Inspired by talk in the Dunkirk thread. We're a diverse group of nations, here, and though a lot of our countries participated in common wars, we may view different battles as important to our nations.
For example, here in Canada 3 battles spring to mind;
Plains of Abraham during the Seven Years War which solidified British dominance.
Battle of Vimy Ridge in WW1 which was the first time Canada fought as Canada and not as a part of the UK.
Battle of Ortona WW2 called "little Stalingrad" it was a horrible slog of house to house fighting during the Italian campaign. The tactic of "mouseholing" developed and used for the first time
So what are some key battles in your countries' history?
Vicksburg and Gettysburg were both going on at the same time and together were the beginning of the end of the American Civil War. Basically after both of those battles the Confederacy was assured a swift defeat.
Pearl Harbor brought the nation together into WWII when a large faction of the country would have been against the war otherwise.
There are so many of "key" battles in English history ranging back hundreds, almost thousands of years. It's what you get when you've been a preeminent western super power for that long.
I don't think we have the right audience but I would love to hear someone from Chinese descent comment about this.
Post by armchair general on Jul 26, 2017 3:24:04 GMT
Great topic!
For the country that I was born and have lived in my whole life, I would list the following:
(1) Battle of Saratoga - not only a victory for the Continental army, but it convinced France to support the Colonies against the British Crown. French assistance- naval and financial-was important to help the Colonies gain their independence!
(2) Battle of Yorktown - effectively ended the Revolutionary War
(3) Battle of Trenton - With his army "disintegrating", George Washington led his men to a victory over the Hessian garrison (albeit one that was "somewhat hung over"), which helped restore morale and his army to survive.
(4) Battle of Vicksburg- split Confederacy in 2 and denied the use of the Mississippi River to the Rebels.
(5) Battle of Midway- simply put, turning point in the Pacific Theater of WW2
(6) Siege of Fort McHenry - source of our National Anthem and helped give some positive news to the Americans who had been getting their butts kicked until that point. War ended eventually in a "draw".
Post by armchair general on Jul 28, 2017 20:42:08 GMT
As for Poland, the country of many of my ancestors (I'm 50% Polish):
(1) Miracle on the Vistula (Battle of Warsaw) 1920 - stopped the spread of Communism in Europe
(2) Siege of Vienna 1683 - a relief army of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth led by Polish king Jan Sobrieski ended the Turkish siege of the city of Vienna and started the end of Turkish expansion into Europe
(3) Battle of Grunwald (1410) - the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeated the Teutonic Knights......began the decline of the power of the Teutonic Knights and helped created the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which for the 17th century and part of the 18th, was one of the major European powers.
Gallipoli, Kokoda, Long Tan, Fromelles. Navally: Sydney v Emden 1914, Sydney v Kormoran 1941
Only kokoda was specifically in australias defence.
Tobruk?
Tobrouk& Singapore/Malaya would also be on the list but arent significantly commemmorated. Battle of Eland River in the Boer war is pretty unknown but its a against all odds battle that is interesting
Aspen - Essling was an interesting battle. Another Austrian battle that I thought would be significant would be Leipzig, albeit in ally with several other nations. It broke Napoleons back.
For Australia, Gallipoli and Beersheba. Beersheba is forgotten but is one of the last cavalry (lighthorse) charges in history. Kokoda and Milne Bay. Milne Bay is act where the Japanese army first got beaten on land. Kapyong ( Korean War) Long Tan ( Vietnam)
Battle of Crysler's Farm. In Nov 1813 two American armies were marching on Montreal. A variety of factors led to British/Canadian/Amerindian wins against these two armies (weather, morale, leadership, fighting skills etc). The defeat of General Wilkinson's army at Crysler's Farm near Cornwall Ontario and of General Hammond's army at Chateuguay Quebec kept Canada in British hands until it was time to form our own nation.
Audacity!
Every day I know less about WWII because every day I realise there is more to know!
Tobrouk& Singapore/Malaya would also be on the list but arent significantly commemmorated. Battle of Eland River in the Boer war is pretty unknown but its a against all odds battle that is interesting