History of American Wars and Conflicts

  • American Revolutionary War

  • Period: to

    American Revolutionary War

    The American Revolutionary War, also known as the American War for Independence, was fought by the thirteen colonies of the Americas and the British.
  • First Barbary War

  • Period: to

    First Barbary War

    The first of two wars fought between the United States and the Northwest African Berber Muslim states known collectively as the Barbary States.
  • War of 1812

  • Period: to

    War of 1812

    U.S. and British interests collide for the first time since the Revolutionary War. The United States declared war in 1812 because of the trade restrictions brought about by Britain's continuing war with France, the impressement of American merchant sailors into the Royal Navy, British support of American Indian tribes against American expansion, and possible interest in annexing British North American territory.
  • Mexican-American War

  • Period: to

    Mexican-American War

    An armed conflict between the United States and the Centralist Republic of Mexico in the wake of the U.S. annexation of Texas, which Mexico considered part of its territory despite the 1836 Texas Revolution.
  • American Civil War

  • Period: to

    American Civil War

    A major war between the United States and elevent southern states that declared secession and formed the Confederate States of America, led by President Jefferson Davis. The Union, led by President Abraham Lincoln, opposed the expansion of slavery and rejected any right of secession.
  • Spanish-American War

  • Period: to

    Spanish-American War

    Conflict between Spain and the United States that ended Spanish colonial rule in the America's and resulted in U.S. acquisition of territories in the western Pacific and Latin America.
  • World War I

  • Period: to

    World War I

    A global war that was centered in Europe and fought by the Allied Powers ( France, the Russian Empire, the British Empire, and later, Italy and the United States) and the Central Powers (Austria-Hungary, the German Empire, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire).
  • World War II

  • Period: to

    World War II

    A worldwide conflict fought betweent the Allied Powers and the Axis Powers. Armed forces from over seventy nations engaged in aerial, naval, and ground-based combat. Resulted in the death of over 60 million people.
  • The Korean War

  • Period: to

    Korean War

    A civil war between the states of North Korea and South Korea that were created as a result of the World War II. U.S. fought with the South Koreans during this war.
  • The Vietnam War

  • Period: to

    The Vietnam War

    The Vietnam War was the longest war in American history and the most unpopular of the 20th century. The U.S. entered the war in Vietnam to stop the spread of communism in the region, but it proved to be far more costly and prolonged than necessary.
  • The Gulf War

  • Period: to

    The Gulf War

    A conflict between Iraq and a coalition force of approximately 30 nations. The Gulf War was led by the United States and mandated by the United Nations in order to liberate Kuwait.
  • The Afghanistan War

  • Period: to

    Afghanistan War

    The 9/11 attacks on the United States marked the beginning of the War on Terror. The U.S. sought to oust the Taliban and find al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. The officially stated purpose of the invasion was to destroy al-Qaeda and deny them sanctuary and freedom of movement within Afghanistan.
  • The Iraq War

  • Period: to

    The Iraq War

    The U.S.-led coalition overthrew Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and occupied Iraq in an attempt to establish a new governmental regime. It was thought at the beginning of the conflic that Iraq was hiding weapons of mass destruction, which proved to be false.