Major Military Actions / Battles in US History
War
American
Revolution
Action/Battle / Date
Lexington, Mass.
and
Concord, Mass.
April 1775
Significance of Action / Battle
Considered to be the opening shots of the American
Revolution
American
Revolution
Saratoga
October 1777
Defeat of British forces convinces France to enter the
war on the side of the Americans
American
Revolution
Yorktown
October 1781
Cornwallis surrenders at Yorktown, effectively ending
British hopes of victory in America.
War of 1812
British attack on Fort
McHenry, Baltimore
September 1814
War of 1812
Battle of New Orleans
January 1815
Civil War
South fires on Fort
Sumter in Charleston,
South Carolina
Civil War
Civil War
Antietam
September 1862
Gettysburg
July 1863
British attack repulsed; bombardment leads Francis
Scott Key to write poem which becomes the US
National Anthem in 1931
Andrew Jackson’s victory assures American control of the
Mississippi, and propels Jackson to the Presidency.
Considered to be the start of the Civil War.
Bloodiest day of the war. Battle had no clear winner, but because Lee
withdrew, North was considered the victor.
The battle convinced the British and French -- who were
contemplating official recognition of the Confederacy -- to reserve
action, and gave Lincoln the opportunity to announce his Preliminary
Emancipation Proclamation, which would free all slaves in areas
rebelling against the United States, effective January 1, 1863.
Battle was the high-water mark of the Confederacy; a turning point in
the war. Also significant because it ended Confederate hopes of
recognition by foreign nations.
American newspapers and war hawks shout “Remember the Maine! To
hell with Spain!” as a battle cry. Americans claim the blast was caused
by Spanish mine, but Spain says it was an internal explosion.
Considered a major cause of the war.
SpanishAmerican War
U.S. battleship Maine
blows up in Havana harbor
World War II
Pearl Harbor
Dec. 7, 1941
Japanese surprise attack on American naval base
launches US into World War II
World War II
D-Day
June 6, 1944
Allied invasion of Europe begins as Allies land in
Normandy, France, opening a “Second Front”
Vietnam
February 1898
Tet offensive
January 1968
On the eve of the lunar New Year celebrations (Tet),
Communist forces (North Vietnamese and Viet Cong)
launch attacks against South Vietnamese provincial
capitals and military bases, gaining control of many. U.S.
and South Vietnamese forces regain control, largely
destroying the Viet Cong, but the perception in the US is
that this is a defeat, and public opinion turns against US
involvement in the war.