Dictionary of Wars

Dictionary of

WARS

Third Edition

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Dictionary of

WARS

Third Edition

GEORGE CHILDS KOHN

Editor

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Dictionary of Wars, Third Edition

Copyright © 2007, 1999, 1986 by George Childs Kohn

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form

or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording,

or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing

from the publisher. For information contact:

Facts On File, Inc.

An imprint of Infobase Publishing

132 West 31st Street

New York NY 10001

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Dictionary of wars / George Childs Kohn, editor. — 3rd ed.

p. cm.

Includes indexes.

ISBN 0-8160-6577-2 (alk. paper)

1. Military history—Dictionaries. I. Kohn, George C.

D25.A2D53 2006

355.0203—dc22 2005058936

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VB DS 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Preface to the Third Edition

vii

Preface to the First Edition

ix

Entries A–Z

1

Geographical Index

623

Index

661

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Contents ]

EDITOR

George Childs Kohn

CONTRIBUTORS

Mary L. Allison

Judith W. Augusta

Elizabeth Cluggish

George Childs Kohn

Cynthia S. Pomerleau

Mary Ann Ryer

Ashwinee Sadanand

Suzanne Solensky

Howard G. Zettler

]

]

The foremost purpose of the Dictionary of Wars,

first published in 1986 and in a revised edition

in 1999, is to provide a useful and convenient

one-volume reference source on the major con￾flicts throughout the world from ancient times

to the present. This third edition aims to do

the same, presenting clear, essential, and accu￾rate historical information on major and minor

wars, revolts, revolutions, rebellions, uprisings,

invasions, and insurrections. Today, numerous

countries and regions are embroiled in conflicts

carried on by different belligerent factions, often

labeled as militant extremists or dissidents,

armed rebels or insurgents, guerrillas, jihadists,

fascists, separatists, or secessionists. In some

places, conflicts are also part of or connected to

fraternal battles between political, ethnic, sectar￾ian, religious, or racial groups seeking influence

and power.

In modern times, warfare and military con￾ditions are undergoing change, due in large part

to the increase in domestic and international

terrorism and violence. The goals of terrorists or

fanatical rebels or criminal gangs, whose lead￾ership and cohesion are often split and who

often have large arsenals of weapons, are dif￾ferent from those of organized states and disci￾plined armies in war. Terrorists may seek only

to destabilize regions and want violence for its

own sake. Frequently young and fearless, they

may be seeking glory in inflicting death on

innocent and defenseless civilians. They do not

respect the sanctity of each human life and are

not concerned with the ideals of liberty and the

values of democracy. Domestic terrorists have

incited much unrest and turmoil and commit￾ted mass murder and genocide in many places,

such as Chechnya, Angola, Burundi, Rwanda,

Somalia, Iraq, Turkey, India, Pakistan, Indonesia,

Sri Lanka, Sudan, Peru, and Sierra Leone. Inter￾national terrorists have caused much bloodshed

in their attacks in Saudi Arabia, Israel, Spain, the

United States, Britain, and elsewhere, and their

numbers are rising. Perhaps we are now experi￾encing a worldwide tactical “war of terrorism”

that may last many decades until the terror￾ists (whether they be militant rebels, criminals,

or religious, ethnic, or ideological fanatics) are

crushed or pushed back, along with their special

tyranny.

Since the end of the cold war and the ulti￾mate breakup of the Soviet Union and emer￾gence of Russia as an independent state in late

1991, many of the conflicts and horrors around

the world have involved religion, in one way or

another. For instance, in the last 15 years, Mus￾lims and Christians have killed each other spo￾radically in the Philippines, Indonesia, Nigeria,

Sudan, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Serbia, Croatia, Bos￾nia, and Kosovo. Hindu Tamils and Buddhist

Sinhalese have killed each other in Sri Lanka.

Protestants and Catholics have shot each other

vii

Preface to

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the Third Edition ]

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occasionally in Northern Ireland (Ulster). Mus￾lim fanatics have periodically slain innocent

civilians and fellow Muslims in Egypt, Algeria,

Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere. Jews and Mus￾lims have killed each other in Israel and Leba￾non. Hindus, Muslims, and, occasionally, Sikhs

have killed one another in India, Pakistan, and

Kashmir. Why religion, which espouses love,

kindness, and brotherhood, is entwined in so

many hate-filled, bloody conflicts remains a baf￾fling puzzle, as well as a contradiction. Religion,

however, has always separated people. Accounts

of religious-ethnic strife, persecution, and kill￾ing can be traced from ancient times to the Cru￾sades, the Inquisition, the Wars of Religion and

other Reformation conflicts, the Thirty Years’

War, the Muslim jihads, the Taiping Rebellion,

the Russian pogroms, the Armenian massacres,

the Jewish Holocaust, the Khmer Rouge “killing

fields,” the Kashmiri bloodshed, and the Rwan￾dan Tutsi genocide, among others.

Wars will always rage in places because some

human beings will always find a reason to shoot

and kill each other. Magazines, newspapers, televi￾sion, and the Internet will continue to report and

show graphically the carnage from war and kill￾ing. History lessons will not stop terrorism, war,

or genocide nor will time stop war and heal the

wounds. Fighting is rooted in human nature—“a

deep delight to the blood,” said the philosopher

George Santayana, who found barbarism, perver￾sity, and evil in the human combative instinct.

In his essay “On War,” he also said, “It is war that

wastes a nation’s wealth, chokes its industries,

kills its flower, narrows its sympathies, condemns

it to be governed by adventurers, and leaves the

puny, deformed, and unmanly to breed the next

generation.” According to Santayana, humanity

needs to use right reason, along with true courage

and virtue, as antidotes to the wounds, dangers,

poisons, and evils brought on by warmongers or

terrorists. He also warned famously against forget￾ting history: “Those who cannot remember the

past are condemned to repeat it.”

During the preparation of the third edi￾tion, I thoroughly reviewed the original text

and brought the book up to date. The accuracy

of the material was checked, and the contents

of existing entries that seemed inadequate were

expanded. A special effort was made to incorpo￾rate recent, important developments since the

publication of the revised edition. More than 50

of the some 1,850 main entries now in the book

were either extensively updated or newly added.

I would be unconscionably remiss not to give

many thanks to the contributors, whose help

facilitated greatly the long research and writing

required to complete the book. These special

contributors are listed on a preceding page. I

also appreciate very much the longtime interest

and support of my publisher, Facts On File, and

my good editor of late, Claudia Schaab, and her

assistant, Melissa Cullen-DuPont. Many thanks

are also extended to the libraries, big and small,

public and private, that have helped in some

way in the making of this book.

— George Childs Kohn

viii Preface to the Third Edition

ix

The compilation of the Dictionary of Wars was

an endeavor to fill a large gap on the reference

book shelf. The real need for a single-volume ref￾erence work that deals exclusively and concisely

with the world’s military conflicts, from classical

antiquity to the present, became more obvious

as the task of researching and writing progressed.

I hope the final product meets the needs of both

the general reader and the student, providing a

quick, convenient, authoritative, and compre￾hensive source of information on the major

wars, revolutions, revolts, and rebellions that

have for so long been a part of history.

No one-volume reference work like this can

possibly include every war. Space limitations

preclude total comprehensiveness. Furthermore,

dealing with a subject of so wide a range of time

and territory—wars in all parts of the world

from 2000 B.C.E. to the present—compels a cer￾tain subjectivity in choosing what to include

and what to exclude. But I have still covered the

entire sweep of the globe in selecting entries,

and I feel that the presentation gives the reader a

clear idea of the amazingly diverse conflicts that

have plagued humankind.

War has a long and intriguing history and

has been a prominent feature of human existence

ever since the day when rival men—or women—

decided to settle their differences by use of force.

In many instances, the history of a people is

the history of its wars. I have defined war fairly

broadly, to mean an overt, armed conflict car￾ried on between nations or states (international

war) or between parties, factions, or people in

the same state (civil war). There are multifari￾ous reasons for war. International war usually

arises from territorial disputes, injustice against

people of one country by those of another, prob￾lems of race and prejudice, commercial and

economic competition and coercion, envy of

military might, or sheer cupidity for conquest.

Civil war generally results from rival claims for

sovereign power in a state or from struggles to

win political, civil, or religious liberties of some

sort. An organized effort to seize power, to over￾throw a government, or to escape oppression

is frequently termed a rebellion, insurrection,

uprising, or revolt, which, if successful, becomes

known as a revolution. These kinds of conflicts,

as well as conquests, invasions, sieges, massa￾cres, raids, and key mutinies, are included in

Dictionary of Wars. In addition, there are separate

entries for a number of exceptionally complex

and significant battles.

It is not the intention of this book to inter￾pret conflicts; that is left to works of limited

geographical and historical breadth. Of prime

concern is the military information, although

political, social, and cultural influences are

often specified in order to gain a fuller, more

understandable picture of a conflict. Emphasis

is placed on gathering essential and pertinent

Preface to

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the First Edition ]

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facts into a reasonably smooth narrative. Each

entry gives the name(s) of the conflict, the dates

it spanned, how it began, the opposing sides

involved, a concise description or summary of

events, and the outcome or significance. In addi￾tion, kings, emperors, generals, rebels, and so

forth, when mentioned, are followed by their

birth and death dates (or active dates).

Throughout, conflicts are listed in alpha￾betical order under their most accessible or com￾monly familiar names, some of which are widely

recognized (for example, Napoleonic Wars,

Crimean War, the Crusades), others of which

are less familiar (Barons’ War, Taiping Rebellion,

Chaco War), and still others quite unfamiliar

(Holy Roman Empire–Papacy War of 1081–84,

Burmese-Laotian War of 1558, Hukbalahap Rebel￾lion). Numerous conflicts are known by two or

more names, and the dictionary alleviates the

problem of looking up these conflicts by cross￾referring to the main entry in a see reference. Thus,

when looking up Dutch War of Independence,

the reader is directed to EIGHTY YEARS’ WAR. Con￾flicts having the same name but different dates

are listed in chronological order, despite the fact

that the dates may not follow alphabetically (for

instance, Janissaries’ Revolt of 1730 precedes

Janissaries’ Revolt of 1807–08, which precedes

Janissaries’ Revolt of 1826); this time frame helps

the reader pursue the general military history in

some lands. The reader may want to check the

cross-references set in small capital letters within

many entries to attain a wider perspective on a

particular conflict. Finally, the names of the wars,

revolts, and conflicts are listed in the Geographi￾cal Index, in which wars are arranged chronologi￾cally under the country or polity (state, empire,

and so on) connected with them. Such larger

land areas as Africa, Arabia, Asia Minor, Central

America, and the Caribbean are also listed in the

index to make it easier to look up their conflicts.

We have also included an Index of Names in

order to aid readers who need information about

particular battles, treaties, monarchs, and military

and political leaders.

—George Childs Kohn

x Preface to the First Edition

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Entries A–Z ]

Abd el-Kader’s Muslim rebels, chiefl y rifl e-armed cavalry, battled invading French troops on the Algerian coast in the 1830s.

1

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A ]

Abbasid Revolution of 747–750 C.E. (Abu

Muslim’s Revolt) The Abbasids, Muslim Arabs

who claimed descent from Abbas (d. 653), uncle

of the prophet Muhammad (570–632), opposed

the ruling Umayyad family. Led by Abu Mus￾lim (728?–755), the Abbasids openly revolted in

747, seizing Merv in the province of Khorasan in

northeastern Persia. Marwan II (d. 750), the last

Umayyad caliph, attempted to crush the Abba￾sids, but his forces lost battles at Nishapur, Jur￾jan, Nehawand, and Kerbela. The revolt spread

to other provinces in the Muslim Empire. When

the Abbasids decisively defeated the Umayyads at

the Great Zab River in 750, Marwan fled to Egypt,

where he was soon murdered. Abu al-Abbas as￾Saffan (722–754), a close friend of Abu Muslim,

proclaimed himself the first Abbasid caliph at

Kufa, a Mesopotamian city near the Euphrates

River. See also MUSLIM CIVIL WAR OF 743–747 C.E.

Abd el-Kader, First War of (1832–34) Abd

el-Kader (1808–83), Muslim leader and emir of

Mascara, led Algerians in a war of harassment

against invading French troops in Oran and

Mostaganem. He was successful, forcing the

French to sign the Desmichels Treaty of 1834,

which recognized Abd el-Kader as the dey (gov￾ernor) of Mascara and gave him control of the

interior of Oran. France signed the treaty with

the hope that Abd el-Kader could be used as a

French agent in Algeria. Second War of Abd

el-Kader (1835–37). French troops contin￾ued to oppose Abd el-Kader’s united Algerian

tribes but lost many battles. In 1837, the Treaty

of Tafna was signed, giving Abd el-Kader con￾trol of most of the interior of Algeria; France

retained only a few ports. With his territorial

acquisitions, Abd el-Kader organized a true Mus￾lim state, using religious sentiment to unify

the Algerians. Third War of Abd el-Kader

(1840–47). In December 1840, France sent Mar￾shal Thomas R. Bugeaud (1784–1849) to Alge￾ria to begin a concerted military campaign to

conquer Abd el-Kader’s Algerians. The French

drove Abd el-Kader into Morocco in 1841, where

he enlisted the Moroccans as allies in his war

against the French. Abd el-Kader used his rifle￾armed cavalry effectively, conducting incessant

raids against French troops and then retreating.

Finally, however, the French army under Buge￾aud attacked Abd el-Kader’s 45,000-man army at

the Isly River on August 14, 1844, and decisively

defeated it. After the Battle of Isly, Abd el-Kader

took refuge in Morocco again in 1846 and, with

a small band, fought small skirmishes against

the French. Having lost the support of the sultan

of Morocco and with few men left, Abd el-Kader

surrendered to French general Christophe Lam￾oricière (1806–65) in 1847.

Abd el-Krim’s Revolt See RIF WAR OF 1919–26.

Abnaki War, First (1675–78) The Abnaki

(Abenaki) Indians lived in what is now Maine,

New Hampshire, and Vermont, and, as allies of

the French, they carried on a campaign against

the English settlers in the area for 50 years. When

]

the Wampanoag under King Philip (Metacomet)

(d. 1676) rose up against the English colonists

in New England in 1675 (see KING PHILIP’S WAR),

they were joined by many of the eastern Indian

tribes, including the Abnaki. For about three

years the Abnaki fought the English along the

Maine frontier, pushing back the white settlers.

Indian raids on scattered farmhouses and small

settlements were continuous and devastating,

eventually resulting in a peace treaty in 1678. The

English colonists promised to pay an annual trib￾ute to the Abnaki. Second Abnaki War (1702–

12). Shortly after the outbreak of QUEEN ANNE’S

WAR in 1702, the Abnaki Indians and French

forces attacked English settlements on Maine’s

frontier. About 300 settlers were killed in towns

from Wells to Casco. The Indians continued to

make raids for 10 years and ceased only when the

English and French made peace with the Treaty

of Utrecht. Without the support of the French,

the Abnaki were unable to defeat the English

and were forced to sue for peace in 1712. Third

Abnaki War (1722–25). Further encroachment

by English settlers in Maine angered the Abnaki,

who were incited to hold their ground by the

French Jesuit missionary Sebastien Rasles (1657?–

1724). When the English tried to seize Rasles,

the Abnaki raided the settlements at Brunswick,

Arrowsick, and Merry-Meeting Bay. The Massa￾chusetts government then declared war on the

“eastern Indians,” meaning primarily the Abnaki

and their allies. Bloody battles took place at Nor￾ridgewock (1724), where Rasles was slain, and at

Fryeburg on the upper Sacco River (1725). Peace

conferences at Boston and Casco Bay brought an

end to the war. See also LOVEWELL’S “WAR.”

Abu Muslim’s Revolt See ABBASID REVOLUTION

OF 747–750 C.E.

Abyssinian-Italian Wars See ITALO-ETHIOPIAN

WARS.

Achaean-Spartan Wars See SPARTAN-ACHAEAN

WARS.

Achaean War (146 B.C.E.) The Achaeans, a

people of ancient south-central Greece, formed

a confederation of Peloponnesian city-states, the

Achaean League, for mutual protection against

enemies. The Achaeans attempted to force

Sparta, which was under Roman protection, to

join. In 146, a Roman army under Lucius Mum￾mius Achaicus (fl. mid-100s) invaded Greece and

defeated the Achaean army, which consisted

mainly of poorly trained slaves, near Corinth.

Afterward the Romans sacked Corinth and

burned it to the ground. They then dissolved the

Achaean League and subjugated all of Greece.

Achinese Rebellion of 1953–59 Muslim

Achinese (Achenese) rebels in northern Sumatra

protested against the annexation of the state of

Aceh (or Acheh, Achin, Atjeh) to the republic of

Indonesia, formed in 1950. On September 20,

1953, Tengku Daud Beureuh, military governor

of Aceh before its annexation, led an open armed

rebellion against the Indonesian government of

President Sukarno (1901–70). Achinese attacked

police and army posts, attempting to obtain

more arms for a full-scale rebellion. Scattered

guerrilla fighting continued until a cease-fire

was arranged in March 1957, with Aceh declared

a separate province. Native revolts broke out

on other Indonesian islands that sought more

autonomy. The Achinese rebels renewed fight￾ing, which resulted in Sukarno declaring Aceh a

special district with autonomy in matters of reli￾gion and local law.

Achinese Rebellion of 2000– See INDONESIAN

WAR IN ACEH.

Achinese War (1873–1907) After the British

recognized Dutch influence in Achin, or Acheh

(now Atjeh), a Muslim state in northern Sumatra,

the Dutch sent two expeditions to conquer the

rebellious Achinese people in 1873. The Achi￾nese palace in the capital, Kutaradja, was seized.

In 1903, the sultan of Achin, Muhammad Daud,

concluded a treaty with the Dutch, recognizing

2 Abu Muslim’s Revolt