The Longest Wars In History

Three brutal wars happened between Rome and Carthage.These wars ran from 264 BC to 146 BC.Carthage was destroyed and conquered. The city burned and fell. Carthage never signed a peace treaty ending the war with Rome because of this destruction.

This situation changed in 1985.The mayor of Rome and the mayor of modern Carthage (now a suburb of Tunis) signed a peace treaty in 1985 to end the past.

Some scholars reject this diplomatic deal. They argue the Punic Wars lasted about 45 years. That is still a very long time for two nations fighting.

The conflict 'Taiwan Vs. The Netherlands (359 Years)' appears in 'The Longest Wars In History'.The Dutch arrived on Taiwan in 1623. They tried to Christianize the native tribes in one year. Some tribes accepted conversion; others fought back. The Dutch burned their villages. In 1651, the Taromak tribe fought back, and the Dutch declared war.In 1623, the Dutch tried to Christianize native tribes on Taiwan within a year. Some tribes converted willingly; others resisted. The Dutch reacted poorly: they burned their villages. In 1651, the Taromak tribe fought back against their oppressors, and the Dutch declared war. Koxinga, a Ming Dynasty loyalist, defeated the Dutch and expelled them from the island in 1662. No official peace ever happened.

In 2010, Dutch diplomat Menno Goedhart sought the tribe’s leader to end the fighting officially. Goedhart went to the village's spirit hut, asking for forgiveness and understanding from the tribe’s ancestors. This ended one of history's longest declared wars.

The war lasted three centuries.Three centuries of war is long. However, it was acceptable if no one actually shot at each other. This was the oddity of the war between the Scilly Islands and the Netherlands.

The Isles of Scilly form a small archipelago southwest of Britain, currently in Cornwall. During the English Civil War, they served as a royalist naval base, fighting the republican attack. In 1651, the Dutch, pausing their 359-year war with Taiwan, declared war on the small islands. They supported Oliver Cromwell's forces, mainly to guard their fleet, which suffered heavy losses from royalist ships at Scilly. Cromwell's forces finished the loyalists shortly after. Nobody ever fought each other.

In 1985, historian and chairman of the Isles of Scilly Council Roy DuncanRoy Duncan wrote to the Dutch Embassy in London to clarify what happened between the two nations. Research showed the conflict was real and still ongoing. The following year, the Dutch ambassador to the United Kingdom visited the islands and ended the conflict permanently.

A series of irregular conflicts, theThe Arauco Wars The Arauco Wars began in 1536 when the Spanish attempted to colonize the MapucheA tribe now in Chile. Spain met a strong army exploring the Strait of Magellan. Though outnumbered, Spain used superior firepower to kill thousands of Mapuches and force them to retreat.

The Mapuche stayed independent from Spanish rule despite attempts to break them. The Biobío River formed a natural border. Battles occurred during the 300 years of Spanish presence until 1609. A maintenance treaty followed, signed between the Spanish-appointed governor of Chile and the Mapuche chiefs. Spain left Chile during the War of Chilean Independence, starting in 1810, and Mapuche tribesmen fought on both sides.

Peace began on January 7, 1825.

Japan and Russia.They have been feuding over theKuril Islands.A small chain sits between Hokkaido in the south and Kamchatka in the north. Relations started between the two nations in 1855. Various groups occupied the islands until August 1945. Then, Russian forces invaded and took the islands as part of their Manchurian Strategic Operation against Japan.

Confusingly, the San FranciscoPeace Treaty of 1951.This treaty ended the war with Japan. It ordered Japan to give up all claims to the Kuril Islands but did not recognize the Soviet Union's control. The islands entered a quasi-legal zone, but Russia kept physical control. Both nations claim ownership; Japan calls them the “Northern Territories” and Russia calls them the “South Kuril District.” The two nations still argue over who owns what.

In 1809, the Spanishmunicipality of Huéscar.Spain declared war on Denmark. Denmark fought Napoleonic France. Spanish troops faced being cut off in French-occupied Denmark. The Danes made the Spanish swear loyalty oaths to Napoleon’s brother. People quickly forgot the patriotic outburst and continued living.

A local legend. A Spanish historian found the original declaration of war in 1981. A ceremony happened. On November 11, 1981, the mayor of Huéscar and the Danish Ambassador ended the forgotten war.

The100 Years' War.The war lasted so long an extra 16 years got rounded off. Actually, the “war” consisted of three wars separated by long peace periods: the Edwardian War (1337-1360); the Caroline War (1369-1389); and the Lancastrian War (1415-1453).

In 1337, France and England fought over recognition and title. Three years later, King Edward III of England crossed the English Channel and destroyed the French fleet. A full-scale invasion happened six years later. England won the Edwardian phase and took France. France pushed the English back in the second phase, then broke into internal fighting. France pulled itself together to win the third phase, generations after the first phase fighters died. Defeated England soon fractured into the Wars of the Roses and gave up its claim to the French throne.

The Russo-Japanese War involved a diplomatic irregularity betweenMontenegro fought Japan in a conflict spanning 101 years.Montenegro and Japan existed only on paper, with little military action. Montenegro declared war on Japan supporting Russia but sent few volunteers, lacking a navy or army. When the conflict ended in 1905, the peace treaty ignored Montenegro. Montenegro joined Serbia in 1919, ending its status as a country after 14 years.

In 2006, Montenegro became an autonomous country again. A Japanese envoy arrived and carried a letter from the Japanese prime minister declaring the century-long war over.

India and Pakistan share a history of conflict.India and Pakistan fought three violent wars over Kashmir. After British rule ended in 1947, Pakistan tried to take Kashmir, which had mostly Muslim residents. The region's maharaja did not want to join either country but joined India in 1947.

The first war lasted about a year, 1947 to 1948. The second ended after just a few weeks in 1965. Both conflicts caused heavy death tolls and high casualties. The conflict remains intense, and no real solution exists yet.

Another internal conflict started afterA nation gained independence from Britain.Burma (now Myanmar) has been engulfed inThe civil war lasted for 67 years and counting.since 1948. Various governments and rulers have managed organized insurgency, uprisings by armed ethnic groups, and fights over resources and mining rights.

Many lives were lost by both government and anti-government forces in battles, ambushes, and massacres. Hundreds are still killed yearly; Burma/Myanmar remains a dangerous place to visit.

The state of war existedThe conflict occurred between the two Koreas for 62 years and counting.Since the 1950s, fighting intensity lessened after the Korean War ended in 1953. However, the conflict never officially stopped. North and South Korea clash repeatedly over the last sixty years. The North has announced six times it will not follow the armistice terms both nations signed, yet little happens after these announcements.

Both sides keep.substantial military forces in the Demilitarized Zone. Dozens of violent incursions, incidents, and shootouts occur between North Korean forces and South Korean and UN troops. The risk of a full-scale war between the two Koreas remains high.North Korean forces and South Korean and UN troops clash in the Demilitarized Zone. Dozens of violent incursions, incidents, and shootouts happen there. The risk of a full-scale war between the two Koreas stays high.

Nazi Germany signed the Instrument of Surrender and ended their war with the Western Allies.Allies in 1945.Germany itself was divided among the winning powers. No single state held the power to sign a final peace treaty. The war continued into the Cold War. The US needed a legal reason to keep troops in West Germany; it ended its state of war with Germany in 1951.

The political situation changed completely. German reunification in 1990 allowed the US to sign the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany.Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to GermanyWith respect to Germany, they could sign.

Greco-Persian Wars lasted from.492-449 BC.The Greco-Persian Wars started with a Persian-backed revolt in the Greek islands. Two Persian invasions hit the unified Greek city-states. The Greeks then counterattacked, beating the Persians and taking their capital, Byzantium. The war kept going when Sparta left the Greek alliance.Delian League.Athens and her allies fought Persia across Asia Minor.

Athens finally beat Persia again and took most of her territory. The war ended with the mythical Peace of Callias.Peace of Callias..

The Netherlands.Pulled out of administering.New Guinea in 1969, recognizing Indonesia’s rule over the island. Seven years later, Indonesia held a vote (now generallyregarded as a sham)and the indigenous people on the western part of the island, West Papua, “agreed” to live under Indonesian control. A low-intensity conflict started soon after. The Free Papua Movement has been at war with Indonesian authorities on the island ever since.

Many atrocities happened at the start of the war. The conflict has continued at a low boil since then.

The mostly Muslim Moro residents of the southern Philippines have fought armed resistance against Spanish, Japanese, and American colonial forces forMoro Insurgency lasted over 600 years..

The latest fight began with Filipino troops massacring Muslim Moro soldiers in 1968. This has continued as a low-level insurgency ever since. Several clashes between Moro rebels and Filipino armed forces caused thousands of casualties.

Tension between the United States and the Soviet Union, and between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, lasted more than forty years. The conflict officially started in 1947, when theThe Truman Doctrine began in 1947.The Truman Doctrine codified the idea of stopping communist spread. It ended with the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991.The Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.Nothing further.

Both sides fought proxy wars in Korea, Vietnam, and other places. They funded insurgencies and revolutions. They researched stronger weapons. The two superpowers nearly went to war many times.

The Guatemalan Civil War began in 1960 and lasted until 1996.The Guatemalan Civil War ran from 1960 to 1996.After 36 brutal years, the Guatemalan Civil War featured battles between the government and rebel troops. The government also used terror against civilians. Junior military officers revolted against the government's autocratic rule. The rebellion was stopped.

Left-wing guerrilla groups fought both the government (aided by the US) and right-wing vigilantes. The long struggle ended when the Guatemalan government and leftist guerrillas signed a peace deal. This revealed many massacres against rebel groups.

The Banana Wars involved long conflicts across many Latin American countries.The Banana Wars.The Banana Wars started in 1898. The US intervened in Cuba during the Spanish-American War. President Roosevelt pulled troops from Haiti in 1934, ending the wars.

US forces, mainly the Marines, fought counterinsurgencies and police actions. They protected US interests in Cuba, Honduras, Haiti, Mexico, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. Most fights protected American trade and economic interests, especially fruit exports.

The Wars of the Roses resulted from the Hundred Years' War. This civil war raged in Northern England from 1455 to 1485.The Wars of the Roses lasted from 1455 until 1485.The Wars of the Roses fought for the throne of England. King Henry VI ruled weakly and poorly, ascending as a baby. This left a huge power vacuum as officials fought to rule the island.

Henry had a mental breakdown as an adult. Richard, Duke of York, challenged his rule. Henry's House of Lancaster and Richard's House of York fought for thirty years. They fought over five kings until the Lancastrians won and united the factions as the Tudor dynasty, which still rules England today.