What was the most one-sided battle in history?

okay let`s talk about real battles and wars, not about those colonial wars from 15-19th centery. btw nobody did mention `amazing` victories of spanish army in new world? now about real battles, 1876 battle at vucji dol, montenegrians, inferior in numbers killed 8000 turks, and they had 70 dead and 118 wounded. what about that?
 
I think I would have to go with New Orleans, the final battle of The War of 1812. Jackson defends the city from an onslaught of thousands of British soldiers with only a few hundred men, many of which militia. Thermopyoles is a good runner up though, the Spartans were absolutely crazy man!!! :o They may have lost the battle, but they won the war. 8)
 
The most one sided battle, or the most one sided battle in which the underdog won.... I don't know the exact focus of this topic, it seems to me we're just trying to defend our focus of study.

In general, people would say Adrianople or Kiev just due to the fact of the mast number of people slaughtered there, but so many battles throughout history has ended in this way.... what about the battles during the last days of Ottoman empire during the Greek and Armenian Holocaust where villagers say Ottoman troops backed by German Artelliary support and refused to be exectued and ran up the mountainside to the old Roman Fortress and duked it out till the rebels could come and rescue them, or American equivalents, like the Alamo (though, not as successful) and the Battle of Little Bighorn, or Mao Tse-dong's early Soviet Republic in the 1920's constantly under attack? So many Samurai Armies have died in holding actions, and defeated Chinese generals would often times make thier last stand on bridges or passes where all their troops were within earshot, and found victory in the end.
 
So many battles that were heroic victories.

American

1. Battle of New Orleans, outgunned, outsupplied, outmanned, but not outlead. Astonishing victory over most professional army at the time.
2. Battle for Baltimore(War of 1812)same situation as before, just the Americans got the @#$% bombed out of them for like 2 days straight, it was at the time the largest concentrated artillery barrage in history. And they still won! This battle is always overlooked, but huge victory for America.
3. Chancellorsville- Lee at his best!
4. Marines on Guadalcanal. Outmanned, outgunned, and still held the ground.

Texas

1. Battle for San Jacinto. About 400-600 texas troops slaughtered and captured a professional mexican army of about 5000 troops.(And captured the Mexican General Santa Anna)
2. The Alamo. They still lost though. :roll:

England

1. Theres quite a bit, but thier biggest win I think would have to be Battle of Britain. If they lost that one, they lost thier little island.

France
1. Cant think of any decisive victories, help me out!

Germany

1. Kiev
2. France

But I think the largest, most decisive battle would have to go to the Greeks(Spartans, and Athenians) in battle of Thermopalie. 300 Greeks fought and won against 10,000 persians. It doesn't get any more onesided than that. And that was pure hand to hand fighting. No artillery, no rifles or bombs, just swords, spears, and lots of balls! Wow.
 
Big_Z said:
The final battle of New Orleans.

"Fin. The British forces withdrew through Lake Borgne and into the Gulf, firing on Fort St. Philip for over a week before sailing out to sea for good."
Click to expand...
Actually that's not quite true :roll:
The same British forces landed further down the Florida coast, and captured the US fort at Mobile, taking prisoner over 300 US regular troops.
It was this action which was the last connected to the War of 1812, not the Battle of New Orleans ;)
 
1991 Iraq was a major route.

1993 Mogadishu was a lopsided military victory that was turned into a political defeat.
 
What about the British colonial battle in the Sudan where the British army slaughtered thousands of the enemy with their Maxim guns and suffered a handful of casualties? I forget the name of it.
 
This is very small scale, but an example of the Australians in action. The battle of Long Tan in Viet Nam. 18th of August 1966
Basic rundown was the Australians were surrounded by a superior force, and kept that at bay for nearly 24 hours (i think) before reinforcement could be provided.

"D company was composed of 108 men of which 18 were killed and 24 were wounded. After the VC retreat, a search of the jungle discovered 245 VC bodies. Questioning of prisoners ascertained that the offensive force comprised the Viet Cong 275 regiment and the D445 Battalion. A total force of 2500 men"

As I say, this isn't a "big" battle in the conventional sense, but they were in a bad place, and in a bad way, out numbered and out gunned.
 
Based on one sidedness of the action. My vote is Pearl Harbor.


While reading up on this I couldn't find a number for Japanese casualties.
Would any of you historians happen to have this number handy, TIA
 
My favourite
1941 Britain v Italy

The British counter-attack on the Italian forces which had attacked Egypt, ending in the battle of Brada Fomm
A force of 50,000 British Commonwealth troops defeated an Italian army of 250,000, capturing 130,000 troops, 845 field guns, 380 tanks for a loss of under 2000 men.
 
Didn't all the japanese pilots die at Pearl Habor?I thought it was a suicide mission because if they survived they still didnt have enough fuel to get back.-shrugs- I could be completely wrong :shock:
 
WorldWatcher said:
Didn't all the japanese pilots die at Pearl Habor?I thought it was a suicide mission because if they survived they still didnt have enough fuel to get back.-shrugs- I could be completely wrong :shock:
Click to expand...

Lol no, Japan didnt start using kamikaze tactics until the end of the war. Stick around WorldWatcher, there is allot to learn here.
 
Agincourt get my vote for the most onesided battle in history.

Sick and starving the English were headed to Callis (sorry can't spell in french) and then home. At Agincourt they encountered an overwhelming French force bent on capturing Herny V and ransoming him to England. The French were crushed.
 
Agincourt was an amazing victory

what about the famous ''Bravo Two Zero'' SAS patrol in the 1st Gulf War...

8 SAS sent out to recce a supply route and blow up a communications line, ended up being compromised and having to retreat 200 miles. During this retreat they came upon fire and had to take out APC's and dodge 57mm AAA rounds. 3 were killed, 4 were captured, 1 escaped. During the mission they got 250 confirmed kills
 
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