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Peloponnesian War

(Encyclopedia)Peloponnesian War pĕlˈəpənēˈzhən [key], 431–404 b.c., decisive struggle in ancient Greece between Athens and Sparta. It ruined Athens, at least for a time. The rivalry between Athens' maritim...

Vietnam War

(Encyclopedia)Vietnam War, conflict in Southeast Asia, primarily fought in South Vietnam between government forces aided by the United States and guerrilla forces aided by North Vietnam. The war began soon after th...

Hiranuma, Kiichiro, Baron

(Encyclopedia)Hiranuma, Kiichiro, Baron kēˌēˈchērō hēräˈno͞omä [key], 1865–1952, Japanese statesman, founder of the Kokuhonsha, a powerful militaristic and reactionary society. He became minister of ju...

Russian Far East

(Encyclopedia)Russian Far East, formerly Soviet Far East, federal district (1989 est. pop. 7,941,000), c.2,400,000 sq mi (6,216,000 sq km), encompassing the entire northeast coast of Asia and including the Sakha Re...

Devolution, War of

(Encyclopedia)Devolution, War of, 1667–68, undertaken by Louis XIV for the conquest of the Spanish Netherlands. On her marriage to Louis, Marie Thérèse, daughter of Philip IV of Spain, had renounced her rights ...

English civil war

(Encyclopedia)English civil war, 1642–48, the conflict between King Charles I of England and a large body of his subjects, generally called the “parliamentarians,” that culminated in the defeat and execution ...

Finnish-Russian War

(Encyclopedia)Finnish-Russian War, 1939–40, war between Finland and the Soviet Union. After World War II broke out in Sept., 1939, the USSR, never on cordial terms with Finland, took advantage of its nonaggressio...

Franco-German War

(Encyclopedia)Franco-German War, 1870–71: see Franco-Prussian War. ...

Franco-Prussian War

(Encyclopedia)Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, 1870–71, conflict between France and Prussia that signaled the rise of German military power and imperialism. It was provoked by Otto von Bismarck (the Prus...

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