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The biggest war in the history of mankind - Short story Second World War

Second World War was the biggest, most destructive and most bloody war, known history. In terms of its scale, it far surpassed all the wars of the past, including the Hundred Years' War of the XIV-XV centuries, the Thirty Years' War of the XVII century, the Napoleonic Wars of the early XIX century. and even the First World War of 1914-1918. The Second World War lasted six years - from 1939 to 1945. It involved 61 states with a total population of 1 billion 700 million people, including all the great powers: Germany, Great Britain, France, Italy, the Soviet Union, the United States of America and Japan . Military operations were conducted on the territory of 40 states, on three continents and on all oceans. 110 million people were mobilized in the armies of the warring countries; in addition, tens of millions participated in the resistance movement, in guerrilla warfare, built military fortifications, worked in the military industry. In total, the war drew into its orbit 3/4 of the world's population.

The loss and destruction caused by World War II is unparalleled. They are so large that they cannot even be accurately calculated, but can only be estimated approximately. According to historians, human losses in World War II amounted to at least 50-60 million people. They are at least five once again exceeded the losses in the First World War and more than doubled the losses in all wars of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. The material damage was 12 times greater than in the First World War.

In terms of its gigantic scale and influence on subsequent historical development, the Second World War is the largest event in world history.

Like the First World War, the Second World War was fought for the redivision of the world, territorial acquisitions, sources of raw materials and markets, but unlike the First World War, it also had a clearly expressed ideological content. In World War II, the fascist and anti-fascist coalitions opposed each other. The fascist and militaristic states that unleashed the war sought to enslave other countries, establish their own rules there and achieve world domination. The states of the anti-fascist coalition defended their freedom and independence, as well as the freedom of the countries enslaved by the fascists; fought for the preservation of democratic rights and freedoms. The war on their part had an anti-fascist, liberation character.

One of the manifestations of its liberation character was the national liberation and anti-fascist resistance movement that arose in the occupied countries and in the states of the aggressor bloc. Resistance Movement - characteristic and features of World War II.

Many thousands of books and articles have been written about World War II, dozens of films have been made in all countries. The literature on the war is truly boundless; no one is able to read it in its entirety, but the flow of publications does not dry out, because the history of the war is still far from being fully studied, and especially because it is closely connected with the most acute problems of our time. This or that interpretation of wartime events often serves as a historical justification and justification for revising borders and creating new states; for a positive or negative assessment of the role of nations, classes, parties, political regimes and statesmen; it offends national interests and national feelings. Along with serious historical research, a huge number of all kinds of unreliable writings, fabrications and falsifications are published. The true history of the war was overgrown with myths and legends, which were often supported by government propaganda, were widely disseminated and acquired a stable character. Until now, little is known in Russia about the actions of the Anglo-American troops in Africa and the Pacific, and in Britain and especially in the USA they have little idea of the gigantic scale of military operations on the Soviet-German front. It is characteristic that the serial Soviet-American documentary about the Great Patriotic war(released on screens in 1978) was given the name "Unknown War" in America, because it is almost unknown to Americans. The same name - "Unknown War" - is also one of the last French works on the history of the Second World War.

As shown by public opinion polls conducted in different countries, including in Russia, the generations born in the post-war period sometimes lack the most elementary information about the Second World War. Often, the respondents do not remember when the war began, why it was fought, who fought with whom. Sometimes they don't even know who Hitler, Roosevelt or Churchill are.

The purpose of this book, intended for the general reader, is to give a general idea of the course and main events of the war. The most controversial issues in the history of the war are discussed in the sections "What are the disputes about?".

Other chapters from this book

The immediate and most obvious outcome of World War II was gigantic destruction and loss of life. The war devastated entire countries, turned cities and villages into ruins, and led to the death of many millions of people. The largest human losses - 26.6 million people - were...

In the history of mankind there were wars that lasted more than a century. Maps were redrawn, political interests were defended, people died. We recall the most protracted military conflicts.

Punic War (118 years)

By the middle of the III century BC. the Romans almost completely subjugated Italy, swung at the entire Mediterranean and wanted Sicily first. But the mighty Carthage also claimed this rich island. Their claims unleashed 3 wars that stretched (intermittently) from 264 to 146. BC. and got the name from the Latin name of the Phoenicians-Carthaginians (puns).

The first (264-241) - 23 years old (began just because of Sicily). The second (218-201) - 17 years (after the capture of the Spanish city of Sagunta by Hannibal). The last (149-146) - 3 years. It was then that the famous phrase "Carthage must be destroyed!" was born.
Pure warfare took 43 years. The conflict in total is 118 years.
Results: Besieged Carthage fell. Rome has won.

Hundred Years War (116 years)

Went in 4 stages. With pauses for truces (the longest - 10 years) and the fight against the plague (1348) from 1337 to 1453.
Opponents: England and France.
Causes: France wanted to oust England from the southwestern lands of Aquitaine and complete the unification of the country. England - to strengthen influence in the province of Guyenne and return those lost under John the Landless - Normandy, Maine, Anjou.
Complication: Flanders - formally was under the auspices of the French crown, in fact it was free, but depended on English wool for cloth making.
Reason: the claims of the English king Edward III from the Plantagenet-Anjou dynasty (maternal grandson of the French king Philip IV the Handsome of the Capetian family) to the Gallic throne.
Allies: England - German feudal lords and Flanders. France - Scotland and the Pope.
armies: English - hired. under the command of the king. The basis is infantry (archers) and knightly units. French - knightly militia, under the leadership of royal vassals.
fracture: after the execution of Joan of Arc in 1431 and the battle for Normandy, the national liberation war of the French people began with the tactics of guerrilla raids.
Results: On October 19, 1453, the English army capitulated at Bordeaux. Having lost everything on the continent, except for the port of Calais (it remained English for another 100 years). France switched to a regular army, abandoned knightly cavalry, gave preference to infantry, and the first firearms appeared.

Greco-Persian War (50th Anniversary)

Altogether, war. Stretched with lulls from 499 to 449. BC. They are divided into two (the first - 492-490, the second - 480-479) or three (the first - 492, the second - 490, the third - 480-479 (449). For the Greek policies-states - the battle for independence. For the Achaeminid Empire - captivating.

Trigger: Ionian uprising. The battle of the Spartans at Thermopylae is legendary. The battle of Salamis was a turning point. The point was put by "Kalliev Mir".
Results: Persia lost the Aegean Sea, the coasts of the Hellespont and the Bosporus. Recognized the freedom of the cities of Asia Minor. The civilization of the ancient Greeks entered the time of the highest prosperity, laying the culture, which, even after millennia, the world was equal to.

Guatemalan War (age 36)

Civil. It proceeded in outbreaks from 1960 to 1996. A provocative decision by US President Eisenhower in 1954 triggered a coup.

Cause: the fight against the "communist infection".
Opponents: Bloc "Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity" and the military junta.
Victims: almost 6 thousand murders were committed annually, only in the 80s - 669 massacres, more than 200 thousand dead (of which 83% were Maya Indians), over 150 thousand went missing.
Results: Signing of the "Treaty for a Lasting and Lasting Peace", which protected the rights of 23 groups of Native Americans.

War of the Scarlet and White Rose (aged 33)

Confrontation of the English nobility - supporters of two tribal branches of the Plantagenet dynasty - Lancaster and York. Stretched from 1455 to 1485.
Prerequisites: "bastard feudalism" - the privilege of the English nobility to pay off military service from the lord, in whose hands large funds were concentrated, with which he paid for the army of mercenaries, which became more powerful than the royal one.

Cause: the defeat of England in the Hundred Years War, the impoverishment of the feudal lords, their rejection of the political course of the wife of the feeble-minded king Henry IV, hatred of her favorites.
Opposition: Duke Richard of York - considered the right to power of the Lancasters illegitimate, became regent under an incapacitated monarch, in 1483 - king, killed at the Battle of Bosworth.
Results: It upset the balance of political forces in Europe. Led to the collapse of the Plantagenets. She placed the Welsh Tudors on the throne, who ruled England for 117 years. Cost the lives of hundreds of English aristocrats.

Thirty Years' War (30 years)

The first military conflict of a pan-European scale. Lasted from 1618 to 1648.
Opponents: two coalitions. The first is the union of the Holy Roman Empire (in fact, Austrian) with Spain and the Catholic principalities of Germany. The second - the German states, where power was in the hands of Protestant princes. They were supported by the armies of reformist Sweden and Denmark and Catholic France.

Cause: The Catholic League was afraid of the spread of the ideas of the Reformation in Europe, the Protestant Evangelical Union was striving for this.
Trigger: Revolt of Czech Protestants against Austrian domination.
Results: The population of Germany has decreased by a third. The French army lost 80 thousand. Austria and Spain - more than 120. After the Treaty of Münster in 1648, a new independent state, the Republic of the United Provinces of the Netherlands (Holland), was finally fixed on the map of Europe.

Peloponnesian War (age 27)

There are two of them. The first is the Little Peloponnesian (460-445 BC). The second (431-404 BC) is the largest in the history of Ancient Hellas after the first Persian invasion of the territory of Balkan Greece. (492-490 BC).
Opponents: Peloponnesian Union led by Sparta and the First Marine (Delosian) under the auspices of Athens.

Causes: The desire for hegemony in the Greek world of Athens and the rejection of their claims by Sparta and Corypha.
contradictions: Athens was ruled by an oligarchy. Sparta is a military aristocracy. Ethnically, the Athenians were Ionians, the Spartans were Dorians.
In the second, 2 periods are distinguished. The first is "Arkhidamov's War". The Spartans made land invasions into the territory of Attica. Athenians - sea raids on the coast of the Peloponnese. It ended in the 421st signing of the Peace of Nikiev. After 6 years, it was violated by the Athenian side, which was defeated in the battle of Syracuse. The final phase went down in history under the name Dekeley or Ionian. With the support of Persia, Sparta built a fleet and destroyed the Athenian at Aegospotami.
Results: After the conclusion in April 404 BC. Feramenov's world Athens lost the fleet, torn down long walls, lost all colonies and joined the Spartan Union.

Vietnam War (age 18)

The Second Indochinese War between Vietnam and the United States and one of the most destructive of the second half of the 20th century. Lasted from 1957 to 1975. 3 periods: guerrilla South Vietnamese (1957-1964), from 1965 to 1973 - full-scale US military operations, 1973-1975. - after the withdrawal of American troops from the territories of the Viet Cong.
Opponents: South and North Vietnam. On the side of the South - the United States and the military bloc SEATO (Southeast Asia Treaty Organization). North - China and the USSR.

Cause: when the communists came to power in China, and Ho Chi Minh became the leader of South Vietnam, the White House administration was afraid of the communist "domino effect". After Kennedy's assassination, Congress gave President Lyndon Johnson carte blanche to use military force in the Tonkin Resolution. And already in March 65, two battalions of US Army Navy SEALs left for Vietnam. So the States became part of the Vietnamese Civil War. They applied the “search and destroy” strategy, burned the jungle with napalm - the Vietnamese went underground and responded with a guerrilla war.

Who benefits: American arms corporations.
US losses: 58 thousand in combat (64% under the age of 21) and about 150 thousand suicides of American veterans of the explosives.
Vietnamese casualties: over 1 million who fought and more than 2 civilians, only in South Vietnam - 83 thousand amputees, 30 thousand blind, 10 thousand deaf, after the operation "Ranch Hand" (chemical destruction of the jungle) - congenital genetic mutations.
Results: The Tribunal of May 10, 1967 qualified US actions in Vietnam as a crime against humanity (Article 6 of the Nuremberg Statute) and banned the use of CBU-type thermite bombs as weapons of mass destruction.

This topic is relevant, despite the seemingly peaceful time in our country, because in addition to open, bloody wars, there are also latent ones that claim no less lives than during battles with spears, swords, tanks, machine guns, bombs.

So, let's analyze which wars were the largest in terms of the number of victims and the scale of destruction in the entire history of mankind known to us. More than 1 million people were killed in major wars.

About a million and a little more victims were in wars:

Biafran War of Independence (1967-1970), Japanese Invasions of Korea (1592-1598), Siege of Jerusalem (73 AD, First Jewish War episode), Rwandan Genocide (1994), Korean War (1953), etc.

Approximately 2-3 million victims were in the wars: Chuck's Conquests ( South Africa, 19th century), Goguryeo-Suu Wars (598-614), Mexican Revolution (1910-1920).

Religious wars in France (1568-1598) - claimed the lives of more than 4 million people.

The Huguenot Wars, the French Wars of Religion that were fought at the end of the 16th century, were essentially a confrontation between Catholics and Protestant Hugents.

The Wars of Religion or Huguenots are a series of protracted civil wars between Catholics and Protestants (Huguenots) that tore apart France under the last Valois kings, from 1562 to 1598. The Huguenots were led by the Bourbons (Prince Condé, Henry of Navarre) and Admiral de Coligny, and the Catholics were led by Queen Mother Catherine de Medici and the powerful Giza.

Its neighbors tried to influence the course of events in France - Elizabeth of England supported the Huguenots, and Philip of Spain supported the Catholics. The wars ended with the accession of Henry of Navarre, who converted to Catholicism, to the French throne and the issuance of the compromise Edict of Nantes (1598).

In the 15-16th century in Europe, religion was not just an outlet for those seeking the eternal, religion was the cause of wars, almost the main one, religion divided society into enemies and friends, into friends and foes, was the essence of the monarchy, the main punitive element of the state, with the blessing those who had dignity were married and executed. As we can see, it got to the point that some cut others down just because they had different views on God.

Napoleonic wars (1799-1815) - more than 3.5 million victims.

“The Napoleonic Wars - this name is mainly known for the wars waged by Napoleon I with various states of Europe when he was First Consul and Emperor (November 1799 - June 1815). In a broader sense, this includes both Napoleon's Italian campaign (1796-1797) and his Egyptian expedition (1798-1799), although these (especially the Italian campaign) are usually ranked among the so-called revolutionary wars.

Napoleon created the first French empire, which lasted from 1804 to 1815. Having become, as a result of the coup on 18 Brumaire (November 9, 1799), the first consul of France, Napoleon launched an attack with the aim of conquering the whole of Europe, Italy, Austria, Germany, Prussia, etc. were in the plans.

According to official data alone, the battles in the warring countries claimed the lives of 2.2-3.6 million soldiers and civilians. Some historians even double these figures. Having failed in the Spanish-Portuguese war, defeated in the war with Russia (1812) - and Napoleon's empire began to crack.

The war of 1812 is depicted in paintings only in Russian art, in world works such as L. Tolstoy’s “War and Peace”, and Napoleon’s wars have become an inspiration, no matter how cynical it may sound, for many creators around the world.

In terms of the number of victims, the Napoleonic Wars are considered one of the largest and bloodiest.

Second Congo war - 5.4 million victims

« The Second Congolese War (French: Deuxième guerre du Congo), also known as the Great African War (1998-2002) is a war on the territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in which more than twenty armed groups representing nine states participated.

By 2008, the war and subsequent events had killed 5.4 million people, mostly from disease and starvation, making it one of the bloodiest wars in world history and the deadliest conflict since World War II."

Many historians see the genocide in Rwanda as the beginning of the conflict, then the Tutsi refugees moved to Zaire, then, after the Rwandan Patriotic Front came to power in Rwanda, and part of the Hutu refugees rushed to seek refuge in Zaire, in connection with which in the territory of the former Republic of the Congo (now Zaire ) unfinished war in Rwanda unfolded. Hutu radicals began to use Zaire as a rear for attacks on Rwanda.

Chinese Civil War(1927-1950) - 8 million victims

“Civil War in China (Chinese trad.國共内戰, ex.国共内战, pinyin: guógòng neìzhàn, pall.: gogong neizhan, literally: "internal war between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party") - a series of armed conflicts in China between the forces of the Republic of China and the Chinese Communists in 1927 - 1950 (with interruptions).

The war began in 1927 after the Northern Expedition, when, by decision of the right wing of the Kuomintang led by Chiang Kai-shek, the alliance between the Kuomintang and the CCP was broken.

A war that lasted 23 years and claimed millions of lives ... Periods, such as in 1936, when China united in the fight against the Japanese invaders, the battle weakened, but after the completion of the events for which there was rallying, it began again with renewed vigor.

The war continued until 1950, in 1949 the formation of the Chinese People's Republic, in May 1951, by signing an agreement on the peaceful end of the conflict, the last captured stronghold - Tibet - was liberated.

Thirty Years' War - 11.5 million dead

“The Thirty Years' War is a military conflict for hegemony in the Holy Roman Empire and Europe, which lasted from 1618 to 1648 and affected almost all European countries to one degree or another.

The war began as a religious clash between the Protestants and Catholics of the empire, but then escalated into a fight against Habsburg dominance in Europe. The conflict was the last major religious war in Europe and gave rise to the Westphalian system of international relations.

This war affected all segments of the population - as the story goes, the most affected country is Germany, more than 5 million people died there, the economic, productive system was destroyed, only a century later the country's population began to recover. Sweden and Germany fought.

Civil war in Russia (1917-1922) - 12 million dead (taking into account the accompanying losses - more than 25 million people)

"The Civil War in Russia (October 25 (November 7), 1917 - October 25, 1922 / July 16, 1923) - a series of armed conflicts between various political, ethnic, social groups and state entities on the territory of the former Russian Empire that followed the Bolsheviks' coming to power as a result of the October Revolution of 1917.

The civil war of the "Reds" and "Whites" was the natural result of the revolution of 1904-1907, also the First World War, ended with the victory of the Bolsheviks.

Perhaps this is one of the most cruel and memorable wars for the Russian people, not only in the 20th century, but in general throughout history, because the war was fought not with external, foreign enemies, but with Russians ... The population of the homeland was divided into two camps and " interrupted" their own.

The horrors of that era are described in many literary works, captured in rare photos, many legendary films based on works and that war were shot, the ruthlessness of their own compatriots, blinded by the idea, is amazing. The bodies of the shot people were taken by trucks from the base of the Chekists to the burial places. One of the works banned at that time - Zazubrin's story "Sliver" vividly tells about the revolution - "a beautiful and cruel mistress, without rights, sparingly, rigidly imposing her order of life on us, clearing her way with corpses ... By the way, the author himself - Vladimir Zazubrin - was shot in 1937 for belonging to a sabotage and terrorist organization of the right. The novel was first published only in 1989.

The "Reds" - the Bolsheviks - won. The confrontation between the "reds" and "whites" grew into a bloody massacre, characteristic feature Civil war was that the enemy sides achieved their goal exclusively by violent measures.

Historians explain this situation by saying that

“The social and class confrontation that has reached the stage of civil war divides society into “us” and “them”, into “us” and “them”. Enemies and opponents are generally taken out of the sphere of morality at such moments, they are perceived as “subhumans”, who are not subject to universal norms. This is what creates the opportunity to turn immoral terror into terror that is morally justified…”.

Even during the unfinished war, Russia was defeated.

“The territories of Poland, Finland, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Western Ukraine, Belarus, the Kars region (in Armenia) and Bessarabia departed from the former Russian Empire. According to experts, the population in the remaining territories barely reached 135 million people.

Losses in these territories as a result of wars, epidemics, emigration, and a reduction in the birth rate amounted to at least 25 million people since 1914.

The level of production fell, factories were destroyed, the country was swallowed up by chaos, poverty and devastation.

The number of homeless children ranged from 4.5 to 7 million people.

"The First World War (July 28, 1914 - November 11, 1918) is one of the largest armed conflicts in the history of mankind."

The actual beginning of the already brewing conflict was the so-called “Sarajevo Murder” on June 28, 1914, when the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand, who advocated the creation of national autonomies in Austria-Hungary, was killed by a young Serbian terrorist.

“As a result of the military conflict, four empires ceased to exist: Russian, Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman and German (although the Weimar Republic that arose instead of Kaiser Germany formally continued to be called the German Empire). The participating countries lost more than 10 million soldiers and about 12 million civilians killed, about 55 million people were injured.

The participants in the war were:

Quadruple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria.

Entente: Russia, France, Great Britain.

Allies of the Entente (supported the Entente in the war): USA, Japan, Serbia, Italy (participated in the war on the side of the Entente since 1915, despite being a member of the Triple Alliance), Montenegro, Belgium, Egypt, Portugal, Romania, Greece, Brazil, China, Cuba, Nicaragua, Siam, Haiti, Liberia, Panama, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Peru, Uruguay, Ecuador.

In 1919, Germany was forced to sign the Versailles Treaty on the peaceful end of the conflict with the victorious countries.

As a result, Germany lost more, in Russia the First World War led to revolutions, civil war, for all participants - to the liquidation of several empires. For Germany, the defeat in this war led to the collapse of the monarchy, the weakening of economic and territorial positions, the subsequent humiliation led to the Nazis coming to power, who later unleashed the Second World War.

Any war is always not just a conflict, it is the cause of something and the consequence of something, often another war.

Conquests of Tamerlane (Tuesday half of the 14th century) - 20 million dead

Dungan uprising (19th century) - 20.5 million victims

The Qing Dynasty conquered the Ming Dynasty - 25 million dead

Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) - 30 million victims

Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864, China) - 30 million victims

An Lushan Rebellion (755-763, China) - 36 million victims

Mongol conquests (13th century) - 70 million dead

There is evidence that over 138 million people died as a result of the conquest of North and South America (over several centuries).

During the development of the territory of North and South America, that is, from the period of 1491 to 1691, although in fact the development began in the 10th century, during all this time more than one hundred million people died in battles with the colonialists and indigenous people.

World War II (1939 - 1945) - 85 million dead

“The Second World War (September 1, 1939 [- September 2, 1945) is a war of two world military-political coalitions, which has become the largest armed conflict in the history of mankind.

It was attended by 62 states out of 73 that existed at that time (80% of the world's population). The fighting took place on the territory of three continents and in the waters of four oceans. This is the only conflict in which nuclear weapons have been used."

The Second World War, both in terms of the number of victims and the number of participating countries, the scale of destruction, became one of the largest world battles in the history of mankind. It was attended by 72 states, which is 80% of the world's population, military operations were conducted on the territory of 40 states. Human losses - at least 65 million people. The military losses and expenses incurred were colossal.

After the war, the role of Western Europe weakened, the USSR and the USA became the main ones in the world. Nazi and fascist ideologies were recognized as criminal and banned at the Nuremberg trials.

And although more than 70 years have passed since the end of the battles, many Russians know what the Second World War and the Great Patriotic War are.

Perhaps, so many creations of art are not dedicated to any military battle - literary works, masterpieces of cinema, etc. There are a lot of photographs of the victims of Nazi camps, battles, fragments of the war, soldiers, the Nazis themselves.

A lot of documentation and evidence of the horrors of those times has been preserved about the inhuman, cruel experiments of the Nazis on prisoners, about gas chambers and tons of victims, about tens of thousands of healthy babies who were born by Russian women in captivity, drowned in a bucket for slops by German guards, about Jews killed during the Holocaust ...

About a million and a little more victims were in wars:

Biafran War of Independence (1967-1970), Japanese Invasions of Korea (1592-1598), Siege of Jerusalem (73 AD, First Jewish War episode), Rwandan Genocide (1994), Korean War (1953), etc.

About 2-3 million victims were in the wars: the Chaka conquests (South Africa, 19th century), the Koguryeo-Suu wars (598-614), the Mexican revolution (1910-1920).

Religious wars in France (1568-1598) - claimed the lives of more than 4 million people.

The Huguenot Wars, the French Wars of Religion that were fought at the end of the 16th century, were essentially a confrontation between Catholics and Protestant Hugents.

The Wars of Religion or Huguenots are a series of protracted civil wars between Catholics and Protestants (Huguenots) that tore apart France under the last Valois kings, from 1562 to 1598. The Huguenots were led by the Bourbons (Prince Condé, Henry of Navarre) and Admiral de Coligny, and the Catholics were led by Queen Mother Catherine de Medici and the powerful Giza.

Its neighbors tried to influence the course of events in France - Elizabeth of England supported the Huguenots, and Philip of Spain supported the Catholics. The wars ended with the accession of Henry of Navarre, who converted to Catholicism, to the French throne and the issuance of the compromise Edict of Nantes (1598).

Napoleonic wars (1799-1815) - more than 3.5 million victims.

“The Napoleonic Wars - this name is mainly known for the wars waged by Napoleon I with various states of Europe when he was First Consul and Emperor (November 1799 - June 1815). In a broader sense, this includes both Napoleon's Italian campaign (1796-1797) and his Egyptian expedition (1798-1799), although these (especially the Italian campaign) are usually ranked among the so-called revolutionary wars.

In terms of the number of victims, the Napoleonic Wars are considered one of the largest and bloodiest.

Second Congo war - 5.4 million victims

« The Second Congolese War (French: Deuxième guerre du Congo), also known as the Great African War (1998-2002) is a war on the territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in which more than twenty armed groups representing nine states participated.

By 2008, the war and subsequent events had killed 5.4 million people, mostly from disease and starvation, making it one of the bloodiest wars in world history and the deadliest conflict since World War II."

Chinese Civil War (1927-1950) - 8 million victims

“Civil War in China (Chinese trad.國共内戰, ex.国共内战, pinyin: guógòng neìzhàn, pall.: gogong neizhan, literally: "internal war between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party") - a series of armed conflicts in China between the forces of the Republic of China and the Chinese Communists in 1927 - 1950 (with interruptions).

The war began in 1927 after the Northern Expedition, when, by decision of the right wing of the Kuomintang led by Chiang Kai-shek, the alliance between the Kuomintang and the CCP was broken.

The war continued until 1950, in 1949 the formation of the People's Republic of China was proclaimed in Beijing, and in May 1951, by signing an agreement on the peaceful end of the conflict, the last captured stronghold, Tibet, was liberated.

Thirty Years' War - 11.5 million dead

“The Thirty Years' War is a military conflict for hegemony in the Holy Roman Empire and Europe, which lasted from 1618 to 1648 and affected almost all European countries to one degree or another.

The war began as a religious clash between the Protestants and Catholics of the empire, but then escalated into a fight against Habsburg dominance in Europe. The conflict was the last major religious war in Europe and gave rise to the Westphalian system of international relations.

Civil war in Russia (1917-1922) - 12 million dead (taking into account the accompanying losses - more than 25 million people)

"The Civil War in Russia (October 25 (November 7), 1917 - October 25, 1922 / July 16, 1923) - a series of armed conflicts between various political, ethnic, social groups and state entities on the territory of the former Russian Empire that followed the Bolsheviks' coming to power as a result of the October Revolution of 1917.

The civil war of the "Reds" and "Whites" was the natural result of the revolution of 1904-1907, also the First World War, ended with the victory of the Bolsheviks.

The "Reds" - the Bolsheviks - won. The confrontation between the "reds" and "whites" grew into a bloody massacre, a characteristic feature of the civil war was that the enemy sides achieved their goal exclusively by violent measures.

Historians explain this situation by saying that

“The social and class confrontation that has reached the stage of civil war divides society into “us” and “them”, into “us” and “them”. Enemies and opponents are generally taken out of the sphere of morality at such moments, they are perceived as “subhumans”, who are not subject to universal norms. This is what creates the opportunity to turn immoral terror into terror that is morally justified…”.

Even during the unfinished war, Russia was defeated.

“The territories of Poland, Finland, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Western Ukraine, Belarus, the Kars region (in Armenia) and Bessarabia departed from the former Russian Empire. According to experts, the population in the remaining territories barely reached 135 million people.

Losses in these territories as a result of wars, epidemics, emigration, and a reduction in the birth rate amounted to at least 25 million people since 1914.

The level of production fell, factories were destroyed, the country was swallowed up by chaos, poverty and devastation.

The number of homeless children ranged from 4.5 to 7 million people.

"The First World War (July 28, 1914 - November 11, 1918) is one of the largest armed conflicts in the history of mankind."

“As a result of the military conflict, four empires ceased to exist: Russian, Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman and German (although the Weimar Republic that arose instead of Kaiser Germany formally continued to be called the German Empire). The participating countries lost more than 10 million soldiers and about 12 million civilians killed, about 55 million people were injured.

The participants in the war were:

Quadruple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria.

Entente: Russia, France, Great Britain.

Allies of the Entente (supported the Entente in the war): USA, Japan, Serbia, Italy (participated in the war on the side of the Entente since 1915, despite being a member of the Triple Alliance), Montenegro, Belgium, Egypt, Portugal, Romania, Greece, Brazil, China, Cuba, Nicaragua, Siam, Haiti, Liberia, Panama, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Peru, Uruguay, Ecuador.

In 1919, Germany was forced to sign the Versailles Treaty on the peaceful end of the conflict with the victorious countries.

Any war is always not just a conflict, it is the cause of something and the consequence of something, often another war.

Conquests of Tamerlane (Tuesday half of the 14th century) - 20 million dead

Dungan uprising (19th century) - 20.5 million victims

The Qing Dynasty conquered the Ming Dynasty - 25 million dead

Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) - 30 million victims

Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864, China) - 30 million victims

An Lushan Rebellion (755-763, China) - 36 million victims

Mongol conquests (13th century) - 70 million dead

There is evidence that over 138 million people died as a result of the conquest of North and South America (over several centuries).

During the development of the territory of North and South America, that is, from the period of 1491 to 1691, although in fact the development began in the 10th century, during all this time more than one hundred million people died in battles with the colonialists and indigenous people.

World War II (1939 - 1945) - 85 million dead

“The Second World War (September 1, 1939 [- September 2, 1945) is a war of two world military-political coalitions, which has become the largest armed conflict in the history of mankind.

It was attended by 62 states out of 73 that existed at that time (80% of the world's population). The fighting took place on the territory of three continents and in the waters of four oceans. This is the only conflict in which nuclear weapons have been used."

The Second World War, both in terms of the number of victims and the number of participating countries, the scale of destruction, became one of the largest world battles in the history of mankind. It was attended by 72 states, which is 80% of the world's population, military operations were conducted on the territory of 40 states. Human losses - at least 65 million people. The military losses and expenses incurred were colossal.

After the war, the role of Western Europe weakened, the USSR and the USA became the main ones in the world. Nazi and fascist ideologies were recognized as criminal and banned at the Nuremberg trials.

And although more than 70 years have passed since the end of the battles, many Russians know what the Second World War and the Great Patriotic War are.

Perhaps, so many creations of art are not dedicated to any military battle - literary works, masterpieces of cinema, etc. There are a lot of photographs of the victims of Nazi camps, battles, fragments of the war, soldiers, the Nazis themselves.

A lot of documentation and testimonies of the horrors of those times have been preserved about the inhuman, cruel experiments of the Nazis on prisoners, about gas chambers and tons of victims, about tens of thousands of healthy babies who were born by Russian women in captivity, drowned in a bucket for slops by German guards, about Jews killed during Holocaust…

In the history of civilization there have always been military clashes. And each protracted conflict was distinguished by its duration. We bring to your attention the top 10 longest wars in the history of mankind.

Vietnam War

The well-known military conflict between the United States and Vietnam lasted eighteen years (1957-1975). In the history of America, some facts of these events are still hushed up. In Vietnam, this war is considered not only a tragic, but also a heroic period.

The immediate cause of serious clashes was the coming of the Communists to power in China and South Vietnam. Accordingly, the US president no longer wanted to put up with the potential for a communist "domino effect." That's why The White house decided to use military force.

American combat units outgunned the Vietnamese. But on the other hand, the national army brilliantly applied guerrilla methods in the fight against the enemy.

As a result, the war ended with a mutually beneficial agreement between the states.

North War

Perhaps the longest war in the history of Russia is the Northern one. In 1700, Russia faced one of the most powerful powers of that era - Sweden. The first military failures of Peter I became an incentive for the start of serious transformations. As a result, by 1703 the Russian autocrat had already won a number of victories, after which the entire Neva was in his hands. That is why the tsar decided to establish a new capital there - St. Petersburg.

A little later, the Russian army conquered Dorpat and Narva.

Meanwhile, the Swedish emperor demanded revenge, and in 1708 his units again invaded Russia. It was the beginning of the decline of this northern power.

First, Russian soldiers defeated the Swedes near Lesnaya. And then - and near Poltava, in the decisive battle.

The defeat in this battle put an end not only to the ambitious plans of Charles XII, but also to the prospects of the Swedish "great power".

A few years later the new one sued for peace. The corresponding agreement was concluded in 1721, and for the state it became deplorable. Sweden has practically ceased to be considered a great power. In addition, she lost almost all her possessions.

Peloponnesian conflict

This war lasted twenty-seven years. And such ancient states-polises as Sparta and Athens were involved in it. The conflict itself did not begin spontaneously. In Sparta there was an oligarchic form of government, in Athens - democracy. There was also a kind of cultural confrontation. In general, these two strong leaders could no longer meet on the battlefield.

The Athenians made sea raids on the shores of the Peloponnese. The Spartans also invaded the territory of Attica.

After some time, both warring parties entered into a peace treaty, but a few years later Athens violated the terms. And the hostilities began again.

In general, the Athenians lost. So, they were defeated at Syracuse. Then, with the support of Persia, Sparta managed to build its own fleet. This flotilla finally defeated the enemy at Egospotami.

The main outcome of the war was the loss of all Athenian colonies. In addition, the policy itself was forced to join the Spartan Union.

A war that lasted three decades

For three decades (1618-1648), literally all European powers took part in religious clashes. It all started with a conflict between German Protestants and Catholics, after which this local incident turned into a large-scale war in Europe. Note that Russia was also involved in this conflict. Only Switzerland remained neutral.

During the years of this merciless war, the number of inhabitants of Germany decreased by several orders of magnitude!

By the end of the clashes, the warring parties concluded a peace treaty. The consequence of this document was the formation of an independent state - the Netherlands.

The clash of factions of the British aristocracy

In medieval England in the second half of the 15th century, there were active hostilities. Contemporaries called them the war of the Scarlet and White Roses. In fact, it was a series of civil wars, which, in general, lasted 33 years. It was a confrontation between factions of the aristocracy for power. The main participants in the conflict were representatives of the Lancaster and York branches.

Years later, after numerous battles in the war, the Lancasters won. But after a while, a representative of the Tudor dynasty came to the throne. This royal family ruled for nearly 120 years.

Liberation in Guatemala

The Guatemalan conflict lasted thirty-six years (1960-1996). It was a civil war. The opposing sides are representatives of Indian tribes, primarily the Maya, and the Spaniards.

The fact is that in Guatemala in the 50s, with the support of the United States, a coup d'état was carried out. Members of the opposition began to form a rebel army. liberation movement expanded. The partisans repeatedly managed to occupy cities and villages. As a rule, governing bodies were created immediately.

Meanwhile, the war dragged on. The Guatemalan authorities acknowledged that a military solution to this conflict is impossible. As a result, peace was concluded, which was the official protection of 23 groups of Indians in the country.

In general, about 200 thousand people died during the war, most of them Mayans. Approximately another 150,000 are considered missing.

Half century conflict

The war between the Persians and the Greeks lasted half a century (499-449 BC). By the beginning of the conflict, Persia was considered a powerful and warlike power. Greece or Hellas as such on the map ancient world didn't exist at all. There were only fragmented policies (city-states). They seemed unable to resist the great Persia.

Be that as it may, suddenly the Persians began to suffer crushing defeats. Moreover, the Greeks were able to agree on joint military operations.

At the end of the war, Persia was forced to recognize the independence of the Greek cities. In addition, she had to give up the occupied territories.

And Hellas was waiting for an unprecedented rise. The country then began to enter a period of highest prosperity. She had already laid the foundations of culture, which later the whole world began to follow.

A war that lasted one century

What is the longest war in history? You will learn more about this later. But the century-old conflict between England and France was among the record holders. In fact, it lasted more than one century - 116 years. The fact is that both sides were forced to agree to a truce in this long battle. The reason was the plague.

In those days, both states were regional leaders. They had powerful armies and serious allies.

Initially, England began hostilities. The island kingdom sought to regain, first of all, Anjou, Maine and Normandy. The French side was eager to expel the British from Aquitaine. Thus, she tried to unite all her territories.

The French formed their militia. The British used hired soldiers for military operations.

In 1431, the legendary Joan of Arc, who was a symbol of French freedom, was executed. After that, the militias began, above all, to use guerrilla methods in the fight. As a result, years later, war-weary England conceded defeat, losing almost all possessions on French territory.

Punic War

At the very beginning of the history of Roman civilization, Rome managed to practically subjugate all of Italy. By this time, the Romans wanted to extend their influence to the territory of the rich island of Sicily. These interests were also pursued by the powerful trading power of Carthage. Carthaginian inhabitants ancient rome called puns. As a result, hostilities began between these countries.

One of the longest wars in the world lasted 118 years. True, active hostilities lasted four decades. The rest of the war went on in a kind of sluggish phase.

Ultimately, Carthage was defeated and destroyed. Note that over the years of the war, about a million people died, which was a lot for those times ...

335 year strange war

The obvious record holder for the duration was the war between the Scilly archipelago and the Netherlands. How long was the longest war in history? It lasted more than three centuries and was very different from other military conflicts. At least the fact that for all 335 years the opponents have not been able to shoot at each other.

In the first half of the 17th century, the Second Civil War was going on in England. The famous defeated the royalists. Fleeing from the chase, the losers arrived on the shores of the Scilly archipelago, which belonged to a prominent royalist.

Meanwhile, part of the Dutch fleet decided to support Cromwell. They hoped for an easy victory, but this did not happen. After the defeat, the Dutch authorities demanded compensation. The royalists responded with a categorical refusal. Then, at the end of March 1651, the Dutch officially declared war on Scilly, after which ... they returned home.

A little later, the royalists were persuaded to surrender. But this strange "war" officially continued. It ended only in 1985, when it was discovered that formally Scilly is still at war with Holland. The following year, this misunderstanding was settled, and the two countries were able to sign a peace treaty ...