Questions tagged [war]
An armed conflict between state actors, typically for a political or economic aim. Use this tag for specific wars.
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How many wars have there been in Europe since WW2?
As far as I know, there has been:
Yugoslavian War
War between Albanians and Serbs about Kosovo
NATO bombing of Serbia and Montenegro (which could be included above)
And currently Russian-Ukrainian ...
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Was Russia or the USSR ever involved in a large military embarrassment alongside or against Vietnam?
I was listening to a Russian politician's (2021, pre-war) declaration of what would happen with the current war in Ukraine, and I was caught offguard by him mentioning a Russian military-related ...
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Why Finland received so little foreign support during the winter war?
Considering the following four facts:
Many western countries helped the anti-communist government during the Russian civil war,
League of Nation supports Finland,
The war lasts really long comparing ...
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When and why did it become frowned upon to win a siege by starvation?
(Not sure if this should be on the Politics SE)
Wikipedia article on siege:
The universal method for defending against siege is the use of fortifications, principally walls and ditches, to supplement ...
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Do negotiations/concessions to dictatorial powers always bring them to wanting more? [closed]
Let's focus on European powers that existed from the 18th century until today.
There's a common theory which basically says:
giving concessions or not being firm enough towards dictators always ...
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What's the date of this army uniform?
I have two photos of man and women. Guessing sweethearts. I’m thinking 1800s, there is writing on the back but I can’t read it.
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Has NATO ever started a war?
From my reading it appears to me that NATO has never initiated a war but only reacted to conflicts already happening? Is this interpretation correct? I find it important to answer as many pro-russian ...
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What were the cost of comparable aircraft?
When comparing military equipment, little attention is paid to cost, at least in the popular resources (obviously, military establishments pay close attention to how much they are paying!)
E.g., there ...
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Why didn't Iran declare war on the United States for shooting down flight-655? [closed]
In 1988, an American warship captain fired a missile on an Iranian civilian Airbus killing all 290 civilians onboard. From this documentary, it looks like the captain who was already exposed to ...
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How realistic are the number of battle deaths in the Anabasis?
I have been reading "The Anabasis and the Indica" by Arrian.
In the battle at Sangala Pimprana, the numbers are hundred dead on Alexander's army and seventeen thousand dead on the other side....
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How many soldiers fought in the Mongol conquest of Song
Wikipedia says the Mongols invaded the Song with an initial force of 90 tumens, or 900,000 soldiers at full strength. Considering the war lasted 44 years and the Mongols must have provided continuous ...
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"Never fight a land war in Asia." Okay, has anyone won a NON-land war in Asia?
The statement "Never fight a land war in Asia" has been variously attributed to Bernard Montgomery, Dwight Eisenhower and Douglas MacArthur. More famously, it appeared in the book and movie ...
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Did Pele spark a 48-hour ceasefire during the Nigerian Civil War?
According to Wikipedia there was a 48-hour ceasefire during the Nigerian Civil War sparked by Pele.
Wikipedia, Santos
In 1969, the two factions involved in the Nigerian Civil War agreed to a 48-hour ...
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How many Scots were present at the Battle of Bauge?
The Battle of Bauge
According to Wikipedia the Battle of Bauge was a decisive battle in liberating France from England during the one hundred years war. Apparently the battle was won by a five ...
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Which of the Roman wars was the most important and riskiest for Rome? [closed]
The Roman republic and later empire existed for quite some time and there was quite a few wars, but if I where to look up the most important ones, which would they be?
Understood in the way that the ...
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What is the source of this quote about hope and POWs?
I seem to recall someone who was a POW, possibly held by Japanese, saying something like that the people that survived were the ones that gave up hope of getting out and the people that died were the ...
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How did Nazi Germany justify the attempted invasion of Britain?
Virtually all modern nations offer a justifying reason why they're engaging in any war, if only to convince their own people that they're fighting on the side of right and justice.
What justification ...
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Did any army try speed volley fire by passing pre-loaded muskets to the front line? [duplicate]
Early 16th to 18th century muskets had 2 big disadvantages. Musketeers needed minimum 20-30 seconds to reload them and they were very inaccurate, because projectile (usually small lead ball) was much ...
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Did the Vandal King Genseric obtain the 2nd Temple Menorah from Vatican in the 455 CE sack of Rome?
Regarding Jerusalem’s 2nd Temple Menorah (depicted in the Arch of Titus), The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem published the following article in the summer of 2017:
“The seven-...
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How were warriors wielding axes deployed in combat?
IIRC ancient & medieval soldiers have been wielding axes in battles since Sumerian times.
My question is essentially, how were these warriors deployed in an Army? Most soldiers were in tight ...
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Did anyone use pikes wielded by multiple people?
GURPS is a tabletop roleplaying game, like Dungeons and Dragons. In the Low Tech expansion, pages 9-10, it includes rules for two-man pikes; pikes so long they take two people to use effectively. I ...
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Why was artillery a more effective infantry support weapon on tanks than machine guns?
In supporting infantry, why are tanks equipped with large guns breach guns which seem more effective than assault vehicles with machine guns? For example, comparing the service of WW2 German Assault ...
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When did the last (formal) declaration of war occur?
Background
I have watched an interview where one participant argued that the world is experiencing less and less war compared to what it used to. To emphasize this idea, he said that declaring war is ...
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Was the danger of radiation in the case of nuclear war overestimated during the cold war?
This article tells about signal "Atom" and its intended effect on Moscow metro:
All trains stop, escalators automatically start move downwards.
After 15 min, all hermetic gates on metro ...
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Did the Prussian army commit atrocities?
We know the German armed forces, all of it, during WW2 committed atrocities. Same for the German army during WW1. I also found some references the Prussian army committed atrocities during the Franco-...
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Are rural residents more likely to survive large scale war (> 1 million deaths) than urban residents? (Data based answers only)
On the surface, it seems logical that the probability of survival, during times of war, would be higher in rural areas.
More reliable access to food.
Lower probability of being targeted. (e.g. air ...
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Has a head of state ever actually killed another in battle? [duplicate]
In "historical" or fantasy movies you often see the two enemy leaders fighting directly in the middle of the battle, mainly to allow for dialogue.
I know that leaders have had their enemies ...
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Why didn't the Soviets keep their encircled forces supplied by airlifting supplies? [closed]
I was watching a video on World War 2 and learned that the Nazis kept their encircled troops supplied by air for weeks, till the pocket was liberated.
I also know that earlier in the war, Soviet ...
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Did soldiers ever use wooden pillows to hear attacks?
I remember reading somewhere that since sound travels way faster through the ground as compared to air, soldiers back in the day used wooden pillows that were hard. So if the enemy started marching in ...
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What wars or other serious crises have been caused by translation?
I'm researching the costs of translation, economic and of other nature.
What large crises, such as the New Zealand Wars (due to the inaccurate translation of the Treaty of Waitangi) have been caused ...
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How true is this observation concerning battle?
I came across a quote:
“One who risks his life in battle has the best chance of saving it; one who flees to save it is most likely to lose it” (Anthologia Lyrica Graeca, ed. E. Diehl2 1936-42.)
The ...
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Are there any tanks with the gun and autoloader outside the main turret?
Basically as title. I've been thinking about this hybrid turret design for quite some time now. Essentially, I had this idea for a potential design for a tank turret that could be accomplished with an ...
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How common was capturing a post-sail warship?
From this answer it appears that capturing an enemy warship in battle, either by boarding, or by shooting at them from bow or stern until they surrender, was relatively common in the age of sail. ...
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Were there often intra-USSR wars? If not, why not?
There's an article listing many post-Soviet conflicts on Wikipedia, which indicates that there have been many wars between regions/countries that were once part of the USSR. The causes of the wars, ...
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Why were Austrian forces ineffective during the war of 1787 against Ottomans?
In the French Wikipedia article about Roger de Damas d'Antigny, it is said that this French officer was not satisfied by Austrian armies in the war against Ottoman empire, so he joined the Russian ...
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Was the Social War the only war fought to integrate into an empire?
The question is based on this line from the book "Cataclysm 90BC" by Matyszak. He says ,
" this book is a study of some very odd events, of nations so
desperate to give up their ...
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What decided the First Sekhukhune War?
I'm trying to find out more about the First Sekhukhune War, and in particular exactly how and why Sekhukhune won. As wars in historical times go, it seems to be very sparsely documented. Here's what I ...
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Map of/Measure of conflicted areas throughout history [closed]
I am looking for a map which would give an indication of how much territorial conflict there was in a given area. One way I imagined one could do it is to look at how territorial states (in the period ...
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Why did it take so long for the Germans to develop the first tank model in World War I?
World War I still featured a lot of trench warfare due do a lack of mobility that placed an advantage upon the defender. When the British managed to invent the first tank, that seemed like an ...
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Did marriage ever end a war?
I'm getting married on Saturday, and I was reflecting on the history of marriage for my speech. In the olden days, marriage was a way to make peace between nations for royals, and to marry into ...
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Has diplomatic immunity ever been ignored in modern times?
I know that after Pearl Harbor the Japanese diplomat Kurusu was interned until an exchange of diplomats could be arranged and then was able to return to Japan. I also recall that in the more distant ...
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Please help me identify the military uniform in picture below
Can anyone identify this military uniform?
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How much damage was USSR already capable of doing by the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis?
How much damage was USSR already capable of doing, in the event of a nuclear war, by the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis?
How many ICBMs and strategic bombers did it have, and what were their ...
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What led to Japan committing war crimes in WWII? [closed]
Japan committed cruel war crimes during World War 2.
According to this article WW2 Japanese war crimes - Japanese Invasion of China 1937-1944 (World war II two -Asian Holocaust)
and this The Asian ...
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How many times has inclement weather foiled attempts to navally invade the UK? [closed]
Inclusive of situations where inclement or unseasonable weather delayed the ability to set sail long enough that British ships/fleets were able to foil the plan by direct actions, how many times has ...
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Why have some Sahrawis become Moroccan citizens while others ended up in refugee camps?
Quoting from this article,
The Sahrawis who did not flee have been given Moroccan citizenship.
Is this all there is to the story? Much of the literature on the Western Sahara conflict overlooks why ...
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Did the 1st Marine Division use the M3 carbine on Okinawa?
I wanted to know if the 1st Marine Division used the M3 infrared sniper carbine on Okinawa during World War II.
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Was the M4 Sherman used frequently in artillery capacity?
I've heard the M4 Sherman had instruments on it that allowed it to act as an artillery piece. Is there any evidence to suggest this was effective?
I've heard that the Sherman had of course, its High ...
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Why was Hesse south of the Main left out of the North German Confederation?
When the North German Confederation was founded after the Austro-Prussian war, it included all German states north of the Main, including the part of Hesse that was north of the Main. However the ...
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Were British officers able to return home after the American Revolution?
Were defeated British officers able to return home after England lost the war or were they taken prisoner? I am writing a novel set in the aftermath of the American Revolution. What happened to the ...
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