon @duncanweldon.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Sad news about Dolly. An excuse to listen to an excellent cover. m.youtube.com/watch?v=tNqY...
m.youtube.com
Queen Adreena - Jolene (Music Video)
YouTube video by Deathless Defiant
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Anna Alexandrova @annaalexandrova.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Thread from a visit to the amazing Charleston house and studio of Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant where they painted, worked the land, hid from wars and hosted their friends and lovers from the Bloomsbury group www.charleston.org.uk/about-us/
Entrance to Charleston house from the garden on a sunny day
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University Press of Kansas @univpressofkansas.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
"Framing the First World War," edited by @draefox.bsky.social, @mpmfinch.bsky.social and @dmorganowen.bsky.social, has been awarded the Tomlinson Award from the @ww1ha.bsky.social.  Explore "Framing the First World War": kansaspress.ku.edu/9780700640560 #WarHistory #WWIHistory #UPKansas
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mpmfinch.bsky.social @mpmfinch.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Very pleased to say that our edited collection has won the Norman B. Tomlinson Prize 2025!
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David Morgan-Owen @dmorganowen.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Had some wonderful news yesterday - the WW1 Historical Association awarded Framing the First World War the Norman B. Tomlinson Prize for 2025! Very grateful to our wonderful contributors and their hard work, series editor Bill Allison and the team at @univpressofkansas.bsky.social -
Book cover for 'Framing the First World War', adapted from Christopher Nevinson painting 'Return to the Trenches'. Published by university press of Kansas
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David Morgan-Owen @dmorganowen.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Red pen time … #amediting
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Aparna Nair @disabilitystor1.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
"History involves sorting and organizing hundreds of thousands of facts" I remain astounded by how loud and wrong people are about what history actually is.
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Megan Stevenson
@MeganTStevenson
I haven't heard people talking about this, but AI is an absolute game changer for doing historical research. History involves sorting and organizing hundreds of thousands of facts— a massive logistical/memory problem made so delightfully easy with agentic research. 1/
1:31 PM · Jul 29, 2026
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Megan Stevenson
@MeganTStevenson
·
Jul 29
I did an OCR conversion of all my PDFs to make text files, built a semantic search index, and can just let my agents roam free to answer questions, fact-check, dig up interesting stories, quotes, etc. It takes a lot of the hard work out, as well as a lot of the human error. 2/2
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Royal Historical Society @royalhistsoc.org · 31/07/2026
"Details, in their singularity and idiosyncrasy, point to the capaciousness of human experience." New today in the Society's journal 'Transactions': Joe Moran 'On Detail in Historical Writing': bit.ly/44UMi8C Now available OA @joemoransblog.bsky.social @massobsarchive.bsky.social #Skystorians 1/2
Opening page of the Transactions article 'On Detail in Historical Writing' by Joe Moran. 

Full abstract: "This Comment considers the role of detail in historical writing, inflected through my own experience of writing ‘trade’ books for a general rather than specialist readership. I argue for the value of the detail that is slightly recalcitrant, that is more than just flesh on the bones of an argument or evidence marshalled to make a point. Detail is itself a kind of argument and thus, since beauty and elegance in writing derive from economy, a way of making a point without belabouring it. The gratuitous fact can be seductive, suggesting that the world has a randomness and overabundance that can't easily be rounded up into a dataset. Details, in their singularity and idiosyncrasy, point to the capaciousness of human experience. They correct our tendency to fixate on one story, to focus on the eventful at the expense of the marginal, and to invent a false unity of experience that erases social differences. With their obdurate specificity, they can shatter our presumptions about the past. I explore these ideas with reference to modern literature (Flaubert, Chekhov), the Mass-Observation archive and examples from my own work in contemporary cultural history and family history."
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Rebecca Wynter @rebeccawynter.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
I don't make the rules: see Tom Holland's Lip Sync Battle, re-post Tom Holland's Lip Sync Battle.
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Maurice J. Casey @mauricejcasey.com · 28/07/2026
“The architect of the German V-2 rockets, Werner von Braun, entitled his autobiography ‘I Aim for the Stars’. Londoners, however, will remember that he usually hit London” Easily the most stone-cold zinger I’ve encountered all year.
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Dr Michelle Walker (/Moffat) @moffski.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Is there anyone out there who knows about Naval supply/armament relating to Operation OVERLORD who could answer a couple of questions for me? #navalhistory #historians #military
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Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
The Harvard system is an abomination (Saunders 2026). It's like space junk (Lucas 1978) clattering around the beautiful cosmos of one's prose.
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David Morgan-Owen @dmorganowen.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Really enjoyed doing this, thanks to @kensingtons.bsky.social for hosting! @univpressofkansas.bsky.social you can see the book here: kansaspress.ku.edu/9780700640560/
kansaspress.ku.edu
Framing the First World War
This innovative approach to the history of World War I looks at ways in which military actors saw and perceived war, and how that exerted a significant influ...
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Bethany Wasik @bethanywasik.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
ICYMI: @briandrohan.bsky.social and @drmargottudor.bsky.social's impressive volume, "Military Humanitarianism" is shipping now! It's ready for you! Are you ready for it? No worries - you can prepare (and order) at the @cornellupress.bsky.social book page: www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501...
A book cover with a central painting of an aid ship with orange and pink sky above and violet sea below. The book title is at top in navy blue text, Military Humanitarianism, and editor names at bottom, Brian Drohan and Margot Tudor.
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University Press of Kansas @univpressofkansas.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
Read more of the @tandfresearch.bsky.social review of Framing the First World War edited by @mpmfinch.bsky.social, @draefox.bsky.social, and @dmorganowen.bsky.social: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.108… #WWI #MilitaryHistory #UPKansas
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The Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) @themerl.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
We’re appointing a writer-in-residence! Join us to respond to our holdings related to the Bloomsbury Group (including the archives of Leonard and Virginia Woolf’s Hogarth Press) ahead of a major exhibition in 2027. Applications close 19 May. Best of luck! collections.reading.ac.uk/news-and-vie...
collections.reading.ac.uk
Call for Applications: Writer in Residence - Blooming Bloomsbury and the Modernist Archives Publishing Project -Creativity and Community Co-Curation (2026)  | Museums and Collections
The selected writer will spend the summer months (June—September 2026) drawing inspiration from MAPP to develop new creative work. From September to December, they will build on this...
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Peter Johnston @peterajohnston.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
In July IWM London opens Childhood in War. This free exhibition shares children's view of war from more than 100 years. 450 million children live in conflict zones worldwide; their stories have never been more important. Read more here: www.iwm.org.uk/events/child...
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
What have Hertfordshire historians done for industry? Well, Prof. Morris's collaborations with international partners from the coffee industry have facilitated capacity building through staff development & ' achieved a documented media reach in excess of 13 million'. 5/9 @david-batty.bsky.social
Two cups of coffee, against a wooden background. On the left a latte and on the right a black filtered coffee.
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
What's lost to the UK research base when we lose the academics who teach these subjects? Hertfordshire's case reminds us (yet again) of the breadth of what's at stake. We're sleepwalking into an erosion of the UK's first-rate research base. Or, are we eroding by design? @chionwurah.bsky.social
Front cover of Christopher Clark's The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914, depicting troops marching on the left and a civilian on a bicycle on the right.
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
We know for SHAPE subjects what's lost to UK higher education by current HE policy. (No one seems to be minding the STEM shop by the way). Cold spots for SHAPE subjects now abound. The data are clear: this disproportionately affects disadvantaged students. 8/9 @helenhayes.bsky.social
thebritishacademy.ac.uk
Cold spots: Mapping inequality in SHAPE provision in UK higher education
This British Academy report reveals that many parts of the UK are becoming subject cold spots – areas with no provision in a subject within a commutable distance. These are often in rural, coastal or ...
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Charlotte Lydia Riley @lottelydia.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
“what happens at the BL is, mostly, the wrong kind of research. It’s about the dull old humanities, not the cutting-edge sciences. It mostly looks backwards, not forwards. So it’s regarded, not least by our political leaders, as a backwater.”
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Jonathan Boff @jfb1066.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
This thread is an excellent demonstration of the shortcomings of US Air Warfare Theory and Doctrine We can all mark our own homework and give ourselves 10/10
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Higher education in the UK just got much lower. How much lower will it sink before your MP notices and speaks out?
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David Morgan-Owen @dmorganowen.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
and immediately useful.' Thanks Jesse! You can read the review here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... @univpressofkansas.bsky.social @draefox.bsky.social @mpmfinch.bsky.social
tandfonline.com
Framing the First World War: how divergent views shaped a global conflict
Published in Intelligence and National Security (Ahead of Print, 2026)
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David Morgan-Owen @dmorganowen.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Great to see another positive review of Framing the First World War come out in. Jesse Tumblin writes that the book 'takes on this task from helpful and surprisingly original angles' and highlighted that 'that several quite distinctive types of readers will find this volume directly
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mpmfinch.bsky.social @mpmfinch.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
@draefox.bsky.social @dmorganowen.bsky.social and my edited collection is available now! (I hate to listen back to myself, so I can only hope I said something sensible)
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Dr Aimée Fox @draefox.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Prompted by 1SL’s lecture @rusi.bsky.social yesterday, @dmorganowen.bsky.social offers interesting historical critique on RN’s tendency to mobilise Jackie Fisher as “disruptor in chief” and innovator par excellence 👇🏻
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Josh Spero @joshspero.ft.com · 28/04/2026
Morning! I wrote about having my charity-shop-bargain suit (Paul Smith, £20) visibly mended and what it taught me about taste, power and masculinity, and transgressing all of the above as.ft.com/r/642b5c9d-2...
as.ft.com
What mending a suit taught me about masculinity
If business wear is a way of projecting success and power, what does a visible repair suggest?
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Gwendal Piégais @gwendalpiegais.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Happy to announce the publication of my article on international volunteers in the Red Army during the Russian Civil War @euroreviewhistory.bsky.social. Thanks to @sdanisimova.bsky.social & Robert Gerwarth for their support and to the reviewers for their advice. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
tandfonline.com
Commissars for the ‘world civil war’: recruiting and educating internationalists in the Russian Civil War, 1918–1920
Nearly 18,000 people enlisted in international volunteers’ units in the Red Army during the Russian Civil War. With many of them being former prisoners of war and foreign workers, the technical and...
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Women's History Scotland @womenshistscot.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
⏳ Still time to apply! Our Research Bursary (£500) is open to master’s students, doctoral researchers, ECRs, and independent historians working on women’s and gender history (especially Scottish themes). 🗓 Deadline: 31 May 2026 Details here 🔗 womenshistoryscotland.org/projects-and...
womenshistoryscotland.org
WHS Research Bursary – Women's History Scotland
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Royal Historical Society @royalhistsoc.org · 16/04/2026
To accompany his new book, Rowan also writes today for the RHS blog on the impact of the Navy and Air Leagues in maintaining militarism in Britain after 1918: bit.ly/3OJ53as The NHP series is supported by @ihr.bsky.social and @echistsoc.bsky.social. All 26 books are available OA bit.ly/4sBmIyC
Front page of RHS Blog post, 16 April 2026. Full text: In this post, Rowan Thompson introduces his new book — ‘Organised Militarism in Interwar Britain. The Navy League and the Air League of the British Empire’ — which is published in April 2026 in the Society’s ‘New Historical Perspectives’ series with University of London Press. ‘Organised Militarism’ demonstrates that martial and militaristic sentiment remained an important part of mainstream British political culture, despite the ravages of the First World War. Rowan’s monograph examines the aims and activities of the Navy League and the Air League of the British Empire – two extra-parliamentary organisations established to promote naval and aerial supremacy. In doing so, it shows how martial and militaristic sentiment remained prominent, despite the ravages of war. ‘Organised Militarism in Interwar Britain’ is the 26th title in the Society’s New Historical Perspectives series for early career historians. Rowan’s book, and all other titles in the series are published free, Open Access, and in paperback print.
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