A Century and a Half of EW

A Timeline Outlining EW History

From James Clerk Maxwell's theoretical groundwork in 1864 to the signal-contested battlespaces of today, the electromagnetic spectrum has shaped the outcome of every major conflict of the modern era. Explore our comprehensive timeline tracing the discovery of electromagnetic waves, the birth of radar, the evolution of electromagnetic warfare across two world wars and beyond, and the ever-expanding role of spectrum operations in an increasingly connected world.

1864
1864

Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell publishes equations predicting the existence of electromagnetic waves – the theoretical foundation of all future radio, radar, and EW.

1887-1888

German physicist Heinrich Hertz experimentally proves Maxwell’s predictions, generating and detecting radio waves and discovering they reflect off metallic objects, establishing the physics underlying radar and jamming.

1894-1899

Guglielmo Marconi conducts the first practical radio transmission experiments in Italy and England. By 1895, his transmissions reach a 1-mile range, and by 1899, he transmits across the English Channel. Radio becomes the primary military communication medium that defines EW for the next century.

April 30, 1904

German inventor Christian Hülsmeyer is granted patent DE 165546 for the “telemobiloscope,” the first device to detect objects via reflected radio waves. It is publicly demonstrated May 17, 1904 in Cologne.

January 1904

HMS Diana, stationed in the Suez Canal, makes the first recorded wireless interception in history, picking up a message heralding the mobilization of the Russian fleet, alerting Britain’s ally Japan. Launches the era of signals intelligence (SIGINT).

April 1904

During the Russo-Japanese War, Russian forces at Port Arthur successfully jam Japanese naval radio communications being used to correct naval gunfire – one of the first recorded offensive uses of EW jamming in combat.

August 4, 1914
August 4, 1914

The widespread use of radio jamming begins in World War I when the United Kingdom joins the war against Germany.