what is the most significant war in history?

Answer 1

Most significant? How about how the Greeks saved the world and made us the world we are today?

The Battle of Thermopylae/480 BC was the GREATEST and one of the most relevant battles in the history of the world as we know it today.

A SMALL alliance of Greek city-states fought the ENTIRE invading Persian army in a mountain pass. Vastly outnumbered, the Greeks held back the Persian advance for THREE DAYS. Leonidas, the Spartan King commanding the army, held up the enemy in the most famous last stand of history.

At the time the mountain pass of Thermopylae consisted of a pass so narrow that two chariots could barely move abreast—on the western side of the pass stood the sheer side of the mountain, while the east side was the sea.

On a hot August day an army of some 7000 Greeks, led by the 300 Spartans stood against the full force of the Persian army, numbering some 60 TIMES ITS SIZE.

THREE DAYS....NON STOP....until the Greeks fell to the very last warrior.
Even though they managed to kill around 20,000 Persians, the Greeks lost that third day.

However, due to their incredible valor and perseverance, their feat was enough to unite the independent Greek City/States into one people and finally defeat the Persians as a "country"....an idea that was a completely foreign concept at that time.

If the Greeks had LOST to the Persians, then the idea of the world we have today, which is based on Roman-Greco idealism, would have never happened. It would have been based on Persian influences and rule.

Just in case you don't realize, Persia is what is known today as IRAN.

Answer 2

world war 2 and 1

Answer 3

All wars are significant. Unfortunately, the most significant one is probably yet to occur, and is likely to happen in areas where there has been no war previously recorded. In Africa, or the middle East, perhaps--and they are getting uglier and more horrific every day. There is genocide occurring as I type this, both in Iraq and in many parts of Africa, that dwarfs that committed by Nazi Germany. And sadly for all of us, nuclear weapons ARE liable to wind up in the hands of madmen (even more mad than GW Bush & Co.)

Answer 4

In the western world there is a case to be made for the series of conflicts that historians today generally call the "Thirty Years War" which occurred for the large part throughout the German states of Central Europe.

Although these conflict's casualty stats could hardly touch those of modern wars like the Second World War, put in context it was truly on of the most barbaric times in human history. Couched in the struggle between Catholicism and Protestantism, every state in Europe put troops in the field in an effort to redefine the power balance of the continent. When it was all said and done, it was estimated that in Central Germany roughly one third of the TOWNS that existed prior to the wars were simply gone. They had either been burned to the ground or simply abandonned for lack of inhabitants. This is to say nothing about the even higher level of human casualties of the war. Unlike more modern wars however, some of the biggest killers at this time were starvation when marauding soldiers stole people's food for themselves, sanitary diseases like cholera, venerial disease spread by the massive incidences of rape all on top of the people that were directly killed by fighting or atrocities.

In the settlement of these conflicts however, a lot of new political innovations occurred that are still with us today. First and foremost the idea of sovereignty was born. For the first time it was agreed that within the boundaries of a state the local government was to be the supreme and sole authority. The prince or republic would be allowed to decide all matters be it religious, economic, military or otherwise. Prior to this these powers had been split between the local authority, the church, the larger empire, among guilds, military orders etc etc. and being each of these entities often had coercive powers and agents (ie soldiers) to effect their will, this outdated arrangement had gone a long way to maginifing the brutality and duration of the war. With the prince being the only power and the only one with soldiers within the state, this neighbour on neighbour fighting was expected to be brought to an end.

With that said, soldiering also began to move into the modern era as well. Prior to Westphalia (the treaty that ended most of the conflict) soldiers in Europe were untrained, undisplined hooligans. They were never drawn from the citizenry but were simply hired out of a mercenary class. There was no infrastructure to feed, transport, or arm them either so when they went out on the warpath, they were out robbing and killing the local citizenry just as much as they were the enemy. Realizing the all too destructive nature of supporting an army like this, rulers began to set up depots and bases to feed and transport their troops. Slowly nations began to draw their soldiers out of their own citizens which meant they now had troops with a personal stake in the welfare of their country. These troops were also subject to training regimes and heavy discipline to make them a more controlled and dependable fighting unit. At same time nations began to stop treating rape as a legitimate tool of war (It was considered an appropriate thing for soldiers to do to the enemy earlier. It was a form of terrorism). In short the fighting men began to turn from hired hooligans into professional soldiers such as we know today.

Answer 5

World War 2. The last great war that put into motion everything that has happened since. That includes all wars and conflicts since. Governments and territories and also large corporations that benefited.

Answer 6

war fought by indian freedom fighters for their independence it is significant because it was not fought with arms and ammuniation but with "strong will" of man today in this world where all are fighting with arms and killing of innocent people is termed as freedom movemet the means of 'satyagraha' is best all leaders weather it is osama or any must try it but do they have such a strong will?

Answer 7

Pleanty
1.WW II as it changed the map of the World
2.WW I without it WW II wouldnt have taken pace
3. French and American Revolution as with out it almost the entire world would have been a British colony

Answer 8

World War I; the introduction of modern warfare.

Answer 9

World War II. Man has learnt a lot from it...

Answer 10

WWII, the largest number of casualties and ever since we've been staring into the abyss of nuclear war...