The longest war in the history of mankind: history, interesting facts

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

War in Vietnam

Everyone knew the 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 silent. In Vietnam, this war is considered not only a tragic, but also a heroic period.

The direct cause of serious clashes was the coming of communists to power in the Middle Kingdom and in South Vietnam. Accordingly, the US president no longer wanted to put up with the potential for the emergence of the communist "domino effect". Therefore, the White House decided to use military force.

American combat units outnumbered the Vietnamese in armament. But the national army brilliantly used guerrilla methods in the fight against the enemy.

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

North War

Perhaps the longest war in the history of Russia is the North. In 1700, Russia collided with one of the most powerful powers of that era - Sweden. The first military failures of Peter I became the impetus for the start of serious reforms. 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 king decided to establish a new capital there - St. Petersburg.

A little later the Russian army won Dorpat and Narva.

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

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

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

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

Peloponnesian conflict

This war lasted twenty-seven years. And it involved such ancient states-policies as Sparta and Athens. The conflict itself did not begin spontaneously at all. In Sparta there was an oligarchic form of government, in Athens - democracy. There was also a kind of cultural opposition. In general, these two strong leaders could not but meet on the battlefield.

Athenians made sea raids on the banks of the Peloponnesus. Spartans also invaded the territory of Attica.

After some time, the two opposing sides concluded a peace treaty, but several years later Athens violated the terms. And again, hostilities began.

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

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

The war, which lasted three decades

For three decades (1618-1648) virtually 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 major war in Europe. Let's note, Russia was also involved in this conflict. Only Switzerland remained neutral.

During the years of this merciless war, the number of Germans has declined by several orders of magnitude!

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

The clash of British aristocracy groups

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

Years later, after numerous battles in the war, the Lancasters won. But after a while a representative of the Tudor dynasty joined the throne. This royal rule lasts almost 120 years.

Liberation war of the Indians 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 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 an insurgent army. The liberation movement spread. Partisans repeatedly managed to occupy cities and villages. As a rule, government 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, during the war, about 200 thousand people died, most of them - Maya. Approximately another 150 thousand are considered missing.

A 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 militant power. Greece or Hellas as such on the map of the Ancient World did not exist at all. There were only disunited policies (city-states). They seemed unable to resist the great Persia.

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

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

And Hellad was waiting for an unprecedented rise. The country then began to enter the period of the highest prosperity. She was already laying the foundations of culture, to which the whole world subsequently became equal.

A war that lasted one century

What is the longest war in history? You will learn more about this later. But the record of the century included the conflict between England and France. In fact, lasted more than one century - 116 years. The fact is that both sides were forced to make a truce in this long struggle. The cause was the plague epidemic.

At that time, both states were regional leaders. They had powerful armies and serious allies.

Initially, the hostilities began to lead England. The island kingdom sought to regain itself, in the first place, Anjou, Men and Normandy. The French side was eager to drive the English out of Aquitaine. Thus, she tried to unite all its territories.

The French formed their militia. The English used military men for military operations.

In 1431, the legendary Joan of Arc was executed, which was a symbol of France's freedom. After that militiamen began, first of all, to use partisan methods in the struggle. As a result, after years of exhausted war, England recognized its defeat, having lost almost all possessions on French territory.

Punic War

At the very beginning of the history of Roman civilization, Rome managed to practically subordinate all of Italy. By this time, the Romans wanted to extend their influence and on the territory of the rich island of Sicily. These interests were pursued by the mighty trading power of Carthage. Carthaginians inhabitants of ancient Rome called the Punas. As a result, hostilities began between these countries.

One of the longest wars in the world lasted 118 years. True, active fighting lasted four decades. The rest of the time the war was in a kind of sluggish phase.

In the end, Carthage was defeated and destroyed. Let's notice, for all the years of the war about one million people died, which for those times was very much ...

335-year-old strange war

The obvious record for the duration was the war between the archipelago of Scilly 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 for the fact that for all 335 years the opponents could not shoot each other.

In the first half of the XVII century in England was the Second Civil War. The famous Oliver Cromwell defeated the royalists. Fleeing from the chase, the losers arrived to the shores of the archipelago of Scilly, 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 formally declared the Sally the war, 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 in the war with Holland. The next year this misunderstanding was settled, and two countries were able to sign a peace treaty ...