Deadliest Wars in History
War↕ | Dates↕ | Parties↕ | Estimated Deaths↕ | Duration↕ | Known For↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
World War II | 1939-1945 | Allies vs Axis Powers | 70-85 million | 6 years | Deadliest conflict in history; Holocaust; atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki |
Mongol Conquests | 1206-1368 | Mongol Empire vs various | 40-60 million | 162 years | Largest contiguous land empire; devastating sieges across Asia and Europe |
World War I | 1914-1918 | Allies vs Central Powers | 15-22 million | 4 years | Trench warfare; first use of chemical weapons and tanks |
Taiping Rebellion | 1850-1864 | Taiping Heavenly Kingdom vs Qing Dynasty | 20-30 million | 14 years | Bloodiest civil war in history; quasi-Christian theocratic movement in China |
Second Sino-Japanese War | 1937-1945 | China vs Japan | 15-22 million | 8 years | Nanjing Massacre; part of wider Pacific theater of WWII |
An Lushan Rebellion | 755-763 | An Lushan vs Tang Dynasty | 13-36 million | 8 years | Near-collapse of Tang Dynasty; massive depopulation of northern China |
Napoleonic Wars | 1803-1815 | French Empire vs European coalitions | 3.5-6.5 million | 12 years | Napoleon's conquests; Battle of Waterloo; reshaping of European borders |
Thirty Years' War | 1618-1648 | Catholic vs Protestant states | 4.5-8 million | 30 years | Devastated Central Europe; led to Peace of Westphalia and modern state system |
Chinese Civil War | 1927-1949 | Communists vs Nationalists | 8-11 million | 22 years | Mao Zedong's rise; founding of People's Republic of China |
Russian Civil War | 1917-1922 | Red Army vs White Army | 7-12 million | 5 years | Bolshevik consolidation of power; famine and disease |
Dungan Revolt | 1862-1877 | Hui Muslims vs Qing Dynasty | 8-12 million | 15 years | Ethnic and religious conflict in northwest China |
Korean War | 1950-1953 | North Korea & China vs South Korea & UN | 2.5-3.5 million | 3 years | Cold War proxy conflict; Korean Peninsula divided at 38th parallel |
Vietnam War | 1955-1975 | North Vietnam vs South Vietnam & USA | 1.3-3.4 million | 20 years | Guerrilla warfare; Agent Orange; massive anti-war movement |
Seven Years' War | 1756-1763 | Britain & Prussia vs France & Austria | 900,000-1.4 million | 7 years | First truly global conflict; reshaped colonial empires |
Iran-Iraq War | 1980-1988 | Iran vs Iraq | 500,000-1.5 million | 8 years | Trench warfare parallels to WWI; chemical weapons use |
Hundred Years' War | 1337-1453 | England vs France | 2.3-3.3 million | 116 years | Joan of Arc; longbow dominance; end of medieval warfare |
American Civil War | 1861-1865 | Union vs Confederacy | 620,000-750,000 | 4 years | Abolition of slavery; deadliest war on American soil |
Congo Wars | 1996-2003 | Multiple African nations and militias | 3-5.4 million | 7 years | Africa's 'World War'; humanitarian catastrophe in DRC |
Crusades | 1095-1291 | Christian kingdoms vs Muslim states | 1-3 million | 196 years | Religious wars for control of Holy Land; shaped Christian-Muslim relations |
Mexican Revolution | 1910-1920 | Various revolutionary factions | 1-2 million | 10 years | Pancho Villa and Zapata; land reform; modern Mexican constitution |
Free to explore · No signup needed
Frequently asked questions
How is the Deadliest Wars In History list ranked?
The Deadliest Wars in History list is currently sorted by the source data's default ordering. Community voting is not enabled on this dataset.
How many entries are in this Deadliest Wars In History dataset?
This dataset contains 20 entries, each with multiple sortable, filterable columns. The full table is visible on this page and can be downloaded as a CSV, JSON, or Excel file.
Can I download the Deadliest Wars In History data?
Yes. The download buttons at the top of the page give you the full 20-row dataset as CSV, JSON, or Excel. Use of the data is permitted under a Creative Commons Attribution license — credit dtbse.com when you republish.
Related Datasets
More in History
Deadliest Battles in History
Military battles ranked by estimated casualties.
Greatest Military Leaders
Twenty of the most celebrated military commanders in recorded history, spanning from ancient China to the 20th century.
Famous Battles
Twenty of the most consequential military engagements in world history, from ancient Marathon to the beaches of Normandy.
Longest Wars in History
Wars with the longest duration in recorded history.
Ottoman Sultans
Sultans of the Ottoman Empire from Osman I to Mehmed VI.
Nuclear Weapons Tests
Nuclear weapons tests conducted by various nations.
Famous Court Jesters and Royal Fools
Triboulet, Will Sommers, Stańczyk, Nasreddin — which court jester used humor to speak truth to power most brilliantly?
Famous Assassinations in History
Notable political assassinations throughout history that changed the course of nations, from Julius Caesar to modern leaders.
Pakistani Historical Figures
Twenty influential figures from the lands of modern Pakistan and its broader cultural heritage, spanning poets, politicians, scholars, and rulers.
Famous Mongol Conquests
Which Mongol conquest unleashed the most devastation on its target civilization?
Historic Nuclear Accidents
Chernobyl, Fukushima, Three Mile Island, Kyshtym - which atomic disaster left the biggest scar on the world?
Largest Empires by Area
The twenty largest empires in history ranked by peak territorial extent in millions of square kilometers.