post 1865 list:
1.Stalingrad–- obvious conclusions. Nothing is bigger than this battle for deciding the wars conclusion.
2.Marne ( first one)— failure to win would have been a quick german victory in 1914 and not have caused ww2
3. Dunkirk— if the brits failed to leave intact Hitler would have immediatly invaded and captured England and ended the war.
4.Midway— The japanese would have lost one way or another but it ended the string of victorys up until then.
5.Verdun— this meat grinder was supposed to totally sap the french of soldiers to fight… but it also sapped the strength of the germans buying the allies enough time to bring in the americans.
6.Tannenburg— total reversal of the eastern front leading to collapse of imperial russia and cold war and many other things
7.Inchon— created the present day situation with N Korea
@Imperious:
post 1865 list:
1.Stalingrad–- obvious conclusions. Nothing is bigger than this battle for deciding the wars conclusion.
2.Marne ( first one)— failure to win would have been a quick german victory in 1914 and not have caused ww2
3. Dunkirk— if the brits failed to leave intact Hitler would have immediatly invaded and captured England and ended the war.
4.Midway— The japanese would have lost one way or another but it ended the string of victorys up until then.
5.Verdun— this meat grinder was supposed to totally sap the french of soldiers to fight… but it also sapped the strength of the germans buying the allies enough time to bring in the americans.
6.Tannenburg— total reversal of the eastern front leading to collapse of imperial russia and cold war and many other things
7.Inchon— created the present day situation with N Korea
Sedan in May 1940 - more important for the lack of any major fighting since the German crossing of the Meusse river nearly unopposed by large numbers of German tanks sealed the fate of the French army.
I was also going to note that the battles are very Euro-centric and pretty biased. Look at what the guy has to say about Persians in just a few lines.
I’ve got a book that highlights quite a few battles, all the way up to former Yugoslavia.
The battles which stand out to me (I don’t know them all, even after cursory checking on the ones I’m not familiar with): Tours, Hastings, Spanish Armada, Saratoga, Valmy, and Waterloo. Tours, Hastings, Armada, & Waterloo were all about stopping/reversing the flow of power; Valmy and Saratoga were integral in the US and French Revolutions and showed the power of a volunteer army.
I would also include the suggestions of Metz/Sedan in uniting Germany, the First Marne for stalling a German victory, Tsushima for showing that war doesn’t mean the biggest gun (or boat) and rising power in Japan, Stalingrad (imagine if Hitler went for Moscow instead?), Midway, the entire Mongol Conquest (Japanese exception), Battle of Britain (ushered in Air Superiority for the Allies - which was an enormous strength).
My suggestions are:
Battle of Sekigahara - unified Japan and established the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan for hundreds of years. Its isolationist policies, which led to Western pressure, eventually gave way to the Meiji Restoration. That, in turn, went on to form the power of Japan seen in some of the other battles listed here.
Battle of Chi Bi - Besides being a pivotal battle in post-Han China (Three Kingdoms Period), it is said to be one of the most lethal, and involved naval and land forces. The allied efforts of the Shu and Wu forces somehow overcame the far more numerous Wei forces, and allowed them to set up their own domains (Wei was far more dominant). I also just found out that it’s being made into a movie by John Woo starring Chow Yun Fat.
D Day - the sheer size of this naval invasion is impressive, not to mention the organization, collaboration with French Resistance, and the fact that it totally caught the Germans off guard. It was inevitable, but I think it succeeded quite well.
Pearl Harbor - Reinforced the importance of carriers, sneak attacks, and air power. We were pretty lucky not to have our own carriers caught in the fight - if we did, the Pacific war would have dragged on a lot longer.
Yorktown - Got the Brits to finally admit US sovereignty (uh oh, there goes the neighborhood).
Okinawa - not only one of the most fierce and bloody battles in the Pacific War, I believe that it had a major influence on the use of atomic bombs.
As one poster pointed out, the original list of 15 decisive battles was decidedly Eurocentric. (Although by no means the fault of the composer of the original post, who pulled the list from a book.)
I would like to also point out that battles do not necessarily involve guns.
I think the post should better be titled “Fifteen decisive armed conflicts”.
Otherwise, I have some Super Bowls I could cite . . .
Oh yeah, I meant to come back to this thread. Thanks for reviving it NPB.
I was going to ask those that listed Pusan about their reasoning in that choice. I read some on the Korea War recently, and I’d have to list the landing at Inchon as being more pivotal than Pusan (for both good and bad reasons).
Unless you are talking about the Japanese Invasion of Korea in the 1500’s. Then I don’t know.
I may have missed it, but it doesn’t look like anyone cited the Battle of Lepanto - 1571. This should certainly rank among the top 2 or 3 naval battles in human history. The battle stopped the expansion of the Ottoman empire and kept Europe Christian - for those who think that kind of thing is important.
SS
It’s been brought up already but Saratoga is on the list while Yorktown has been omitted, and I believe that’s a huge mistake. While Saratoga had great implications for the American Revolution in bringing other European Powers into the conflict, the result of Yorktown was a huge blow to British prestige and forced them to accept their losses. It was the Tet Offensive of the 18th century, but it’s real impact is in the 225 years hence. Imagine just how radically different the 20th century and two world wars would have been if North America were still divided between European Powers.
@saburo:
I may have missed it, but it doesn’t look like anyone cited the Battle of Lepanto - 1571. This should certainly rank among the top 2 or 3 naval battles in human history. The battle stopped the expansion of the Ottoman empire and kept Europe Christian - for those who think that kind of thing is important.
SS
Dont forget about the Battle of Jutland! That was a very important naval battle in WWI. It stopped the Germans from gaining naval superiority and made them go back to the unrestricted submarine warfare policy (which eventually helped them lose instead of win.)
The battle of Zama. The defeat of Carthage that ensured Roman supremacy over the Mediterranean.
The battle of Sharpsburg. Kept the U.S. unified. (unfortunately) :-P
@Mechanized:
Dont forget about the Battle of Jutland! That was a very important naval battle in WWI. It stopped the Germans from gaining naval superiority and made them go back to the unrestricted submarine warfare policy (which eventually helped them lose instead of win.)
I don’t see much decisiveness, tactical or strategic, in Jutland. The only outcome that would have changed the outcome of the war would be the destruction of the British Fleet. Churchill said of Jellicoe, “He is the only man that can lose the war in an afternoon.” Even if the German High Seas Fleet is annihilated, the British have won nothing. The submarine campaign the Germans waged operated independently of what the High Seas Fleet did. They waged war on British shipping before and after Jutland, and what prompted a declaration of unrestricted warfare was the knowledge that Germany’s Army was going to run out of resources before the Entente forces did.
All Jutland may have done is foreshadow the end of the Battleships as the determining factor in Naval warfare… a lesson that was finally leanred for good at Midway.
And a point THAT minor does not warrant the top 15.
I would contest the idea that Jutland is a determining factor in the demise of the battleship. The first thing Britain demanded after the Armistice was the sinking of the German dreadnoughts. Hindsight might show us early warning signs, but remember that in the inter-war period all naval treaties concentrated on restricting battleship development. It was not until the start of hostilities in the Pacific that battleships were proven less effective. If there had been a significant incidence of some weapon being distinctly better than the battleship, navies after the First World War would have jumped on the new bandwagon.
Oh, and since the point of this thread was to add five more battles, here’s my list:
Mexico City (1847): Established the U.S. as the dominant power in the Western Hemisphere, fulfilled the Manifest Destiny, and sewed the seeds of imperial aspirations that would culminate in greater involvement in world affairs as the 19th century ended.
Antietam/Sharpsburg (1862): Essentially ended the Confederate State’s bid for foreign recognition. A lack of external support irreparably harmed the chances of a Southern victory.
Sedan (1870): It has been mentioned already, as it marks the ascension of Germany into imperial power status and begins her military aspirations that would culminate in two world wars.
Hiroshima (1945): No single discharge of a weapon has had so much impact upon the world. The dropping of a single bomb changed warfare and world politics forever. A 40-year Cold War and the threat of nuclear terrorist actions all stem from August 6, 1945.
Huai-Hai (1948): This is my sleeper. This was the battle that broke the back of Nationalist Chinese forces. Their losses along the Huai River and the Hai Railway prevented them from further contesting Communist forces for mainland China. In the 50 years since, the political and economic impact on the region has been more significant than almost all of the battles during the Pacific Theater of World War II.
7300 Battle of Cosmara Archipelago -Battlestar Ricon had to be scuttled
7359 Battle of Molecay. The Fifth Fleet lost in action.
7360 Colonial Fleet ambushed at the Peace Conference.
Twelve Colonies of the Three Suns conquered.
7362 Battle of Gomoray. Battlestar Pegasus presumed destroyed.
@Imperious:
3487 Battle of Molecay -cains 5th fleet destroyed
7300 Battle of Cosmara Archipelago -Battlestar Ricon had to be scuttled
7359 Battle of Molecay. The Fifth Fleet lost in action.
7360 Colonial Fleet ambushed at the Peace Conference.
Twelve Colonies of the Three Suns conquered.7362 Battle of Gomoray. Battlestar Pegasus presumed destroyed.
Haha
I can’t think of much to add to the original 15, but I suppose if you’re Canadian, you’re probably thankful that Benedict Arnold got stomped in his horribly bad invasion of Quebec at the start of the revolution.
Can you say “Northern United States”?
I wouldn’t at all say stomped. In fact he was not defeated, merely not able to further advance due to the logistics.
Battle of Yorktown would be more decisive.
I would agree post 1851 of adding Midway and Stalingrad. Both turned what looked to be certain defeat into victory and turned the tides in those theatres.
I wouldn’t at all say stomped. In fact he was not defeated, merely not able to further advance due to the logistics.
Logistically, beginning the overland journey from Boston to Quebec City in September was a dumb idea to begin with, but Arnold then lost the part of his army that hadn’t died from disease or exposure in his attack on the city itself. The city was held with the loss of only 5 of its defenders. Arnold should get credit, however, for having his men going into the attack on Dec 31st knowing that their enlistment was up the following day…
