7 Wars Where the U.S. Army Lost the Most Lives

10 Foreign Wars Where the American Army Lost Many Lives:

• Mexican-American War 1846-1848 – This war was meant to be an American expansion proceeded by then-President James Polk, who wanted to extend the U.S. territories from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. The war started when Polk wanted to annex Texas, which gained its independence from Mexico in 1836, and after he was rebuffed when he tried to purchase California and New Mexico. At first, it was a one-sided conflict, because the U.S. overwhelmed Mexican forces. However, by the fall of 1847, the U.S. forces managed to make their way into Mexico City. The war finally ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo on February 2, 1848. The agreement was that the U.S. was about to annex Texas and buy all of Mexico’s territory north of the Rio Grande for only $15 million. The U.S. casualties in the war reached 1,733.
• Spanish-American War 1898 – In this particular conflict, America lost 385 of its soldiers. The war proved to be a crucial turning point in history. It defined the end of Spanish colonial rule in the western hemisphere because Spain lost both Cuba and Puerto Rico. In fact, Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory. The U.S. wrested the Pacific island of Guam from the Spanish forces, which made it a U.S. territory too. Some people even say that the American victory in the Spanish-American War was the first clue that the U.S. was to become a global power.
• World War I 1914-1918 – The U.S. didn’t become involved in the First World War until 1917, as we tried to stay as neutral as possible during the conflict. However, keeping that neutrality would become more and more difficult, as German naval forces kept on slinking U.S. merchant vessels. Even more, in 1915, the German U-boats sank an ocean liner, known as Lusitana, which killed two thousand people, including 128 Americans. Instantly, the American public became extremely incensed and the pressure to act became bigger and bigger. In April 1917, the U.S. finally declared war on Germany. America contributed with more than two million troops in this war and lost 53,402 people.
• World War II 1939-1945 – The Second World War made more U.S. casualties than any other war in American history. At first, just like in World War I, the U.S. leaders tried to stay neutral. However, on December 7, 1941, Japanese forces attacked the U.S. naval base Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Japan was a part of the Axis, which was a military alliance that included Germany and Italy. After the Japanese attack, Germany and Italy declared war on the U.S. and so did we. The American forces were the ones to turn the tide of the war in favor of the Allies. Some of the worst and bloodiest battles included the Battle of the Bulge, the Battle of Okinawa, the Battle of Iwo Jima, and the Battle of Guadalcanal. In this war, 291,557 U.S. service people lost their lives.