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Military History of the Great Powers(The complete list)
Me ^ | 5/28/2003 | Me

Posted on 05/28/2003 9:18:49 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE

The following is a general listing of all wars fought by the current "great powers" except for France during the last two thousand years . I believe that there are enough articles on the military history of France.

Britain

43 AD Roman Invasion- Lost celts slaughtered by legions of Emporor Claudius

60 AD Boudica Rebellion- Lost Single Roman Legion slaughtered 60,000 british celts

600 AD Anglo-Saxon Invasion- Won Celts eliminated by modern inhabitants of Britain(Legend of Arthur born of that era).

1066 AD Norman-Invasion- Lost Last Saxon king Harold shot in the eye by a barbed arrow in the Battle Hastings. William the Norman takes over the country.

1200 AD Expansion- Won took over Scotland, Ireland and Wales after decades of warfare, refined longbow technology was the decisive factor of victory.

1337 AD Hundred Years War- Won (Mostly) English Longbowmen slaughtered the French nobility in a series of one-sided battles. War ended with the English in control of Normandy and Castile.

1455 AD War of the Roses- Won Three decades of civil war between the houses of York and Lancaster

1588 AD Spanish Invasion- Won British fleet crushed the Spanish Armada, Britain becomes the dominant naval power of Europe.

1642 AD English Civil War- Won(Barely) British beat themselves

1689 AD French And Indian Wars- Won British forces crushed the French defense in Canada and took over Montreal

1751 AD Conquest of India- Won British forces conquors the Indian Subcontinent. Chandernagore, the last major Indian stronghold taken during the Battle of Plassy.

1756 AD War if the West Indies- Won British Navy takes control of the West Indies

1776 AD American Revolutionary War- Lost British defeated by their own colonists.

1793 AD Napoleonic Wars- Won, Duke of Wellington destroyed Napoleon's armies at the Battle of Warterloo.

1812 AD War of 1812- Lost, British again defeated by their own colonists.

1846 AD Opium War- Won British Naval forces easily crushed the Chinese Navy and took Hong Kong.

1854 AD Crimean War- Won British wins a land war against Russia and takes over the Crimean region and Svestapol from the Russian Empire.

1862 AD Second Opium War- Won British forces take control of Shanghai and portions of the Chinese Coast from the Chinese Empire.

1863 AD Mau Mau Wars- Won British forces sacks Timbuktu, and takes over Eastern africa.

1872 AD Ashanti Wars- Won British forces takes over most of the Ivory Coast

1879 AD Zulu War- Won British forces suffered several defeats but eventually wiped out 70% of the Zulu population and took over southern Africa.

1881 AD Busato Wars- Won British forces takes over central Africa.

1899 AD Anglo-Boer War- Won British forces slaughtered the Dutch settlers and took control of Rhodesia and the northern portion of South Africa.

1900 AD Boxer Rebellion- Won British forces along with 11 other nations destroyed China's rebellion, gained control of China's coastal region from Shanghai to Hong Kong.

1914 AD World War I- Won British forces fought off the German submarine campaign and destroyed the Ottoman Empire. Gained control of Iraq, Iran, Trans-Jordan, Arabia, and Eygpt.

1938 AD World War II- Won(Barely) Britain won with the aid of the U.S but suffered such losses that it did not have the resources to maintain its Empire.

1982 AD Falklands War- Won(Barely) Britain takes back control of the Falklands after losing 8 capital Ships due to the Exocet missiles of the Argentine airforce.

1991 AD Persian Gulf War- Won Britan fought alongside the U.S.

Russia

370 AD Hunnic Invasion- Lost King Ermanaric killed by the inital Hun invasion, Ostrogoth tribes driven out of European Russia by the nomadic Huns. Local Slavic tribes begin paying tribute to Hun overlords instead of Ostrogoth overlords.

850 AD Viking Invasion- Won Viking leader Rurik first captured Novogrod then proceeded to sack Keiv. After decades of Viking raids, local slavic towns adapted by fielding indigenous navies and armies thus gradually eliminating the Viking prescence over a period of 100 years.

1223 AD Mongol Invasion of Kievan Rus - Lost Kievan Rus came under attack by the hordes of Genghis Kahn. First use of biological warfare during the seige of Kiev. Plague-laced warheads atop chinese rockets were launched at the city. The state of Kiev was destroyed

1240 AD Mongol Invasion of Novogrod- Lost Mongels proceeded to defeat the state of Novogrod, thus consolidating Western Russia along with the eastern portion into the Kahnate of the Golden Horde. About 40% of entire population of European Russia killed due to Mongol invasions.

1367 AD Muscovy Rebellion- Won New state of Muscovy under Ivan III refused to pay tribute to the Mongol overlords. Russian army defeated the Golden Horde at the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380. Novogrod regained autonomy by 1420. Mongols driven out of European Russia by 1480. State of Muscovy absorbs Novogrod and other states to become the dominant power of European Russia.

1549 AD Southern Kahnate Wars- Won Russia under Ivan the terrible destroys the Kazan and Astakhan Khanates. Took the the Volga river valley and central asia.

1558 AD Livonian War- Lost Under Ivan the terrible, Russia fought the Swedes, Lithuanians, Poles, and the Teutonic Knights and lost after 24 years of continous warfare.

1581 AD Siberian Kahnate War - Won General Yermak defeated the Siberian Khanate and claimed the territories west of the Ob' and Irtysh rivers for Muscovy.

1598 AD Muscovy Civil War- Won Russians won against themselves.

1648 AD Ukranian War- Won Bogdan Khmel'nitskiy offered to place Ukraine under the protection of the Muscovite tsar, Russia took Ukraine from Poland.

1684 AD Amur War- Lost Technically more like a 3-way skirmish than a war, the Russian empire clashed with the expanding chinese empire as both states were trying to finish off the last of the mongol hordes in Siberia. After a period of conflict, Muscovy made peace with China in 1689. By the Treaty of Nerchinsk, Muscovy ceded the Amur Valley to China.

1697 AD First Ottoman War-Won Russia under Peter the Great defeated the Ottoman Empire and took over the Crimean region including the Black Sea ports of Azov and Taganrog.

1709 AD Second Livonian War- Won Peter the great crushed the swedish defenders at the battle of Poltava. Took over Estonia, Lativia.

1772 Belarus War- Won Russia took Belarus from Poland.

1787 AD Second Ottoman War- Won By the Treaty of Jassy in 1792, Russia expanded southward to the Dnestr River. Ottoman influence effectively removed from Eastern Europe.

1812 AD Napoleonic Invasion- Won(Barely) Over 10 million Russians dead and most of European Russia in ruins. But the French Army under Napoleon was defeated.

1854 AD Crimean War- Lost Britain wins a land war against Russia and takes over the Crimean region and Svestapol from the Russian Empire.

1887 AD Sino-Russian War-Won Russia took most of Siberia , established puppet state in Mongolia, and sets up sphere of influence in Manchuria.

1904 AD Russo-Japanese War-Lost Japanese crushed the main Russian fleet at Tsushima and proceeded to slaughter 500,000 Russians in Siberia. Lost Port Arthur and control of Manchuria to Japan.

1914 AD World War I- Lost 19 million Russians dead and a revolution at home force Russia to sign a cease-fire on German terms. Lost Ukraine and Belarus to Germany.

1918 AD Russian Revolution- Won Russians beat themselves, Soviet Union established.

1938 AD World War II- Won 37 million Russian dead versus 8 million German dead. Russia takes control of Eastern Europe, East Germany.

1979 AD Invasion of Afghanistan- Lost Soviet Union suffered high casualties against the Islamic Mujahadeen.

1991 AD Collapse of the Soviet Union- Lost Revolts began in all satillite states and smaller Soviet republics. Russia lost control of all of Eastern Europe, the Baltics, and central Asia.

1994 AD First Chechen War- Lost Poor logistics and obsolete equipment prevent Russia from ever securing the Chechen capital of Grozny during that war.

2000 AD Second Chechen War-Still being fought.

China

200 BC War of Unification-won Chinese beat themselves

100 BC War against the Hakka-won Slaughtered the natives of central china

50 BC War against the Min, Miao, Tocharian-won took over southern China

50 AD War against Central Asian Tribes, Sassinid Dynasty in Persia Won, took over most of central Asia

65 AD War against Korea-won took over Korean Peninsula

70 AD War against Vietnam-won took over Vietnam

75 AD War against the Huns-won, took over inner mongolia, drove the Huns out of East Asia and into Western Europe

210 AD Three Kindoms, Han Dynasty collapsed, civil war for the next 500 years-stalemate for most of the time.

700 AD Sui Dynasty established, new Emporer launches invasion of Japan-stalemate leaning towards defeat

800 AD Tang Dynasty resumes war to the south and west-won reconquored Vietnam, took Laos and colonized Hainan. Wiped out persia to the west(Persia was being attacked by the Arabs at the same time)

950 AD Sino-Arab war- lost at the battle of Talas gunpowder and magnetic compass technology taken by the Arabs.

970 AD Tang Government Collapses Song Dynasty emerges just as Ganghis Kahn attacks-Lost, all of Northern China taken over including Beijing.

1050 Sino-Tibetan war-lost, chinese troops can't stand the high altitude

1100 AD Mongol Conquest-Lost Song Dynasty was destroyed by Kublai Kahn ~40 million Chinese killed.

1250 AD First Sino-Japanese war-lost 3 separate naval invasions failed due to Kamikazees

1300 AD Moonlight Rebellion-won Mongols driven out, China regains original territories.

1500 AD First Sino-Japanese war-won, Japanese fleet destroyed in Korea.

1570 AD Manchu-war-Lost country taken over by Manchu's, the invaders where subsequently assimilated into Chinese culture.

1640 AD Sino-Dutch war-won Dutch colonists driven out of Taiwan by Chinese colonists.

1720 AD Sino-Mongolian War-won destroyed the home Kahnate of the Mongols, takes over outer mongolia

1740 AD Invasion of Siberia-won destroyed last holdouts of the Mongol golden horde.

1780 AD Sino-Urghar war-won Took over East Turkistan

1842 AD First Opium War-Lost Chinese military no match for British firepower, Britain takes Hong Kong from China

1853 AD Taiping Rebellion-won against themselves(barely) 20 million chinese dead and the most productive part of the country was ruined.

1864 AD Second Opium War-Lost same reason as the first, Britain takes over portions of Shangai and 10 other coastal cities.

1872 AD Sino-French War-Lost one of the few victories of the french, Fance takes Vietnam from China

1887 AD Sino-Russian War-Lost Russia took most of Siberia , established puppet state in Mongolia, and sets up sphere of influence in Manchuria

1896 AD Sino-Japanese War-Lost Japan crushed China's fleet and took over Korea.

1900 AD Boxer Rebellion-Lost , Japan takes Taiwan, Britain, France, Belgium, Spain divides Shanghai and the eastern coast, Germany takes Dalian, Russia takes portions of Manchuria.

1938 AD World War II-Won(Barely) 15 million dead Chinese vs 2 million dead Japanese but defeats Japan's army in Mainland East Asia, and regains Eastern coast, Manchuria, Hainan, and Taiwan.

1946 AD Chinese Civil war-won(but might as well be a loss), 5 million Chinese dead, communists drives Nationalists to Taiwan.

1950 AD Korean War-Stalemate 500 thousand Chinese dead and a de-populated Korea as a result of the war.

1951 AD Invasion of Tibet-Won Tibetan military was no match for the PLA(1 million Tibetans brutally murdered, but hey, china got some high quality Uranium ore out of it)

1962 AD Sino-Indian War- Won Chinese troops outnumbered the indians 3 to 1, takes over Askin Chin plateau, and parts of Kashmir

1979 AD Sino-Vietnamese War-Stalemate(on the way to a loss) Bad logistics, crappy weapons, low morale, and a battle-hardened enemy made the war untenable.

That is it folks, the list of wars that these states fought during the last two thousand years.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Philosophy
KEYWORDS: battleofhastings; britain; china; france; haroldgodwinson; haroldii; kingharoldii; military; russia
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To: NP-INCOMPLETE
A quick glance at the Brits reveals that the War of Spanish Succession (1703-12) and the War of Austrian Succession (1742-49, I think) are both missing. The Seven Years War (1756-63) is mis-labelled. Also missing is the Nine Years' War (1688-97). The various Dutch Wars of the 17th century aren't there, either.

Gotta be careful among Freepers when talking of things military. Still, it's a humorous list.

101 posted on 05/29/2003 2:04:47 PM PDT by Seydlitz
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To: Seydlitz
Keep the errors coming, I'm updating the list as we speak. And by the way, what is so humorous about Britain's list?
102 posted on 05/29/2003 2:08:25 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE
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To: NP-INCOMPLETE
It was a remarkable achievement for a mere knight to hold power over the nobles of Scotland. In a medieval world obsessed with hierarchy, Wallace’s extraordinary military success catapulted him to the top of the social ladder. He now guided Scottish policy. Letters were dispatched to Europe proclaiming Scotland’s renewed independence and he managed to obtain from the Papacy the appointment of the patriotic Bishop Lamberton to the vacant Bishopric of St Andrews.

 

Scots were recognized independent..read here:

Diplomacy & Real Politick. On the diplomatic front, the Scots appealed to the papacy through the famous 'Declaration of Arbroath', but to no avail. The papacy ignored the Declaration and English recognition wasn’t forthcoming. Bruce, by now quite ill with a form of leprosy, accepted a 13 year truce with Edward II in the knowledge he would surely die before its end. However, another stroke of luck helped Robert to fulfill his ambitions. In 1328 England fell into crisis after the deposition and murder of Edward II. Seizing the moment, Bruce launched an invasion of northern England, threatening to annex it to Scotland. His challenge couldn’t be ignored and the Edward III’s government was forced to recognise Bruce’s kingship and Scotland’s independence. A year later, Bruce died.

103 posted on 05/29/2003 2:09:04 PM PDT by RussianConservative (Hristos: the Light of the World)
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To: samuel_adams_us
You know, Eastern Orthodox English royal family fled to Kieven Russ and married into Kieven Russ royality after invasion by Catholic Normans.
104 posted on 05/29/2003 2:10:45 PM PDT by RussianConservative (Hristos: the Light of the World)
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To: RussianConservative
Clearly, that was a delaying tactic. War, at least low intensity warfare never ended.
105 posted on 05/29/2003 2:11:08 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE
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To: RussianConservative
Didn't know that. I will have to check that out.
106 posted on 05/29/2003 2:14:20 PM PDT by samuel_adams_us
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To: RussianConservative
Difficult to pinpoint the sands of time isn't it?

I have known some Jews who look exactly like the historical records describe the Khazars. The Jewish diaspora into Asia Minor and beyond I'm sure morphed along as it went.

Another interesting side note in this theme is the preponderance of Caucazoid folks still existing in the Tarim Basin...surrounded by Asiatic peoples.

I heard an Assyrian in the recent war on TV claiming the Assyrians of today were the original Chaldean Iraqis ....not the arabs.

I find all of this stuff fascinating. Folks were talking earlier about the evolution of the UK and left out the Danes, Vikings, Picts, Angles, and even a few Iberian tribes that left a genetic footprint...Romans too.

Funny...it could be argued that nearly all Western European descendents started out on the steppes of your motherland.
107 posted on 05/29/2003 2:16:48 PM PDT by wardaddy
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To: NP-INCOMPLETE
"current Great powers"?

Sorry, but what is so great about the power of Britain and France? And why aren´t - now that you have posted it - Japan and Germany, and of course, the most powerful great power (the USA!) on that list? The United States have fought enough wars.
108 posted on 05/29/2003 2:17:52 PM PDT by Michael81Dus ("Wer will, was er muss, ist frei" (Schiller) ("Who wants, what he has to do, is free!"))
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To: freedom44
>> 15 MILLION Chinese died during WWII?
>> That's really interesting. I never knew that.

The Japanese may have killed more Chinese in retaliation for the Dolittle raid than total American combat deaths in WW-II.
109 posted on 05/29/2003 2:20:09 PM PDT by Lonesome in Massachussets ("ALL THE NEWS THAT FITS, WE PRINT")
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To: Michael81Dus
Ah, I was saving that as a suprise, but Japan and Germany is coming up next. But since they lost WWII, they cannot be counted as the current "great powers." As for France, I really don't care too much for the military prowess of that nation. And for the U.S, what could I have possibly put down for the first 1600 years of this Nation's history?
110 posted on 05/29/2003 2:20:29 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE
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To: Lonesome in Massachussets
15 million(5 million military 10 million civilians) as an average estimate, high estimates place it at 25 million.
111 posted on 05/29/2003 2:22:04 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE
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To: NP-INCOMPLETE
It really is very difficult to pinpoint when a nation really becomes a nation. If the U.S was a series of Indian tribes, can I really count that as a nation? Or when Germany was a confederation of trading towns, was it really Germany?
112 posted on 05/29/2003 2:24:01 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE
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To: NP-INCOMPLETE
well, 400 years of military pride are enough, I guess ;-)

Japan and Germany as the worlds 2nd and 3rd most powerful economies (still) and with an impressive history (both) can be count as great powers. They dominated their regions (Europe, South-East Asia).
113 posted on 05/29/2003 2:24:33 PM PDT by Michael81Dus ("Wer will, was er muss, ist frei" (Schiller) ("Who wants, what he has to do, is free!"))
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To: NP-INCOMPLETE
Well, now you ask that question but brought up Britains fights against the Romans. Nations in the original sense came up in the 18th century (French revolution, founding of the US, the ´Kingdom´ became ´United´, Prussia was founded, etc)
114 posted on 05/29/2003 2:27:46 PM PDT by Michael81Dus ("Wer will, was er muss, ist frei" (Schiller) ("Who wants, what he has to do, is free!"))
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To: Michael81Dus
I have basically finished the list for Japan and just started on Germany. They are in my list of second tier powers, though I really really don't want to place these two countries at the same status as France.
115 posted on 05/29/2003 2:28:21 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE
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To: Michael81Dus
Why the concept of nation states emerged in the 18th century, the political and physical entities of the great powers was pretty much stable though certainly with very different forms of government and power structures. Parliment/Monarchy in Britain, Feudalism in Russia, and Centralized Beauracracy in China all existed concurrently.
116 posted on 05/29/2003 2:30:50 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE
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To: NP-INCOMPLETE
2nd tier...

I would say that just ONE country can be placed in the first row today, and that are the United States!

Russia, China, UK, Japan, Germany, France are all 2nd tier compared to the military power of the United States Armed Forces.
117 posted on 05/29/2003 2:32:46 PM PDT by Michael81Dus ("Wer will, was er muss, ist frei" (Schiller) ("Who wants, what he has to do, is free!"))
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To: wardaddy
Actually not, but in highlands of Iran...aka Indo-Europeans. Original Euroes dark skinned...like southern spanish (Welsh). Yes, many Khazars still live in Russia...very dark skinned. In S. Africa is jewish african tribe...DNA test proved it...but black as all other Africans.
118 posted on 05/29/2003 2:33:17 PM PDT by RussianConservative (Hristos: the Light of the World)
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To: NP-INCOMPLETE
Then tell me, who was the King/Queen of Britain in 300 AD? I know you can´t. Various tribes ruled, as well as in Russia. Maybe China is a good exception.
119 posted on 05/29/2003 2:34:51 PM PDT by Michael81Dus ("Wer will, was er muss, ist frei" (Schiller) ("Who wants, what he has to do, is free!"))
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To: Michael81Dus
I actually tend to agree with you on that point. Right now in reality, all the great powers of the past are midgets compared to the U.S.
120 posted on 05/29/2003 2:35:34 PM PDT by NP-INCOMPLETE
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