List of wars of independence

This article is about wars of secession by a breakaway region from a state. For wars of succession during succession crises, see List of wars of succession.

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
Find sources: "List of wars of independence" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (November 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

Part of a series on

War
(outline)

History

* Prehistoric
* Ancient
* Post-classical
* castles
* Early modern
* pike and shot
* napoleonic
* Late modern
* industrial
* fourth-gen

Military

* Organization
* Command and control
* Defense ministry
* Army
* Navy
* Air force
* Marines
* Coast guard
* Space force
* Reserves
* Regular / Irregular
* Ranks
* Standing army / Militia

* * *

* Specialties:
* Staff
* Engineers
* Intelligence
* Reconnaissance
* Medical
* Military police

* * *

* Land units:
* Infantry
* Armor
* Cavalry
* Artillery
* Special forces
* Signal corps

* * *

* Naval units:
* Frogman
* Warships
* Submarines
* Aircraft carriers
* Landing craft
* Auxiliary ships

* * *

* Air units:
* Fighters
* Bombers
* Command
* Close air support
* Electronic-warfare
* Reconnaissance

* * *

* Combat systems:
* Fire-control system
* Fire-control radar
* Director (military)
* Combat information center
* Sonar
* Radar

* * *

* Historical:
* Ship gun fire-control
* Gun data computer
* Torpedo data computer

* * *

* Development:
* Basic training
* Military manoeuvrers
* Combat training

Battlespace

* Aerospace
* Aerial
* Airborne
* Space

* * *

* Land
* Cold-region
* Desert
* Fortification
* Jungle
* Mountain
* Urban
* Subterranean
* Tunnel

* * *

* Sea
* Amphibious
* Blue
* Brown
* Green
* Surface
* Underwater
* Seabed

* * *

* Cyber
* Information

Weapons

* Air defence
* Armor
* Artillery
* Barrage
* Biological
* Camouflage
* Cavalry
* Horses
* Air cavalry
* Chemical
* Combined arms
* Conventional
* Cyber
* Denial
* Disinformation
* Drone / Robot
* Electromagnetic
* Infantry
* Loitering
* Missile
* Music
* Nuclear
* Psychological
* Radiological
* Unconventional

Tactics

List of military tactics

* Aerial
* Airlift
* Air assault
* Airbridge
* Airdrop
* Battle
* Cavalry
* Charge
* Counterattack
* Counterinsurgency
* Defeat in detail
* Foxhole
* Drone
* Envelopment
* Formation
* Guerrilla
* Naval
* Rapid dominance
* Encirclement
* Investment
* Siege
* Swarm
* Screen
* Tactical objective
* Target saturation
* Trench
* Withdrawal

Operational

* Military operation
* Operations research
* Blitzkrieg
* Expeditionary
* Deep operation
* Maneuver
* Operational manoeuvre group
* Raid
* Covert

Strategy

List of military strategies and concepts

* Military campaign
* Attrition
* Commerce raiding
* Counter-offensive
* Culminating
* Defence in depth
* Fabian
* Empty fort
* Mosaic
* Deception
* Defensive
* Depth
* Goal
* Nuclear
* Naval
* Offensive
* Scorched earth

Grand strategy

* Asymmetric
* Blockade
* Broken-backed
* Class
* Cold war
* Colonial
* Conquest
* Containment
* Divide and conquer
* Economic
* Endemic
* Fleet in being
* Irregular
* Liberation
* Limited
* Network-centric
* New generation
* Perpetual
* Political
* Princely
* Proxy
* Religious
* Resource
* Strategic
* Succession
* Technology
* Theater
* Total war
* World war

Administrative

* Branch
* Policy
* Staff
* Training
* Service
* Sociology

Organization

* Area of responsibility
* Chain of command
* Command and control
* Doctrine
* Principles of war
* Economy of force
* Medicine
* Engineers
* Intelligence
* Ranks
* Technology and equipment

Personnel

* Recruitment
* counter
* Conscription
* Mobilization
* Training
* Specialism
* Morale
* Women
* Children
* Transgender
* Harassment
* Conscientious objector
* Volunteer
* foreign
* Mercenary
* Soldier / Warrior

Logistics

* History
* War economy
* Military–industrial complex
* Arms industry
* Materiel
* Supply-chain management
* Base
* MOB
* FOB
* Outpost

Science

* Power projection
* Loss-of-strength gradient
* Lanchester's laws
* Force multiplication

Law

* Armistice
* Ceasefire
* Court-martial
* Desertion
* Geneva Conventions
* Geneva Protocol
* Islamic rules
* Justice
* Perfidy
* Jewish laws on war
* Right of conquest
* Rules of engagement
* Martial law
* War crime
* Penal military unit

Theory

* Air supremacy
* Appeasement
* Command of the sea
* Deterrence theory
* Full-spectrum dominance
* Overmatch
* Unrestricted Warfare
* Just war theory
* Principles of war
* Philosophy of war
* Security dilemma
* Tripwire force
* War games

Non-warfare

* Arms control
* Counter-insurgency
* deterrence
* Disaster response
* Grey-zone
* Gunboat diplomacy
* Humanitarian aid
* Law enforcement
* Low-intensity conflict
* Military engineering
* Multilateralism
* Peacekeeping
* Peacebuilding
* Peace through strength
* Show of force

Culture

* Awards and decorations
* Battle cry
* Warrior caste
* War film
* Military science fiction
* War novel
* Anti-war movement
* Foot drill
* War song
* Uniform
* Wargame

Related

* Women in war
* War resister
* War studies
* Horses in warfare
* Wartime sexual violence
* Fifth column

Lists

* Battles
* Military occupations
* Military terms
* Operations
* Sieges
* War crimes
* Wars
* Weapons
* Writers

* v
* t
* e

This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars). These wars may or may not have been successful in achieving a goal of independence.

## List

[edit]

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

Dates  | Name  | Independent state  | Original state  | Result

|
|
|
|

1038–1047  | Miecław's Rebellion | Miecław's State | Duchy of Poland | Defeat of Miecław; his state is reincorporated into Poland
1185–1188  | Uprising of Asen and Peter |  Bulgaria |  Byzantine Empire | Independence of Bulgaria from the Byzantine Empire; creation of the Second Bulgarian Empire
1296–1357  | Wars of Scottish Independence |  Scotland |  England | Scotland retains its status as an independent nation
1468–1500  | Kazakh War of Independence | Kazakh Khanate | Uzbek Khanate | Kazakh Khanate maintains independence from the Uzbek Khanate
1521–1523  | Swedish War of Liberation |  Sweden |  Kalmar Union | Independence of Sweden from the Kalmar Union
1568–1648  | Eighty Years' War |  Netherlands |  Spain | Independence of the Netherlands from Spain
1640–1668  | Portuguese Restoration War |  Portugal |  Spain | Restoration of Portuguese independence from Spain
1680–1707  | Maratha War of Independence |  Maratha Empire |  Mughal Empire | Mughals fail to annex Maratha Empire
1703–1711  | Rákóczi's War of Independence |  Hungary |  Holy Roman Empire | Limited autonomy for Hungary within the Habsburg monarchy
1775–1783  | American Revolutionary War
(United States War of Independence)  |  United States |  Great Britain | Independence of the United States from Great Britain
1791–1804  | Haitian Revolution |  Haiti |  France | Independence of Haiti from France
1804–1813  | First Serbian Uprising
(Serbian Revolution)  |  Serbia |  Ottoman Empire | Defeat of insurgents; Ottoman Empire retains control of Serbia
1808–1814  | Peninsular War |  Portugal

Spain

|  France | Independence of Portugal and Spain from France
1810s–1820s  | Latin American wars of independence |  Spanish Empire | Independence of many Spanish-American colonies from Spain
Argentine War of Independence |  Río de la Plata
Bolivian War of Independence |  Bolivia
Chilean War of Independence |  Chile
Colombian War of Independence |  Colombia
Ecuadorian War of Independence |  Ecuador
Mexican War of Independence |  Mexico
Peruvian War of Independence |  Peru
Venezuelan War of Independence |  Venezuela
1814  | Swedish–Norwegian War (1814) |  Norway |  Sweden | Partial independence of Norway within the later United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway
1815–1817  | Second Serbian Uprising
(Serbian Revolution)  |  Serbia |  Ottoman Empire | Semi-independence of Serbia within the Ottoman Empire
1821–1829  | Greek War of Independence |  Greece |  Ottoman Empire | Independence of Greece from the Ottoman Empire
1822–1824  | Brazilian War of Independence |  Brazil |  Portuguese Empire | Independence of the Empire of Brazil from the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves
1825–1828  | Cisplatine War |  Uruguay |  Brazil

Río de la Plata

| Disputed between the Empire of Brazil and United Provinces of the Río de la Plata. Independence of Uruguay from Brazil
1826–1831  | Separation of Venezuela and Ecuador |  Ecuador

Venezuela

|  Colombia | Venezuela and Ecuador declared independence from the Republic of Colombia. Dissolution of Gran Colombia and creation of the Republic of New Granada.
1830–1831  | November Uprising |  Poland |  Russia | Defeat of Polish insurgents. Russian retains control of Poland, introduction of the Organic Statute of the Kingdom of Poland, liquidation of Polish autonomy.
1830–1839  | Belgian Revolution |  Belgium |  Netherlands | Independence of Belgium from the Netherlands
1835–1845  | Ragamuffin War |  Riograndense Republic |  Brazil | The Riograndense Republic is dissolved; reintegration with Brazil
1835–1836  | Texas Revolution |  Texas |  Mexico | Independence of Texas from Mexico
1844–1856  | Dominican War of Independence |  Dominican Republic |  Haiti | Independence of Dominican Republic from Haiti
1846  | Bear Flag Revolt |  California |  Mexico | The California Republic declares independence from the Centralist Republic of Mexico. The republic is quickly annexed by the United States
1848–1849  | Italian War of Independence |  Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont |  Austria | Sardinia-Piedmont defeated by the Austrian Empire; Italian unification not achieved
1857–1858  | Indian War of Independence |  India
Pakistan
Bangladesh |  British East India Company | East India Company loses power to Great Britain, vide Government of India Act 1858.
1859  | Second Italian War of Independence |  Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont

Lombardy–Venetia

Parma

Modena

Tuscany

|  Austria | France and the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia defeat the Austrian Empire; most of the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia transferred to France and then to Piedmont-Sardinia; Duchy of Parma, Duchy of Modena, Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Papal Legations annexed by Piedmont-Sardinia
1861–1865  | American Civil War |  Confederate States |  United States (Union)  | Defeat and dissolution of the Confederacy; U.S. retains control of the South
1863–1865  | January Uprising |  Poland |  Russia | Defeat of Polish insurgents; Russia retains control of Poland
1863–1865  | Dominican Restoration War |  Dominican Republic |  Spain | Independence of Dominican Republic from 4 year occupation by the Spanish Empire; ousts Spain from Hispaniola
1866  | Third Italian War of Independence |  Veneto |  Austria | Austrian Empire loses Veneto to Kingdom of Italy
1868–1878  | Ten Years' War |  Cuba |  Spain | Defeat of insurgents; Spain retains control of Cuba
1869  | Red River Rebellion |  Métis |  Canada | Establishment of Provisional government of the Red River Colony
1876  | April Uprising |  Bulgaria |  Ottoman Empire | Defeat of Bulgarian nationalists by the Ottoman Empire; subsequent reprisals by the Ottomans led to the Russo-Turkish War, 1877–78 and the 1878 independence of Bulgaria from the Ottoman Empire.
1877  | Romanian War of Independence |  Romania |  Ottoman Empire | Independence of Romania from the Ottoman Empire
1896–1898  | Philippine Revolution |  Philippines |  Spain | Inconclusive; Philippines independence from Spain then achieved by Spanish–American War
1895–1898  | Cuban War of Independence |  Cuba |  Spain | Independence of Cuba from Spain following four years of American occupation
1899–1913  | Philippine–American War |  Philippines |  United States | Defeat of Philippine insurgents; United States retains control of the Philippines
1903  | Separation of Panama from Colombia |  Panama |  Colombia | Separation of Panama from Colombia and construction of the Panama Canal
1916–1918  | Arab Revolt |  Hejaz |  Ottoman Empire | Defeat of Arab aspirations for independence by post-World War I partition of Arab Ottoman Empire lands into protectorates controlled by United Kingdom and France
1917–1921  | Ukrainian War of Independence |  Ukraine |  Soviet Russia

Poland

| Independence of Ukraine from Russia; partition of Ukraine by Soviet Union and Poland
1918–1920  | Estonian War of Independence |  Estonia |  Soviet Russia | Independence of Estonia from Russian Empire/Russian SFSR
1918–1920  | Latvian War of Independence |  Latvia |  Soviet Russia | Independence of Latvia from Russian Empire/Russian SFSR
1918–1920  | Lithuanian War of Independence |  Lithuania |  Soviet Russia

Poland

| Independence of Lithuania from Russian Empire/Russian SFSR and Poland
1919–1921  | Irish War of Independence |  Ireland |  United Kingdom | Anglo-Irish Treaty; Partition of Ireland; secession of 26 of Ireland's 32 counties (the Irish Free State) from the United Kingdom
1919–1923  | Turkish War of Independence |  Turkey |  Ottoman Empire

Allies of World War I

| Creation of the Republic of Turkey
1920–1926  | Rif War |  Republic of the Rif |  Spain | Defeat of insurgents and Rif Republic; Spain retains control of Spanish Morocco
1936–1939  | Waziristan Uprising |  Waziristan |  British Empire | Rebellion suppressed
1942-1947  | Second Indian War of Independence |  Free India |  United Kingdom | INA captured parts of North-East India and Andaman & Nicobar Islands, later INA Trials triggered Bombay Mutiny & Royal Air Force mutiny which resulted in Indian Independence Act 1947[1]
1944–1948  | Jewish insurgency in Mandatory Palestine |  Israel |  United Kingdom | Independence of Israel from the United Kingdom
1945–1949  | Indonesian National Revolution |  Indonesia |  Netherlands | Independence of Indonesia from the Netherlands
1946–1954  | First Indochina War |  South Vietnam
Laos
Cambodia |  France | Independence of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia from France; partition of Vietnam
1947–1949  | 1948 Arab–Israeli War, aka Israel's War of Independence |  Israel |  United Kingdom

Arab League

| Defeat of Arabs; Israel retains independence
1952–1960  | Kenyan Mau Mau Uprising |  Kenya |  United Kingdom | Defeat of insurgents; United Kingdom retains control of Kenya
1954–1962  | Algerian War |  Algeria |  France | Independence of Algeria from France
1955–1972  | First Sudanese Civil War |  Southern Sudan |  Sudan | Conflict between Sudan and South Sudan
1961–1974  | Angolan War of Independence |  Angola |  Portugal | Independence of Angola from Portugal
1961–1991  | Eritrean War of Independence |  Eritrea |  Ethiopia | Independence of Eritrea from Ethiopia
1961–ongoing  | Papua conflict |  Free Papua |  Indonesia | Ongoing
1963–1974  | Guinea-Bissau War of Independence |  Guinea-Bissau |  Portugal | Independence of Guinea-Bissau from Portugal
1964–1974  | Mozambican War of Independence |  Mozambique |  Portugal | Independence of Mozambique from Portugal
1966–1988  | Namibian War of Independence |  Namibia |  South Africa | Independence of Namibia from South Africa
1967–1970  | Nigerian Civil War |  Biafra |  Nigeria | Defeat and dissolution of the Republic of Biafra
1971  | Bangladesh Liberation War |  Bangladesh |  Pakistan | Independence of Bangladesh from Pakistan
1975–ongoing  | Cabinda War |  Cabinda |  Angola | Ongoing
1975–1991  | Western Sahara War |  Western Sahara |  Morocco | Partition of Western Sahara between Morocco and Sahrawi Republic
1976–2005  | Insurgency in Aceh |  Free Aceh Movement |  Indonesia | Special autonomy granted to Aceh, disarmament of the GAM
1981–1991  | Somaliland War of Independence |  Somali National Movement |  Somalia | De facto independence of Somaliland from Somalia
1982–ongoing  | Casamance conflict |  Casamance |  Senegal | Low-level conflict since 2014
1983–2005  | Second Sudanese Civil War |  South Sudan |  Sudan | Independence of South Sudan from Sudan
1988–1994  | First Nagorno-Karabakh War |  Artsakh |  Azerbaijan | De facto independence of the Republic of Artsakh from Azerbaijan
1988–1998  | Bougainville Civil War |  Bougainville |  Papua New Guinea | Bougainville receives autonomy in 2002; voted in favour of independence in 2019
1990–1992  | Transnistria War |  Transnistria |  Moldova | De facto independence of Transnistria from Moldova
1991–1992  | South Ossetia War |  South Ossetia |  Georgia | De facto independence for South Ossetia from Georgia
1991  | Liberation of Kuwait |  Kuwait |  Iraq | Part of the Gulf War; Kuwait regains independence
1991–1995  | Croatian War of Independence |  Croatia |  Yugoslavia | Independence of Croatia from Yugoslavia
1991  | Ten-Day War |  Slovenia |  Yugoslavia | Independence of Slovenia from Yugoslavia
1992–1995  | Bosnian War |  Bosnia and Herzegovina |  FR Yugoslavia[2]
Croatia[2] | Independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina from SFR Yugoslavia; the new country is divided between two entities: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska[3]
1992–1993  | War in Abkhazia |  Abkhazia |  Georgia | De facto independence for Abkhazia from Georgia
1993–1996  | First Chechen War |  Chechen Republic of Ichkeria |  Russia | Chechnya maintains de facto independence from Russia
1998–1999  | Kosovo War |  Republic of Kosova |  Serbia & Montenegro | No legal changes to Yugoslav borders according to the Resolution 1244, but de facto independence of Kosovo from the rest of Yugoslavia
1999–2009  | Second Chechen War |  Chechen Republic of Ichkeria |  Russia | Defeat of Chechnya; reincorporation into Russia
2012  | Tuareg rebellion (2012) |  Azawad |  Mali | Unrecognized independence of Azawad from Mali; renounced its independence in 2013
2014–ongoing  | Russo-Ukrainian War |  Ukraine |  Russia | Also called a "rebirth," or a war of independence from Russia by some Ukrainian sources.[4][5][6]
2014–2022  | War in Donbas |  Donetsk People's Republic

Luhansk People's Republic

|  Ukraine | Part of the Russo-Ukrainian War; recognition of independence by Russia on 21 February 2022; annexed by Russia on September the same year.
2017–ongoing  | Anglophone Crisis |  Ambazonia |  Cameroon | Ongoing
2020–ongoing  | Western Togoland Rebellion |  Western Togoland |  Ghana | Ongoing

## See also

[edit]

* Lists of active separatist movements
* List of civil wars
* List of ongoing armed conflicts
* National liberation

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Bhat D. "RIN mutiny gave a jolt to the British". The Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-02.
2. ^ a b "ICTY: Conflict between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia". Archived from the original on 7 January 2019. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
3. ^ "The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina". OHR.int. Archived from the original on 4 June 2015. Retrieved 28 May 2015.
4. ^ "Ukraine will fight to the end: Zelenskyy's Independence Day vow". Al Jazeera. August 24, 2022. Archived from the original on August 31, 2022. "A new nation appeared in the world on February 24 at 4 o'clock in the morning. It was not born, but reborn."
5. ^ "Російсько-український конфлікт: проміжні підсумки" [The Russian-Ukrainian conflict: interim results]. DT.ua (in Ukrainian). 23 October 2015. "Currently, Ukraine is experiencing the third round of struggle for independence in 100 years"
6. ^ ""Війна на сході — це війна за незалежність України", — Зеленський в Польщі (відео)" ["The war in the east is a war for the independence of Ukraine," — Zelenskyy in Poland (video)]. FOCUS (in Ukrainian). 3 May 2021. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. "We have been fighting for independence for many decades. And today the same thing is happening in the east of our country. We are fighting for our independence again."

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template