List of wars involving the United States
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The United States has been involved in 115 military conflicts. These include major conflicts like the American Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, the American Civil War, the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II and the Gulf War. It also includes US involvement in widespread periods of conflict like the Indian Wars, the Cold War (including the Korean War and the Vietnam War), and the War on Terror (including the Iraq War, the War in Afghanistan, and others).
Five military engagements encompassing four wars, all of which are interventions, currently involve the US: the Israel-Hamas War, Yemeni Civil War, the Somali Civil War, and the Syrian Civil War.
- USA victory
- Another result *
- USA defeat
- Ongoing conflict
*e.g. a treaty or peace without a clear result, status quo ante bellum, result of civil or internal conflict, result unknown or indecisive, inconclusive
18th-century wars
19th-century wars
Conflict | Allies | Opponent(s) | Result for the United States and its Allies | Presidents of the United States |
---|---|---|---|---|
First Barbary War (1801–1805) Part of the Barbary Wars Location: Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Tripoli |
United States[13] Sweden[13] Kingdom of Sicily[13] Malta Protectorate[13] Kingdom of Portugal[13] Sultanate of Morocco[13] |
Ottoman Tripolitania[14] Sultanate of Morocco[14] |
US-allied victory | Thomas Jefferson |
Tecumseh's War (1810–1813) Part of the American Indian Wars and the War of 1812 Location: Northwest River Ohio |
United States | Tecumseh's Confederacy
List |
US victory | James Madison |
War of 1812 (1812–1815) Location: Eastern and Central North America |
United States Choctaw Nation Cherokee Nation Creek Allies |
United Kingdom
List |
Inconclusive/Other Result
| |
Creek War (1813–1814) Part of the American Indian Wars and the War of 1812 Location: Southern United States |
United States Lower Creeks Cherokee Nation Choctaw Nation |
Red Stick Creek
Supported by: |
US-allied victory | |
Nuku Hiva Campaign (1813–1814) Part of the War of 1812 |
United States | Tai Pi
Happah (October 1813) Te I'i (May 1814) |
US tactical victory
Polynesian strategic victory
| |
Second Barbary War (1815) Part of the Barbary Wars Location: Mediterranean Sea and the Barbary States |
United States | Deylik of Algiers |
US victory | |
First Seminole War (1817–1818) Part of the Seminole Wars and the American Indian Wars Location: Pensacola, Spanish Florida |
United States | Seminole
|
US victory
|
James Monroe |
Arikara War (1823) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Missouri River |
United States | Arikara | Inconclusive/Other Result
| |
Winnebago War (1827) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Illinois and Michigan Territory |
United States Choctaw Nation |
Prairie La Crosse Ho-Chunks with a few allies |
US-allied victory
|
John Quincy Adams |
Black Hawk War (1832) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Illinois and Michigan Territory |
United States Ho-Chunk Menominee Dakota Potawatomi |
Black Hawk's British Band Ho-Chunk and Potawatomi allies |
US-allied victory
|
Andrew Jackson |
Second Seminole War (1835–1842) Part of the Seminole Wars and the American Indian Wars Location: Florida, United States |
United States | Seminole | US victory
|
Andrew Jackson (March 4, 1829 – March 4, 1837)
Martin Van Buren (March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1841) William Henry Harrison (March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841) John Tyler (April 4, 1841 –March 4, 1845) |
Texas Comanche Wars (1836–1875) Part of the Texas–Indian wars and the American Indian Wars Location: South-central United States (Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Kansas, Colorado) and northern Mexico |
Republic of Texas United States |
Comanche | US victory | Andrew Jackson (March 4, 1829 – March 4, 1837)
Martin Van Buren (March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1841) William Henry Harrison (March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841) John Tyler (April 4, 1841 –March 4, 1845) James K. Polk (March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849) Zachary Taylor (March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850) Millard Fillmore (July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853) Franklin Pierce (March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857) James Buchanan (March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1861) Abraham Lincoln (March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865) Andrew Johnson (April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869) Ulysses S. Grant (March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877) |
Battle of Drummond's Island
(1841) |
United States | Micronesian Natives | US victory
|
John Tyler |
Mexican–American War (1846–1848) Location: Texas, New Mexico, California and Mexico |
United States California Republic |
Mexico | US-allied victory
|
James K. Polk |
Cayuse War (1847–1855) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Oregon |
United States | Cayuse | US victory
|
James K. Polk (March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849)
Zachary Taylor (March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850) Millard Fillmore (July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853) Franklin Pierce (March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857) |
Apache Wars (1849–1924) Part of the Texas–Indian wars and the American Indian Wars Location: Southwestern United States |
United States | Apache Ute Yavapai |
US victory
|
James K. Polk (March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849)
Zachary Taylor (March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850) Millard Fillmore (July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853) Franklin Pierce (March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857) James Buchanan (March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1861) Abraham Lincoln (March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865) Andrew Johnson (April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869) Ulysses S. Grant (March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877) Rutherford B. Hayes (March 4, 1877 – March 4, 1881) James A. Garfield (March 4, 1881 – September 19, 1881) Chester A. Arthur (September 19, 1881 – March 4, 1885) Grover Cleveland (March 4, 1885 – March 4, 1889) Benjamin Harrison (March 4, 1889 – March 4, 1893) Grover Cleveland (March 4, 1893 – March 4, 1897) William McKinley (March 4, 1897 – September 14, 1901) Theodore Roosevelt (September 14, 1901 – March 4, 1909) William Howard Taft (March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1913) Woodrow Wilson (March 4, 1913 – March 4, 1921) Warren G. Harding (March 4, 1921 – August 2, 1923) Calvin Coolidge (August 2, 1923 – March 4, 1929) |
Navajo Wars (1849–1866) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: New Mexico |
United States | Navajo Nation | US victory
|
James K. Polk (March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849)
Zachary Taylor (March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850) Millard Fillmore (July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853) Franklin Pierce (March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857) James Buchanan (March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1861) Abraham Lincoln (March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865) Andrew Johnson (April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869) |
Battle of Muddy Flat (1854) Part of the Taiping Rebellion and the Small Swords Society Uprising |
United States British Empire Shanghai Volunteer Corps Taiping Heavenly Kingdom |
China | US-allied victory
|
Franklin Pierce |
Bleeding Kansas (1854–1861) Location: Kansas and Missouri |
Anti-slavery settlers (Free-Staters) |
Pro-slavery settlers (Border Ruffians) | Free-Stater victory.
|
Franklin Pierce (March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857)
James Buchanan (March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1861) |
Puget Sound War (1855–1856) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Washington |
United States Snoqualmie |
Nisqually Muckleshoot Puyallup Klickitat Haida Tlingit |
US victory
|
Franklin Pierce |
Rogue River Wars (1855–1856) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Rogue Valley |
United States | Tututni | US victory
| |
Third Seminole War (1855–1858) Part of the Seminole Wars and the American Indian Wars Location: Pensacola, Florida |
United States | Seminole | US victory
|
Franklin Pierce (March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857)
James Buchanan (March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1861) Abraham Lincoln (March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865) Andrew Johnson (April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869) |
Yakima War (1855–1858) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Washington Territory |
United States Snoqualmie |
Yakama Walla Walla tribe Umatilla tribe Nez Perce tribe Cayuse tribe |
US victory | |
Second Opium War (1856–1859) Part of the Opium Wars Location: China |
British Empire French Empire United States |
China | US victory
| |
Utah War (1857–1858) Part of the Mormon wars Location: Utah Territory and Wyoming |
United States | Deseret/Utah Mormons | Inconclusive/Other Result
| |
Reform War (1858–1866) Location: Mexico |
Liberals United States |
Conservatives | Liberals - US victory | |
Pig War (1859) Location: San Juan Islands |
United States | United Kingdom | Inconclusive/Other Result
|
James Buchanan |
John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry (1859) Part of pre-Civil War conflicts Location: West Virginia |
United States | Abolitionist Insurgents | US victory | |
First and Second Cortina War (1859–1861) Location: Texas and Mexico |
United States
|
Cortinista bandits | US-allied victory | |
Paiute War (1860) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Pyramid Lake, Nevada |
United States | Paiute Shoshone Bannock |
US victory | |
American Civil War (1861–1865) Location: Southern United States, Indian Territory, Northeastern United States, Western United States, Atlantic Ocean |
United States Indian Home Guard Seminole Nation (Western) (most)[16] Seminole Nation (Florida) Muskogee Nation (part)[17] |
Confederate States Cherokee Nation Choctaw Nation Catawba Chickasaw Nation (part) Muskogee Nation (part) Seminole Nation (Western) (part) Comanche Nation (part) |
US victory
|
|
Yavapai Wars (1861–1875) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Arizona |
United States | Yavapai Apache Yuma Mohave |
US victory |
Abraham Lincoln (March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865) Andrew Johnson (April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869) Ulysses S. Grant (March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877) |
Dakota War of 1862 (1862) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Minnesota and Dakota |
United States | Dakota Sioux | US victory | Abraham Lincoln |
1st Battle of Shimonoseki Straits and the following Shimonoseki campaign (1863-1864) Part of Bakumatsu Conflicts |
United States British Empire French Empire Netherlands |
Chōshū Domain | US-allied victory
| |
Colorado War (1863–1865) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska |
United States | Cheyenne Arapaho Sioux |
Inconclusive/Other Result
| |
Snake War (1864–1868) Part of the American Indian Wars Locations: Oregon, Nevada, California, and Idaho |
United States | Paiute Bannock Shoshone |
US victory | Abraham Lincoln (March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865)
Andrew Johnson (April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869) |
Powder River War (1865) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Powder River State |
United States | Sioux Cheyenne Arapaho |
Inconclusive | |
Red Cloud's War (1866–1868) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Powder River State |
United States Crow Nation |
Lakota Cheyenne Arapaho |
Lakota-allied victory
| |
Formosa Expedition (1867) Location: Hengchun, Taiwan, Qing China' |
United States | Paiwan | Paiwan victory | |
Comanche Campaign (1867–1875) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Western United States |
United States | Cheyenne Arapaho Comanche Kiowa |
US victory | Andrew Johnson (April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869)
Ulysses S. Grant (March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877) |
United States expedition to Korea (1871) Location: Ganghwa Island |
United States | Joseon dynasty | Inconclusive/Other Result
American military victory American diplomatic failure
|
Ulysses S. Grant |
Modoc War (1872–1873) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: California and Oregon |
United States | Modoc | US victory | |
Red River War (1874–1875) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Texas |
United States | Cheyenne Arapaho Comanche Kiowa |
US victory
| |
Las Cuevas War (1875) Location: Texas and Mexico |
United States | Mexican bandits | US victory
| |
Great Sioux War of 1876 (1876–1877) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Montana, Dakota and Wyoming |
United States | Lakota Dakota Sioux Northern Cheyenne Arapaho |
US victory
| |
Buffalo Hunters' War (1876–1877) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Texas and Oklahoma |
United States | Comanche Apache |
US victory | |
Nez Perce War (1877) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana |
United States | Nez Perce Palouse |
US victory | Rutherford B. Hayes |
Bannock War (1878) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Idaho, Oregon, and Wyoming |
United States | Bannock Shoshone Paiute |
US victory | |
Cheyenne War (1878–1879) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota and Montana |
United States | Cheyenne | US victory | |
Sheepeater Indian War (1879) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Idaho |
United States | Shoshone | US victory | |
Victorio's War (1879–1880) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Mexico |
United States Mexico |
Apache | US-allied victory | |
White River War (1879) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Colorado |
United States | Ute | US victory | |
Egyptian Expedition (1882) Part of the Anglo-Egyptian War Location: Alexandria |
United States | Egypt | US victory | Chester A. Arthur |
Crow War (1887) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Montana |
United States | Crow people | US victory | Grover Cleveland |
Ghost Dance War (1890–1891) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: South Dakota |
United States | Sioux | US victory | Benjamin Harrison |
Garza War (1891–1893) Location: Texas and Mexico |
Mexico United States |
Garzistas | US-allied victory | |
Yaqui Wars (1896–1918) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Arizona and Mexico |
United States Mexico |
Yaqui Pima Opata |
US-allied victory | Grover Cleveland (March 4, 1893 – March 4, 1897)
|
Second Samoan Civil War (1898–1899) Location: Samoa |
Samoa United States |
Mataafans German Empire |
Inconclusive/Other Result
|
William McKinley |
Spanish–American War (1898) Location: Cuba, Puerto Rico, Philippines and Guam |
United States Cuban Revolutionaries Filipino Revolutionaries |
Spain | US-allied victory
| |
Philippine–American War (1899–1902) Location: Philippines |
1899–1902 United States 1902-1906 |
1899–1902 Philippine Republic Limited Foreign Support: 1902-1906 |
US victory
|
William McKinley (March 4, 1897 – September 14, 1901)
|
Moro Rebellion (1899–1913) Location: Philippines |
United States | Moro Remnants of the Sulu Sultanate |
US victory
|
William McKinley (March 4, 1897 – September 14, 1901)
|
Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901) Location: China |
British Empire
Russian Empire |
Boxers China (from 1900) |
US-allied victory
|
William McKinley |
20th-century wars
Conflict | Allies | Opponent(s) | Result for the United States and its Allies | Presidents of the United States |
---|---|---|---|---|
Crazy Snake's War (1909) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Oklahoma |
United States | Creek | US victory | Theodore Roosevelt (September 14, 1901 – March 4, 1909) Warren G. Harding Calvin Coolidge |
Mexican Border War (1910–1919) Part of the Mexican Revolution Location: Mexico–United States border |
United States | Mexico
Supported by: |
US victory
|
William Howard Taft (March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1913) Woodrow Wilson |
Little Race War (1912) Part of the Banana Wars Location: Cuba |
Cuba United States |
Cuban PIC | US-allied victory
|
William Howard Taft |
United States occupation of Nicaragua (1912–1933) Part of the Banana Wars Location: Nicaragua |
United States Nicaragua |
Nicaraguan Liberals Sandinistas |
US victory
|
William Howard Taft (March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1913) Woodrow Wilson Warren G. Harding Calvin Coolidge Herbert Hoover |
Bluff War (1914–1915) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Utah and Colorado |
United States | Ute Paiute |
US victory | Woodrow Wilson |
United States occupation of Veracruz (1914) Part of the Mexican Revolution Location: Mexico |
United States
Supported by: |
Mexico
Supported by: |
US victory | |
United States occupation of Haiti (1915–1934) Part of the Banana Wars Location: Haiti |
United States Haiti |
Haitian Rebels | US-allied victory | Woodrow Wilson (March 4, 1913 – March 4, 1921) Warren G. Harding Calvin Coolidge Herbert Hoover Franklin D. Roosevelt |
United States occupation of the Dominican Republic (1916–1924) Part of the Banana Wars Location: Dominican Republic |
United States | Dominican Republic | US victory | Woodrow Wilson (March 4, 1913 – March 4, 1921) Warren G. Harding Calvin Coolidge |
World War I (1914–1918, direct U.S. involvement in 1917–1918) Location: Europe, Africa, Asia, Middle East, the Pacific Islands, and coast of North and South America |
French Republic British Empire Kingdom of Italy |
German Empire Austro-Hungarian Empire Ottoman Empire Tsardom of Bulgaria |
US-allied victory
|
Woodrow Wilson |
Russian Civil War (1917–1923, direct U.S. involvement in 1918–1920, [American Expeditionary Force, North Russia and American Expeditionary Force, Siberia])
|
White Movement Mountain Republic Empire of Japan |
Russian SFSR Far Eastern Republic |
Bolshevik victory[19]
| |
Posey War (1923) Part of the American Indian Wars Location: Utah |
United States | Ute Paiute |
US victory
|
Warren G. Harding |
World War II (1939–1945, direct U.S. involvement in 1941–1945) Location: Europe, Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Southeast Asia, East Asia, Middle East, Mediterranean, North Africa, Oceania, North and South America |
Allies:
French Republic United States |
Axis:
Nazi Germany |
US-allied victory
|
Franklin D. Roosevelt Harry S. Truman |
Operation Beleaguer (1945-1949) Part of the Chinese Civil War and the Cold War |
United States Republic of China |
China | Inconclusive/Other Result
|
Harry S. Truman |
Korean War (1950–1953) Part of the Cold War Location: Korea |
South Korea
United Nations |
North Korea
China |
Inconclusive/Other Result
|
Harry S. Truman (April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953) Dwight D. Eisenhower |
Vietnam War (1955–1964[a], 1965–1973[b], 1974–1975[c]) Part of the Cold War and Indochina Wars Location: Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos |
South Vietnam United States South Korea Australia New Zealand Thailand Philippines Kingdom of Laos Khmer Republic |
North Vietnam Viet Cong Pathet Lao Khmer Rouge China Soviet Union North Korea Supported by: |
North Vietnam-allied victory
|
Dwight D. Eisenhower (January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961) John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Johnson Richard Nixon Gerald Ford |
Laotian Civil War (1959–1975) Part of the Indochina Wars and Cold War Location: Laos |
Kingdom of Laos United States South Vietnam Thailand Supported by: Philippines Taiwan |
Pathet Lao North Vietnam Supported by: |
Pathet Lao-allied victory
| |
Permesta Rebellion (1958–1961) Location: Indonesia |
Permesta United States |
Indonesia | Indonesian government victory | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
Lebanon crisis (1958) Location: Lebanon |
Lebanon United States |
Lebanese opposition: | US-allied victory
| |
Bay of Pigs Invasion (1961) Part of the Cold War Location: Cuba |
CDRF United States |
Cuba | Cuban government victory
|
John F. Kennedy |
Operation Dragon Rouge (1964) Part of the Simba Rebellion during the Congo Crisis and the Decolonization of Africa during the Cold War Location: Stanleyville, Congo-Léopoldville |
United States Belgium Supported by: Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Simba rebels | US-allied victory
|
Lyndon B. Johnson |
Dominican Civil War (1965–1966) Location: Dominican Republic |
Dominican Loyalists United States IAPF |
Dominican Constitutionalists | US-allied victory
|
Lyndon B. Johnson |
Korean DMZ Conflict (1966–1969) Part of the Korean conflict and the Cold War Location: Korean Demilitarized Zone |
South Korea United States |
North Korea | US-allied victory
|
Lyndon B. Johnson (November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969) Richard Nixon |
Cambodian Civil War (1967–1975) Part of the Cold War Location: Cambodia |
Kingdom of Cambodia (1967–1970) Khmer Republic (1970–1975) United States South Vietnam Supported by: |
National United Front of Kampuchea Khmer Rouge Khmer Rumdo Khmer Việt Minh North Vietnam Việt Cộng Supported by: |
Khmer Rouge-allied victory
|
Lyndon B. Johnson (November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969) Richard Nixon Gerald Ford |
Multinational intervention in Lebanon (1982–1984) Location: Lebanon |
Lebanese Armed Forces
UNIFIL Multinational Force in Lebanon: Israel |
Lebanese National Movement Jammoul PLO Amal Movement Iran Hezbollah Syria Arab Deterrent Force |
Syrian-allied victory
|
Ronald Reagan (January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989) |
United States invasion of Grenada (1983) Part of the Cold War Location: Grenada |
United States Barbados Jamaica Antigua and Barbuda Dominica Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
PRG of Grenada Cuba Military advisors: |
US-allied victory
|
Ronald Reagan |
Bombing of Libya (1986) Location: Libya |
United States | Libya | Inconclusive
| |
Tanker War (1987–1988) Part of the Iran–Iraq War Location: Persian Gulf |
United States | Iran | US victory
| |
United States invasion of Panama (1989–1990) Location: Panama |
United States Panamanian Opposition |
Panama | US-allied victory
|
George H. W. Bush |
Gulf War (1990–1991) Location: Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Israel |
United States United Kingdom Kuwait Saudi Arabia France Canada Egypt Syria Qatar Bahrain United Arab Emirates Oman |
Iraq | US-allied victory
| |
Iraqi No-Fly Zone Enforcement Operations (1991–2003) Location: Iraq |
United States United Kingdom France Australia Belgium Netherlands Saudi Arabia Turkey Italy |
Iraq | US-allied victory
|
George H. W. Bush (January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993) Bill Clinton George W. Bush |
First U.S. Intervention in the Somali Civil War (1992–1995) Part of the Somali civil war (1991–present) Location: Somalia |
United States United Kingdom Spain Saudi Arabia Malaysia Pakistan Italy India Greece Germany France Canada Botswana Belgium Australia New Zealand |
Somali National Alliance | Somali victory
|
George H. W. Bush (January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993) Bill Clinton |
Bosnian War and Croatian War (1992–1995) Part of the Yugoslav Wars Location: Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia |
Bosnia and Herzegovina
United States |
Republika Srpska Serbian Krajina Western Bosnia |
Inconclusive/Other Result
| |
Intervention in Haiti (1994–1995) Location: Haiti |
United States Poland Argentina |
Haiti | US-allied victory
|
Bill Clinton |
Kosovo War (1998–1999) Part of the Yugoslav Wars Location: Serbia |
KLA AFRK Albania Croatia United States Belgium Canada Czech Republic Denmark France Germany Hungary Italy Luxembourg Netherlands Norway Portugal Poland Spain Turkey United Kingdom |
FR Yugoslavia | Inconclusive/Other Result
|
- ^ Advisory role from the forming of the MAAG in Vietnam to the Gulf of Tonkin incident.
- ^ Direct U.S. involvement ended in 1973 with the Paris Peace Accords. The Paris Peace Accords of January 1973 saw all U.S forces withdrawn; the Case–Church Amendment, passed by the U.S Congress on August 15, 1973, officially ended direct U.S military involvement .
- ^ The war reignited on December 13, 1974, with offensive operations by North Vietnam, leading to victory over South Vietnam in under five months.
21st-century wars
Conflict | Allies | Belligerent | Result for the United States and its Allies | Presidents of the United States |
---|---|---|---|---|
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Part of the war on terror and the Afghan conflict Location: Afghanistan |
Resolute Support Mission Islamic Republic of Afghanistan United States Canada United Kingdom Australia New Zealand Norway Croatia Czech Republic Denmark Georgia Germany Netherlands Italy Romania Slovakia Spain Turkey Formerly: ISAF |
Taliban
Allied groups
Taliban splinter groups 2001 Invasion: |
Afghan Taliban victory
|
George W. Bush (October 7, 2001 – January 20, 2009) Barack Obama Donald Trump Joe Biden |
US intervention in Yemen (2002–present) Part of the war on terror, the al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen, the Yemeni Civil War and the Saudi-led intervention in the Yemeni civil war Location: Yemen |
United States
Saudi-led coalition: In support of: |
al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula Ansar al-Sharia Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Yemen Province |
Ongoing
US Intervention against jihadists
US Intervention against Houthi movement
|
George W. Bush (October 7, 2001 – January 20, 2009) Barack Obama Donald Trump Joe Biden |
Iraq War (2003–2011) Part of the war on terror Location: Iraq |
Post-invasion (2003–2011) United States List
Invasion phase (2003) |
Post-invasion (2003–2011) Invasion phase (2003) Dulaim Tribes |
Inconclusive/Other Result
|
George W. Bush (January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009) Barack Obama |
US intervention in the War in North-West Pakistan (2004–2018) Part of the war on terror and the War in North-West Pakistan Location: Pakistan |
Pakistan Supported by: |
Jihadists:
Taliban |
US-allied victory
|
George W. Bush (January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009) Barack Obama Donald Trump |
Second US Intervention in the Somali Civil War (2007–present) Part of the Somali Civil War, the Somali Civil War and the war on terror Location: Somalia and Northeastern Kenya |
Somalia United States
Supported by: Non-combat support: |
Jihadists:
|
Ongoing
|
George W. Bush (January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009) Barack Obama Donald Trump Joe Biden |
Operation Ocean Shield (2009–2016) Location: Indian Ocean |
Australia |
Somali pirates | US-allied victory
|
Barack Obama (January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017) |
International intervention in Libya (2011) Part of the Libyan Crisis and the First Libyan Civil War Location: Libya |
Sweden |
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
|
US-allied victory
|
Barack Obama (January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017) |
Operation Observant Compass (2011–2017) Part of the war on terror and the Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Location: Uganda |
United States Uganda DR Congo Central African Republic South Sudan |
Lord's Resistance Army | US-allied victory
|
Barack Obama (January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017) Donald Trump |
US military intervention in Niger (2013–2024) Part of the war on terror, the Operation Juniper Shield and the Jihadist insurgency in Niger Location: Niger |
United States
Supported by: |
Jihadists:
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria Boko Haram (partially aligned with ISIL since 2015) |
Jihadist victory[66][67][68][69]
|
Barack Obama (January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017) Donald Trump Joe Biden |
US-led intervention in Iraq (2014–2021) Part of the Operation Inherent Resolve, the War in Iraq (2013–2017), the Spillover of the Syrian civil war, the war on terror and the International ISIS campaign Location: Iraq |
United States Iraq Iraqi Kurdistan CJTF-OIR Members: |
Jihadists: | US-allied victory
|
Barack Obama (January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017) Donald Trump Joe Biden |
US intervention in the Syrian civil war (2014–present) Part of the Operation Inherent Resolve, the Syrian civil war, the war on terror and the International ISIS campaign Location: Syria |
United States Revolutionary Commando Army Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria
CJTF-OIR Members: Israel (limited involvement; against Hezbollah and government forces only) |
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria al-Qaeda linked groups:
Turkistan Islamic Party in Syria Syria (limited encounters with US and Israel) |
Ongoing
US Intervention against jihadists
US Intervention against Assad government
|
Barack Obama (January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017) Donald Trump Joe Biden |
US intervention in Libya (2015–2019) Part of the Operation Inherent Resolve, the war on terror, the Second Libyan Civil War, and the International ISIS Campaign Location: Libya |
United States | Jihadists:
|
ISIS in Libya largely defeated
|
Barack Obama (January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017) Donald Trump |
Operation Prosperity Guardian (2023–present) Part of the Red Sea crisis, the Israel–Hamas war and the Yemeni Civil War Location: Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Yemen |
United States United Kingdom Australia New Zealand Canada Denmark Greece Netherlands Norway Bahrain Singapore Sri Lanka Supported by:
|
Ongoing
|
Joe Biden (January 20, 2021 – Incumbent) | |
Israel-Hamas War (2024–present) Part of the Arab–Israeli(Palestinian(Gaza))conflicts, Spillover of the Syrian civil war, and the Middle Eastern crisis (2023–present) Main Location: Israel and Gaza Peripheral Location: West Bank, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, and Iran |
Israel United States |
Hamas Palestinian Joint Operations Room:
Supported by: |
Ongoing | Joe Biden (January 20, 2021 – Incumbent) |
See also
- List of notable deployments of U.S. military forces overseas
- Timeline of United States military operations
- Military history of the United States
- United States Armed Forces
- List of American military installations
- List of United States drone bases
- Social history of soldiers and veterans in the United States
Notes
- ^ Some historians name the 1861–1865 war the "Second American Civil War", because in their view, the American Revolutionary War can also be considered a civil war (since the term can be used in reference to any war in which one political body separates itself from another political body). They then refer to the Independence War, which resulted in the separation of the Thirteen Colonies from the British Empire, as the "First American Civil War".[1][2] A significant number of American colonists stayed loyal to the British Crown and as Loyalists fought on the British side while opposite were a significant amount of colonists called Patriots who fought on the American side. In some localities, there was fierce fighting between Americans including gruesome instances of hanging, drawing, and quartering on both sides.[3][4][5][6]
- As early as 1789, David Ramsay, an American patriot historian, wrote in his History of the American Revolution that "Many circumstances concurred to make the American war particularly calamitous. It was originally a civil war in the estimation of both parties."[7] Framing the American Revolutionary War as a civil war is gaining increasing examination.[8][9][10][1]. You can read part two of his 1789 book in full here
- A group of Bristol, England merchants wrote to King George III in 1775 voicing their “most anxious apprehensions for ourselves and Posterity that we behold the growing distractions in America threaten” and ask for their majesty’s “Wisdom and Goodness” to save them from “a lasting and ruinous Civil War.”[2]. You can read the 1775 petition in full here
- The “constrained voice” is a good synopsis of how the British viewed the American Revolutionary War. From anxiety to a foreboding sense of the conflict being a civil war,[3]
- In the early stages of the rebellion by the American colonists, most of them still saw themselves as English subjects who were being denied their rights as such. “Taxation without representation is tyranny,” James Otis reportedly said in protest of the lack of colonial representation in Parliament. What made the American Revolution look most like a civil war, though, was the reality that about one-third of the colonists, known as loyalists (or Tories), continued to support and fought on the side of the crown.[4]
- ^ France entered the American Revolution on the side of the colonists in 1778, turning what had essentially been a civil war into an international conflict.[5]
- The Revolution was both an international conflict, with Britain and France vying on land and sea, and a civil war among the colonists, causing over 60,000 loyalists to flee their homes.[6]
- Until early in 1778 the conflict was a civil war within the British Empire, but afterward it became an international war as France (in 1778) and Spain (in 1779) joined the colonies against Britain. Meanwhile, the Netherlands, which provided both official recognition of the United States and financial support for it, was engaged in its own war against Britain.[7]
- ^ Three months after the military defeat of the RSK in Operation Storm,[23] the UN-sponsored Erdut Agreement between the Croatian and RSK authorities was signed on 12 November 1995.[24] The agreement provided for a two-year transitional period, later extended by a year, during which the remaining occupied territory of Croatia was to be transferred to control of the Croatian government. The agreement was implemented by UNTAES and successfully completed by 1998.[25]
References
- ^ Eric Herschthal. America's First Civil War: Alan Taylor's new history poses the revolution as a battle inside America as well as for its liberty Archived June 26, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, The Slate, September 6, 2016.
- ^ James McAuley. Ask an Academic: Talking About a Revolution Archived January 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, The New Yorker, August 4, 2011.
- ^ Thomas Allen. Tories: Fighting for the King in America's First Civil War. New York, Harper, 2011.
- ^ Peter J. Albert (ed.). An Uncivil War: The Southern Backcountry During the American Revolution. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 1985.
- ^ Alfred Young (ed.). The American Revolution: Explorations in the History of American Radicalism. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 1976.
- ^ Armitage, David. Every Great Revolution Is a Civil War Archived December 3, 2013, at the Wayback Machine. In: Keith Michael Baker and Dan Edelstein (eds.). Scripting Revolution: A Historical Approach to the Comparative Study of Revolutions. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2015. According to Armitage, "The renaming can happen relatively quickly: for example, the transatlantic conflict of the 1770s that many contemporaries[who?] saw as a British "civil war" or even "the American Civil War" was first called "the American Revolution" in 1776 by the chief justice of South Carolina, William Henry Drayton."
- ^ David Ramsay. The History of the American Revolution Archived July 27, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. 1789.
- ^ Elise Stevens Wilson. Colonists Divided: A Revolution and a Civil War Archived October 17, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.
- ^ Timothy H. Breen. The American Revolution as Civil War Archived June 24, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, National Humanities Center.
- ^ 1776: American Revolution or British Civil War? Archived July 27, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, University of Cambridge.
- ^ "Milestones: 1801–1829". Office of the Historian, State Department, United States.
- ^ David Hunter Miller, ed. (1931). Treaties and Other International Acts of the United States of America. Vol. 2. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 275, 303.
- ^ a b c d e f "Tripolitan War | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
- ^ a b r2WPadmin. "First Barbary War". American History Central. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Serial 89, 18th Congress, 1st Session, Senate Document No. 1, p. 95
- ^ "The Indians". The Philadelphia Inquirer. November 12, 1884.
- ^ "Union and Confederate Indians in the Civil War". civilwarhome.com. February 16, 2002. Archived from the original on February 13, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
- ^ "City of Albuquerque". City of Albuquerque.
- ^ Kenez, Peter (1977). Civil War in South Russia, 1919–1920: The Defeat of the Whites. Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace. p. 182. ISBN 978-0520033467.
- ^ "Statement by Deputy Press Secretary Larry Speakes". September 23, 1982.
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- ^ Dean E. Murphy (August 8, 1995). "Croats Declare Victory, End Blitz". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
- ^ Chris Hedges (November 12, 1995). "Serbs in Croatia Resolve Key Issue by Giving up Land". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 18, 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
- ^ Chris Hedges (January 16, 1998). "An Ethnic Morass Is Returned to Croatia". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 18, 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
- ^ McEldowney, Nancy (2000). "Kosovo: Redefining Victory in an Era of Limited War" (PDF). Defense Technical Information Center.
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- ^ "Yemen Leaders Killed". Washington, DC, USA: New America. Retrieved April 20, 2018.
- ^ "US drone strike kills 2 suspected Al-Qaeda militants in Yemen's Marib". arabnews.com. Retrieved May 9, 2023.
- ^ Gatehouse, Gabriel (September 11, 2015). "Inside Yemen's forgotten war". BBC News. Archived from the original on October 29, 2015.
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- ^ "Sectarian divisions change Baghdad's image". NBC News. July 3, 2006. Retrieved February 18, 2007.
- ^ Petrou, Michael (September 9, 2011). "The decline of al-Qaeda". Maclean's.
George W. Bush gambled on surging thousands more troops to the embattled country. It paid off. Al-Qaeda in Iraq is now a diminished force without territory.
- ^ Spencer C. Tucker (December 14, 2015). U.S. Conflicts in the 21st Century: Afghanistan War, Iraq War, and the War on Terror. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 978-1-4408-3879-8.
Al Qaeda in Iraq was decimated by the end of the Iraq War in 2011
- ^ South, Todd (January 20, 2019). "Army's long-awaited Iraq war study finds Iran was the only winner in a conflict that holds many lessons for future wars". Army Times. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
- ^ Galbraith, Peter W. (2007). The End of Iraq: How American Incompetence Created a War Without End. Simon & Schuster. p. 74. ISBN 978-0-7432-9424-9.
- ^ "Iran expands regional 'empire' ahead of nuclear deal". Reuters. March 23, 2015.
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- ^ "The JRTN Movement and Iraq's Next Insurgency | Combating Terrorism Center at West Point". Ctc.usma.edu. Archived from the original on August 26, 2011. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
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- ^ "Drone War: Pakistan". The Bureau of Investigative Journalism. Retrieved April 20, 2018.
- ^ "Pakistan Leaders Killed" Archived September 18, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. New America Foundation. June 23, 2018
- ^ "US Drone Kills Afghan-Based Pakistani Taliban Commander". Voice of America (VOA). July 4, 2018.
- ^ "CIA drone strikes in Pakistan, 2004 to present". Bureau of Investigative Journalism. January 24, 2018. Archived from the original on March 5, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
- ^ Somalia, EUTM. "Home". EUTM-Somalia. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
- ^ a b c "Service and Sacrifice: Ugandan 'Blue Helmets' support UN efforts to bring peace to Somalia". UN News. April 18, 2019. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
- ^ "Biden approves deployment of hundreds of US troops to Somalia". aljazeera.com. June 4, 2022.
- ^ "New Somali President Welcomes Return of US Troops". voanews.com. June 4, 2022.
- ^ "Bilal al-Sudani: US forces kill Islamic State Somalia leader in cave complex". BBC News. January 27, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
- ^ "US increases military support for Somalia against al-Shabab". Defense News. Defense News. March 1, 2023. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
- ^ "Federal Government of Somalia, AFRICOM target al-Shabaab". United States Africa Command. May 25, 2024. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
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These militias have conducted over 170 attacks targeting US positions as part of this effort since October 2023.
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External links
- Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research (HIIK)
- Conflict Barometer – Describes recent trends in conflict development, escalations, and settlements
- A Continent Divided: The U.S.-Mexico War[permanent dead link ], Center for Greater Southwestern Studies, the University of Texas at Arlington
- Timeline of wars involving the United States, Histropedia
- U.S. Periods of War and Dates of Recent Conflicts, Congressional Research Service