List of wars involving the United Kingdom

This is a list of wars and humanitarian conflicts involving the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and its predecessor states (the Kingdom of Great Britain, Kingdom of England, Kingdom of Scotland and generally the British Isles). Notable militarised interstate disputes are included. For a list of wars that have been fought on the United Kingdom mainland, see the list of wars in Great Britain.

Historically, the United Kingdom relied most heavily on the Royal Navy and maintained relatively small land forces. Most of the episodes listed here deal with insurgencies and revolts in the various colonies of the British Empire.

During its history, the United Kingdom's forces (or forces with a British mandate) have invaded, had some control over or fought conflicts in 171 of the world's 193 countries that are currently UN member states, or nine out of ten of all countries.[1]

  British victory

  British defeat

  Another result (e.g. a treaty or peace without a clear result, status quo ante bellum, result of civil or internal conflict, result unknown or indecisive)

  Ongoing conflict

England, Scotland and Wales to 1707

• List of battles between Scotland and England
• Anglo-Scottish Wars
• Anglo-Welsh Wars
• Tudor conquest of Ireland
• Wars of the Three Kingdoms, 1639–1660

Kingdom of Great Britain (1707–1801)

Conflict	Britain & allies	Britain's opposition	Outcome
The Great Northern War (1700–1721)	Tsardom of Russia Kalmyk Khanate Cossack Hetmanate Denmark–Norway  Electorate of Saxony Poland–Lithuania  Prussia Hanover	Swedish Empire  Ottoman Empire  United Provinces Brunswick-Lüneburg	British Allied Victory: Britain played a very minor role Tsardom of Russia establishes itself as a new power in Europe. Decline of Swedish Empire and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
The War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714) including Queen Anne's War	Austria  Dutch Republic  Savoy  Prussia Portugal	France Spain Bavaria	British Allied Victory Treaty of Utrecht: Philip V recognized as King of Spain by the Grand Alliance Territory in Canada and the West Indies ceded from France Territory in Europe ceded from Spain
Civil war: Post-Spanish Succession Caribbean Piracy (1715–1726)	Government forces	Anglo-American-Caribbean privateers	British Victory Piracy outlawed by Treaty of Utrecht Anti-Caribbean Piracy campaign by Royal Navy Defeat of Edward Teach in 1718 Defeat of Calico Jack in 1720 Defeat of Black Bart in 1722 Defeat of Edward Low in 1724 Most outlawed Caribbean privateers captured or killed by 1726, marking the end of the Golden Age of Piracy
Civil war: (1715–1716) Jacobite rising of 1715 including The Jacobite uprising in Cornwall	Government forces	Jacobites  France	British Victory Jacobite restoration attempt defeated
The War of the Quadruple Alliance including The Nineteen Uprising in Great Britain (1717–1720)	Holy Roman Empire  France  Dutch Republic  Savoy	Spain Jacobites (against the British Crown and government only)	British Allied Victory: Royal navy won a battle; a small-scale Jacobite invasion was defeated Treaty of The Hague: Spanish attempt at expansion fails.
Dummer's War (1721–1725)	New England Colonies Mohawk	France Wabanaki Confederacy	British Victory Britain recognises the rights of the region's indigenous inhabitants.
The War of Jenkins' Ear (1739–1748) Location: New Granada, Caribbean, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Pacific and Atlantic		Spain Spanish Empire	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Status quo ante bellum British offensive in the Caribbean theatre defeated British invasion of Florida repulsed Spanish invasion of Georgia repulsed Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) leading to Treaty of Madrid (1750)
The War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748) including King George's War The War of Jenkins' Ear The First Carnatic War	Austria Hanover  Dutch Republic  Saxony  Sardinia  Russia East India Company	France  Prussia Spain Spanish Empire Bavaria  Saxony Naples and Sicily  Genoa Sweden French East India Company	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle: Status quo ante bellum
Civil War: Jacobite rising of 1745 (1741–1745)	Government forces	Jacobites  France	British Victory Jacobite restoration attempt defeated
The Second Carnatic War (1749–1754)	East India Company   Forces of Nasir Jang Mir Ahmad   Forces of Mohamed Ali Khan Walajan	French East India Company   Forces of Chanda Shahib   Forces of Muhyi ad-Din Muzaffar Jang Hidayat	British Allied Victory Treaty of Pondicherry: Pro-British Mohamed Ali Khan Walajan became Nawab of the Carnatic
Seven Years' War (1756–1763) including Third Carnatic War French and Indian War Pomeranian War Third Silesian War Anglo-Spanish War	Great Britain East India Company British America  Prussia Hanover Iroquois Confederacy Portugal Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Hesse-Kassel Schaumburg-Lippe	France New France French East India Company  Holy Roman Empire  Russian Empire  Sweden Spain Spanish Empire  Saxony  Sardinia Mughal Empire	British Allied Victory Treaty of Paris: Extensive North American lands (incl. all of Canada) ceded from France Caribbean colonies ceded from France Senegal River colony (excluding Gorée) ceded from France Florida ceded from Spain French trading posts in India administered by British Sumatra ceded from France
Anglo-Cherokee War (1758–1761)	Great Britain	Cherokee	British Victory Pro-British Attakullakulla becomes Cherokee leader
Tacky's War (1760)	Great Britain Jamaican Government Jamaican Maroons	Ashanti Slaves	British Allied Victory Slave defeat Death of Tacky Tacky's men committed suicide
Pontiac's Rebellion (1763–1766)		Confederation of First Nation Tribes	Inconclusive/Other Outcome British policy change British suzerainty over First Nation Tribes Niagara Falls area ceded from Seneca Nation
First Anglo-Mysore War (1766–1769)	East India Company  Maratha Empire Hyderabad State	Kingdom of Mysore	Mysore Victory Hyderabad cedes territory to Mysore
First Anglo-Maratha War (1774–1783)	East India Company	Maratha Empire	Inconclusive Treaty of Salbai.[2][3] Maratha support for Britain against Mysore
American Revolutionary War (1775–83) Anglo-French War (1778–83) Anglo-Spanish War (1779–83) 4th Anglo-Dutch War (1780–83)	Great Britain Iroquois Cherokee Hanover Loyalists	United States  France Spain  Dutch Republic Vermont Republic Kingdom of Mysore Oneida tribe Tuscarora tribe Watauga Association Catawba tribe	American Allied Victory Treaty of Paris: 13 North American colonies recognised as the independent United States of America Territory in North America ceded to the newly independent United States of America Senegal River colony returned to France French recognises British suzerainty over the Gambia river Territory in India returned to France British retention and creation of British North America Menorca ceded to Spain East & West Florida ceded to Spain Territory in India ceded by the Dutch
2nd Anglo-Mysore War (1780–1784)	East India Company  Maratha Empire Hyderabad State	Kingdom of Mysore  France	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Treaty of Mangalore: Status quo ante bellum
Northwest Indian War (1785–1795)	Western Confederacy	United States	American Allied Victory Treaty of Greenville British withdrawal American occupation of the Northwest Territory
3rd Anglo-Mysore War (1789–1792)	East India Company  Maratha Empire Hyderabad State Travancore	Kingdom of Mysore  France	British Allied Victory Treaty of Seringapatam: Half of Mysore territory ceded to East India Company
War of the French Revolution (1793–1802)	Austria  Prussia French Royalists  Dutch Republic Spain Kingdom of Portugal  Kingdom of Sardinia Naples and Sicily Italian states  Ottoman Empire  Russia	French Republic Polish Legions Denmark–Norway Spain Sister republics:  Batavian Republic  Helvetic Republic Cisalpine Republic Roman Republic Parthenopaean Republic	French Allied Victory Treaty of Amiens: General French victory Britain recognises the French Republic Cape Colony returned to the Batavian Republic British withdrawal from Egypt French withdrawal from the Papal States Tobago ceded from France Trinidad ceded from Spain Ceylon ceded from the Batavian Republic
Ibn Ufaisan's Invasion (1793)	Kuwait  Great Britain British East India Company	Emirate of Diriyah	British Allied Victory Saudi retreat from Kuwait.
Second Maroon War (1795–1796)	Great Britain British Jamaica	Jamaican Maroons	British Victory Maroon defeat Treaty signed established that the Maroons would beg on their knees for the King's forgiveness, return all runaway slaves, and be relocated elsewhere in Jamaica Breach of treaty caused deportation of several Maroons to Nova Scotia and later to Sierra Leone in Africa
Hawkesbury and Nepean Wars (1795–1816)	Burrberongal Tribe  Great Britain from 1801: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland	Dharug Eora Tharawal Gandangara Irish-convict sympathisers	British Victory Displacement of Aborigines from their land
Anglo-Spanish War (1796–1808) Location: Newfoundland, English Channel, Straits of Gibraltar, Balearic Islands, Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata		Spain French Republic	Inconclusive/Other Outcome
Kandyan Wars (1796–1818)	Great Britain from 1801: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland	Kingdom of Kandy	British Victory End of 2357 years of Sinhalese independence
Irish Rebellion of 1798 (1798)	Kingdom of Ireland	United Irishmen Defenders French Republic	British Victory Rebellion defeated 1801 Act of Union
4th Anglo-Mysore War (1798–1799)	East India Company  Maratha Empire Hyderabad State	Kingdom of Mysore French Republic	British Allied Victory Complete annexation of Mysore by Britain and allies

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801–1922)

Conflict	Britain & Her Allies	Britain's opposition	Outcome
Temne War (1801–1807)	Susu tribes	Kingdom of Koya	British Allied Victory Northern shore of Sierra Leone ceded by Koya
Second Anglo-Maratha War (1802–1805)	East India Company	Maratha Empire	British Victory Extensive territory in India ceded by the Maratha Empire
First Kandyan War (1803–1805)		Kandy	British Victory Territory captured from Kandy
Civil War: Emmet's Insurrection (1803)		Forces of Robert Emmet	British Victory Rebellion defeated
British Expedition to Ceylon (1803)	Dutch Republic  United Kingdom	Chiefdom of Vanni  Kingdom of Kandy	British Allied Victory Vanni region lost to the British The last Tamil resistance against colonial rule was crushed.
War of the Third Coalition (1803–1805)	Austrian Empire  Russian Empire Naples and Sicily Portugal  Sweden	French Empire Batavia Italy Etruria  Spain Bavaria Württemberg	French Allied Victory Fourth Peace of Preßburg: French victory Austria surrenders to France Pro-French Confederation of the Rhine formed
War of the Fourth Coalition (1806–1807)	Prussia  Russia  Saxony  Sweden Sicily	French Empire Confederation of the Rhine  Bavaria  Württemberg Polish Legions Italy Naples Etruria Holland Swiss Confederation  Spain	French Allied Victory Treaties of Tilsit: French victory Half of Prussia ceded to French allies Russia exits the war Anglo-Russian War begins
Ashanti–Fante War (1806–1807)	Ashanti Empire	Fante Confederacy Dutch Empire
Anglo-Turkish War (1807–1809)		Ottoman Empire	Turkish Victory Treaty of the Dardanelles: Turkish Military victory Commercial and legal concessions to British interests within the Ottoman Empire Promise to protect the empire against French encroachment
Gunboat War (1807–1814)	United Kingdom	Denmark-Norway	British Victory Treaty of Kiel: Denmark and Norway split up Heligoland ceded from Denmark
Anglo-Russian War (1807–1812)	United Kingdom	Russian Empire	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Treaty of Örebro: Anglo-Russian-Swedish pact against France
Peninsular War (1807–1814)	Spain Portugal	French Empire	British Allied Victory Treaty of Paris: Bourbon dynasty restored Tobago, St. Lucia, Mauritius ceded from France All other French possessions restored as per 1792 borders Abolition of French Slave Trade Swiss independence
Travancore rebellion (1808-1809)	East India Company	Travancore Kingdom of Cochin	British Victory
Persian Gulf campaign of 1809 (1809)	United Kingdom	Al Qasimi	British Victory
War of the Fifth Coalition (1809)	Austrian Empire Tyrol Hungary Black Brunswickers Sicily  Sardinia	French Empire Warsaw Confederation of the Rhine  Bavaria Saxony  Württemberg Westphalia Kingdom of Italy Naples Swiss Confederation Holland	French Allied Victory Treaty of Schönbrunn: Complete Austrian surrender Peninsular War continued
Merina Conquest of Madagascar (1810–1817)	Merina Kingdom	Rival tribes	British Victory Merina control of Madagascar Merina pro-British policies
4th Xhosa War (1811–1812)		Xhosa tribes	British Victory Xhosa tribes pushed beyond the Fish River, reversing their gains in the previous Xhosa wars
Ga-Fante War (1811)	Ashanti Empire Ga tribes Dutch Empire	Fante Confederacy Akwapim tribes Akim tribes	Tantamkweri ceded to Akwapim tribes
War of 1812 (1812–1815)	United Kingdom British North America Tecumseh's Confederacy	United States	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Treaty of Ghent; Status quo ante bellum with no boundary changes United States invasions of British Canada repulsed British invasions of the United States land returned to United States under Treaty of Ghent
War of the Sixth Coalition (1812–1814)	Original Coalition  Russian Empire  Prussia  Austrian Empire  United Kingdom  Sweden  Spain  Portugal  Two Sicilies  Kingdom of Sardinia After Battle of Leipzig Saxony  Bavaria  Württemberg  Netherlands Sovereign Principality of the United Netherlands	First French Empire  Napoleonic Italy  Kingdom of Naples Duchy of Warsaw[nb 1] Until January 1814 Denmark–Norway Confederation of the Rhine (Many member states defected after Battle of Leipzig)	British Allied Victory Coalition victory, Treaty of Fontainebleau, First Treaty of Paris Bourbon Restoration; Napoleon's exile to Elba Various territorial changes Beginning of the Congress of Vienna Hostilities resume with the return of Napoleon to power in 1815
Second Kandyan War (1815)		Kandy	British Victory Kandyan Convention: Dissolution of the Kandy royal line British King declared King of Kandy
Hundred Days (1815) War of the Seventh Coalition	Prussia France Hanover German Confederation  Austria  Russia  Sweden  Netherlands  Spain Portugal  Sardinia  Kingdom of the Two Sicilies Tuscany	French Empire Naples	British Allied Victory Treaty of Paris: General French defeat Restoration of the House of Bourbon Abolition of the slave trade (all signatories) ₣100,000,000 compensation from France
Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817–1818)	East India Company	Maratha Empire	British Victory Virtually all territory south of the Sutlej River controlled by Britain
5th Xhosa War (1818–1819)	Khoikhoi Forces	Forces of Xhosa Chief Maqana Nxele	British Allied Victory Xhosa pushed beyond Keiskama River
Greek War of Independence (1820–1830)	Greek revolutionaries Ionian Islands	Ottoman Empire Egypt	British Allied Victory Establishment of the Kingdom of Greece
First Ashanti War (1823–1831)		Ashanti Empire	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Stalemate after armistice
First Anglo-Burmese War (1824–1826)	East India Company Native tribes	Kingdom of Burma	British Allied Victory Treaty of Yandabo: Assam, Manipur, Rakhine, and Taninthayi coast south of Salween river ceded from Burmah £1,000,000 compensation from Burma
Revolt of the Mercenaries (1828)	Brazil  United Kingdom France	German Mercenaries Irish Mercenaries	British Allied Victory Mutiny suppressed
Portuguese Civil War (1828–1834)	Liberal Forces of Queen Maria II Spain	Absolutist Forces of King Miguel	British Allied Victory Concession of Evoramonte: Defeat and exile of King Miguel
Baptist War (1831–1832)	United Kingdom Jamaican Government	Rebel Slaves	British Victory Slave defeat Rebellion suppressed
First Carlist War (1833–1840)	Forces of Queen Isabella II French Kingdom Forces of Queen Maria II Auxiliary Legion	Carlists: Forces of Infante Carlos Forces of King Miguel	Inconclusive/Other Outcome British withdrawal before war's conclusion British mediated Convention of Vergara
The 6th Xhosa War (1834–1836)	Free Khoikhoi	Xhosa tribes	British Victory Extensive territorial gains from Xhosa
Rebellions of 1837 (1837–1838)	United Kingdom Province of Upper Canada Province of Lower Canada British Loyalists	Patriotes Hunters' Lodges Reform Movement	British Victory Patriote rebellion crushed by loyalist forces; Republic of Canada dismantled Defeat of Hunters' Lodges Unification of Upper and Lower Canada into the Province of Canada
First Anglo-Afghan War (1839–1842)	East India Company	Emirate of Afghanistan	Afghan Victory British retreat from Afghanistan
First Opium War (1839–1842)		Qing dynasty	British Victory Treaty of Nanking: Five Chinese ports open to foreign trade $21,000,000 compensation from the Qing Empire Hong Kong Island ceded from the Qing Empire
Second Egyptian-Ottoman War (1839–1841)	Ottoman Empire  British Empire	Egypt Eyalet Kingdom of the French Spain	British Allied Victory Egypt renounced its claim to Syria.
Uruguayan Civil War (1839–1851)	Colorados Argentine Unitarians French Kingdom Riograndense Republic  Brazil Italian Legion	Blancos  Argentine Confederation	Victory British and French withdrawal before war's conclusion Peace treaty with the Argentine Confederation[4][5] Eventual Colorados victory
First Anglo-Sikh War (1845–1846)	East India Company Patiala State	Sikh Empire	British Allied Victory Treaty of Lahore: Extensive territory ceded from the Sikh Empire Partial control over Sikh foreign affairs
Flagstaff War (1845–1846)	Forces of Tāmati Wāka Nene	Ngāpuhi Iwi	Inconclusive/Other Outcome
Hutt Valley Campaign (1846)	Te Āti Awa Iwi	Ngāti Toa Iwi	British Allied Victory Ngāti Toa Iwi retreat
The 7th Xhosa War (1846–1847) The War of the Axe		Xhosa tribes	British Victory Territory ceded from Xhosa
Wanganui Campaign (1847)	Māori Kupapa	Māori Iwis	Inconclusive/Other Outcome 12 year peace and trade
Caste War of Yucatán (1847–1901)	Mexico Republic of Yucatán  Guatemala  United Kingdom  British Honduras	Maya	British Allied Victory Republic of Yucatán rejoins the United Mexican States in 1848 Mayas achieve an independent state from 1847 to 1883 Mexico recaptures Yucatán Conflict between the Mexicans and the Mayans continued until 1933
Second Anglo-Sikh War (1848–1849)	East India Company	Sikh Empire	British Victory Complete annexation of the Punjab by the East India Company
Battle of Tysami (1849)	United Kingdom	Chui A-poo's pirates	British Victory
The 8th Xhosa War (1850–1853) Mlanjeni's War		Xhosa tribes Khoikhoi tribes Native Kafir Police	British Victory Xhosa-Khoi attacks defeated Status quo ante bellum
Taiping Rebellion (1850–1864)	Qing dynasty  France  United Kingdom	Taiping Heavenly Kingdom	British Allied Victory Qing Dynasty victory Fall of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Weakening of the Qing dynasty
Second Anglo-Burmese War (1852–1853)		Kingdom of Burma	British Victory Burmese revolution ended fighting Lower Burma annexed
Crimean War (1853–1856)	French Empire  Ottoman Empire  Kingdom of Sardinia	Russian Empire Bulgarian Legion	British Allied Victory Treaty of Paris
The National War in Nicaragua (1856–1857)	Costa Rica  Honduras Rebel Forces of Patricio Rivas Mosquito Coast  Guatemala  El Salvador  United States	Sonora  Nicaragua	British Allied Victory Sonora/Nicaraguan government defeat. Slavery outlawed. William Walker's army is defeated and he is arrested by the U.S. Navy.
Second Opium War (1856–1860) Arrow War	French Empire  United States	Qing dynasty	British Allied Victory The Treaty of Tientsin: Kowloon ceded from the Qing Empire Peking opened to foreign trade 11 more Chinese ports opened to foreign trade Yangtze River opened to foreign warships 4,000,000 taels of silver compensation China banned from referring to subjects of the crown as barbarians
Anglo-Persian War (1856–1857)	Afghanistan East India Company	Persia Herat	British Allied Victory Persian withdrawal from Herat
Indian Mutiny (1857–1858)	East India Company Nepal Jammu and Kashmir Princely states: Jaipur Bikaner Marwar Rampur Kapurthala Nabha Bhopal Sirohi Udaipur Patiala Sirmur Alwar Bharathpur Bundi Jaora Bijawar Ajaigarh Rewa Kendujhar Hyderabad	Sepoys of the East India Company   Mughal Empire Awadh Jhansi 7 Princely states	British Allied Victory Act for the Better Government of India: Company rule in India dissolved Indian Empire established Ban on Christian missionaries in India
First Taranaki War (1860–1861) Second Māori War		Māori Iwis Māori King Movement	Inconclusive/Other Outcome
Bombardment of Kagoshima (1863)	British Empire	Satsuma Domain	British Victory Tactical stalemate and mitigated British victory
Second Ashanti War (1863–1864)		Ashanti Empire	Inconclusive/Other Outcome
Invasion of Waikato (1863–1866) Third Māori War	Māori Kupapa	Māori King Movement	British Victory Māori King Movement defeated, confined to King Country
Bhutan War (1864–1865)	India	Bhutan	British Victory Treaty of Sinchula: Bhutan cedes Assam Duars and Bengal Duars to India Bhutan cedes territory in Dewangiri to India
British Expedition to Abyssinia (1867–1868)	United Kingdom	Ethiopia	British Victory
Klang War (1867–1874) Selangor Civil War	Forces of Raja Abdullah of Klang British Straits Settlements	Forces of Raja Mahadi	British Allied Victory
Titokowaru's War (1868–1869) Part of the New Zealand Wars	Māori Kupapa	Ngāti Ruanui Iwi	British Allied Victory Ngāti Ruanui Iwi withdrawal
1868 Expedition to Abyssinia (1868)	India	Abyssinia	British Victory British hostages freed War of the Abyssinian Succession begins
Te Kooti's War Part of the New Zealand Wars (1868–1872)	Māori Kupapa	Māori Iwis	British Allied Victory End of New Zealand Wars Territory ceded by Māori iwi
Red River Rebellion (1869–1869)	Dominion of Canada Métis Loyalists	Métis Forces of Louis Riel	British Allied Victory Defeat of rebellion Manitoba Act: Creation of the Province of Manitoba
Third Ashanti War (1873–1874)		Ashanti Empire	British Victory Treaty of Fomena: 50,000 oz of gold compensation from Ashanti Empire Ashanti withdrawal from coastal areas Ashanti banned from practicing human sacrifice
The 9th Xhosa War (1877–1879)	Mfengu Tribe	Xhosa Gcaleka Tribe	British Victory All Xhosa territory annexed to the Cape Colony
Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878–1880)	India	Afghanistan	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Treaty of Gandamak Full British military withdrawal Subsidies paid to the Afghans Afghanistan becomes a British protectorate[6] Districts of Quetta, Pishin, Sibi, Harnai and Thal Chotiali ceded to British India[7]
Anglo-Zulu War (1879)	Natal	Zulu Kingdom	British Victory Zululand annexed to Natal
‘Urabi Revolt (1879–1882)	United Kingdom Khedivate of Egypt	Egyptian and Sudanese forces under Ahmed ‘Urabi	British Allied Victory ‘Urabi forces defeated and exiled
First Boer War (1880–1881)		South African Republic	South African Victory Pretoria Convention: South African Republic granted self-government
Mahdist War (1884–1889)	Egypt  Italy  Belgium	Mahdist Sudan	British Allied Victory Sudan ruled by Britain and Egypt
Third Anglo-Burmese War (1885)		Kingdom of Burma	British Victory Upper Burma annexed to British Raj
Sikkim Expedition (1888)	India	Tibet	British Victory Tibet recognizes British suzerainty over Sikkim
Anglo-Manipur War (1891)		Kingdom of Manipur	British Victory
Anglo-Zanzibar War (1896)		Zanzibar	British Victory Pro-British Sultan installed
Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901)	United Kingdom  Russia  Japan France  United States  Germany  Italy  Austria-Hungary	Righteous Harmony Society  Qing dynasty	British Allied Victory Boxer Protocol: Anti-foreign societies banned in China
Second Boer War (1899–1902)		Orange Free State  South African Republic Foreign volunteers	British Victory Treaty of Vereeniging: All Boers to surrender arms and swear allegiance to the Crown Dutch language permitted in education Promise to grant Boer republics self-government £3,000,000 compensation "reconstruction aid" to Afrikaners
Mahsud Waziri blockade (1900–1902)	India	Mahsud rebels	British Victory
Anglo-Aro War (1901–1902)		Aro Confederacy	British Victory Aro Confederacy destroyed
British expedition to Tibet (1903–1904)	India	Tibet	British Victory Status quo ante bellum
Bazar Valley campaign (1908)	India	Rebel tribes	British Victory
First World War (1914–1918)	Allied Powers  France  British Empire  United Kingdom  Canada  Newfoundland  Australia  New Zealand  India  South Africa  Russia  United States  Italy  Japan  China  Serbia  Montenegro  Romania  Belgium  Greece  Portugal  Brazil Other Allies	Central Powers  Germany German Empire  Austria-Hungary  Ottoman Empire  Bulgaria	British Allied Victory Treaty of Versailles: German demobilisation Treaties of Saint-Germain-en-Laye and Trianon: Demise of Austria-Hungary Russia pulls out in 1917 Russian Civil War Creation of the Soviet Union Creation of League of Nations: Mesopotamia ceded from the Ottoman Empire Palestine and Jordan ceded from the Ottoman Empire Tanganyika ceded from Germany Part of Kamerun ceded from Germany Part of Togoland ceded from Germany German New Guinea ceded to Australia German Samoa ceded to New Zealand German South-West Africa ceded to South Africa
Estonian War of Independence (1918–1920)	Estonia  United Kingdom  Latvia White Movement Baltic German volunteers[8] Danish volunteers Finnish volunteers Swedish volunteers	Russian SFSR Baltische Landeswehr	British Allied Victory Independence of Estonia Vidzeme gained by the Republic of Latvia
Latvian War of Independence (1918–1920)	Latvia  Estonia White Movement  Poland  Lithuania  United Kingdom	German Empire West Russian Volunteer Army  Russian SFSR  Latvian SSR	British Allied Victory Independence of Latvia
Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War (1918–1920)	White Movement  British Empire  United Kingdom  Canada  Australia  India  South Africa  United States France  Japan  Czechoslovakia  Greece  Estonia  Serbia  Italy  Poland  Romania  China	Russian SFSR  Far Eastern Republic Latvian SSR Ukrainian SSR Commune of Estonia Mongolian Communists	Bolshevik Victory Allied withdrawal from Russia Bolshevik victory over White Army Soviet Union new Russian power
Turkish War of Independence (1919–1923)	Greece  France  Armenia (in 1920)  United Kingdom  Ottoman Empire (until 1922) Kuva-yi Inzibatiye (in 1920)  Italy Georgia (in 1921)	Turkish National Movement Grand National Assembly (after 1920) Kuva-yi Nizamiye Kuva-yi Milliye (until 1920) Supported by:  Russian SFSR[9] Azerbaijan SSR Georgian SSR Bukharan PSR Afghanistan All-India Muslim League	Turkish Allied Victory Treaty of Lausanne Overthrow of the Ottoman sultanate Withdrawal of Allied forces from occupied lands of Turkey Establishment of the Republic of Turkey Starting of the series of reforms led by Atatürk
Third Anglo-Afghan War (1919)	India	Afghanistan	Inconclusive/Other Outcome[10][11] Defeat of Afghan invasion of north-west British India Inconclusive military operation[12] Reaffirmation of the Durand Line Afghan independence with full sovereignty in foreign affairs
Kuwait–Najd War (1919–1920)	Kuwait  British Empire  India	Sultanate of Nejd Ikhwan[13]	British Allied Victory
Irish War of Independence (1919–1921)	Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)	Irish Republic	Irish Republic Victory Anglo-Irish Treaty: Dominion status for Southern Ireland as the Irish Free State
Somaliland campaign (1920) (1920)	Somaliland British East Africa	Dervish State	British Victory Demise of the Dervish State
Great Iraqi Revolution of 1920 (1920)		Iraqi rebels	British Victory Revolt suppressed, greater autonomy given to Iraq

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1922–present)

Conflict	Britain & Her Allies	Britain's opposition	Outcome
Adwan Rebellion (1923)	United Kingdom Emir Abdullah's forces Hashemite allied tribesmen: Sheykh Minwar al-Hadid	Sultan al-Adwan's forces	British Allied Victory Sultan al-Adwan's defeat and exile
Ikhwan Revolt (1927–1930)	Kuwait Nejd and Hejaz RAF	Ikhwan	British Allied Victory Ikhwan attack on Kuwait repelled. The remnants of the Ikhwan incorporated into regular Saudi units. The Ikhwan leadership was either slain or imprisoned.
Great Arab Revolt in Palestine (1936–1939)	United Kingdom Yishuv	Arab Higher Committee	British Allied Victory Revolt suppressed
Jewish insurgency in Mandatory Palestine (1939–1948)	United Kingdom	Yishuv	Yishuv Victory[14] British withdrawal from Mandatory Palestine
S-Plan 16 January 1939 – March 1940	United Kingdom	Irish Republican Army	British Victory IRA failure
Second World War (1939–1945)	Allied Powers  United States  Soviet Union  United Kingdom  China France Poland  Canada  Australia  New Zealand  India  South Africa  Yugoslavia  Greece  Denmark  Norway  Netherlands  Belgium  Luxembourg  Czechoslovakia  Ethiopia  Brazil  Mexico Gorkha Kingdom	Axis Powers  Germany  Japan  Italy  Hungary  Romania  Bulgaria  Independent State of Croatia  Slovakia  Vichy France  Finland  Iraq  Thailand  Manchukuo  Mengjiang	British Allied Victory Nazi Germany formally surrenders 8 May 1945, ending the Second World War in Europe. On August 15, 1945, following the dropping of atom bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan announces its surrender, ending the Second World War British (and Commonwealth), French, American, and Soviet troops occupy Germany until 1955, Italy and Japan lose their colonies, Europe is divided into 'Soviet' and 'Western' spheres of interest.
Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947 (1944–1947)	Afghanistan  • Allied Nuristani tribesmen  British Empire  •  India	Rebel tribes: Zadran Mangal Safi	Afghan government & British victory Rebel invasion of India in 1944 repelled Rebels fully defeated by Afghan government in January 1947
1944–45 Insurgency in Balochistan (1944–1945)	United Kingdom	Badinzai rebels	British Victory Insurgency subsided by March 1945
Northern Campaign 2 September 1942 – December 1944	Royal Ulster Constabulary	Irish Republican Army	British Victory IRA campaign failure
Greek Civil War (1944–1948)	Kingdom of Greece  United Kingdom  United States	D.S.E. (Δ.Σ.Ε.) Albania Yugoslavia Bulgaria	British Allied Victory Communist forces defeated, many D.S.E. soldiers exiled in Eastern Europe. Battalion of UK troops still in Greece till 1948
Indonesian National Revolution (1945–1949)	United Kingdom  Netherlands  Japan (until 1945)	Indonesia	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Hand over to Dutch in 1946 Netherlands recognises Indonesian Independence
Operation Masterdom (1945–1946)	United Kingdom  India France Empire of Japan	Viet Minh	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Hand over to French First Indochina War begins
Corfu Channel incident (1946–1948)	United Kingdom	People's Socialist Republic of Albania	British Victory ICJ awards compensation to Britain, which is not settled till 1992. Britain breaks off talks aimed at establishing diplomatic relations with Albania.
Malayan Emergency (1948–1960)	British Commonwealth  United Kingdom Federation of Malaya  Australia  New Zealand  Southern Rhodesia  Fiji  Kenya  Thailand	Malayan Communist Party Malayan Races Liberation Army	British Allied Victory Communist retreat from Malaya Malayan independence
Korean War (1950–1953)	United Nations Command  South Korea  United States British Commonwealth Forces Korea  United Kingdom  Canada  Australia  New Zealand  India  Belgium  France  Philippines  Colombia  Ethiopia  Greece  Luxembourg  Netherlands  South Africa  Thailand  Turkey	North Korea  China  Soviet Union	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Korean Armistice Agreement Communist invasion of South Korea repelled UN invasion of North Korea repelled
1951 Anglo-Egyptian War[15] (1951–1952)	United Kingdom	Egypt	British Victory Ended with the Egyptian Revolution of 1952.
Mau Mau Uprising (1952–1960)	United Kingdom British Kenya	Mau Mau	British Victory Defeat of Mau Mau Kenyan independence
Jebel Akhdar War (1954–1959)	Sultanate of Muscat and Oman  United Kingdom	Imamate of Oman Ibadi sect  Saudi Arabia	British Allied Victory Dissolution of the Imamate of Oman
Cyprus Emergency (1955–1959)	United Kingdom Cyprus Colony	EOKA TMT	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Cyprus became an independent republic in 1960 with Britain retaining control of two Sovereign Base Areas, at Akrotiri and Dhekelia. Enosis not achieved
Suez Crisis (1956–1957)	United Kingdom France  Israel	Egypt	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Coalition military victory[16][17][18] Egyptian political victory[16] Anglo-French withdrawal following international pressure (December 1956) Israeli occupation of Sinai (until March 1957) UNEF deployment in Sinai[19] Straits of Tiran re-opened to Israeli shipping
Border Campaign (1956–1962)	United Kingdom	Irish Republican Army	British Victory IRA campaign fails
First Cod War (1958–1961)	United Kingdom	Iceland	Icelandic Victory[nb 2] Iceland expands its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles
Upper Yafa disturbances[22] (1959)	British Empire Upper Yafa	Rebels	British Victory
Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation (1962–1966)	Commonwealth of Nations  Malaysia  United Kingdom  Australia  New Zealand	Indonesia	British Allied Victory Indonesia recognises Malaysian rule over former North Borneo
Dhofar Rebellion (1962–1975)	Oman  United Kingdom Iran  Jordan	Various insurgents	British Allied Victory Insurgency defeated Modernisation of Oman
Aden Emergency (1963–1967)	Federation of South Arabia  United Kingdom	NLF FLOSY	Yemeni NLF Victory People's Republic of South Yemen established
Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970)	Nigeria  Egypt  United Kingdom	Biafra	British Allied Victory Biafra rejoins Nigeria
The Troubles (1968–1998)	United Kingdom	Loyalist paramilitaries: Ulster Volunteer Force Ulster Defence Association Red Hand Commando Ulster Resistance Loyalist Volunteer Force Provisional Irish Republican Army Official Irish Republican Army Irish National Liberation Army Irish People's Liberation Organisation Continuity Irish Republican Army Real Irish Republican Army	Inconclusive/Other Outcome Good Friday Agreement: Devolution in Northern Ireland Power-sharing deal Cross-border cooperation Disarming of paramilitary groups Demilitarisation
Second Cod War (1972–1973)	United Kingdom	Iceland	Icelandic Victory[nb 2] UK accept Iceland's 50 nautical mile exclusive fishery zone
Third Cod War (1975–1976)	United Kingdom	Iceland	Icelandic Victory[nb 2] Iceland expands its exclusive fishery zone to 200 nautical miles
Falklands War (1982)	United Kingdom	Argentina	British Victory British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands re-established.
Multinational Force in Lebanon (1982–1984)	United Kingdom  France  United States  Italy	Islamic Jihad Organization Iran  Syria Progressive Socialist Party Amal Movement	Syrian Allied Victory[23] Multinational forces fail to prevent collapse of Lebanese Army into Syrian- or Israeli- supported militias[24][25] Multinational forces evacuated after the US embassy and US Marine barracks are bombed by the Islamic Jihad Organization Multinational forces oversee withdrawal of Palestine Liberation Organization Humanitarian crisis in Southern Lebanon Civil war continues until 1990 President Hafez al-Assad continues his occupation of Lebanon until his son and later president Bashar al-Assad orders a withdrawal from the country
Gulf War (1990–1991)	Kuwait  United States  United Kingdom  Saudi Arabia  France  Egypt  Syria Other Allies	Iraq	British Allied Victory Kuwait regains its independence
Bosnian War (1992–1995)	UNPROFOR  NATO	Republika Srpska  Serbian Krajina Western Bosnia	British Allied Victory Dayton Accords
Operation Desert Fox (1998)	United States  United Kingdom	Iraq	British Allied Victory Objectives largely achieved
Kosovo War (1998–1999)	United States  United Kingdom  France  Canada  Denmark  Germany  Italy Kosovo Liberation Army	FR Yugoslavia	British Allied Victory Kosovo occupied by Nato forces Kosovo administered by UNMIK
Sierra Leone Civil War (2000–2002)	Sierra Leone  United Kingdom	Rebels  Liberia	British Allied Victory Rebels defeated
War in Afghanistan Fourth Anglo-Afghan War[26] (2001–2014) (Withdrawal)	Afghanistan  United States  United Kingdom  Canada  Germany  Italy  France  Denmark  Poland  Romania  Turkey  Australia  Spain ISAF	Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan	Ongoing Fall of Taliban régime and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Osama bin Laden killed Taliban insurgency (UK withdrew all military forces in 2014)
Iraq War (2003–2009)	United States  United Kingdom  Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein  Australia  Poland  Denmark  Iraqi Kurdistan	Iraq under Saddam Hussein Islamic State of Iraq Various insurgents	British Allied Victory: Overthrow of Ba'ath Party government Occupation of southern Iraq Iraqi insurgency, emergence of al-Qaeda in Iraq, and Sectarian Violence[27] Rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, the successor of al-Qaeda in Iraq[28][29]
Libyan Civil War (2011)	Many NATO members acting under UN mandate, including:  United States  United Kingdom  France  Denmark  Italy  Canada and Anti-Gaddafi forces several Arab League states Sweden	Pro-Gaddafi forces	British Allied Victory Fall of Gaddafi regime Muammar Gaddafi killed National Transitional Council take control
Operation Shader (2014–present)	United States  United Kingdom  Iraq Syrian Opposition  Australia  Belgium  Canada  Denmark  France  Germany  Italy  Netherlands  New Zealand  Norway  Portugal  Spain  Turkey  Bahrain  Jordan  Morocco  Qatar  Saudi Arabia  United Arab Emirates  Rojava  Egypt  Libya  Nigeria  Cameroon  Chad  Niger  Russia	Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Boko Haram al-Nusra Front Khorasan Ahrar ash-Sham	Ongoing The UK's Operation Shader is ongoing as part of intervention in Iraq and Syria (2014–present) 3,000+ ISIL fighters killed in 1,700 British airstrikes.[30][31] Ongoing operations by UK Special Forces in Syria. British armed forces provide material and training to Iraqi Security Forces and Peshmerga.[32][33] As part of the American-led interventions in Syria and Iraq, contributes to the loss of all of ISIL's territory in Iraq (by December 2017) and Syria (by March 2019).
2019–20 Persian Gulf crisis (2019–present)	United States  United Kingdom  Saudi Arabia	Iran Popular Mobilization Forces	Ongoing Seizure of internationally flagged vessels by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz Seizure of Iranian flagged vessel by UK at Gibraltar US intelligence drone shot down by Iran Attacks on US Embassy in Baghdad by Iranian backed Popular Mobilization Forces Killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani at Baghdad International airport

See also

• List of wars involving England
• List of wars in Great Britain
• Military history of the United Kingdom
• Declaration of war by the United Kingdom

Notes

1. Duchy of Warsaw as a state was in effect fully occupied by Russian and Prussian forces by May 1813, though most Poles remained loyal to Napoleon
2. Militarised interstate dispute over fishing rights in waters near Iceland;[20] Iceland has never fought in a full-scale war.[21]

References

1. Laycock, S. (2012). All the Countries We've Ever Invaded – And the Few We Never Got Round To. The History Press. ASIN 0752479695.
2. M. R. Kantak (1993), The First Anglo-Maratha War, 1774–1783: A Military Study of Major Battles, quote: "Inspite of British superiority in the military science, the British troops could not force a decisive win over the Maratha troops in the First Anglo-Maratha War. The ultimate result of the War showed that the two sides remained evenly balanced.", p. 226, ISBN 9788171546961
3. John Bowman (2000-09-05), Columbia Chronologies of Asian History and Culture, quote: "First Anglo-Maratha War...The war ends inconclusively.", Columbia University Press, p. 290, ISBN 9780231500043
4. Rosa, José María (1974) [1970]. Historia Argentina [History of Argentina] (in Spanish). V. Buenos Aires: Editorial Oriente S.A. pp. 279–288.
5. Abad de Santillán, Diego. Historia Argentina (in Spanish). Buenos Aires: TEA (Tipográfica Editora Argentina). p. 383.
6. Johnson, Robert (2011). The Afghan Way of War: How and Why They Fight. Oxford University Press. p. 206. ISBN 9780199912568. Afghanistan was rendered a British Protectorate and Sher Ali's strategy had failed
7. Blood, Peter R, ed. (1996). Pakistan: A Country Study. Diane Publishing. pp. 20–21. ISBN 9780788136313.
8. Thomas, Nigel; Boltowsky, Toomas (2019). Armies of the Baltic Independence Wars 1918–20. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. p. 20. ISBN 9781472830777.
9. Jelavich, Barbara (1983). History of the Balkans: Twentieth century. Cambridge University Press. p. 131. ISBN 978-0-521-27459-3.
10. Lansford 2017, p. 47. sfn error: no target: CITEREFLansford2017 (help)
11. Sidebotham, Herbert (1919). "The Third Afghan War". New Statesman, 16 August 1919. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2009.
12. Cavanna 2015, p. xviii. sfn error: no target: CITEREFCavanna2015 (help)
13. Reeva S. Simon; Philip Mattar; Richard W. Bulliet (1996). Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East – Volume 1. p. 119. Fighting between Kuwait's forces and Wahhabi supporters of Ibn Sa'ud broke out in May 1920, and the former were soundly defeated. Within a few weeks, the citizens of Kuwait constructed a new wall to protect Kuwait City.
14. Charters, David A. The British army and Jewish insurgency in Palestine, 1945-47. Springer, 1989, p. X
15. "Egypt 1951 War with Britain". www.globalsecurity.org.
16. Tal (2001) p 203
17. Mart, Michelle (2006-02-09). Eye on Israel: How America Came to View the Jewish State as an Ally. p. 159. ISBN 0791466876.
18. Stewart (2013) p 133
19. Kunz, Diane B. (1991). The Economic Diplomacy of the Suez Crisis. p. 187. ISBN 0-8078-1967-0.
20. Hellmann, Gunther; Herborth, Benjamin (2008-07-01). "Fishing in the mild West: democratic peace and militarised interstate disputes in the transatlantic community". Review of International Studies. 34 (3): 481–506. doi:10.1017/S0260210508008139. ISSN 1469-9044.
21. "From Iceland — Ask A Historian: Has Iceland Ever Been Involved In Any Wars Or Conflicts". The Reykjavik Grapevine. 2017-07-14. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
22. "Upper Yafa (Disturbances): 7 Jul 1959: House of Commons debates". TheyWorkForYou. Retrieved 2019-06-26.
23. Friedman, Thomas L. (1984-04-08). "America's Failure in Lebanon". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
24. "Statement by Deputy Press Secretary Larry Speakes". September 23, 1982.
25. "The Collapse of Lebanon's Army: U.S. Said to Ignore Factionalism". March 11, 1984.
26. The Fourth Afghan War is lost The Daily Telegraph, 4 September 2009
27. "Sectarian divisions change Baghdad's image". NBC News. 3 July 2006. Retrieved 18 February 2007.
28. "The JRTN Movement and Iraq's Next Insurgency | Combating Terrorism Center at West Point". Ctc.usma.edu. Archived from the original on 2011-08-26. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
29. "Al-Qaeda's Resurgence in Iraq: A Threat to U.S. Interests". U.S Department of State. 5 February 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
30. Singh, Arj; Smith, Mikey (20 September 2017). "British air strikes have killed 3,000 ISIS militants over three years". Daily Mirror.
31. "UK Drone Strike Stats". Drone Wars UK. 29 February 2012.
32. "UK troops training Kurdish forces". 12 October 2014 – via www.bbc.com.
33. Farrell, Stephen (27 February 2007). "British trained Iraqi soldiers gear up to back Baghdad surge". Rustamiyah – via www.thetimes.co.uk.

Further reading

• Barnett, Correlli. Britain and her army, 1509–1970: a military, political and social survey (1970).
• Black, Jeremy. A military history of Britain: from 1775 to the present (2008).
• Bradford, James C. ed. International Encyclopedia of Military History (2 vol. 2006).
• Brownstone, David and Irene Franck. Timelines of War: A Chronology of Warfare from 100,000 BC to the Present (1996), Global coverage.
• Cannon, John, ed. The Oxford Companion to British History (2003)
• Carlton, Charles. This Seat of Mars: War and the British Isles, 1485–1746 (Yale UP; 2011) 332 pages; studies the impact of near unceasing war from the individual to the national levels.
• Chandler, David G., and Ian Frederick William Beckett, eds. The Oxford history of the British army (Oxford UP, 2003).
• Cole, D. H and E. C Priestley. An outline of British military history, 1660–1936 (1936). online
• Dupuy, R. Ernest and Trevor N. Dupuy. The Harper Encyclopedia of Military History: From 3500 B.C. to the Present (1993).
• Fortescue, John William. History of the British Army from the Norman Conquest to the First World War (1899–1930), in 13 volumes with six separate map volumes. Available online for downloading; online volumes; The standard highly detailed full coverage of operations.
• Haswell, Jock, and John Lewis-Stempel. A Brief History of the British Army (2017).
• Higham, John, ed. A Guide to the Sources of British Military History (1971) 654 pages excerpt; Highly detailed bibliography and discussion up to 1970; includes local and naval forces.
• James, Lawrence. Warrior Race: A History of the British at War (Hachette UK, 2010). excerpt
• Johnson, Douglas, et al. Britain and France: Ten Centuries (1980)
• Mulligan, William, and Brendan Simms, eds. The Primacy of Foreign Policy in British History, 1660–2000 (Palgrave Macmillan; 2011) 345 pages
• Neville, Peter (2013). Historical Dictionary of British Foreign Policy. Scarecrow Press. pp. xix–xxxi. ISBN 9780810873711. timeline pp xix to xxxi
• Otte, T.G. The Makers of British Foreign Policy: From Pitt to Thatcher (2002)
• Ranft, Bryan. The Oxford Illustrated History of the Royal Navy (Oxford UP, 2002).
• Rodger, N. A.M. The safeguard of the sea: A naval history of Britain, 660–1649 (Vol. 1. 1998). excerpt
  • Rodger, N.A.M.The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Britain, 1649–1815 (vol 2 2006) excerpt
• Sheppard, Eric William. A short history of the British army (1950). online
• Ward, A.W. and G.P. Gooch, eds. The Cambridge History of British Foreign Policy, 1783–1919 (3 vol, 1921–23), old detailed classic; vol 1, 1783–1815 ; vol 2, 1815–1866; vol 3. 1866–1919

Historiography

• Messenger, Charles, ed. Reader's Guide to Military History (2001) pp 55–74 etc.; annotated guide to most important books.
• Schroeder, Paul W. "Old Wine in Old Bottles: Recent Contributions to British Foreign Policy and European International Politics, 1789–1848." Journal of British Studies 26.01 (1987): 1–25.