Industrial warfare^[1] is a period in the history of warfare ranging roughly from the start of the Industrial Revolution to the beginning of the Information Age, which saw the rise of nation-states, capable of creating and equipping large armies and navies through the process of industrialization. War is an international relations Dispute, characterized by organized Violence between National Military units Military history is a Humanities discipline within the scope of general historical recording of armed conflict in the history of humanity Prehistoric warfare is War conducted in the era before Writing, and before the establishments of large social entities like States Historical warfare sets Ancient warfare is War as conducted from the beginnings of recorded History to the end of the ancient period Medieval Warfare is the warfare of the Middle Ages. In Europe technological cultural and social developments had forced a dramatic transformation in the character Early Modern warfare is associated with the start of the widespread use of Gunpowder and the development of suitable weapons to use the explosive Modern warfare, although present in every Historical period of Military history, is generally used to refer to the concepts, methods and Battlespace is a unified strategy to integrate and combine Armed forces for the Military theatre of operations, including air, information Air power redirects here for electrical and mechanical energy supplied by air movement see Wind power Information warfare is the use and management of information in pursuit of a competitive advantage over an opponent Land warfare, sometimes also called ground combat is the term used to describe military operations eventuating in Combat that take place predominantly on the land surface of Naval warfare is Combat in and on Seas Oceans or any other major bodies of water such as large Lakes and wide Rivers History Space warfare is combat that takes place in Outer space, ie outside the Atmosphere. A weapon is a Tool used either in Hunting, or attack or defence in Combat for the purpose of subduing enemy personnel or to destroy enemy weapons Armoured warfare or tank warfare is the use of Armoured fighting vehicles in Modern warfare. Artillery (from French artillerie) is a military Combat Arm which employs any apparātus machine Biological warfare (BW — known as a germ warfare, biological weapons and bioweaponry — is the use of any Pathogen ( Bacterium The Cavalry (from French cavalerie) is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as Soldiers or Warriors who fought mounted on Chemical warfare involves using the toxic properties of Chemical substances to kill injure or incapacitate an enemy. Electronic warfare ( EW) is the use of the Electromagnetic spectrum to effectively deny the use of this medium by an adversary while optimizing its use by friendly The Infantry is the oldest and most numerous of the Combat Arms in the Armed forces, and consists A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from Nuclear reactions either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. The US Department of Defense defines psychological warfare ( PSYWAR) as" The planned use of Propaganda and other Psychological actions Military tactics ( Greek: Taktikē, the art of organizing an army are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating This article is about the military strategy For the Israeli-Egyptian conflict see War of Attrition, for the game theoretical model see War of attrition (game Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc Maneuver warfare, also spelled manoeuvre warfare, is the term used by military theorists for a concept of Warfare that advocates attempting to Total war is a conflict of unlimited scope in which a Belligerent engages in a total mobilization of all available resources at his disposal Trench warfare is a form of warfare where both combatants have fortified positions and fighting lines are static Military strategy is a National defence policy implemented by Military organisations to pursue desired strategic goals Derived from the Greek Economic warfare is the term for economic policies followed as a part of Military operations during Wartime The purpose of economic warfare is to capture Grand strategy is military Strategy at the level of movement and use of an entire Nation state or Empire 's resources A military organization is a way of structuring the armed forces of a State as a need to offer Military capability required by the National defence policy A military organization is a way of structuring the armed forces of a State as a need to offer Military capability required by the National defence policy Military rank is a system of hierarchical relationships in Armed forces or civil institutions organized along military lines A military organization is a way of structuring the armed forces of a State as a need to offer Military capability required by the National defence policy Military Logistics is the art and science of planning and carrying out the movement and maintenance of military forces This article lists military technology items devices and methods Materiel (from the French "matériel" for equipment or hardware related to the word Material) is a term used in English to refer to the Military supply chain management is a cross-functional approach to procuring, producing and delivering products and services The broad This is an index to articles listing Battles. List of battles (alphabetical gives a global list See also Military History Antiquity Albania Agron ( 250 BC - 230 BC) The first king to unite the Illyrian This is a list of missions operations and projects Missions in support of other missions are not listed independently A Siege is a prolonged Military Assault and Blockade on a City or Fortress with the intent of conquering by force or Attrition See also List of military writers. Friedrich von Bernhardi Ivan Bloch John Boyd, inventor of the OODA Loop This is a listing of lists of Wars, sorted by country date region and type of conflict This article lists and summarizes War crimes committed since the Hague Convention of 1907. There is a bewildering array of Weapons far more than would be useful in list form This is a list of military writers, alphabetical by last name Military history is a Humanities discipline within the scope of general historical recording of armed conflict in the history of humanity The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the Information Age is a term that has been used to refer to the present era For the online game see Jennifer Government NationStates. The nation-state is a certain form of State that derives its legitimacy is a process of social and economic change whereby a human group is transformed from a Pre-industrial society into an industrial one It featured mass-conscripted armies, rapid transportation (first on railroads, then by sea and air), telegraph and wireless communications, and the concept of total war. Levée en masse (literally "Rise in (a Mass" is defined in Article 4 letter A paragraph 6 of the Third Geneva Convention. "Railroad" and "Railway" both redirect here For other uses see Railroad (disambiguation. Sealift is a term used predominantly in Military logistics and refers to the use of Cargo ships for the deployment of military assets such as An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies primarily via Aircraft. Wireless communication is the transfer of information over a distance without the use of electrical conductors or " Wires quot Total war is a conflict of unlimited scope in which a Belligerent engages in a total mobilization of all available resources at his disposal In terms of technology, this era saw the rise of rifled breech-loading infantry weapons capable of massive amounts of fire, high-velocity breech-loading artillery, metal warships, submarines, aircraft, rockets and missiles, armoured warfare, and nuclear weapons. Rifling refers to the Helix -shaped pattern in the barrel of a Firearm, which imparts a spin to a Projectile around its long axis A breech-loading weapon is a Firearm (a Rifle, a Gun etc in which the Bullet or shell is inserted or loaded at the rear of the A repeating rifle is a single barreled Rifle containing multiple rounds of Ammunition. A breech-loading weapon is a Firearm (a Rifle, a Gun etc in which the Bullet or shell is inserted or loaded at the rear of the An ironclad was a steam-propelled Warship of the later 19th century protected by Iron or Steel armor plates A submarine is a Watercraft that can operate independently below water as distinct from a Submersible that has only limited underwater capability A rocket or rocket vehicle is a Missile, Aircraft or other Vehicle which obtains Thrust by the reaction of the A missile (see also pronunciation differences) is a self-propelled explosive Projectile used as a weapon towards a target Armoured warfare or tank warfare is the use of Armoured fighting vehicles in Modern warfare. A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from Nuclear reactions either fission or a combination of fission and fusion.

Total War

American B-24 bombers under construction during World War II.

Main article: Total War

One of the main features of Industrial warfare is the concept of "total war. Total war is a conflict of unlimited scope in which a Belligerent engages in a total mobilization of all available resources at his disposal " The term was coined during World War I by Erich Ludendorff (and again in his 1935 book "Total War"), which called for the complete mobilization and subordination of all resources, including policy and social systems, to the German war effort. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Erich Friedrich Wilhelm Ludendorff (sometimes given incorrectly as von Ludendorff) (9 April 1865–20 December 1937 was a German Army officer, Generalquartiermeister It has also come to mean waging warfare with absolute ruthlessness, and its most identifiable legacy today has been the reintroduction of civilians and civilian infrastructure as targets in destroying a country's ability to engage in war. A civilian under International humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her Country 's Armed forces.

There are several reasons for the rise of total warfare in the nineteenth century. The main one is industrialization. The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the As countries' capital and natural resources grew, it became clear that some forms of warfare demanded more resources than others. Consequently, the greater cost of warfare became evident. An industrialized nation could distinguish and then choose the intensity of warfare that it wished to engage in. Additionally, warfare was becoming more mechanized and required greater infrastructure. Mechanization or mechanisation ( BE) is providing human operators with machinery to assist them with the physical requirements of work Infrastructure typically refers to the technical structures that support a society such as Roads Water supply, Wastewater, Power grids Soldiers could no longer live off the land, but required an extensive support network of people behind the lines to keep them fed and armed. This required the mobilization of the home front. Home front is the informal term commonly used to describe the Civilian populace of the Nation at War as an active support Modern concepts like Propaganda were first used in order to boost production and maintain morale, while rationing took place to provide more war material. Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people Morale, also known as esprit de corps when discussing the morale of a group is an intangible term used for the capacity of people to maintain Belief in Rationing is the controlled distribution of resources and scarce goods or services

The earliest modern example of total war was the American Civil War. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South Union generals Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman were convinced that, if the North was to be victorious, the Confederacy's strategic, economic, and psychological ability to wage war had to be definitively crushed. During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty-three Ulysses S Grant, born Hiram Ulysses Grant (April 27 1822 &ndash July 23 1885 was an American general and the eighteenth President of the United States They therefore believed that to break the backbone of the rebellion, the North had to employ scorched earth tactics. A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method (possibly more often referred to as a tactic but this is not entirely correct as there is a difference between Sherman's advance through Georgia and the Carolinas was characterized by widespread destruction of civilian supplies and infrastructure. However, in contrast to later conflicts, the damage done by Sherman was almost entirely limited to property destruction. In Georgia alone, Sherman claimed he and his men had caused $100,000,000 in damages.

Conscription

Soldiers engaged in trench warfare during the American Civil War.

Main article: Conscription

Conscription allowed the French Republic to form the La Grande Armée, what Napoleon Bonaparte called "the nation in arms", which successfully battled European professional armies. Conscription (also known as the draft, the call-up or national service) is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by some established authority This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821 was a French military and political leader who had a significant impact on the History of Europe.

Conscription, particularly when the conscripts are being sent to foreign wars that do not directly affect the security of the nation, has historically been highly politically contentious in democracies. For instance, during World War I, bitter political disputes broke out in Canada (see Conscription Crisis of 1917), Newfoundland, Australia and New Zealand (See Compulsory Military Training) over conscription. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The Conscription Crisis of 1917 was a political and military crisis in Canada during World War I. Newfoundland and Labrador (ˈnuːfɨn(dlənd ən(d ˈlæbrəˌdɔr (Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador is a province of Canada, the tenth and latest to join the Confederation For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Compulsory Military Training (CMT a form of Conscription, has been used in New Zealand during a number of historical periods Canada also had a political dispute over conscription during World War II (see Conscription Crisis of 1944). World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Conscription Crisis of 1944 was a political and military crisis following the introduction of forced military service in Canada during World War II Similarly, mass protests against conscription to fight the Vietnam War occurred in several countries in the late 1960s. The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 (See also: Conscription Crisis)

In developed nations, the increasing emphasis on technological firepower and better-trained fighting forces, the sheer unlikelihood of a conventional military assault on most developed nations, as well as memories of the contentiousness of the Vietnam War experience, make mass conscription unlikely in the foreseeable future. A conscription crisis is a public dispute about a policy of Conscription, or mandatory service in the military also known as a "draft"

Russia, as well as many smaller nations such as Switzerland, retain mainly conscript armies. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending

Transportation

The advent of railroads (such as this one during the American Civil War) allowed armies to cover larger distances in shorter times while suffering minimal fatigue.

Land

Main article: Motorised infantry

Prior to the invention of the motorised transport, troops were transported from place to place by wagons, horses and their own two feet. Motorised infantry is Infantry which is transported by Trucks or other motor vehicles With the advent of locomotives, large groups of soldiers, supplies and equipment were able to be transported faster and in numbers far too large for the old methods. To counter this, an opposing army would destroy rail tracks to hinder their enemies movements. The term enemy combatant has historically referred to members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war The army of General Sherman during the American Civil War for example, would tear up tracks, heat them up and wrap them around trees. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South Sherman's neckties were a phenomenon of the American Civil War.

The mass transportation of soldiers was further revolutionized with the advent of the internal combustion engine and the automobile. The internal combustion engine is an engine in which the Combustion of Fuel and an Oxidizer (typically air occurs in a confined space called a Combined with the widespread use of the machine gun, the horse, after millennia of use, was finally supplanted in its war time role. During both the first and second world wars, Trucks were used to carry soldiers and materials, while cars and jeeps were used to scout enemy positions. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including A world war is a War affecting the majority of the world's most powerful and populous nations

Main article: Mechanized infantry

The mechanization of infantry occurred during the second world war. Mechanized infantry (or "mech infantry" are Infantry equipped with Armored personnel carriers (APCs or Infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs The tank, a product of the Great War and discounted as not being an important factor in warfare, came into its own. A tank is a tracked, Armoured fighting vehicle designed for Front-line combat which combines Operational mobility and tactical World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Evolving from thin skinned, lumbering vehicles into fast, powerful war machines of various types that dominated the battlefield and allowed the Germans to conquer most of Europe. Tank classification is a Taxonomy of identifying either the intended role or weight class of Tanks The classification by role was used primarily during Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers As a result of the tank's evolution, a number of armored transport vehicles appeared, such as armoured personnel carriers, armored cars, armored trains. Armoured personnel carriers (APCs are Armoured fighting vehicles developed to transport Infantry on the Battlefield They usually have only a Machine A military armored (or armoured) car (see spelling differences) is a wheeled armored vehicle lighter than other armored fighting vehicles primarily An armoured train is a Train protected with armour. Usually they are equipped with Railroad cars armed with Artillery and Machine guns

After the war ended, armored transports continued to evolve. The armored car and train largely declined and faded in use, largely becoming regulated to military and civilian use as transportation for VIPs. A Very Important Person, or VIP is a person who is accorded special privileges due to his or her status or importance Infantry fighting vehicles rose to prominence with the creation of the Soviet BMP-1. An infantry fighting vehicle ( IFV, also known as (mechanized infantry combat vehicle, (MICV) is a type of Armoured fighting vehicle (AFV The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya BMP-1 is a Soviet Amphibious tracked Infantry fighting vehicle. IFVs are a more combat capable version of the APC, with heavier armaments (such as autocannons), while still retaining the ability to transport soldiers into and out of battles. An autocannon is a rapid fire projectile Weapon. Autocannon often have a larger Caliber (calibre than a Machine gun (i

Sea

Main article: Sealift

Sealift is a military logistics term referring to the use of cargo ships for the deployment of military assets, such as weaponry, military personnel, and materiel supplies. Sealift is a term used predominantly in Military logistics and refers to the use of Cargo ships for the deployment of military assets such as Military Logistics is the art and science of planning and carrying out the movement and maintenance of military forces A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of Ship or vessel that carries Cargo, goods and materials from one port to another Military deployment is the movement of armed forces and their logistical support infrastructure A weapon is a Tool used either in Hunting, or attack or defence in Combat for the purpose of subduing enemy personnel or to destroy enemy weapons Materiel (from the French "matériel" for equipment or hardware related to the word Material) is a term used in English to refer to the It complements other means of transport, such as strategic airlifters, in order to enhance a state's ability to project power. An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies primarily via Aircraft. A state is a political association with effective Sovereignty over a geographic Area and representing a Population. A state's sealift capabilities may include civilian-operated ships that normally operate by contract, but which can be chartered or commandeered during times of military necessity to supplement government-owned naval fleets. A civilian under International humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her Country 's Armed forces. A contract is an exchange of promises between two or more parties to do or refrain from doing an act which is enforceable in a court of law A fleet, or naval fleet is a large formation of Warships, and the largest formation in any Navy. During World War I, the United States bought, borrowed or commandeered vessels of various types, ranging from pleasure craft to ocean liners to transport the American Expeditionary Force to Europe. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The American Expeditionary Forces or AEF was the United States military force sent to Europe in World War I. Many of these ships were scrapped, sold or returned to their owners after the war ended.

Air

Main article: Airlift (military)

There are two different kinds of airlifts in warfare, a strategic airlift and a tactical airlift. An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies primarily via Aircraft. An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies primarily via Aircraft. An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies primarily via Aircraft. A strategic airlift is the use transporting of weapons, supplies and personnel over long distances (from a base in one country to another base in another country for example) using large cargo aircraft. A weapon is a Tool used either in Hunting, or attack or defence in Combat for the purpose of subduing enemy personnel or to destroy enemy weapons A cargo aircraft (also known as freighters or freight aircraft) is an Fixed-wing aircraft designed or converted for the carriage of goods rather This contrasts with tactical airlifts, which involves transporting the same above items within a theater of operations. In Warfare a theater or theatre is defined as a specific geographical area of conduct of armed conflict bordered by areas where no combat is taking place This usually involves cargo planes with shorter ranges and slower speeds, but higher maneuverability.

Communications

Main article: Military communications

• Cryptography
• Homing pigeon/War pigeon
• Joint Army/Navy Phonetic Alphabet
• Message precedence
• Semaphore (communication)
• Signal Corps
• Smoke signal
• Telegraphy

Equipment

• Aldis lamp
• International maritime signal flags

Land warfare

Main article: Land warfare

An American M4 Sherman in action during the Korean War. Military communications, or Signals ( not to be confused with military Line of communications (LOC is a field of Military activities tactics Cryptography (or cryptology; from Greek grc κρυπτός kryptos, "hidden secret" and grc γράφω gráphō, "I write" The homing pigeon is a variety of domesticated Rock Pigeon ( Columba livia domestica) that has been selectively Pigeons have played an important role in wars for a long time The Joint Army/Navy Phonetic Alphabet is not a phonetic alphabet in the sense in which that term is used in Phonetics, i Message precedence is an indicator attached to a message indicating its level of urgency The smoke signal is one of the oldest forms of communication in recorded history Signal lamp, also called Aldis lamp, is a visual signaling device for Optical communication (typically using Morse code) &ndash essentially a focused lamp Land warfare, sometimes also called ground combat is the term used to describe military operations eventuating in Combat that take place predominantly on the land surface of World War II foreign variants and use Lend-Lease Sherman tanks. The Korean War refers to a period of military conflict between North Korean and South Korean regimes with major hostilities lasting from June 25 1950 until the

Land warfare, as the name implies, is warfare conducted on land and is the most common type of warfare, as it encompasses several types of warfare. These include urban, arctic and mountain. Urban warfare is modern warfare conducted in Urban areas such as Towns and cities. Arctic warfare or winter warfare is a term used to describe armed conflict that takes place in an exceptionally cold weather usually in Snowy and icy terrain sometimes Mountain warfare refers to warfare in the Mountains or similarly rough terrain

Rifles and Artillery

Main articles: Rifling and Artillery

A British artillery piece in action during the Battle of Gallipoli, 1915. Rifling refers to the Helix -shaped pattern in the barrel of a Firearm, which imparts a spin to a Projectile around its long axis Artillery (from French artillerie) is a military Combat Arm which employs any apparātus machine Artillery (from French artillerie) is a military Combat Arm which employs any apparātus machine

Rifling referred to the act of adding spiral grooves to the inside the barrel of a firearm. The grooves would cause a projectile to spin as it traveled down the barrel, giving it added range and accuracy. Once rifling became easier and practical, a new type of firearm was introduced, the rifle. A rifle is a Firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves ("rifling" cut into the barrel walls

Artillery are large cannons designed to fire projectiles a great distance.

Static Defense

For more details on this topic, see Trench warfare. Trench warfare is a form of warfare where both combatants have fortified positions and fighting lines are static

Maneuver Warfare

Starting in 1927, commanders could insert large forces behind enemy lines, first by plane and later by helicopter.

Main article: Maneuver warfare

• Armoured warfare
• Blitzkrieg
• Deep operations

Naval warfare

The sinking of the Cumberland by the Confederate ironclad Virginia in 1862 marked the beginning of the end for wooden warships. Maneuver warfare, also spelled manoeuvre warfare, is the term used by military theorists for a concept of Warfare that advocates attempting to Armoured warfare or tank warfare is the use of Armoured fighting vehicles in Modern warfare. Blitzkrieg (German for "lightning war" is a popular name for an Offensive operational-level Military doctrine which involves an initial Deep operations was a military doctrine developed by the Soviet Union for its armed forces during the 1920s and 1930s First Mediterranean Cruise She was launched 24 May 1842 by Boston Navy Yard. An ironclad was a steam-propelled Warship of the later 19th century protected by Iron or Steel armor plates USS Merrimack becomes CSS Virginia When the Commonwealth of Virginia seceded from the Union in 1861 one of the important federal military bases threatened

Main article: Naval warfare

Ironclads and Dreadnoughts

The period after the Napoleonic Wars was one of intensive experimentation with new technology; steam power for ships appeared in the 1810s, improved metallurgy and machining technique produced larger and deadlier guns, and the development of explosive shells, capable of demolishing a wooden ship at a single blow, in turn required the addition of iron armor, which led to ironclads. Naval warfare is Combat in and on Seas Oceans or any other major bodies of water such as large Lakes and wide Rivers History The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions A steam engine is a Heat engine that performs Mechanical work using Steam as its Working fluid. Events and Trends End of the Napoleonic Wars in Europe (1803 - 1815 Metallurgy is a domain of Materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their An ironclad was a steam-propelled Warship of the later 19th century protected by Iron or Steel armor plates The famous battle of the CSS Virginia and USS Monitor in the American Civil War was the duel of ironclads that symbolized the changing times. The Battle of Hampton Roads, often called the Battle of Monitor and Merrimack, was a Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South Although the battle was inconclusive, nations around the world subsequently raced to convert their fleets to iron, as ironclads had shown themselves to be clearly superior to wooden ships in their ability to withstand enemy fire.

In the late Nineteenth Century, naval warfare was revolutionized by Alfred Thayer Mahan's book The Influence of Sea Power upon History. Alfred Thayer Mahan (September 27 1840–December 1 1914 was a United States Navy Flag officer, geostrategist, and educator The Influence of Sea Power Upon History (ISBN 0-486-25509-3 is an influential Treatise on Naval warfare written in 1890 by Alfred Thayer Mahan argued that in the Anglo-French wars of the 18th century and 19th centuries, domination of the sea was the deciding factor in the outcome, and therefore control of seaborne commerce was critical to military victory. Mahan argued that the best way to achieve naval domination was through large fleets of concentrated capital ships, as opposed to commerce raiders. The capital ships of a Navy are its "important" warships the ones with the heaviest Firepower and Armor. Commerce raiding is to destroy the logistics (supplies of an enemy on the open sea rather than engaging the combatants themselves or enforcing a Blockade against them His books were closely studied in all the Great Powers, influencing their naval arms race in the years prior to World War I. The term arms race, in its original usage describes a competition between two or more parties for real or apparent military supremacy

In 1906 the British warship HMS Dreadnought became the first warship to have both a uniform main battery and steam turbine engines, creating a standard for warships that lasted until the 1940s. Genesis Battleships of the era typically carried four large guns mounted fore and aft in twin turrets with a number of smaller-calibre guns ranged along the sides of the

As the century came to a close, the familiar modern battleship began to emerge; a steel-armored ship, entirely dependent on steam, and sporting a number of large shell guns mounted in turrets arranged along the centerline of the main deck. Steel is an Alloy consisting mostly of Iron, with a Carbon content between 0 The ultimate design was reached in 1906 with HMS Dreadnought which entirely dispensed with smaller guns, her main guns being sufficient to sink any existing ship of the time. Year 1906 ( MCMVI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Genesis Battleships of the era typically carried four large guns mounted fore and aft in twin turrets with a number of smaller-calibre guns ranged along the sides of the The Russo-Japanese War and particularly the Battle of Tsushima in 1905 was the first test of the new concepts, resulting a stunning Japanese victory and the destruction of dozens of Russian ships. The Russo-Japanese War (日露戦争 Romaji: Nichi-Ro Sensō Русско-японская война Russko-Yaponskaya Voyna;, 10 February 1904 – 5 September The Battle of Tsushima ( Japanese: 対馬海戦 tsushima-kaisen, Цусимское сражение Tsusimskoye srazheniye) commonly known as the World War I pitted the old Royal Navy against the new navy of Imperial Germany, culminating in the 1916 Battle of Jutland. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year fix various bugs per WikipediaHow to fix bunched-up edit links --> Following the war, many nations agreed to limit the size of their fleets in the Washington Naval Treaty and scrapped many of their battleships and cruisers. The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, limited the naval armaments of its five signatories the United States of America, the Growing tensions of the 1930s restarted the building programs, with even larger ships than before: The Japanese battleship Yamato, launched in 1941, displaced 72,000 tons and mounted 46-cm guns. Construction The Yamato class was built after the Japanese withdrew from the Washington Naval Treaty at the Second London Conference of 1936 However, this marked the climax of "big gun" warfare, as aircraft would gradually play a larger role in warfare. By the 1960s, battleships had all-but vanished from the fleets of the world.

Aircraft Carriers

In the 1940s aircraft carriers supplanted battleships as the centerpiece of the fleet. Here, American torpedo bombers prepare to take off during the Battle of Midway in 1942. Types The torpedo bomber first appeared during the later years of World War I. The Battle of Midway was a major Naval battle, widely regarded as the most important one of the Pacific Campaign of World War II.

Between the two world wars, the first aircraft carriers appeared, initially as a way to circumvent the tonnage limits of the Washington Naval Treaty (many of the first carriers were converted battlecruisers). An aircraft carrier is a Warship designed with Though several ships had previously been designed to launch and in some cases, the first true "flat-top" carrier was HMS Argus, launched in December 1917. History Argus was laid down in 1914 by William Beardmore and Company in Glasgow as the Italian Ocean liner Conte Rosso By the start of the Second World War, aircraft carriers typically carried three types of aircraft: torpedo bombers, which could also be also used for conventional horizontal bombing and reconnaissance; dive bombers, also used for reconnaissance; and fighters for fleet defence and bomber escort duties. Types The torpedo bomber first appeared during the later years of World War I. A dive bomber is a Bomber aircraft that Dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy and limit the exposure to and effectiveness of Because of the restricted space on aircraft carriers, these aircraft were almost always small, single-engined warplanes. The first true demonstration of naval air power was the victory of the Royal Navy at the Battle of Taranto in 1940, which set the stage for Japan's much larger and more famous attack on Pearl Harbor the following year. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) The naval Battle of Taranto took place on the night of 11 November 1940 &ndash 12 November 1940 during World War II Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The attack on Pearl Harbor (or Hawaii Operation, as it was called by the Imperial General Headquarters) was a surprise Military strike conducted by Two days after Pearl Harbor, the sinking of HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse, marked the beginning of the end for the battleship era. The Sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse was a World War II naval engagement which illustrated the effectiveness of aerial attacks Following World War II, aircraft carriers continued to remain key to navies throughout the latter 20th century, moving in the 1950s to jets launched from Supercarriers, behemoths which could displace as much as 100,000 tons. This is about the warships For the television program see Supercarrier (TV series.

Submarines

Just as important was the development of submarines to travel underneath the sea, at first for short dives, then later to be able to spend weeks or months underwater powered by a nuclear reactor. A submarine is a Watercraft that can operate independently below water as distinct from a Submersible that has only limited underwater capability This article is a subarticle of Nuclear power. A nuclear reactor is a device in which Nuclear chain reactions are initiated controlled The first successful submarine attack in wartime was in 1864 by the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley which sank the frigate USS Housatonic. Year 1864 ( MDCCCLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 History Hunley and two earlier submarines were privately developed and paid for by Horace Lawson Hunley, James McClintock, and Baxter Watson For the bird see Frigatebird. A frigate /ˈfrɪgɪt/ is a warship Three ships of the United States Navy have been named Housatonic after the Housatonic River. In both World Wars, submarines primarily exerted their power by sinking merchant ships using torpedoes, as well as other warships. A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of Ship or vessel that carries Cargo, goods and materials from one port to another The modern torpedo (historically called an automotive automobile locomotive or fish torpedo is a self-propelled explosive Projectile weapon launched above or below All nations practiced unrestricted submarine warfare in which submarines sank merchant ships without warning, but the only successful campaign during this period was America's submarine war against Japan during the Pacific War. Unrestricted submarine warfare is a type of Naval warfare in which Submarines sink merchant ships without warning as opposed to attacks per prize regulations The Pacific War was the part of World War II —and preceding conflicts—that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands and in East Asia, between In the 1950s the Cold War inspired the development of ballistic missile submarines, each one loaded with dozens of nuclear-armed missiles and with orders to launch them from sea should the other nation attack. Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the

Aerial warfare

Main article: Aerial warfare

The first use of airplanes in war was the Italo-Turkish War of 1911, when the Italians carried out several reconnaissance and bombing missions. Air power redirects here for electrical and mechanical energy supplied by air movement see Wind power The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War (also known in Italy as guerra di Libia, "the Libyan war" and in Turkey as Trablusgarp Savaşı) was fought Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Reconnaissance (also scouting) is a military and medical term denoting exploration conducted to gain information A bomb is any of a range of devices that typically rely on the Exothermic Chemical reaction of an Explosive material to produce an extremely During World War I both sides made use of balloons and airplanes for reconnaissance and directing artillery fire. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All A balloon is a flexible bag filled with a type of Gas, such as Helium, Hydrogen, Nitrous oxide or air. To prevent enemy reconnaissance, some airplane pilots began attacking other airplanes and balloons, first with small arms carried in the cockpit, and later with machine guns mounted on the aircraft. Both sides also made use of aircraft for bombing, strafing and dropping of propaganda leaflets. The German air force carried out the first terror bombing raids, using Zeppelins to drop bombs on Britain. Terror bombing is a strategy of deliberately bombing and/or Strafing civilian targets in order to break the Morale of the enemy make its civilian population panic A Zeppelin is a type of Rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century based on designs he had outlined By the end of the war airplanes had become specialised into bombers, fighters and surveillance aircraft. A bomber is a Military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets primarily by dropping Bombs on them A fighter aircraft is a Military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other Aircraft, as opposed to a Bomber, which is designed Surveillance aircraft are military Aircraft used for monitoring enemy activity usually carrying no armament Most of these airplanes were biplanes with wooden frames, canvas skins, wire rigging and air-cooled engines. A biplane is a Fixed-wing aircraft with two main Wings The first powered heavier-than-air Aircraft, the Wright brothers' Wright Flyer Air-cooled engines rely on the circulation of air directly over hot parts of the Engine to cool them Between 1918 and 1939 aircraft technology developed very rapidly. By 1939 military biplanes were in the process of being replaced with metal framed monoplanes, often with stressed skins and liquid cooled engines. For Félix du Temple 's invention see ''Monoplane'' (1874 Types of monoplane The main distinction in types of monoplane is Top speeds had tripled; altitudes doubled (and oxygen masks become commonplace); ranges and payloads of bombers increased enormously. An oxygen mask provides a method to transfer breathing Oxygen gas from a storage tank to the Lungs.

Some theorists, most famously Hugh Trenchard and Giulio Douhet, believed that aircraft would become the dominant military arm in the future, and argued that future wars would be won entirely by the destruction of the enemy's military and industrial capability from the air. Marshal of the Royal Air Force Hugh Montague Trenchard 1st Viscount Trenchard GCB OM GCVO DSO (3 February 1873 - 10 February General Giulio Douhet ( 30 May 1869 - 15 February 1930) was an Italian Air power theorist This concept was called strategic bombing. Strategic bombing is a Military strategy used in a Total war with the goal of defeating an enemy nation-state by destroying its economic ability to wage war rather Douhet also argued in The Command of the Air (1921) that future military leaders could avoid falling into bloody World War I-style trench stalemates by using aviation to strike past the enemy's forces directly at their vulnerable civilian population, which Douhet believed would cause these populations to rise up in revolt to stop the bombing. Others, such as Billy Mitchell, saw the potential of air power to neutralize the striking power of naval surface fleets. For other people with the same name see Billy Mitchell (disambiguation. Mitchell himself proved the vulnerability of capital ships to aircraft was finally in 1921 when he commanded a squadron of bombers that sank the ex-German battleship SMS Ostfriesland with aerial bombs. History The ship was named after the German region Ostfriesland ( East Frisia) which borders the Netherlands and the North Sea. (See Industrial warfare#Naval warfare)

American Martin B-26 bombers releasing their payloads. Industrial warfare is a period in the History of warfare ranging roughly from the start of the Industrial Revolution to the beginning of the Information Age See A-26 Invader for the plane known as the B-26 from 1948 to 1962 A bomber is a Military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets primarily by dropping Bombs on them

During the Second World War, there was a debate between strategic bombing and tactical bombing. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Strategic bombing is a Military strategy used in a Total war with the goal of defeating an enemy nation-state by destroying its economic ability to wage war rather Tactical bombing uses Aircraft to attack troops and military equipment in the battle zone Strategic bombing missions focused on targets such as factories, railroads, oil refineries and cities, and required heavy four-engine bombers carrying large payloads flying deep into enemy territory. A factory (previously manufactory) or manufacturing plant is an industrial Building where workers manufacture goods An oil refinery is an industrial Process plant where Crude oil is processed and refined into more useful Petroleum products, such as Gasoline A city is an Urban area with a large Population and a particular Administrative, Legal, or Historical status A strategic bomber is a heavy type Aircraft designed to drop large amounts of ordnance onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating an enemy's Tactical bombing focused on troop concentrations, command and control facilities, airfields, and ammunition dumps, and required dive bombers and fighter bombers, small aircraft that could fly low over the battlefield. A dive bomber is a Bomber aircraft that Dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy and limit the exposure to and effectiveness of Ground-attack aircraft are military aircraft designed to attack targets on the ground and are often deployed as Close air support for and in proximity to their own ground forces In the early years of World War II, the German Luftwaffe focused on tactical bombing, using large numbers of Ju-87 Stukas as "flying artillery" for land offensives. ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force. Tactical bombing uses Aircraft to attack troops and military equipment in the battle zone The Junkers Ju 87 or Stuka (from Stu rz' ka' mpfflugzeug, " Dive bomber " was a two-seat (pilot and rear gunner Artillery was slow and required time to set up a firing position, whereas aircraft were better able keep up with the fast advances of the German panzer columns. Close air support greatly assisted in the successes of the German Army in the Battle of France. In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries It was also important in amphibious warfare, where aircraft carriers could provide support for soldiers landing on the beaches.

Strategic bombing, by contrast, was unlike anything the world has seen before or since. In 1940, the Germans attempted to force Britain to surrender through attacks on its airfields and factories, and then on its cities in The Blitz in what became the Battle of Britain, the first major battle whose outcome was determined primarily in the air. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Blitz was the sustained bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941 in World War II. The Battle of Britain (German ''Luftschlacht um England'' is the name given to the sustained strategic effort by the German Luftwaffe during the summer and The campaigns conducted by the Allies in Europe and the Pacific could involve thousands of aircraft dropping tens of thousands of tonnes of munitions over a single city.

Military aviation in the post-war years was dominated by the needs of the Cold War. Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the The postwar years saw a rapid conversion to jet power, which resulted in enormous increases in speeds and altitudes of aircraft. specific --->A jet engine is a Reaction engine that discharges a fast moving jet of Fluid to Until the advent of the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile major powers relied on high-altitude bombers to deliver their newly-developed nuclear deterrent; each country strove to develop the technology of bombers and the high-altitude fighters that could intercept them. The concept of air superiority began to play a heavy role in aircraft designs for both the United States and the Soviet Union.

Nuclear warfare

US test launch of a German V-2 ballistic missile. See also Vergeltungswaffe The V-2 rocket ( Vergeltungswaffe 2 was the first Ballistic missile and first man-made object to achieve A ballistic missile is a Missile that follows a Sub-orbital ballistic flightpath with the objective of delivering a warhead to a predetermined target

Main article: Nuclear warfare

The use of nuclear weapons first came into being during the last months of World War II, with the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were nuclear attacks near the end of World War II against the Empire of Japan by the United States at This was the first, and only, use of nuclear weapons in combat. For a decade after World War II, the United States and later the Soviet Union (and to a lesser extent the United Kingdom and France) developed and maintained a strategic force of bombers that would be able to attack any potential aggressor from bases inside their countries. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Before the development of a capable strategic missile force in the Soviet Union, much of the war-fighting doctrine held by western nations revolved around the use of a large number of smaller nuclear weapons used in a tactical role. It is arguable if such use could be considered "limited" however, because it was believed that the US would use their own strategic weapons (mainly bombers at the time) should the USSR deploy any kind of nuclear weapon against civilian targets.

A new revolution in thinking occurred with the introduction of the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which the Soviet Union first successfully tested in the late 1950s. The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive To deliver a warhead to a target, a missile was far less expensive than a bomber that could do the same job. Moreover, at the time it was impossible to intercept ICBMs due to their high altitude and speed. In the 1960s, another major shift in nuclear doctrine occurred with the development of the submarine-based nuclear missile (SLBM). The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 Submarine-launched ballistic missiles or SLBM s are Ballistic missiles delivering Nuclear weapons that are launched from Submarines Modern variants It was hailed by military theorists as a weapon that would assure a surprise attack would not destroy the capability to retaliate, and therefore would make nuclear war less likely.

Important Industrial Wars

• American Civil War
• Arab-Israeli Wars
• Franco-Prussian War
• Korean War
• Russo-Japanese War
• Vietnam War
• World War I
• World War II
• Iran-Iraq War

Milestones

Year	Battle	Country	Significance
1854-1855	Siege of Sevastopol	United Kingdom	First use of the telegraph in combat. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War ( 19 July, 1870 — 10 May, 1871 The Korean War refers to a period of military conflict between North Korean and South Korean regimes with major hostilities lasting from June 25 1950 until the The Russo-Japanese War (日露戦争 Romaji: Nichi-Ro Sensō Русско-японская война Russko-Yaponskaya Voyna;, 10 February 1904 – 5 September The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Year 1854 ( MDCCCLIV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common year Year 1855 ( MDCCCLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common year The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located [2]
1859	Austro-Sardinian War	France	First major use of railroads at the strategic level. Year 1859 ( MDCCCLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The Second War of Italian Independence, Franco-Austrian War, or Austro-Sardinian War was fought by Napoleon III of France and the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.
1861	First Battle of Bull Run	CSA	First battle in which railroads play a decisive role. Year 1861 ( MDCCCLXI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Background Brig Gen Irvin McDowell was appointed by President Abraham Lincoln to command the Army of Northeastern Virginia. The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 "Railroad" and "Railway" both redirect here For other uses see Railroad (disambiguation.
1862	Battle of Hampton Roads	CSA  USA	First fight between two powered iron-covered warships. Year 1862 was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting on Monday The Battle of Hampton Roads, often called the Battle of Monitor and Merrimack, was a The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
1863	Battle of Gettysburg	CSA  USA	Largest battle ever fought in the Western Hemisphere. Year 1863 ( MDCCCLXIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Background and movement to battle See also [[Gettysburg Campaign]] [[Gettysburg Battlefield]] [[Gettysburg Confederate order of battle]] [[Confederate order of battle]] The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Western Hemisphere, also Western hemisphere or western hemisphere, is a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies West
1864-1865	Siege of Petersburg	CSA  USA	First example of modern trench warfare. Year 1864 ( MDCCCLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Year 1865 ( MDCCCLXV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The Richmond-Petersburg Campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865 The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Trench warfare is a form of warfare where both combatants have fortified positions and fighting lines are static
1905	Battle of Tsushima	Japan Russia	Decisive battle between steel-covered warships. Year 1905 ( MCMV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The Battle of Tsushima ( Japanese: 対馬海戦 tsushima-kaisen, Цусимское сражение Tsusimskoye srazheniye) commonly known as the The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya
1911-1912	Italo-Turkish War	Italy	First use of airplanes in combat. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War (also known in Italy as guerra di Libia, "the Libyan war" and in Turkey as Trablusgarp Savaşı) was fought The Kingdom of Italy ( Italian: Regno d'Italia) was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom
1914	Battle of the Marne	France	First large-scale use of motorised infantry. Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Motorised infantry is Infantry which is transported by Trucks or other motor vehicles
1914-1918	First Battle of the Atlantic	Germany  United Kingdom	First major campaign of submarine warfare. Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The First Battle of the Atlantic ( 1914 &ndash 1918) was a naval campaign of World War I, largely fought in the seas around the British The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Naval warfare is divided into three operational areas Surface warfare, Air warfare and underwater warfare.
1915	Second Battle of Ypres	Germany	First large-scale use of chemical weapons in battle. Year 1915 ( MCMXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The Second Battle of Ypres was the first time Germany used poison gas on a large scale on the Western Front in World War I and the first time The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification Chemical warfare involves using the toxic properties of Chemical substances to kill injure or incapacitate an enemy.
1916	Battle of Verdun	France  Germany	High point of fixed fortification warfare. Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year The Battle of Verdun was one of the most critical battles in World War I on the Western Front, fought between the German and French This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification Fortifications are Military Constructions and Buildings designed for defense in Warfare Humans have constructed defensive works for
1917	Battle of Cambrai	United Kingdom	First successful use of massed tanks in combat. Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The Battle of Cambrai ( 20 November - 3 December 1917) was a British campaign of World War I. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Armoured warfare or tank warfare is the use of Armoured fighting vehicles in Modern warfare.
1937	Bombing of Gernika	Germany Italy	First major use of terror bombing. Year 1937 ( MCMXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The bombing of Guernica ( April 26, 1937) was an aerial attack on the Basque town of Guernica, causing widespread destruction and Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The Kingdom of Italy ( Italian: Regno d'Italia) was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom Terror bombing is a strategy of deliberately bombing and/or Strafing civilian targets in order to break the Morale of the enemy make its civilian population panic
1940	Battle of Britain	Germany  United Kingdom	First major battle to be fought entirely in the air. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Battle of Britain (German ''Luftschlacht um England'' is the name given to the sustained strategic effort by the German Luftwaffe during the summer and Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located
1940	Battle of Taranto	Italy  United Kingdom	First all-aircraft naval battle in history. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The naval Battle of Taranto took place on the night of 11 November 1940 &ndash 12 November 1940 during World War II The Kingdom of Italy ( Italian: Regno d'Italia) was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located
1941	Battle of Crete	Germany	First battle to be fought entirely by airborne forces. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Battle of Crete ( German Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta; Greek Μάχη της Κρήτης) was a battle during World War II Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers
1941	Operation Barbarossa	Germany  Soviet Union	High point of Blitzkrieg warfare. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Blitzkrieg (German for "lightning war" is a popular name for an Offensive operational-level Military doctrine which involves an initial
1942	Battle of the Coral Sea	Japan  United States	First naval battle in which neither side's ships sighted or fired directly upon each other. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Battle of the Coral Sea, fought from May 4 – May 8, 1942, with most of the action occurring on May 7 and May 8, was The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
1942	Battle of Midway	Japan  United States	Decisive battle between aircraft carriers. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Battle of Midway was a major Naval battle, widely regarded as the most important one of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku The United States of America —commonly referred to as the An aircraft carrier is a Warship designed with
1942	Battle of Stalingrad	Germany  Soviet Union	Largest single battle in history. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Battle of Stalingrad is a commonly used name in English sources for several large operations by Germany and its allies and Soviet forces conducted with the Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Decisive battle of the Nazi-Soviet War. The Eastern Front of World War II (die Ostfront 1941-1945, der Rußlandfeldzug 1941-1945 (Russian campaign or der Ostfeldzug 1941-1945 (Eastern Campaign
1942	Battle of Guadalcanal	Japan  United States	First major air-land-sea campaign in history. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Guadalcanal Campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal, was fought between August 7, 1942, and February 9, 1943, in the The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
1943	Battle of Kursk	Germany  Soviet Union	Largest tank battle in history. Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Battle of Kursk (Курская битва refers to a series of German and Soviet operations on the Eastern Front of World War II Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991
1944	Normandy Invasion	Germany  United Kingdom  United States  Canada	Largest seaborne invasion in history. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page
1944	Battle of Leyte Gulf	Japan  United States	Largest naval battle in history. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also called the "Battle for Leyte Gulf" the "Battles for Leyte Gulf" and formerly as the "Second Battle of the Philippine The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The title of "largest Naval battle in history" may be conferred according to criteria which might include the numbers of personnel and/or vessels involved in the battle
1945	Hiroshima and Nagasaki	United States	First use of atomic weapons in combat. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were nuclear attacks near the end of World War II against the Empire of Japan by the United States at The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from Nuclear reactions either fission or a combination of fission and fusion.
1965	Battle of Ia Drang	United States	First major battle fought by helicopter-borne troops. Year 1965 ( MCMLXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. The Battle of Ia Drang was one of the first major battles between the United States Army and the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN during the Vietnam War. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the History Since 400 AD Chinese children have played with bamboo flying toys.

See also

• Arms race
• Cold war
• Curtis LeMay
• Home front
• Mass production
• Mobilization
• Technology during World War I
• Technology during World War II
• Technological escalation during World War II
• Total war
• Trench warfare
• Unconditional surrender
• Unrestricted Warfare
• World war

Footnotes

External links

• Modern Tendencies in Strategy and Tactics as shown in Campaigns in the Far East (1906) by Lieutenant Colonel Yoda, Imperial Japanese Army. Year 1906 ( MCMVI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The Imperial Japanese Army ( IJA) ( Kyūjitai: 大日本帝國陸軍 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国陸軍 Romaji: Dai-Nippon Teikoku