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HISTORY

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War

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Wars with the Highest Total Casualties

This list features the deadliest wars in history based on the death toll.

RANK

WAR

DEATH TOLL

DATES

PARTIES INVOLVED

LOCATION

1

World War II

50–85 million

1939–1945

Allied Powers vs. Axis Powers

Global

2

Mongol invasions and conquests

20–60 million

1207–1405

Mongol Empire vs. various states in Eurasia

Asia and Europe

3

An Lushan Rebellion

13–36 million

754–763

Tang Dynasty and Uyghur Khaganate vs. Yan Dynasty

China

4

Three Kingdoms War

34 million

220–280

Multiple sides

China

5

Taiping Rebellion

20–30 million

1850–1864

Qing Dynasty vs. Taiping Heavenly Kingdom

China

6

World War I

15–30 million

1914–1918

Allied Powers vs. Central Powers

Global

7

Manchu Conquest of China

25 million

1618–1683

Manchu vs. Ming Dynasty

China

8

Conquests of Timur

7–20 million

1369–1405

Timurid Empire vs. various states in Asia

Central Asia, West Asia, South Asia

9

Russian Civil War

7–12 million

1917–1922

Multiple sides; Bolsheviks, Anti-Bolshevik left, White Movement, Allied and Central Intervention

Russia

10

Thirty Years' War

4–12 million

1618–1648

Anti-Imperial Alliance vs. Imperial Alliance

Europe

11

Spanish conquest of Mexico

10.5 million

1519–1530

Spanish Empire and allies vs. Aztec Empire

Mexico

12

Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire

10 million

1533–1572

Spanish Empire vs. Inca Empire

South America

13

Chinese Civil War

4–9 million

1927–1949

Multiple sides; predominantly Communists vs. Kuomintang

China

14

Crusades

1–9 million

1095–1291

Originally Byzantine Empire vs. Seljuk Empire; evolved into Christians vs. Muslims

Europe and the Middle East

15

Reconquista

7 million

718–1492

Spanish and Portuguese Christians vs. Muslims

Iberian Peninsula


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References

Wikipedia, 2024. List of Wars by Death Toll. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wars_by_death_toll[Accessed: 1 December 2025]. National WWII Museum, 2024. Worldwide Deaths in World War II. Available at: https://www.nationalww2museum.org/students-teachers/student-resources/research-starters/research-starters-worldwide-deaths-world-war [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. National Park Service, 2024. World War II. Available at: https://www.nps.gov/eise/learn/historyculture/world-war-ii.htm[Accessed: 1 December 2025]. De Gruyter, 2024. Available at: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783111542737-007/html [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Necrometrics, 2024. Pre-1700 Death Tolls. Available at: https://necrometrics.com/pre1700a.htm [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Britannica, 2024. Taiping Rebellion. Available at: https://www.britannica.com/event/Taiping-Rebellion [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. National Museum of Australia, 2024. The First World War: Defining Moments. Available at: https://digital-classroom.nma.gov.au/learning-modules/first-world-war-defining-moments-1914-1918/13-how-did-death-one-man-start-world-war [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Statista, 2024. First World War Fatalities per Country. Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1208625/first-world-war-fatalities-per-country/ [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. South China Morning Post, 2024. History of Today’s Violence. Available at: https://www.scmp.com/article/983157/history-todays-violence-speck [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Business Insider, 2024. 5 of the 10 Deadliest Wars Began in China. Available at: https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/5-of-the-10-deadliest-wars-began-in-china/articleshow/44519269.cms [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. International Committee of the Red Cross, 2024. Thirty Years’ War: First Modern War. Available at: https://blogs.icrc.org/law-and-policy/2017/05/23/thirty-years-war-first-modern-war/ [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Remilitari, 2024. Available at: https://remilitari.com/guias/victimario9.htm [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Necrometrics, 2024. 20th Century Death Tolls. Available at: https://necrometrics.com/20c1m.htm [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2024. Available at: https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/457/article/901468 [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Council on Foreign Relations, 2024. Global Conflict Tracker: Violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Available at: https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/violence-democratic-republic-congo [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Reuters, 2024. Death Toll in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Available at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-congo-democratic-death-idUSL2280201220080122/ [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. British Medical Journal, 2024. Available at: https://www.bmj.com/content/336/7638/235.2 [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Universidad de los Andes, 2024. Ensayos de Historia Social. Available at: https://cienciassociales.uniandes.edu.co/historia-geografia/publicaciones/ensayos-de-historia-social/ [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Banco de la República, 2024. Available at: https://www.banrep.gov.co/sites/default/files/paginas/lbr_colonial_graficos3.pdf [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Borgen Project, 2024. Top 12 Deadliest Wars in History. Available at: https://borgenproject.org/top-12-deadliest-wars-in-history/ [Accessed: 1 December 2025]. Yahoo Finance, 2024. 20 Most Deadliest Wars in History. Available at: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/20-most-deadliest-wars-time-201920142.html [Accessed 1 December 2025].
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