List of civil wars
Encyclopedia
The Latin term bellum civile was first used of the Roman civil wars
of the 1st century BC.
The term civilis here had the very specific meaning of "Roman citizen".
The English term civil war
was first used in 1651 to refer to the English Civil War
.
Since the 17th century, the term has also been applied retroactively to other historical conflicts where at least one side claims to represent the country's civil society
(rather than a feudal dynasty or an imperial power).
The terms intestine war and domestic war are often used interchangeably with "civil war", but "intestine war" can be used in a wider meaning, referring to any conflict within a single state, regardless of the participation of civil
forces. Thus, any war of succession is by definition an intestine war, but not necessarily a civil war.
In modern geopolitics
since 1945, "civil war" is also used in a loose sense to refer to any large scale military conflict within a single country (i.e. used as a strict synonym of the generic term "intestine war"), creating terminological overlap with insurgencies or coups d'état.
or Islamic Civil War
.
are listed. See list of ongoing military conflicts and lists of active separatist movements for lists with a wider scope.
Roman civil wars
There were several Roman civil wars, especially during the late Republic. The most famous of these are the war in the 40s BC between Julius Caesar and the optimate faction of the senatorial elite initially led by Pompey and the subsequent war between Caesar's successors, Octavian and Mark Antony in...
of the 1st century BC.
The term civilis here had the very specific meaning of "Roman citizen".
The English term civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
was first used in 1651 to refer to the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
.
Since the 17th century, the term has also been applied retroactively to other historical conflicts where at least one side claims to represent the country's civil society
Civil society
Civil society is composed of the totality of many voluntary social relationships, civic and social organizations, and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society, as distinct from the force-backed structures of a state , the commercial institutions of the market, and private criminal...
(rather than a feudal dynasty or an imperial power).
The terms intestine war and domestic war are often used interchangeably with "civil war", but "intestine war" can be used in a wider meaning, referring to any conflict within a single state, regardless of the participation of civil
Civil society
Civil society is composed of the totality of many voluntary social relationships, civic and social organizations, and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society, as distinct from the force-backed structures of a state , the commercial institutions of the market, and private criminal...
forces. Thus, any war of succession is by definition an intestine war, but not necessarily a civil war.
In modern geopolitics
Geopolitics
Geopolitics, from Greek Γη and Πολιτική in broad terms, is a theory that describes the relation between politics and territory whether on local or international scale....
since 1945, "civil war" is also used in a loose sense to refer to any large scale military conflict within a single country (i.e. used as a strict synonym of the generic term "intestine war"), creating terminological overlap with insurgencies or coups d'état.
Past civil wars
Ancient and medieval
Only civil wars involving popular or civil forces are listed here. Not covered are wars between clans, warlords or dynasties, wars of succession, etc. Such wars of succession are sometimes also described as "Civil Wars" in modern literature, see e.g. Ottoman Civil WarOttoman Civil War
The Ottoman Civil War was a war of succession in the Ottoman Empire from 1509 to 1512, during the reign of Bayezid II.The war was fought between his two sons Ahmed and Selim....
or Islamic Civil War
Islamic Civil War
Islamic Civil War/Fitna may refer to:* First Islamic Civil War * Second Islamic Civil War * Third Islamic Civil War/Abassid Revolt...
.
- Roman Civil Wars (a list of numerous civil wars in the late Roman RepublicRoman RepublicThe Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
and in the Roman EmpireRoman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, between 100 BC and AD 400) - An Shi RebellionAn Shi RebellionThe An Lushan Rebellion took place in China during the Tang Dynasty from CE December 16, 755 to CE February 17, 763, beginning when general An Lushan declared himself emperor, establishing the rival Yan Dynasty in Northern China...
, December 16, 755-February 17, 763 - Civil war era in NorwayCivil war era in NorwayThe Civil war era of Norwegian history is a term used for the period in the history of Norway between 1130 and 1240. During this time, a series of civil wars were fought between rival kings and pretenders to the throne of Norway. The reasons for the wars is one of the most debated topics in...
, 1130–1240 - The AnarchyThe AnarchyThe Anarchy or The Nineteen-Year Winter was a period of English history during the reign of King Stephen, which was characterised by civil war and unsettled government...
, 1135–1153 (refers to the disorder during the reign of King StephenStephen of EnglandStephen , often referred to as Stephen of Blois , was a grandson of William the Conqueror. He was King of England from 1135 to his death, and also the Count of Boulogne by right of his wife. Stephen's reign was marked by the Anarchy, a civil war with his cousin and rival, the Empress Matilda...
of EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) - Civil war in the crusader Kingdom of JerusalemKingdom of JerusalemThe Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Catholic kingdom established in the Levant in 1099 after the First Crusade. The kingdom lasted nearly two hundred years, from 1099 until 1291 when the last remaining possession, Acre, was destroyed by the Mamluks, but its history is divided into two distinct periods....
between King Baldwin IIIBaldwin III of JerusalemBaldwin III was king of Jerusalem from 1143 to 1163. He was the eldest son of Melisende and Fulk of Jerusalem, and the grandson of Baldwin II of Jerusalem.-Succession:...
and dowager Queen MelisendeMelisende of JerusalemMelisende was Queen of Jerusalem from 1131 to 1153, and regent for her son between 1153 and 1161 while he was on campaign. She was the eldest daughter of King Baldwin II of Jerusalem, and the Armenian princess Morphia of Melitene. She was named after her paternal grandmother, Melisende of...
(1152–1153). - Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War, 1407-1435
- Hussite WarsHussite WarsThe Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars involved the military actions against and amongst the followers of Jan Hus in Bohemia in the period 1419 to circa 1434. The Hussite Wars were notable for the extensive use of early hand-held gunpowder weapons such as hand cannons...
(BohemiaBohemiaBohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
), 1420–1434 - Great Feudal War in RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, 1425–1453 - Ōnin WarOnin WarThe ' was a civil war that lasted 10 years during the Muromachi period in Japan. A dispute between Hosokawa Katsumoto and Yamana Sōzen escalated into a nationwide war involving the Ashikaga shogunate and a number of daimyo in many regions of Japan....
(JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
), 1467–1477 - Sengoku PeriodSengoku periodThe or Warring States period in Japanese history was a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century. The name "Sengoku" was adopted by Japanese historians in reference...
(JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
), 1467–1615 - Popular revolt in late medieval EuropePopular revolt in late medieval EuropePopular revolts in late medieval Europe were uprisings and rebellions by peasants in the countryside, or the bourgeois in towns, against nobles, abbots and kings during the upheavals of the 14th through early 16th centuries, part of a larger "Crisis of the Late Middle Ages"...
- German Peasants' WarGerman Peasants' WarThe German Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt was a widespread popular revolt in the German-speaking areas of Central Europe, 1524–1526. At its height in the spring and summer of 1525, the conflict involved an estimated 300,000 peasants: contemporary estimates put the dead at 100,000...
, 1524–1525 - War of the Two BrothersInca Civil WarThe Inca Civil War, the Inca Dynastic War, the Inca War of Succession, or, sometimes, the War of the Two Brothers was fought between two brothers, Huáscar and Atahualpa, sons of Huayna Capac, over the succession to the Inca throne. The war followed Huayna Capac's death in 1527, although it did not...
, 1529-1532 in the Inca Empire
Early Modern (1550–1800)
- French Wars of ReligionFrench Wars of ReligionThe French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
, 1562–1598 - Rokosz of ZebrzydowskiZebrzydowski's RokoszZebrzydowski's Rebellion , or the Sandomierz Rebellion , was a rokosz in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth against King Sigismund III Vasa...
, 1606–1609 in the Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthPolish-Lithuanian CommonwealthThe Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century... - Thirty Years' WarThirty Years' WarThe Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
, 1618–1648 between Protestants and Catholics in the Holy Roman EmpireHoly Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes... - Khmelnytsky UprisingKhmelnytsky UprisingThe Khmelnytsky Uprising, was a Cossack rebellion in the Ukraine between the years 1648–1657 which turned into a Ukrainian war of liberation from Poland...
1648-1657 - Wars of the Three KingdomsWars of the Three KingdomsThe Wars of the Three Kingdoms formed an intertwined series of conflicts that took place in England, Ireland, and Scotland between 1639 and 1651 after these three countries had come under the "Personal Rule" of the same monarch...
(England, IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, ScotlandScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
) 1639–1651 involved a number of civil wars:- Irish Confederate WarsIrish Confederate WarsThis article is concerned with the military history of Ireland from 1641-53. For the political context of this conflict, see Confederate Ireland....
some parts of which were a civil war. - Scotland in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, to some extent a civil war, 1644–1652
- English Civil WarEnglish Civil WarThe English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
, 1642–1651- First English Civil WarFirst English Civil WarThe First English Civil War began the series of three wars known as the English Civil War . "The English Civil War" was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations that took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651, and includes the Second English Civil War and...
1642–1646 - Second English Civil WarSecond English Civil WarThe Second English Civil War was the second of three wars known as the English Civil War which refers to the series of armed conflicts and political machinations which took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1652 and also include the First English Civil War and the...
1648–1649 - Third English Civil WarThird English Civil WarThe Third English Civil War was the last of the English Civil Wars , a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists....
1650–1651
- First English Civil War
- Irish Confederate Wars
- Rokosz of LubomirskiLubomirski's RokoszLubomirski's Rokosz, or Lubomirski's Rebellion , was a rebellion against Polish King Jan II Kazimierz Vasa, initiated by the Polish nobleman, Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski.In 1665-66, Lubomirski's supporters paralyzed the proceedings of the Sejm...
, 1665–1666 in the Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthPolish-Lithuanian CommonwealthThe Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century... - American Revolutionary WarAmerican Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
1775-1783 - War in the Vendée France, 1793-1804 fought between Royalist and Republican forces, part of the French Revolutionary WarsFrench Revolutionary WarsThe French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
Modern (1800–1945)
- South American wars of independenceSouth American Wars of IndependenceThe Latin American Wars of Independence were the various revolutions that took place during the late 18th and early 19th centuries and resulted in the creation of a number of independent countries in Latin America. These revolutions followed the American and French Revolutions, which had profound...
, 1808–1829 - Argentine Civil WarArgentine Civil WarThe Argentine Civil Wars were a series of internecine wars that took place in Argentina from 1814 to 1876. These conflicts were separate from the Argentine War of Independence , though they first arose during this period....
, 1814–1880 - Zulu Civil War, 1817–1819
- Liberal WarsLiberal WarsThe Liberal Wars, also known as the Portuguese Civil War, the War of the Two Brothers, or Miguelite War, was a war between progressive constitutionalists and authoritarian absolutists in Portugal over royal succession that lasted from 1828 to 1834...
(Portuguese Civil War), 1828–1834. - Chilean Civil War of 1829, 1829-1830
- Carlist WarsCarlist WarsThe Carlist Wars in Spain were the last major European civil wars in which contenders fought to establish their claim to a throne. Several times during the period from 1833 to 1876 the Carlists — followers of Infante Carlos and his descendants — rallied to the cry of "God, Country, and King" and...
, 1833–1839, 1846–1849, 1872–1876 in Spain - Uruguayan Civil WarUruguayan Civil WarThe Uruguayan Civil War, also known as "Guerra Grande", was a series of armed conflicts that took place between the Colorado Party and the National Party in Uruguay from 1839 to 1851...
, 1839-1851 - Māori WarNew Zealand land warsThe New Zealand Wars, sometimes called the Land Wars and also once called the Māori Wars, were a series of armed conflicts that took place in New Zealand between 1845 and 1872...
(New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
) 1845–1872 - Sonderbund war (SwitzerlandSwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
), November 1847 - Revolution of 1851Revolution of 1851The Revolution of 1851 was an attempt to overthrow the conservative government by Chilean liberals.In the elections of 1851 the conservative candidate José María de la Cruz Prieto lost against another conservative, Manuel Montt in Concepción...
(ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
) - Taiping RebellionTaiping RebellionThe Taiping Rebellion was a widespread civil war in southern China from 1850 to 1864, led by heterodox Christian convert Hong Xiuquan, who, having received visions, maintained that he was the younger brother of Jesus Christ, against the ruling Manchu-led Qing Dynasty...
(ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
), 1851–1864 - Bleeding KansasBleeding KansasBleeding Kansas, Bloody Kansas or the Border War, was a series of violent events, involving anti-slavery Free-Staters and pro-slavery "Border Ruffian" elements, that took place in the Kansas Territory and the western frontier towns of the U.S. state of Missouri roughly between 1854 and 1858...
, 1854–1858 - War of ReformReform WarThe Reform War in Mexico is one of the episodes of the long struggle between Liberal and Conservative forces that dominated the country’s history in the 19th century. The Liberals wanted a federalist government, limiting traditional Catholic Church and military influence in the country...
(MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
) 1857–1861 - American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, 1861–1865 - Klang WarKlang WarThe Klang War or Selangor Civil War took place in the Malay state of Selangor and was fought between Raja Abdullah bin Raja Jaafar, the administrator of Klang and Raja Mahadi bin Raja Sulaiman from 1867 to 1874...
; also known as Selangor Civil War, 1867–1874 - Boshin WarBoshin WarThe was a civil war in Japan, fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and those seeking to return political power to the imperial court....
(JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
), 1868–1869 - Satsuma RebellionSatsuma RebellionThe was a revolt of Satsuma ex-samurai against the Meiji government from January 29 to September 24, 1877, 9 years into the Meiji Era. It was the last, and the most serious, of a series of armed uprisings against the new government.-Background:...
(JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
), 1877 - Jementah Civil WarJementah Civil WarThe Jementah Civil War happened in 1879 in Jementah, Sultanate of Johor when Tengku Alam Shah, the heir of Sultan Ali of Muar refused to give the district of Muar to the temporary administration of Sultan Abu Bakar of Johor...
, 1879 - Chilean Civil WarChilean Civil WarThe Chilean Civil War of 1891 was an armed conflict between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the sitting President, José Manuel Balmaceda. The war saw a confrontation between the Chilean Army and the Chilean Navy, which had sided with the president and the congress, respectively...
, 1891 - Thousand Days WarThousand Days WarThe Thousand Days' War , was a civil armed conflict in the newly created Republic of Colombia, between the Conservative Party, the Liberal Party and its radical factions. In 1899 the ruling conservatives were accused of maintaining power through fraudulent elections...
, 1899-1902 in Colombia - Mexican RevolutionMexican RevolutionThe Mexican Revolution was a major armed struggle that started in 1910, with an uprising led by Francisco I. Madero against longtime autocrat Porfirio Díaz. The Revolution was characterized by several socialist, liberal, anarchist, populist, and agrarianist movements. Over time the Revolution...
, 1910-1920 - Russian Civil WarRussian Civil WarThe Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
, 1917–1921 - Finnish Civil WarFinnish Civil WarThe Finnish Civil War was a part of the national, political and social turmoil caused by World War I in Europe. The Civil War concerned control and leadership of The Grand Duchy of Finland as it achieved independence from Russia after the October Revolution in Petrograd...
, 1918 - Irish Civil WarIrish Civil WarThe Irish Civil War was a conflict that accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State as an entity independent from the United Kingdom within the British Empire....
, 1922–1923 - Chinese Civil WarChinese Civil WarThe Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
, 1928–1937, 1945–1949 - Austrian Civil WarAustrian Civil WarThe Austrian Civil War , also known as the February Uprising , is a term sometimes used for a few days of skirmishes between socialist and conservative-fascist forces between 12 February and 16 February 1934, in Austria...
, February 12 to February 16, 1934 - Spanish Civil WarSpanish Civil WarThe Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, 1936–1939
Post-WWII (1945 to present)
- Greek Civil WarGreek Civil WarThe Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
, 1946–1949 - Paraguayan Civil WarParaguayan Civil WarThe Paraguayan Civil War was a conflict in Paraguay that lasted from March to August 1947.In 1940, President Higinio Morínigo suspended the constitution and banned political parties. Resistance to his rule took the form of general strikes and student riots...
, 1947 - Palestinian Civil War, 1947–48
- Costa Rican Civil WarCosta Rican Civil WarThe Costa Rican Civil War was the bloodiest event in 20th century Costa Rican history. It lasted for 44 days , during which approximately 2,000 people are believed to have died...
, 1948 - La ViolenciaLa ViolenciaLa Violencia is a period of civil conflict in the Colombian countryside between supporters of the Colombian Liberal Party and the Colombian Conservative Party, a conflict which took place roughly from 1948 to 1958 ....
, 1948–1958 - Korean WarKorean WarThe Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, 1950-1953 between North and South Korea - Laotian Secret War 1953-1975
- Vietnamese Civil WarVietnam WarThe Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, 1954–1975 - Guatemalan Civil WarGuatemalan Civil WarThe Guatemalan Civil War ran from 1960-1996. The thirty-six-year civil war began as a grassroots, popular response to the rightist and military usurpation of civil government , and the President's disrespect for the human and civil rights of the majority of the population...
, 1960–1996 - Congo CrisisCongo CrisisThe Congo Crisis was a period of turmoil in the First Republic of the Congo that began with national independence from Belgium and ended with the seizing of power by Joseph Mobutu...
, 1960-1966 - Puerto Rican Drug WarPuerto Rican Drug WarThe Government of Puerto Rico has struggled to combat illegal drug use and the resulting crime since the mid-1970s. Their efforts have been referred to as a "War on Drugs". Though drug use was uncommon in Puerto Rico in the 1950s, it markedly increased in the late 1960s...
since 1970 - North Yemen Civil WarNorth Yemen Civil WarThe North Yemen Civil War was fought in North Yemen between royalists of the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen and factions of the Yemen Arab Republic from 1962 to 1970. The war began with a coup d'état carried out by the republican leader, Abdullah as-Sallal, which dethroned the newly crowned Imam...
1962-1970 - Dominican Civil WarDominican Civil WarThe Dominican Civil War better known as Guerra de Abril took place between April 24, 1965 and September 3, 1965, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic...
, 1963 - Rhodesian Bush WarRhodesian Bush WarThe Rhodesian Bush War – also known as the Second Chimurenga or the Zimbabwe War of Liberation – was a civil war which took place between July 1964 and December 1979 in the unrecognised country of Rhodesia...
, 1965–1980 - Cypriot Civil War, 1967–1974
- Nigerian Civil WarNigerian Civil WarThe Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Nigerian-Biafran War, 6 July 1967–15 January 1970, was a political conflict caused by the attempted secession of the southeastern provinces of Nigeria as the self-proclaimed Republic of Biafra...
, 1967–1970 - The TroublesThe TroublesThe Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
, 1969–1998 (considered ongoing by extremist minority groups) - Cambodian Civil WarCambodian Civil WarThe Cambodian Civil War was a conflict that pitted the forces of the Communist Party of Kampuchea and their allies the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the Viet Cong against the government forces of Cambodia , which were supported by the United States and the Republic of Vietnam The Cambodian...
1970-1975 - Pakistani Civil War, 1971
- Lebanese Civil WarLebanese Civil WarThe Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
, 1975–1990 - Mozambican Civil WarMozambican Civil WarThe Mozambican Civil War began in 1977, two years after the end of the war of independence. The ruling party, Front for Liberation of Mozambique , was violently opposed from 1977 by the Rhodesian- and South African-funded Mozambique Resistance Movement...
, see Rome General Peace AccordsRome General Peace AccordsThe Rome General Peace Accords between the Mozambican Civil War parties, the Frelimo and the Renamo , put an end to the Mozambique Civil War. It was signed on October 4, 1992. Negotiations preceding in began in July 1990...
, 1975–1992 - Angolan Civil WarAngolan Civil WarThe Angolan Civil War was a major civil conflict in the Southern African state of Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with some interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. Prior to this, a decolonisation conflict had taken...
, 1975-2002 - CambodiaCambodiaCambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, 1978–1993, 1997–1998 - Nicaraguan Civil War, 1979–1990
- Salvadoran Civil WarHistory of El SalvadorThe history of El Salvador has been a history of struggle against conquistadors, empires, dictatorships and world powers to be free. El Salvador was one of the regions that resisted the Spanish invasion led by Pedro de Alvarado who had to fight Atlantica and retreat several times back to Guatemala...
(El SalvadorEl SalvadorEl Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
), 1979–1991 - Peruvian Civil WarInternal conflict in PeruIt has been estimated that nearly 70,000 people died in the internal conflict in Peru that started in 1980 and, although still ongoing, had greatly wound down by 2000. The principal actors in the war were the Shining Path , the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement and the government of Peru.A great...
, 1980–2000 - Second Sudanese Civil WarSecond Sudanese Civil WarThe Second Sudanese Civil War started in 1983, although it was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originated in southern Sudan, the civil war spread to the Nuba mountains and Blue Nile by the end of the 1980s....
, 1983-2005 - Sri Lankan Civil WarSri Lankan civil warThe Sri Lankan Civil War was a conflict fought on the island of Sri Lanka. Beginning on July 23, 1983, there was an on-and-off insurgency against the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam , a separatist militant organization which fought to create an independent Tamil state named Tamil...
, 1983–2009 - First Liberian Civil War, 1989-1996
- Rwandan Civil WarRwandan Civil WarThe Rwandan Civil War was a conflict within the Central African nation of Rwanda between the government of President Juvénal Habyarimana and the rebel Rwandan Patriotic Front...
, 1990–1993 - Casamance ConflictCasamance ConflictThe Casamance Conflict is a low-level civil war that has been waged between the Government of Senegal and the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance since 1982 over the question of independence for the Casamance region....
, 1990–2006 - Georgian Civil WarGeorgian Civil WarThe Georgian Civil War consisted of inter-ethnic and intranational conflicts in the regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia , as well as the violent military coup d'etat of December 21, 1991 - January 6, 1992 against the first democratically elected President of Georgia, Zviad Gamsakhurdia and his...
, 1991-1993 - Sierra Leone Civil WarSierra Leone Civil WarThe Sierra Leone Civil War began on 23 March 1991 when the Revolutionary United Front , with support from the special forces of Charles Taylor’s National Patriotic Front of Liberia , intervened in Sierra Leone in an attempt to overthrow the Joseph Momoh government...
, 1991–2002 - Algerian Civil WarAlgerian Civil WarThe Algerian Civil War was an armed conflict between the Algerian government and various Islamist rebel groups which began in 1991. It is estimated to have cost between 150,000 and 200,000 lives, in a population of about 25,010,000 in 1990 and 31,193,917 in 2000.More than 70 journalists were...
, 1991–2002, conflicts persist - Civil war in Tajikistan, 1992-1997
- Burundi Civil WarBurundi Civil WarThe Burundi Civil War was an armed conflict lasting from 1993 to 2005. The civil war was the result of long standing ethnic divisions between the Hutu and the Tutsi tribes in Burundi...
, 1993–2005 - Civil war in Yemen, 1994
- First Chechen WarFirst Chechen WarThe First Chechen War, also known as the War in Chechnya, was a conflict between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, fought from December 1994 to August 1996...
, 1994-1996 - Iraqi Kurdish Civil WarIraqi Kurdish Civil WarThe Iraqi Kurdish Civil War was a military conflict which took place between rival Kurdish factions in Iraqi Kurdistan in the mid 1990s...
, 1994–1997 - First Congo WarFirst Congo WarThe First Congo War was a revolution in Zaire that replaced President Mobutu Sésé Seko, a decades-long dictator, with rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila. Destabilization in eastern Zaire that resulted from the Rwandan genocide was the final factor that caused numerous internal and external actors...
, 1996–1997 - Republic of the Congo Civil War, 1997-1999 in Congo-Brazzaville
- Nepalese Civil War, 1996–2006 labelled "People's War" by the Maoists
- 1997 rebellion in Albania1997 rebellion in AlbaniaThe 1997 unrest in Albania, also known as the Lottery Uprising or Anarchy in Albania, was an uprising sparked by Ponzi scheme failures...
, 1997 - Republic of the Congo Civil War, 1997-1999
- Guinea-Bissau Civil WarGuinea-Bissau Civil WarThe Guinea-Bissau Civil War was triggered by an attempted coup d'état against the government of President João Bernardo Vieira led by Brigadier-General Ansumane Mané in June 1998...
, 1998–1999 - Kosovo WarKosovo WarThe term Kosovo War or Kosovo conflict was two sequential, and at times parallel, armed conflicts in Kosovo province, then part of FR Yugoslav Republic of Serbia; from early 1998 to 1999, there was an armed conflict initiated by the ethnic Albanian "Kosovo Liberation Army" , who sought independence...
, 1998–1999 - Second Congo WarSecond Congo WarThe Second Congo War, also known as Coltan War and the Great War of Africa, began in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo , and officially ended in July 2003 when the Transitional Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo took power; however, hostilities continue to this...
, 1998-2003 - Second Liberian Civil WarSecond Liberian Civil WarThe Second Liberian Civil War began in 1999 when a rebel group backed by the government of neighbouring Guinea, the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy , emerged in northern Liberia. In early 2003, a second rebel group, the Movement for Democracy in Liberia, emerged in the south, and...
, 1999-2003 - Second Chechen WarSecond Chechen WarThe Second Chechen War, in a later phase better known as the War in the North Caucasus, was launched by the Russian Federation starting 26 August 1999, in response to the Invasion of Dagestan by the Islamic International Peacekeeping Brigade ....
, 1999-2009 - Albanian rebellion2001 Macedonia conflictThe insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia was an armed conflict which began when the ethnic Albanian National Liberation Army militant group attacked the security forces of the Republic of Macedonia at the beginning of January 2001...
in Macedonia 2001 - Ivorian Civil War, 2002-2007, conflicts persist
- War in DarfurWar in DarfurThe Darfur Conflict was a guerrilla conflict or civil war centered on the Darfur region of Sudan. It began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army and Justice and Equality Movement groups in Darfur took up arms, accusing the Sudanese government of oppressing non-Arab Sudanese in...
, 2003-2009 - 2004 Haitian rebellion, 2004
- Fourth Chadian Civil WarChadian Civil WarThe Transitional Government of National Unity was the coalition government of armed groups that nominally ruled Chad from 1979 to 1982, during the most chaotic phase of the long-running civil war that began in 1965. The GUNT replaced the fragile alliance led by Félix Malloum and Hissène Habré,...
, 2005-2010 - Fatah–Hamas conflictFatah–Hamas conflictThe Fatah–Hamas conflict , also referred to as the Palestinian Civil War , and the Conflict of Brothers , i.e...
(third Palestinian Civil WarFatah-Hamas conflictThe Fatah–Hamas conflict , also referred to as the Palestinian Civil War , and the Conflict of Brothers , i.e...
), 2006–2009, tensions ongoing - Libyan Civil War, 2011
Ongoing civil wars
The following civil wars are ongoing . Only ongoing conflicts meeting the definition of a civil warCivil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
are listed. See list of ongoing military conflicts and lists of active separatist movements for lists with a wider scope.
- Colombian armed conflict, since 1964.
- Afghan civil war, since 1978.
- Ugandan Civil War, since 1987.
- Somali Civil WarSomali Civil WarThe Somali Civil War is an ongoing civil war taking place in Somalia. The conflict, which began in 1991, has caused destabilisation throughout the country, with the current phase of the conflict seeing the Somali government losing substantial control of the state to rebel forces...
, since 1991. - Sa'dah insurgencySa'dah insurgencyThe Shia Insurgency in Yemen, also known as the Houthi rebellion, Sa'dah War or Sa'dah conflict is a civil war in Northern Yemen. It began in June 2004 when dissident cleric Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, head of the Shia Zaidiyyah sect, launched an uprising against the Yemeni government...
, since 2004 in Yemen - Civil war in Iraq, since ca. 2007, part of the larger War in Iraq (since 2003).
- Internal conflict in BurmaInternal conflict in BurmaThe internal conflict in Burma is a term that is employed to refer to the current violence in Burma that has existed since approximately April 1948 between the Burmese government and the various ethnic groups in the country. More recently, the conflict has been against the military regime that has...
since 1949, restarted in restarted 8–9 November 20102010–2011 Burma border clashesThe 2010-2011 Burma Border clashes are a series of ongoing skirmishes between the Myanmar Armed Forces and splinter brigades of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army . The clashes erupted along the border with Thailand shortly after the general election on 7 November 2010. An estimated 10,000...
See also
- List of coups d'état and coup attempts
- List of revolutions and rebellions
- List of wars of independence (national liberation)
- List of Roman civil wars
- List of English civil wars
- Ongoing warsOngoing warsThe following is a list of ongoing military conflicts that are taking place around the world and which continue to result in violent deaths. This list is for the sole purpose of identifying present-day conflicts and the death toll associated with each conflict.Fatality figures include both civilian...
- Exclusive mandateExclusive MandateAn exclusive mandate is a government's assertion of its legitimate authority over a certain territory, part of which another government controls with stable, de facto sovereignty...