Events in History Relating to Wars
April 14, 69
Vitellius, commander of the Rhine armies, defeats Emperor Otho in the Battle of Bedriacum and seizes the throne.
October 28, 312
Battle of Milvian Bridge: Constantine I defeats Maxentius, becoming the sole Roman Emperor.
March 5, 363
Roman Emperor Julian moves from Antioch with an army of 90,000 to attack the Sassanid Empire, in a campaign which would bring about his own death.
January 2, 366
The Alamanni cross the frozen Rhine River in large numbers, invading the Roman Empire.
April 6, 402
Stilicho stymies the Visigoths under Alaric in the Battle of Pollentia.
May 26, 451
Battle of Avarayr between Armenian rebels and the Sassanid Empire takes place. The Armenians are defeated militarily but are guaranteed freedom to openly practice Christianity.
June 25, 524
Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians.
March 12, 538
Witiges, king of the Ostrogoths ends his siege of Rome and retreats to Ravenna, leaving the city in the hands of the victorious Roman general, Belisarius.
August 5, 642
Battle of Maserfield – Penda of Mercia defeats and kills Oswald of Bernicia.
November 15, 655
Battle of Winwaed: Penda of Mercia is defeated by Oswiu of Northumbria.
March 21, 717
Battle of Vincy between Charles Martel and Ragenfrid.
October 10, 732
Battle of Tours: Near Poitiers, France, the leader of the Franks, Charles Martel and his men, defeat a large army of Moors, stopping the Muslims from spreading into Western Europe. The governor of Cordoba, Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, is killed during the battle.
November 12, 764
Tibetan troops occupy Chang'an, the capital of the Chinese Tang Dynasty, for fifteen days.
June 8, 793
Vikings raid the abbey at Lindisfarne in Northumbria, commonly accepted as the beginning of the Scandinavian invasion of England.
January 8, 871
Battle of Ashdown – Ethelred of Wessex defeats an invading army of Danes.
July 26, 920
Rout of an alliance of Christian troops from Navarre and Léon against the Muslims at Pamplona.
June 15, 923
Battle of Soissons: King Robert I of France is killed and King Charles the Simple is arrested by the supporters of Duke Rudolph of Burgundy.
March 15, 933
After a ten-year truce, German King Henry I defeats a Hungarian army at the Battle of Riade near the Unstrut river.
January 23, 971
In China, the war elephant corps of the Southern Han are soundly defeated at Shao by crossbow fire from Song Dynasty troops. The Southern Han state is forced to submit to the Song Dynasty, ending not only Southern Han rule, but also the first regular war elephant corps employed in a Chinese army that had gained the Southern Han victories throughout the 10th century.
April 23, 1014
Battle of Clontarf: Brian Boru defeats Viking invaders, but is killed in battle.
August 15, 1057
King Macbeth is killed at the Battle of Lumphanan by the forces of Máel Coluim mac Donnchada.
February 7, 1074
Pandulf IV of Benevento is killed battling the invading Normans at the Battle of Montesarchio.
October 23, 1086
At the Battle of az-Zallaqah, the army of Yusuf ibn Tashfin defeats the forces of Castilian King Alfonso VI.
August 12, 1121
Battle of Didgori: the Georgian army under King David the Builder wins a decisive victory over the famous Seljuk commander Ilghazi.
October 30, 1137
Battle of Rignano between Ranulf of Apulia and Roger II of Sicily.
October 24, 1147
After a siege of 4 months crusader knights led by Afonso Henriques, reconquered Lisbon.
October 23, 1157
The Battle of Grathe Heath ends the civil war in Denmark. King Sweyn III is killed and Valdemar I restores the country.
May 29, 1176
Battle of Legnano: The Lombard League defeats Emperor Frederick I.
November 25, 1177
Baldwin IV of Jerusalem and Raynald of Chatillon defeat Saladin at the Battle of Montgisard.
June 19, 1179
The Norwegian Battle of Kalvskinnet outside Nidaros. Earl Erling Skakke is killed, and the battle changes the tide of the civil wars.
June 23, 1180
First Battle of Uji, starting the Genpei War in Japan
October 2, 1187
Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule.
May 31, 1223
Mongol invasion of the Cumans: Battle of the Kalka River – Mongol armies of Genghis Khan led by Subutai defeat Kievan Rus and Cumans.
March 9, 1230
– Bulgarian tsar Ivan Asen II defeats Theodore of Epirus in the Battle of Klokotnitsa.
October 9, 1238
James I of Aragon conquers Valencia and founds the Kingdom of Valencia.
November 23, 1248
Conquest of Seville by the Christian troops under King Ferdinand III of Castile.
October 2, 1263
The battle of Largs is fought between Norwegians and Scots.
March 19, 1279
A Mongolian victory in the Battle of Yamen ends the Song Dynasty in China.
November 9, 1313
Louis the Bavarian defeats his cousin Frederick I of Austria at the Battle of Gamelsdorf.
October 25, 1315
Adam Banastre, Henry de Lea and William Bradshaw, led an attack on Liverpool Castle.
November 15, 1315
Battle of Morgarten the Schweizer Eidgenossenschaft ambushes the army of Leopold I.
November 9, 1330
Battle of Posada, Wallachian Voievode Basarab I defeats the Hungarian army in an ambush
October 4, 1363
End of the Battle of Lake Poyang; the Chinese rebel forces of Zhu Yuanzhang defeat that of his rival, Chen Youliang, in one of the largest naval battles in history.
March 11, 1387
Battle of Castagnaro: English condottiero Sir John Hawkwood leads Padova to victory in a factional clash with Verona.
June 28, 1389
Ottomans defeat Serbian army in the bloody Battle of Kosovo, opening the way for the Ottoman conquest of Southeastern Europe (see Vidovdan).
November 20, 1407
A truce between John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy and Louis of Valois, Duke of Orléans is agreed under the auspices of John, Duke of Berry. Orléans would be assassinated three days later by Burgundy.
June 30, 1422
Battle of Arbedo between the duke of Milan and the Swiss cantons.
February 12, 1429
English forces under Sir John Fastolf defend a supply convoy carrying rations to the army besieging Orleans from attack by the Comte de Clermont and John Stuart in the Battle of Rouvray (also known as the Battle of the Herrings).
November 28, 1443
Skanderbeg and his forces liberate Kruja in Middle Albania and raise the Albanian flag.
June 29, 1444
Skanderbeg defeats an Ottoman invasion force at Torvioll.
November 10, 1444
Battle of Varna: The crusading forces of King Vladislaus III of Varna (aka Ulaszlo I of Hungary and Wladyslaw III of Poland) are crushed by the Turks under Sultan Murad II and Vladislaus is killed.
April 15, 1450
Battle of Formigny: Toward the end of the Hundred Years' War, the French attack and nearly annihilate English forces, ending English domination in Northern France.
April 14, 1471
In England, the Yorkists under Edward IV defeat the Lancastrians under Warwick at the battle of Barnet; the Earl of Warwick is killed and Edward IV resumes the throne.
January 10, 1475
Stephen III of Moldavia defeats the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Vaslui.
November 26, 1476
Vlad III Dracula defeats Basarab Laiota with the help of Stephen the Great and Stephen V Bathory and becomes the ruler of Wallachia for the third time.
January 5, 1477
Battle of Nancy: Charles the Bold is killed and Burgundy becomes part of France.
November 25, 1491
The siege of Granada, the last Moorish stronghold in Spain, begins.
June 17, 1497
Battle of Deptford Bridge – forces under King Henry VII defeat troops led by Michael An Gof.
July 22, 1499
Battle of Dornach – the Swiss decisively defeat the Imperial army of Emperor Maximilian I.
June 6, 1508
Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, is defeated in Friulia by Venetian forces; he is forced to sign a three-year truce and cede several territories to Venice.
February 2, 1509
The Battle of Diu takes place near Diu, India, between Portugal and Turkey.
April 11, 1512
War of the League of Cambrai: French forces led by Gaston de Foix win the Battle of Ravenna.
August 23, 1514
Battle of Chaldiran ended with a decisive victory for the Sultan Selim I, Ottoman Empire, over the Shah Ismail I, Safavids founder.
October 28, 1516
Battle of Yaunis Khan: Turkish forces under the Grand Vizier Sinan Pasha defeat the Mameluks near Gaza.
January 18, 1520
King Christian II of Denmark and Norway defeats the Swedes at Lake Åsunden.
November 8, 1520
Stockholm Bloodbath begins: A successful invasion of Sweden by Danish forces results in the execution of around 100 people.
November 9, 1520
More than 50 people are sentenced and executed in the Stockholm Bloodbath
May 15, 1525
The battle of Frankenhausen ends the Peasants' War.
November 23, 1531
The Second war of Kappel results in the dissolution of the Protestant alliance in Switzerland.
February 21, 1543
Battle of Wayna Daga – A combined army of Ethiopian and Portuguese troops defeats a Muslim army led by Ahmed Gragn.
January 7, 1558
France takes Calais, the last continental possession of England.
June 12, 1560
Battle of Okehazama: Oda Nobunaga defeats Imagawa Yoshimoto.
March 1, 1562
23 Huguenots are massacred by Catholics in Wassy, France, marking the start of the French Wars of Religion.
January 26, 1565
Battle of Talikota, fought between the Vijayanagara Empire and the Islamic sultanates of the Deccan, leads to the subjugation, and eventual destruction of the last Hindu kingdom in India, and the consolidation of Islamic rule over much of the Indian subcontinent.
January 25, 1573
Battle of Mikatagahara, in Japan; Takeda Shingen defeats Tokugawa Ieyasu.
March 3, 1575
Indian Mughal Emperor Akbar defeats Bengali army at the Battle of Tukaroi.
June 22, 1593
Battle of Sisak: Allied Christian troops defeat the Turks.
December 16, 1598
Seven Year War: Battle of Noryang Point – The final battle of the Seven Year War is fought between the Korean and Japanese navies, resulting in a decisive Korean victory.
December 11, 1602
A surprise attack by forces under the command of the Duke of Savoy and his brother-in-law, Philip III of Spain, is repelled by the citizens of Geneva. Commemorations/celebrations on Fête de l'Escalade are usually held on December 11 or the closest weekend.
November 16, 1632
The Battle of Lützen, where King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden is killed.
October 22, 1633
Ming dynasty fight with Dutch East India Company that Battle of southern Fujian sea (1633), Ming dynasty won great victory.
October 4, 1636
The Swedish Army defeats the armies of Saxony and the Holy Roman Empire at the Battle of Wittstock.
May 26, 1637
Pequot War: A combined Protestant and Mohegan force under Captain John Mason attacks a Pequot village in Connecticut, massacring approximately 500 Native Americans.
February 16, 1646
Battle of Great Torrington, Devon – the last major battle of the first English Civil War.
June 28, 1651
Battle of Beresteczko between Poles and Ukrainians starts.
June 29, 1659
At the Battle of Konotop the Ukrainian armies of Ivan Vyhovsky defeat the Russians, led by Prince Trubetskoy.
February 1, 1662
The Chinese general Koxinga seizes the island of Taiwan after a nine-month siege.
March 4, 1665
English King Charles II declares war on The Netherlands which marks the start of the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
November 11, 1673
Second Battle of Khotyn in Ukraine, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth forces under the command of Jan Sobieski. defeat the Ottoman army. In this battle, rockets of Kazimierz Siemienowicz are successfully used.
November 10, 1674
Anglo-Dutch War: As provided in the Treaty of Westminster, Netherlands cedes New Netherlands to England.
November 20, 1700
Great Northern War: Battle of Narva – King Charles XII of Sweden defeats the army of Tsar Peter the Great at Narva.
November 30, 1700
Battle of Narva — A Swedish army of 8,500 men under Charles XII defeats a much larger Russian army at Narva.
July 8, 1709
Great Northern War: Battle of Poltava: Peter I of Russia defeats Charles XII of Sweden at Poltava thus effectively ending Sweden's role as a major power in Europe.
April 15, 1715
Pocotaligo Massacre triggers the start of the Yamasee War in colonial South Carolina.
February 24, 1739
Battle of Karnal: The army of Iranian ruler Nadir Shah defeats the forces of the Mughal emperor of India, Muhammad Shah.
October 3, 1739
The Treaty of Nissa is signed by the Ottoman Empire and Russia at the finish of the Russian-Turkish War, 1736-1739.
October 20, 1740
Maria Theresa takes the throne of Austria. France, Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony refuse to honour the Pragmatic Sanction and the War of the Austrian Succession begins.
April 10, 1741
War of the Austrian Succession: Prussia defeats Austria in the Battle of Mollwitz.
December 6, 1745
Charles Edward Stewart's army begins retreat during the second Jacobite rising.
October 18, 1748
Signing of the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle ends the War of the Austrian Succession.
June 18, 1757
Battle of Kolín between Prussian Forces under Frederick the Great of Prussia and an Austrian Army under the command of Field Marshal Count Leopold Joseph von Daun in the Seven Year's War.
January 14, 1761
The Third Battle of Panipat is fought in India between the Afghans under Ahmad Shah Durrani and the Marhatas. The Afghan victory changes the course of Indian History.
November 9, 1764
Mary Campbell, a captive of the Lenape during the French and Indian War, is turned over to forces commanded by Colonel Henry Bouquet.
March 4, 1776
The American War of Independence: The Americans capture Dorchester Heights dominating the port of Boston, Massachusetts.
April 7, 1776
Captain John Barry and the USS Lexington captures the Edward.
October 1, 1787
Russians under Alexander Suvorov defeat the Turks at Kinburn.
October 22, 1790
Miami warriors under Chief Little Turtle defeat United States troops under General Josiah Harmar at the site of present-day Fort Wayne, Indiana, in the Northwest Indian War.
December 22, 1790
The Turkish fortress of Izmail is stormed and captured by Suvorov and his Russian armies.
January 2, 1791
Big Bottom massacre in the Ohio Country, marking the beginning of the Northwest Indian War.
November 4, 1791
The Western Confederacy of American Indians win a major victory over the United States in the Battle of the Wabash.
May 15, 1792
War of the First Coalition: France declares war on Kingdom of Sardinia.
March 4, 1793
French troops conquer Geertruidenberg, Netherlands.
March 28, 1794
Allies under the prince of Coburg defeat French forces at Le Cateau.
April 18, 1797
The Battle of Neuwied – French victory against the Austrians.
May 10, 1801
First Barbary War: The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declare war on the United States of America.
April 27, 1805
First Barbary War: United States Marines and Berbers attack the Tripolitan city of Derna (The "shores of Tripoli" part of the Marines' hymn).
June 10, 1805
First Barbary War: Yussif Karamanli signs a treaty ending hostilities with the United States.
April 21, 1809
Two Austrian army corps are driven from Landshut by a First French Empire army led by Napoleon I of France as two French corps to the north hold off the main Austrian army on the first day of the Battle of Eckmühl.
April 22, 1809
The second day of the Battle of Eckmühl sees the Austrian army defeated by the First French Empire army led by Napoleon I of France and driven over the Danube at Regensburg.
May 21, 1809
The first day of the Battle of Aspern-Essling between the Austrian army led by Archduke Charles and the French army led by Napoleon I of France sees the French attack across the Danube held.
May 18, 1811
Battle of Las Piedras: The first great military triumph of the revolution of the Río de la Plata in Uruguay led by Jose Artigas.
November 7, 1811
Tecumseh's War: The Battle of Tippecanoe is fought near present-day Battle Ground, Indiana, United States.
May 23, 1813
South American independence leader Simón Bolívar enters Mérida, leading the invasion of Venezuela, and is proclaimed El Libertador ("The Liberator").
August 23, 1813
At the Battle of Grossbeeren, the Prussians under Von Bülow repulse the French army.
August 30, 1813
Battle of Kulm: French forces defeated by Austrian-Prussian-Russian alliance.
May 3, 1815
Neapolitan War: Joachim Murat, King of Naples is defeated by the Austrians at the Battle of Tolentino, the decisive engagement of the war.
June 19, 1816
Battle of Seven Oaks between North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company, near Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
April 5, 1818
In the Battle of Maipú, Chile's independence movement – led by Bernardo O'Higgins and José de San Martín – win a decisive victory over Spain, leaving 2,000 Spaniards and 1,000 Chilean patriots dead.
June 24, 1821
The Battle of Carabobo takes place. It is the decisive battle in the war of independence of Venezuela from Spain.
June 21, 1826
Maniots defeat Egyptians under Ibrahim Pasha in the Battle of Vergas.
October 1, 1827
The Russian army under Ivan Paskevich storms Yerevan, ending a millennium of Muslim domination in Armenia.
April 8, 1832
Black Hawk War: Around three-hundred United States 6th Infantry troops leave St. Louis, Missouri to fight the Sauk Native Americans.
December 28, 1835
Osceola leads his Seminole warriors in Florida into the Second Seminole War against the United States Army.
January 20, 1839
In the Battle of Yungay, Chile defeats an alliance between Peru and Bolivia.
March 30, 1844
One of the most important battles of the Dominican War of Independence from Haiti takes place near the city of Santiago de los Caballeros.
November 29, 1845
The Sonderbund is defeated by the joint forces of other Swiss cantons under General Guillaume-Henri Dufour.
January 31, 1846
After the Milwaukee Bridge War, Juneautown and Kilbourntown unified as the City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
April 25, 1846
Thornton Affair: Open conflict begins over the disputed border of Texas, triggering the Mexican-American War.
April 18, 1848
American victory at the battle of Cerro Gordo opens the way for invasion of Mexico.
November 24, 1850
Danish troops defeat a Schleswig-Holstein force in the town of Lottorf, Schleswig-Holstein.
July 2, 1853
The Russian Army invades Turkey, beginning the Crimean War.
October 21, 1854
Florence Nightingale and a staff of 38 nurses are sent to the Crimean War.
October 25, 1854
The Battle of Balaklava during the Crimean War (Charge of the Light Brigade).
January 26, 1856
First Battle of Seattle. Marines from the USS Decatur drive off American Indian attackers after all day battle with settlers.
April 11, 1856
Battle of Rivas: Juan Santamaria burns down the hostel where William Walker's filibusters are holed up.
May 10, 1857
Indian Mutiny: In India, the first war of Independence begins. Sepoys revolt against their commanding officers at Meerut.
June 15, 1859
Pig War: Ambiguity in the Oregon Treaty leads to the "Northwestern Boundary Dispute" between U.S. and British/Canadian settlers.
October 18, 1860
The Second Opium War finally ends at the Convention of Peking with the ratification of the Treaty of Tientsin, an unequal treaty.
March 23, 1862
The First Battle of Kernstown, Virginia, marks the start of Stonewall Jackson's Valley Campaign. Though a Confederate defeat, the engagement distracts Federal efforts to capture Richmond.
April 30, 1863
Mexican forces attacked the French Foreign Legion in Hacienda Camarón, Mexico.
July 3, 1863
U.S. Civil War: The final day of the Battle of Gettysburg culminates with Pickett's Charge.
November 18, 1863
King Christian IX of Denmark decides to sign the November constitution, which declares Schleswig to be part of Denmark. This is seen by the German Confederation as a violation of the London Protocol and leads to the German–Danish war of 1864.
April 14, 1864
Battle of Dybbøl: A Prussian-Austrian army defeats Denmark and gains control of Schleswig. Denmark surrenders the province in the following peace settlement.
October 30, 1864
Second war of Schleswig ends. Denmark renounces all claim to Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg, which come under Prussian and Austrian administration.
July 15, 1870
The Kingdom of Prussia and the Second French Empire commence the Franco-Prussian War.
May 21, 1871
French troops invade the Paris Commune and engage its residents in street fighting. By the close of "Bloody Week" some 20,000 communards have been killed and 38,000 arrested.
June 10, 1871
Sinmiyangyo: Captain McLane Tilton leads 109 Marines in a naval attack on Han River forts on Kanghwa Island, Korea.
January 17, 1873
A group of Modoc warriors defeat the United States Army in the First Battle of the Stronghold, a part of the Modoc War.
April 24, 1877
Russo-Turkish War: Russia declares war on Ottoman Empire.
May 10, 1877
Romania declares itself independent from Turkey, following the Senate adoption of Mihail Kogălniceanu's Declaration of Independence. This act is recognized on March 26, 1881 after the end of the Romanian War of Independence.
January 16, 1878
Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) – Battle of Plovdiv: Captain Burago with a squadron of Russian Imperial army dragoons liberates Plovdiv from Ottoman rule.
March 23, 1879
War of the Pacific is fought between Chile and the joint forces of Bolivia and Peru. Chile successfully takes over Arica and Tarapacá leaving Bolivia as a landlocked country.
April 5, 1879
Chile declares war on Bolivia and Peru, starting the War of the Pacific.
October 8, 1879
War of the Pacific: the Chilean Navy defeats the Peruvian Navy in the Battle of Angamos, Peruvian Admiral Miguel Grau is killed in the encounter.
June 6, 1882
The Shewan forces of Menelik defeat the Gojjame army in the Battle of Embabo. The Shewans capture Negus Tekle Haymanot of Gojjam, and heir victory leads to a Shewan hegemony over the territories south of the Abay River.
January 20, 1887
The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Harbor as a naval base.
November 21, 1894
Port Arthur massacre: Port Arthur, Manchuria falls to the Japanese, a decisive victory of the First Sino-Japanese War.
December 2, 1899
Philippine-American War: The Battle of Tirad Pass, termed "The Filipino Thermopylae", is fought.
February 10, 1904
The Russo-Japanese War over Korea and Manchuria begins after the Battle of Port Arthur.
June 28, 1914
Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria and his wife Sophie are assassinated in Sarajevo by young Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip, the casus belli of World War I.
November 7, 1914
The German colony of Kiaochow Bay and its centre at Tsingtao are captured by Japanese forces.
April 18, 1915
French pilot Roland Garros is shot down and glides to a landing on the German side of the lines during World War I.
April 22, 1915
The use of poison gas in World War I escalates when chlorine gas is released as a chemical weapon in the Second Battle of Ypres.
March 9, 1916
Pancho Villa leads nearly 500 Mexican raiders in an attack against Columbus, New Mexico.
March 19, 1916
Eight American planes take off in pursuit of Pancho Villa, the first United States air-combat mission in history.
October 27, 1916
Battle of Segale: Negus Mikael, marching on the Ethiopian capital in support of his son Emperor Iyasus V, is defeated by Fitawrari abte Giyorgis, securing the throne for Empress Zauditu.
March 1, 1917
U.S. government releases the plaintext of the Zimmermann Telegram to the public.
January 19, 1918
Finnish Civil War: The first serious battles between the Red Guards and the White Guard.
January 28, 1918
Finnish Civil War: Rebels seized control of the capital, Helsinki, and members of the Senate of Finland go underground.
June 1, 1918
World War I Western Front: Battle for Belleau Wood – Allied Forces under John J. Pershing and James Harbord engage Imperial German Forces under Wilhelm, German Crown Prince.
October 13, 1918
Mehmed Talat Pasha and the Young Turk (C.U.P.) ministry resign and sign an armistice, ending Ottoman participation in World War I.
November 13, 1918
Allied troops occupy Constantinople the capital of the Ottoman Empire.
June 21, 1919
Admiral Ludwig von Reuter scuttles the German fleet in Scapa Flow, Orkney. The nine sailors killed are the last casualties of World War I.
June 23, 1919
Estonian Liberation War: The decisive defeat of German Freikorps (Baltische Landeswehr) forces in the Battle of Cesis. This day is celebrated as Victory Day in Estonia.
November 11, 1919
Lāčuplēšu day – Latvian forces defeat the Freikorps at Riga in the Latvian War of Independence.
July 11, 1921
A truce is called in the Irish War of Independence; see Irish calendar.
August 26, 1922
The Turkish Army launches the last attack on Greeks in the Turkish War of Independence.
December 1, 1925
World War I aftermath: The final Locarno Treaty is signed in London, establishing post-war territorial settlements.
February 25, 1933
The USS Ranger (CV-4) is launched. It is the first US Navy ship to be built solely as an aircraft carrier.
June 12, 1935
Chaco War ends: a truce is called between Bolivia and Paraguay who had been fighting since 1932.
March 23, 1939
Hungarian air force attacked the headquarters of Slovak air force in the city of Spišská Nová Ves, killed 13 people and began the Slovak–Hungarian War.
November 17, 1939
Nine Czech students are executed as a response to anti-Nazi demonstrations prompted by the death of Jan Opletal. In addition, all Czech universities are shut down and over 1200 Czech students sent to concentration camps.
November 26, 1939
Shelling of Mainila: The Soviet Army orchestrates the incident which is used to justify the start of the Winter War with Finland four days later.
August 8, 1940
The "Aufbau Ost" directive is signed by Wilhelm Keitel.
November 27, 1940
In Romania, the ruling party Iron Guard arrests and executes over 60 of exiled King Carol II of Romania's aides, including former minister Nicolae Iorga.
October 23, 1941
Odessa Massacre: 19,000 Jews are shot or burned alive at Dalnik in Odessa, by Romanian and German troops. The next day, another 10,000 Jews are killed. Romanian Lieutenant-Colonel Nicolae Deleanu administered the executions.
October 30, 1941
1,500 Jews from Pidhaytsi (in western Ukraine) are sent by Nazis to Belzec extermination camp.
May 7, 1942
During the Battle of the Coral Sea, United States Navy aircraft carrier aircraft attack and sink the Japanese Imperial Navy light aircraft carrier Shōhō. The battle marks the first time in the naval history that two enemy fleets fight without visual contact between warring ships.
June 22, 1942
Erwin Rommel is promoted to Field Marshal after the capture of Tobruk.
October 9, 1942
The last day of the October Matanikau action on Guadalcanal as United States Marine Corps forces withdraw back across the Matanikau River after destroying most of the Imperial Japanese Army's 4th Infantry Regiment.
October 23, 1942
The Battle for Henderson Field begins during the Guadalcanal Campaign and ends on October 26.
November 1, 1942
Matanikau Offensive begins during the Guadalcanal Campaign and ends on November 4.
December 15, 1942
The Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse begins during the Guadalcanal campaign.
March 13, 1943
The Holocaust: German forces liquidate the Jewish ghetto in Kraków.
October 5, 1944
Canadian Air Force pilots shoot down the first German jet fighter over France.
October 20, 1944
General Douglas MacArthur fulfills his promise to return to the Philippines when he commands an Allied assault on the islands, reclaiming them from the Japanese during the Second World War.
October 25, 1944
Battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval battle in history, takes place in and around the Philippines between the Imperial Japanese Navy and the U.S. Third and U.S. Seventh Fleets.
November 7, 1944
Soviet spy Richard Sorge, a half-Russian, half-German World War I veteran, is hanged by his Japanese captors along with 34 of his ring.
April 16, 1945
The Red Army begins the final assault on German forces around Berlin.
May 14, 1948
Israel is declared to be an independent state and a provisional government is established. Immediately after the declaration, Israel is attacked by the neighboring Arab states, triggering the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
January 1, 1949
United Nations cease-fire takes effect in Kashmir from one minute before midnight. War between India and Pakistan stops accordingly.
June 25, 1950
The Korean War begins with the invasion of South Korea by North Korea.
June 27, 1950
The United States decides to send troops to fight in the Korean War.
May 7, 1954
Indochina War: The Battle of Dien Bien Phu ends in a French defeat (the battle began on March 13).
November 1, 1954
The Front de Libération Nationale fires the first shots of the Algerian War of Independence.
April 5, 1956
Fidel Castro declares himself at war with the President of Cuba.
April 20, 1961
Failure of the Bay of Pigs Invasion of US-backed troops against Cuba.
March 19, 1962
Algerian War of Independence: A ceasefire takes effect.
April 24, 1965
Civil war breaks out in the Dominican Republic when Colonel Francisco Caamaño, overthrows the triumvirate that had been in power since the coup d'état against Juan Bosch.
November 9, 1965
Catholic Worker member Roger Allen LaPorte, protesting against the Vietnam War, sets himself on fire in front of the United Nations building.
May 23, 1967
Egypt closes the Straits of Tiran and blockades the port of Eilat at the northern end of the Gulf of Aqaba to Israeli shipping, laying the foundations for the Six Day War.
May 30, 1967
The Nigerian Eastern Region declares independence as the Republic of Biafra, sparking a civil war.
June 5, 1967
Six-Day War begins: The Israeli air force launches simultaneous pre-emptive attacks on the air forces of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria.
June 7, 1967
The Israeli forces enter Jerusalem during the Six-Day War.
June 10, 1967
Six-Day War ends: Israel and Syria agree to a cease-fire.
July 6, 1967
Biafran War: Nigerian forces invade Biafra, beginning the war.
January 31, 1968
Viet Cong attack the United States embassy in Saigon, and other attacks, in the early morning hours, later grouped together as the Tet Offensive.
July 20, 1969
Cease fire announced between Honduras and El Salvador, 6 days after the beginning of the "Football War"
January 15, 1970
After a 32-month fight for independence from Nigeria, Biafra surrenders.
March 17, 1970
My Lai massacre: The United States Army charges 14 officers with suppressing information related to the incident.
March 3, 1971
Beginning of Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 and India's official entry to the Bangladesh Liberation War in support of Mukti Bahini.
April 7, 1971
U.S. President Richard Nixon announces his decision to increase the rate of American troop withdrawals from Vietnam.
November 21, 1971
Indian troops, partly aided by Mukti Bahini (Bengali guerrillas), defeat the Pakistan army in the Battle of Garibpur.
December 1, 1971
Cambodian Civil War: Khmer Rouge rebels intensify assaults on Cambodian government positions, forcing their retreat from Kompong Thmar and nearby Ba Ray.
December 3, 1971
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: Pakistan launches pre-emptive strike against India and a full scale war begins claiming hundreds of lives.
December 16, 1971
Bangladesh War of Independence and Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: The surrender of the Pakistan army brings an end to both conflicts.
October 6, 1973
Egypt launches a coordinated attack against Israel to reclaim land lost in the Six Day War. The Yom Kippur War starts at 2:05 pm that day.
October 8, 1973
Yom Kippur War: Gabi Amir's armored brigade attacks Egyptian occupied positions on the Israeli side of the Suez Canal, in hope of driving them away. The attack fails, and over 150 Israeli tanks are destroyed.
January 18, 1974
A Disengagement of Forces agreement is signed between the Israeli and Egyptian governments, ending conflict on the Egyptian front of the Yom Kippur War.
March 5, 1974
Yom Kippur War: Israeli forces withdraw from the west bank of the Suez Canal.
April 13, 1975
Bus Massacre in Lebanon: Attack by the Phalangist resistance kill 26 militia members of the P.F.L. of Palestine, marking the start of the 15-year Lebanese Civil War.
April 17, 1975
The Cambodian Civil War ends. The Khmer Rouge captures the capital Phnom Penh and Cambodian government forces surrender.
December 23, 1979
Soviet war in Afghanistan: Soviet forces occupy Kabul, the Afghan capital.
March 7, 1984
The United States attacks San Juan del Sur in Nicaragua.
April 14, 1986
In retaliation for the April 5 bombing in West Berlin that killed two U.S. servicemen, U.S. president Ronald Reagan orders major bombing raids against Libya, killing 60 people.
October 11, 1987
Start of Operation Pawan by Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka that killed few thousand ethnic Tamil civilians, several hundred Tamil Tigers and few hundred Indian Army soldiers.
March 17, 1988
Eritrean War of Independence: The Nadew Command, an Ethiopian army corps in Eritrea, is attacked on three sides by military units of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front in the opening action of the Battle of Afabet.
March 20, 1988
Eritrean War of Independence: Having defeated the Nadew Command, the Eritrean People's Liberation Front enters the town of Afabet, victoriously concluding the Battle of Afabet.
May 15, 1988
Soviet war in Afghanistan: After more than eight years of fighting, the Red Army begins its withdrawal from Afghanistan.
October 13, 1990
End of the Lebanese war. Syrian forces launch an attack on the free areas of Lebanon removing General Michel Aoun from the presidential palace.
June 26, 1991
Ten-Day War: the Yugoslav people's army begins the Ten-Day War in Slovenia.
June 27, 1991
Slovenia, after declaring independence two days before, is invaded by Yugoslav troops, tanks, and aircraft, starting the Ten-Day War.
November 18, 1991
After the siege of Vukovar, the Croatian city of Vukovar capitulates to the besieging Yugoslav People's Army and allied Serb paramilitary forces.
December 6, 1991
In Croatia, forces of the Yugoslav People's Army bombard Dubrovnik after laying siege to the city since May.
January 16, 1992
El Salvador officials and rebel leaders sign the Chapultepec Peace Accords in Mexico City ending a 12-year civil war that claimed at least 75,000.
December 4, 1992
Somali Civil War: President George H. W. Bush orders 28,000 US troops to Somalia in Northeast Africa.
February 5, 1994
During the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina more than 60 people are killed and some 200 wounded as a mortar shell slams into a downtown marketplace in Sarajevo.
November 20, 1994
The Angolan government and UNITA rebels sign the Lusaka Protocol in Zambia, ending 19 years of civil war (localized fighting resumes the next year).
December 11, 1994
First Chechen War: Russian President Boris Yeltsin orders Russian troops into Chechnya.
May 1, 1995
Croatian forces launch Operation Flash during the Croatian War of Independence.
May 2, 1995
During the Croatian War of Independence, Serb forces fire cluster bombs at Zagreb, killing 7 and wounding over 175 civilians.
December 14, 1995
Yugoslav Wars: The Dayton Agreement is signed in Paris by leaders of various governments.
April 18, 1996
In Lebanon, at least 106 civilians are killed when the Israel Defense Forces shell the UN compound at Quana where more than 800 civilians had taken refuge.
May 27, 1996
First Chechnya War: Russian President Boris Yeltsin meets with Chechnyan rebels for the first time and negotiates a cease-fire.
December 10, 1996
Rwandan Genocide: Military advisor to the United Nations Secretary-General and head of the Military Division of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations of the United Nations Maurice Baril recommends that the UN multi-national forces in Zaire stand down.
December 29, 1996
Guatemala and leaders of Guatemalan National Revolutionary Union sign a peace accord ending a 36-year civil war.
January 15, 1999
The Racak incident: 45 Albanians in the Kosovo village of Racak are killed by Yugoslav security forces.
October 7, 2001
The U.S. invasion of Afghanistan starts with an air assault and covert operations on the ground.
March 1, 2002
U.S. invasion of Afghanistan: Operation Anaconda begins in eastern Afghanistan.
April 4, 2002
The Angolan government and UNITA rebels sign a peace treaty ending the Angolan Civil War.
October 18, 2003
Bolivian Gas War: President Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, is forced to resign and leave Bolivia.
November 29, 2007
The Armed Forces of the Philippines lay siege to The Peninsula Manila after soldiers led by Senator Antonio Trillanes stage a mutiny.
April 12, 2009
U.S. Navy rescues captain Richard Phillips, killing three pirates and capturing a fourth.
|
|
|
|
