These refer to battles in which armies met on a single field of battle and fought each other for anywhere from one to several days. With more advanced weapons, military formations lost their impact and use of this type of battle died out in favor of grander military operations. Many of these battles are ancient, and in several cases, the few extant historical records differ, sometimes wildly, on casualties. Entries here use modern figures when available.
This list is sortable. Click the box next to a column heading to sort by that criterion.
Battle |
Conflict |
Casualties |
Year |
Battle of Qarqar |
Assyrian Conquest of Syria |
0,014,000 Approximately 14,000 circa[1] |
!9146 853 BC |
Battle of Thermopylae |
Greco-Persian Wars |
0,022,300 22,300[2]–22,500[3] |
!9519 480 BC |
Battle of Plataea |
Greco-Persian Wars |
0,051,500 51,500[3]–257,000[2] |
!9520 479 BC |
Battle of Chaeronea |
Wars of Alexander the Great |
0,020,000 20,000 or more[4] |
!9661 338 BC |
Battle of the Granicus |
Wars of Alexander the Great |
0,015,000 15,000 or more[4] |
!9665 334 BC |
Battle of Issus |
Wars of Alexander the Great |
0,050,450 50,450[5] |
!9666 333 BC |
Battle of Gaugamela |
Wars of Alexander the Great |
0,053,500 53,500[6] |
!9668 331 BC |
Battle of the Hydaspes |
Wars of Alexander the Great |
0,023,310 23,310[6] |
!9673 326 BC |
Battle of Sentinum |
Third Samnite War |
0,033,500 33,500[7] |
!9704 295 BC |
Battle of Heraclea |
Pyrrhic War |
0,011,000 11,000–26,000 between[7] |
!9719 280 BC |
Battle of Kalinga |
Maurya Empire |
0,110,000 110,000[8]–1,000,000[9][10] including civilians |
!9737 262 BC |
Battle of the Trebia |
Second Punic War |
0,035,000 35,000[11] |
!9781 218 BC |
Battle of Lake Trasimene |
Second Punic War |
0,030,000 Approximately 30,000[11] |
!9782 217 BC |
Battle of Cannae |
Second Punic War |
0,056,000 56,000[12]–92,000 or more[13] |
!9783 216 BC |
Battle of the Metaurus |
Second Punic War |
0,012,000 12,000[14] |
!9792 207 BC |
Battle of Zama |
Second Punic War |
0,021,500 21,500[14] |
!9797 202 BC |
Battle of Magnesia |
Roman–Syrian War |
0,053,350 53,350[15] |
!9809 190 BC |
Battle of Pydna |
Third Macedonian War |
0,021,000 21,000[15] |
!9831 168 BC |
Battle of Arausio |
Germanic Wars (Cimbrian War) |
0,084,000 84,000[16][17][18] |
!9894 105 BC |
Battle of Carrhae |
Roman–Persian Wars |
0,024,000 24,000[19] |
!9946 53 BC |
Battle of Pharsalus |
Caesar's Civil War |
0,017,000 17,000[20] |
!9951 48 BC |
Battle of Teutoburg Forest |
Roman–Germanic wars |
0,020,000 20,000[21] |
#0009 |
Battle of Watling Street |
Iceni Revolt |
0,080,400 80,400[22] |
#0061 |
Battle of Mons Graupius |
Roman conquest of Britain |
0,010,360 10,360[23] |
#0084 |
Battle of Chibi |
Three Kingdoms |
0,100,001 Approximately 100,000[24] |
#0208 |
Battle of Adrianople |
Gothic War |
0,040,000 40,000 or more[25] |
#0378 |
Battle of Fei River |
Wu Hu Era |
0,150,001 150,000 or more [26] |
#0383 |
Battle of Salsu |
Goguryeo–Sui Wars |
0,302,300 302,300[27] |
#0612 |
Battle of Ullais |
Muslim conquest of Persia |
0,035,000 35,000[28] |
#0633 |
Battle of Yarmouk |
Byzantine–Arab Wars |
0,070,000 70,000 circa[29] |
#0636 |
Battle of Anchialus |
Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars |
0,080,000 80,000 circa[30] |
#0917 |
Battle of Mimou |
Later Tang Dynasty's Civil War |
0,070,000 Approximately 70,000–80,000[31] |
#0925 |
Battle of Hattin |
Ayyubid-Crusader War |
0,017,000 17,000-20,000[32] |
#1187 |
Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa |
Reconquista |
0,060,000 Approximately 60,000[33] |
#1212 |
Battle of Leignitz |
Mongol invasion of Poland |
0,030,000 Approximately 30,000[34] |
#1241 |
Battle of Yamen |
Mongol conquest of the Song Dynasty |
0,100,000 Approximately 100,000 |
#1279 |
Battle of Bannockburn |
First War of Scottish Independence |
0,019,000 Approximately 19,000[35] |
#1314 |
Battle of Kulikovo |
List of Tatar and Mongol raids against Rus' |
0,100,000 Approximately 136,000 |
#1380 |
Battle of the Terek River |
Tokhtamysh–Timur war |
0,100,000 Approximately 100,000[36] |
#1395 |
Conquest of Delhi |
Tamerlane's Indian campaign |
0,100,000 Approximately 100,000[37][38] |
#1398 |
Battle of Ankara |
Ottoman–Timur War |
0,015,000 15,000 or more[39] |
#1402 |
Battle of Grunwald |
Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War |
0,013,001 Approximately 13,000[40] |
#1410 |
Battle of Towton |
Wars of the Roses |
0,028,000 28,000[41] |
#1461 |
Battle of Ravenna |
War of the League of Cambrai |
0,013,500 13,500[42] |
#1512 |
Battle of Marignano |
War of the League of Cambrai |
0,011,000 11,000–15,000[43] |
#1515 |
Battle of Raydaniya |
Ottoman wars in the Near East |
0,013,000 13,000[44] |
#1517 |
First Battle of Panipat |
Mughal Empire |
0,020,000 20,000–50,000[45] |
#1526 |
Battle of Mohács |
Ottoman–Hungarian Wars |
0,030,000 Probably 30,000[46] |
#1526 |
Battle of Lepanto |
Ottoman–Habsburg wars |
0,022,566 22,566–27,566[47] |
#1571 |
Battle of Sekigahara |
Sengoku Period |
0,060,000 60,000 or less[48] |
#1600 |
First Battle of Breitenfeld |
Thirty Years' War |
0,020,000 20,000 or more[49] |
#1631 |
Battle of Lützen |
Thirty Years' War |
0,011,000 11,000–14,000[49] |
#1632 |
Battle of Nördlingen |
Thirty Years' War |
0,017,000 17,000[50] |
#1634 |
Battle of the Downs |
Eighty Years' War |
0,015,000 15,000 or more[51] |
#1639 |
Battle of Landen |
War of the Grand Alliance |
0,028,000 28,000[52] |
#1693 |
Battle of Zenta |
Ottoman–Habsburg wars |
0,030,300 30,300[53] |
#1697 |
Battle of Blenheim |
War of the Spanish Succession |
0,032,000 32,000[52] |
#1704 |
Battle of Ramillies |
War of the Spanish Succession |
0,015,600 15,600[54] |
#1706 |
Battle of Malplaquet |
War of the Spanish Succession |
0,095,000 95,000[54] |
#1709 |
Battle of Fontenoy |
War of the Austrian Succession |
0,014,000 14,000[55] |
#1745 |
Battle of Leuthen |
Seven Years' War |
0,011,800 11,800[56] |
#1757 |
Battle of Zorndorf |
Seven Years' War |
0,011,800 30,000 |
#1758 |
Third Battle of Panipat |
Marathas and Afghans |
0,100,000 Approximately 100,000; up to 200,000 (including civilian camp followers)[57][58] |
#1761 |
Battle of Arcole |
War of the First Coalition |
0,011,000 11,000[59] |
#1796 |
Battle of Marengo |
War of the Second Coalition |
0,016,400 16,400[60] |
#1800 |
Ulm Campaign |
War of the Third Coalition |
0,011,500 11,500[60] |
#1805 |
Battle of Austerlitz |
War of the Third Coalition |
0,024,300 24,300[61] |
#1805 |
Battle of Jena-Auerstedt |
War of the Fourth Coalition |
0,052,000 52,000 including prisoners later killed[62] |
#1806 |
Battle of Eylau |
War of the Fourth Coalition |
0,040,000 40,000[62] |
#1807 |
Battle of Wagram |
War of the Fifth Coalition |
0,077,000 77,000[62]–79,000[63] |
#1809 |
Battle of Talavera |
Peninsular War |
0,013,900 13,900[64] |
#1809 |
Battle of Salamanca |
Peninsular War |
0,018,800 18,800[65] |
#1812 |
Battle of Borodino |
French Invasion of Russia |
0,074,000 74,000[66] |
#1812 |
Battle of Berezina |
French Invasion of Russia |
0,060,000 60,000[66] |
#1812 |
Battle of Vitoria |
Peninsular War |
0,013,000 13,000[65] |
#1813 |
Battle of Leipzig |
War of the Sixth Coalition |
0,124,000 124,000[67] |
#1813 |
Battle of Ligny |
Hundred Days |
0,028,000 28,000[68] |
#1815 |
Battle of Waterloo |
Hundred Days |
0,047,000 47,000 or more (not including prisoners and missing)[69][70] |
#1815 |
Battle of Inkerman |
Crimean War |
0,015,857 15,857[71] |
#1854 |
Battle of Shiloh |
American Civil War |
0,024,000 24,000[72] |
#1862 |
Battle of Antietam |
American Civil War |
0,023,000 23,000[73]–26,193[74] |
#1862 |
Battle of Fredericksburg |
American Civil War |
0,017,300 17,300[73]–17,962[75] |
#1862 |
Battle of Gettysburg |
American Civil War |
0,051,000 51,000[76][77] |
#1863 |
Battle of Chickamauga |
American Civil War |
0,034,000 Approximately 34,000[78] |
#1863 |
Battle of Königgrätz |
Austro-Prussian War |
0,047,500 47,500[79] |
#1866 |
Battle of Tuyutí |
War of the Triple Alliance |
0,016,000 7,000–16,000[80] |
#1866 |
Battle of Mars-la-Tour/Battle of Gravelotte |
Franco-Prussian War |
0,034,000 34,000[79] |
#1870 |
Battle of Sedan |
Franco-Prussian War |
0,200,900 200,900 including captured[81] |
#1870 |
Battle of Adowa |
First Italo-Ethiopian War |
0,017,300 17,300[82] |
#1896 |
Battle of Omdurman |
Mahdist War |
0,020,430 20,430[83] |
#1898 |
Battle of Mons/Battle of Le Cateau |
World War I |
0,018,000 18,000[84] |
#1914 |
This list includes sieges, as well as modern battles that were fought primarily in urban areas. Major military operations that included city fighting are listed below. Sieges and urban combat often include heavy civilian casualties, which are included in this list.
This list is sortable. Click the box next to a column heading to sort by that criterion.
Siege |
Conflict |
Casualties |
Year |
Siege of Sidon |
Phoenician Rebellion Against Persia |
0,040,000 Over 40,000[85] |
!9656 343 BC |
Siege of Jerusalem |
First Jewish–Roman War |
0,060,000 ~60,000 to 1,100,000[86] |
#0070 |
Siege of Jerusalem |
Roman–Persian Wars |
0,070,000 ~70,000 to 90,000[87] |
#0614 |
Siege of Constantinople |
Byzantine–Arab Wars |
0,130,000 130,000–170,000[29] |
#0717–718 |
Siege of Jerusalem |
First Crusade |
0,040,000 ~40,000[88] |
#1099 |
Siege of Baghdad |
Mongol invasions |
0,080,000 80,000[89] |
#1258 |
Siege of Tenochtitlan |
Spanish Conquest of Mexico |
0,100,000 ~100,000 to 240,000[90][91] |
#1521 |
Siege of Rhodes |
Ottoman wars in Europe |
0,055,200 55,200[44] |
#1522 |
Siege of Malta |
Ottoman wars in Europe |
0,029,000 29,000[53]–40,000[92] |
#1565 |
Siege of La Rochelle |
French Wars of Religion |
0,018,600 Over 18,600[51] |
#1627–28 |
Sack of Magdeburg |
Thirty Years' War |
0,020,000 20,000[93]–25,000+[94] |
#1630 |
Siege of Vicksburg |
American Civil War |
0,019,000 19,000[95] |
#1863 |
Siege of Petersburg |
American Civil War |
0,070,000 70,000[96] |
#1864–65 |
Siege of Plevna |
Russo–Turkish War |
0,037,000 37,000[97] |
#1877 |
Siege of Port Arthur |
Russo–Japanese War |
0,100,000 100,000[98] |
#1904–05 |
Siege of Adrianople |
First Balkan War |
0,093,282 93,282, including captured[99] |
#1912–13 |
Siege of Odessa |
World War II |
0,100,000 133,813[100] |
#1941 |
Battle of Stalingrad |
World War II |
1,250,000 1,250,000[101]–1,798,619[102] |
#1942–43 |
Siege of Leningrad |
World War II |
1,117,000 1,117,000[103][104] – 4,500,000[105] |
#1941–44 |
Warsaw Uprising |
World War II |
0,200,000 200,000+ killed[106] |
#1944 |
Siege of Budapest |
World War II |
0,422,000 422,000[107] |
#1944–45 |
Battle of Berlin |
World War II |
1,298,745 1,298,745[108][109] |
#1945 |
Battle of Vukovar |
Croatian War of Independence |
0,005,000 5,000 – 20,000[110] |
#1991 |
Siege of Sarajevo |
Bosnian War of Independence |
0,012,000 12,000 killed, with 50,000 wounded[111][112] |
#1992–96 |
This list includes major operations and prolonged battles or operations fought over a large area or for a long time. Please be aware that the duration of some operations, like the Battle of Moscow, are disputed so numbers found in various sources may differ for that reason alone.
Operation |
Conflict |
Casualties |
Year |
Six Days Campaign |
War of the Sixth Coalition |
0,080,000 80,000[67] |
#1814 |
Peninsula Campaign |
American Civil War |
0,036,463 36,463[113] |
#1862 |
Battle of Chancellorsville |
American Civil War |
0,030,000 30,000[114]–30,500[73] |
#1863 |
Overland Campaign |
American Civil War |
0,087,000 87,000[115]–92,000[95] |
#1864 |
Appomattox Campaign |
American Civil War |
0,016,500 16,500[96] |
#1865 |
Battle of Mukden |
Russo–Japanese War |
0,160,000 160,000[116] |
#1905 |
Battle of Lule Burgas |
First Balkan War |
0,042,162 42,162+[117] |
#1912 |
First Battle of Çatalca |
First Balkan War |
0,022,000 22,000[118] |
#1912 |
Battle of Bregalnica |
Second Balkan War |
0,036,620 36,620[118] |
#1913 |
Rape of Belgium |
World War I |
0,032,000 32,000[84] |
#1914 |
Battle of Tannenberg |
World War I |
0,145,000 145,000[119]–160,000[120] |
#1914 |
First Battle of the Marne |
World War I |
0,513,000 513,000[121] |
#1914 |
First Battle of Ypres |
World War I |
0,210,000 210,000[122] |
#1914 |
Battle of Łódź |
World War I |
0,130,000 130,000[123] |
#1914 |
Second Battle of Ypres |
World War I |
0,104,208 104,208[124]–107,000[125] |
#1915 |
Gallipoli Campaign |
World War I |
0,503,000 503,000[124]–552,000[126] |
#1915 |
Second Battle of Artois |
World War I |
0,186,000 186,000[124] |
#1915 |
Second Battle of Champagne/Third Battle of Artois |
World War I |
0,075,000 75,000[125]–440,000[124] |
#1915 |
Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive |
World War I |
0,300,000 300,000[124] |
#1915 |
Battle of Verdun |
World War I |
0,755,000 755,000[127]–976,000[124] |
#1916 |
Battle of Asiago |
World War I |
0,250,000 250,000[124] |
#1916 |
Brusilov Offensive |
World War I |
1,600,000 1,600,000[124] |
#1916 |
Battle of the Somme |
World War I |
1,120,000 1,120,000[128]–1,215,000[124] |
#1916 |
Monastir Offensive |
World War I |
0,111,000 111,000[129] |
#1916 |
Romanian Campaign |
World War I |
0,240,000 240,000[124] |
#1916–1917 |
Nivelle Offensive |
World War I |
0,354,000 354,000[130] |
#1917 |
Battle of Messines |
World War I |
0,042,000 42,000[131][132] |
#1917 |
Tenth Battle of the Isonzo |
World War I |
0,200,000 200,000[133] |
#1917 |
Third Battle of Ypres |
World War I |
0,585,000 Over 585,000[134] |
#1917 |
Battle of Caporetto |
World War I |
0,060,000 60,000[135] |
#1917 |
Battle of Cambrai |
World War I |
0,095,000 95,000[135] |
#1917 |
Spring Offensive |
World War I |
0,900,000 900,000[136] |
#1918 |
Second Battle of the Marne |
World War I |
0,288,000 288,000[136] |
#1918 |
Battle of Warsaw |
Polish–Soviet War |
0,130,000 About 130,000, not including prisoners[137] |
#1920 |
Battle of Guadalajara |
Spanish Civil War |
0,012,000 12,000[138] |
#1937 |
Battle of Teruel |
Spanish Civil War |
0,110,000 110,000, including prisoners[139] |
#1937–38 |
Battle of the Ebro |
Spanish Civil War |
0,106,500 106,500[139] |
#1938 |
Battle of Khalkhin Gol |
Soviet-Japanese Border Wars |
0,042,000 42,000[140] |
#1939 |
Invasion of Poland |
World War II |
0,310,000 310,000[141] |
#1939 |
Winter War |
World War II |
0,152,000 152,000[141]–225,000[142] |
#1939–40 |
Operation Weserübung |
World War II |
0,012,800 12,800[141] |
#1940 |
Battle of France |
World War II |
0,469,000 469,000[143] |
#1940 |
Greco-Italian War |
World War II |
0,100,000 100,000 dead[144] |
#1940–41 |
Battle of Greece |
World War II |
0,046,295 46,295 dead[145] |
#1941 |
Battle of Crete |
World War II |
0,016,007 16,007 dead [146] |
#1941 |
Operation Barbarossa |
World War II |
1,800,000 1,400,000[147]–5,000,000[148] |
#1941 |
Battle of Moscow |
World War II |
1,000,000 1,000,000[147] |
#1941 |
Battle of Hong Kong |
World War II |
0,018,000 18,000 including prisoners[149] |
#1941 |
Battle of Malaya/Battle of Singapore |
World War II |
0,143,800 143,800, and 60,000 prisoners[150] |
#1941–42 |
Battle of Bataan/Battle of Corregidor |
World War II |
0,030,000 30,000 killed[151] |
#1942 |
Battle of the Kerch Peninsula |
World War II |
0,176,000 Over 176,000[152] |
#1942 |
Second Battle of Kharkov |
World War II |
0,300,000 300,000[152] |
#1942 |
Battle of Gazala |
World War II |
0,148,000 148,000[153] |
#1942 |
Guadalcanal Campaign |
World War II |
0,031,100 31,100[154] |
#1942–43 |
Second Battle of El Alamein |
World War II |
0,039,400 39,400[153]–82,500[155] |
#1942 |
Operation Iskra |
World War II |
0,129,332 129,332[156] |
#1943 |
Guadalcanal Campaign |
World War II |
0,029,100 29,100 dead[157] |
#1942–43 |
Battle of Kursk |
World War II |
0,257,125 257,125[158]–388,000[159] |
#1943 |
Allied invasion of Sicily |
World War II |
0,036,000 At least 36,000 killed, and over 100,000 Italian POWs[160] |
#1943 |
Allied invasion of Italy |
World War II |
0,017,092 17,092 killed[161] |
#1943 |
Bougainville Campaign |
World War II |
0,021,929 21,929 killed, and 23,571 Japanese prisoners[162] |
#1943–45 |
Battle of Monte Cassino |
World War II |
0,185,000 185,000[163] |
#1944 |
Battle of Narva |
World War II |
0,550,000 550,000 all causes[164] |
#1944 |
Operation Shingle |
World War II |
0,052,200 52,200 killed[165] |
#1944 |
Normandy Landings |
World War II |
0,014,000 14,000 – 19,000[166] |
#1944 |
First Jassy–Kishinev Offensive |
World War II |
0,450,000 195,000[167] |
#1944 |
Battle of Saipan |
World War II |
0,043,500 43,500 killed, including mass suicides[168] |
#1944 |
Operation Bagration |
World War II |
0,528,000 528,000[107]–1,430,000[169] |
#1944 |
Falaise Pocket |
World War II |
0,140,000 140,000[170] |
#1944 |
Second Jassy–Kishinev Offensive |
World War II |
0,140,000 485,424, including prisoners[171][172] |
#1944 |
Operation Market Garden |
World War II |
0,027,200 27,200[173] |
#1944 |
Battle of Hürtgen Forest |
World War II |
0,063,000 63,000[174] |
#1944–45 |
Battle of Leyte Gulf |
World War II |
0,012,000 12,000 killed[175] |
#1944 |
Battle of the Bulge |
World War II |
0,186,369 186,369[176] |
#1944–45 |
Battle of Luzon |
World War II |
0,340,330 332,330–345,330, including sick[177] |
#1945 |
Battle of the Rhineland |
World War II |
0,082,000 82,000 and 250,000 prisoners[178] |
#1945 |
Battle of Iwo Jima |
World War II |
0,044,821 44,821[179]–48,700[180] |
#1945 |
Battle of Okinawa |
World War II |
0,113,920 113,920[181]–158,400[182] |
#1945 |
Arab–Israeli War |
Arab–Israeli conflict |
0,012,000 12,000–19,000[183] |
#1948–49 |
Liaoshen Campaign |
Chinese Civil War |
0,542,000 542,000, including captured[184] |
#1948 |
Huaihai Campaign |
Chinese Civil War |
0,689,000 689,000, including captured[185] |
#1948 |
Pingjin Campaign |
Chinese Civil War |
0,560,000 560,000, including captured[186] |
#1948–49 |
Battle of Incheon |
Korean War |
0,017,429 17,429[187] |
#1950 |
Invasion of North Korea |
Korean War |
0,051,700 51,700[188] |
#1950 |
Battle of Dien Bien Phu |
First Indochina War |
0,031,500 31,500, not including prisoners[189] |
#1954 |
Tet Offensive |
Vietnam War |
0,065,000 65,000[190] |
#1968 |
Easter Offensive |
Vietnam War |
0,150,000 150,000[190] |
#1972 |
Yom Kippur War |
Arab–Israeli conflict |
0,021,688 21,688, not including prisoners[191] |
#1973 |
Falklands War |
Falklands War |
0,014,095 14,095, including prisoners[192] |
#1982 |
1982 Lebanon War |
Israeli–Lebanese conflict |
0,018,500 18,500[191] |
#1982–85 |
Gulf War |
Gulf War |
0,025,678 25,678[192] |
#1991 |
Invasion of Iraq |
Iraq War |
0,034,543 34,543[193] |
#2003 |