Welcome to the lecture series "Soldiers and Stuff"

Do you want to know more about the building blocks of war and defence? Staff and students at the Swedish Defence University are welcome to participate in the lecture series “Soldiers & Stuff: an introduction to military terminology, weapons systems classification, and other key aspects of warfare" from 4 September 2025 to 6 November 2025.

"Soldiers & Stuff" is a series of open, introductory-level lectures that are completely voluntary and without any previous requirements or preparation needed. The series is tailored to those with no or little background knowledge of the topics.

To be kept updated on eventual changes in the schedule and gain access to a dedicated Canvas page with recorded lectures, slides, notes, quizzes, Q&A forums, and additional resources, register here: https://survey.fhs.se/Survey/2100

The series encompasses ten lectures, as specified below:

See also the events in the student calendar

1. Military organisation and hierarchy

Thomas Vrenngård, 4 September 2025, 15:30-17:00, L1

2. Small arms and light weapons

Nicholas Engelhardt, 11 September 2025, 15:30-17:00, L1

3. Armoured fighting vehicles

Rolf Warming, 18 September 2025, 15:30-17:00, L1

4. Aircraft

Tommi Pyöriä, 24 September 2025, 15:30-17:00, L1

5. Surface ships and submarines

Marcus Dansarie, 2 October 2025, 15:30-17:00, Cardel

6. Explosive ordnance

Henrique Garbino, 9 October 2025, 15:30-17:00, Sverigesalen

7. Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons

July Decarpentrie, 16 October 2025, 15:30-17:30, L1

8. Weapons effects

Henrique Garbino, 23 October 2025, 15:30-17:30, L1

9. Non-kinetic means of warfare

Alan Swell & Pontus Weström, 30 October 2025, 15:00-17:30, L1

10. Laws of Armed Conflict

Jann Kleffner, 6 November 2025, 15:30-17:30, L1