Dispatches Issue 06 - December 2026 | Pre-order

Dispatches Issue 06 | December 2026 | Pre-order

The season may be over, but there’s plenty to keep you going until spring. Our winter issue brings together festive history, forgotten engineering, hands-on kit advice and a few laughs along the way.

Inside this issue:

• Christmas in Medieval England – Peach Adkins traces the medieval roots of Christmas, from St Augustine’s mass baptism in 597 to King John’s extravagant feasts and the first mince pies.
• How Oliver Cromwell Stole Christmas – Richard Pinches separates legend from fact. Did Cromwell really ban Christmas, or was Parliament to blame?
• Is That You, Monty? – Editor-in-Chief William Donaldson takes a closer look at Britain’s most famous general.
• The Battle of Badon – Aaron Hunt explores one of the most debated battles in early British history.
• Shunting to Victory – Aaron Hunt tells the story of the US Army Transport Corps S100, the little tank engine designed in under a week that went on to serve across Europe and beyond.
• Kit in Context: Operation Banner – Cameron Cooper breaks down the anti-riot kit of a 1st Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment soldier in Northern Ireland, c. 1979.
• Young Re-enactors – Jude Price on DIY and “de-farbing”: when is it worth fixing your kit yourself?
• STAND EASY! – Sgt Drop Short braves a village hall winter training day with half his unit, one working heater bar and a tea urn that gives up by eleven.

Plus a welcome from the Editor-in-Chief and a look ahead to Issue 07 from Deputy Editor Andy Jackson.

The magazine by re-enactors, for re-enactors. All periods, one magazine.