The History of War:
Battles, Sieges, and Treaties

The Crusades (1095–1291)

Thirty Years War (1618–1648)

French and Indian War (1754–1763)

American Revolutionary War (1775–1783)

War of 1812 (1812–1815)

Mexican-American War (1846–1848)

American Civil War (1861–1865)

Spanish-American War (1898)

World War 1 (1914–1918)

World War 2 (1939–1945)

Korean War (1950–1953)

Vietnam War (1955–1975)

The Crusades (1095-1291)

The Crusades were a series of religiously sanctioned military campaigns waged by much of Latin Christian Europe, particularly the Franks of France and the Holy Roman Empire. The specific crusades to restore Christian control of the Holy Land were fought over a period of nearly 200 years, between 1095 and 1291.

Thirty Years War (1618-1648)

The Thirty Years' War was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history. The war was fought primarily (though not exclusively) in what is now Germany and at various points involved most of the countries of Europe. Naval warfare also reached overseas and shaped the colonial formation of future nations.

French and Indian War (1754–1763)

The French and Indian War is the common U.S. name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. The war was fought primarily along the frontiers between the British colonies from Virginia to Nova Scotia, and began with a dispute over the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers, the site of present-day Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

American Revolutionary War (1775–1783)

The American Revolutionary War, or American War of Independence, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen former British colonies in North America, and concluded in a global war between several European great powers. The war was the culmination of the political American Revolution, whereby many of the colonists rejected the legitimacy of the Parliament of Great Britain to govern them without representation, claiming that this violated the Rights of Englishmen.

War of 1812 (1812-1815)

The War of 1812 was a war fought between the United States of America and the British Empire – particularly Great Britain and the provinces of British North America, the antecedent of Canada. The United States took the initiative in declaring war for multiple reasons. In 1807, Britain introduced a series of trade restrictions to impede ongoing American trade with France, Britain's longtime rival. The U.S. contested these restrictions as illegal under international law. Both the impressment of American citizens into the Royal Navy, and Britain's military support of American Indians who were attacking American settlers moving into the Northwest further aggravated tensions.

Mexican-American War (1846-1848)

The Mexican–American War was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico in the wake of the 1845 U.S. annexation of Texas, which Mexico considered part of its territory despite the 1836 Texas Revolution.

American Civil War (1861-1865)

The American Civil War, also known as the War Between the States as well as several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America, also known as "the Confederacy." Led by Jefferson Davis, they fought against the United States (the Union), which was supported by all the free states and the five border slave states.

Spanish-American War (1898)

The Spanish–American War was a conflict between Spain and the United States. Revolts had been endemic for decades in Cuba and were closely watched by Americans; there had been war scares before, as in the Virginius Affair in 1873. By 1897–98 American public opinion grew more angry at reports of Spanish atrocities, and, after the mysterious sinking of the battleship Maine in Havana harbor, pushed the government headed by President William McKinley, a Republican, into a war McKinley had wished to avoid. Compromise proved impossible; Spain declared war on April 23, 1898; the U.S. Congress on April 25 declared the official opening as April 21.

World War 1 (1914-1918)

World War I was a military conflict that involved most of the world's great powers assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies (centred around the Triple Entente) and the Central Powers. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in one of the largest wars in history. More than 15 million people were killed, making it one of the deadliest conflicts in history.

World War 2 (1939-1945)

World War II was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's nations, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, with more than 100 million military personnel mobilised. In a state of "total war," the major participants placed their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities at the service of the war effort, erasing the distinction between civilian and military resources. Marked by significant action against civilians, including the Holocaust and the only use of nuclear weapons in warfare, it was the deadliest conflict in human history, with over seventy million casualties.

Korean War (1950-1953)

The Korean War was a military conflict between the Republic of Korea, supported by the United Nations, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union. The war was a result of the political division of Korea by agreement of the victorious Allies at the conclusion of the Pacific War. In 1945 following the surrender of Japan, American administrators divided the peninsula along the 38th parallel, with United States troops occupying the southern part and Soviet troops occupying the northern part. The failure to hold free elections throughout the Korean Peninsula in 1948 deepened the division between the two sides, and the North established a Communist government. The situation escalated into open warfare when North Korean forces invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950.

Vietnam War (1955-1975)

The Vietnam War was a Cold War military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1955 to 1975, when Saigon fell. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between the communist North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of South Vietnam, supported by the United States and other anti-communist nations.