The following is a list of the death toll of battles in world history. The list includes both sieges (not technically battles but usually yielding similar combat-related deaths) and civilian casualties during the battles.
Large battle casualty counts are almost impossible to calculate precisely. Many of these figures are estimates. Figures display numbers of all types of casualties when available (killed, wounded, missing, disease, captured/POW, etc.) but may only include number killed. This list does not include most bombing runs or missile strikes (such as the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki), which despite potentially massive casualties are not typically classified as "battles," since they are usually one-sided engagements. Tactical or strategic strikes, however, may form part of larger engagements which are themselves battles.
These refer to battles in which armies met on a single field of battle and fought, generally for one to several days. With more advanced weapons, military formations lost their impact and this type of battle died out in favor of grander military operations. Many of these battles are ancient, and in many cases, the few historical records differ, sometimes wildly, on casualties. For this reason, the range of modern estimates is preferred here.
| Battle |
Conflict |
Casualties |
Year |
| Battle of Salsu |
Goguryeo-Sui Wars |
0,097,000 ~302,300 casualties (mostly from drowning)[1] |
#0612 |
| Battle of Cannae |
Punic Wars (Second Punic War) |
0,092,000 92,000+ casualties[2] |
!9783 216 BC |
| Battle of Arausio |
Germanic Wars (Cimbrian War) |
0,080,000 84,000+ killed[3][4][5] |
!9894 105 BC |
| Battle of Plataea |
Greco-Persian Wars |
0,037,000 77,000 killed[6] to 257,000 killed[7] |
!9520 479 BC |
| Battle of Anchialus |
Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars |
0,037,000 ~80,000 killed[8] |
!9520 917 |
| Battle of Wagram |
Napoleonic Wars |
0,079,000 79,000 casualties[9] |
#1809 |
| Battle of Waterloo |
Napoleonic Wars |
0,047,000 47,000+ casualties[10] |
#1815 |
| Battle of Thermopylae |
Greco-Persian Wars |
0,022,300 22,300 casualties[7] |
!9519 480 BC |
| Battle of Towton |
Wars of the Roses |
0,026,193 28,000[11] |
#1461 |
| Battle of Antietam |
American Civil War |
0,026,193 26,193[12] |
#1862 |
| Battle of Fredericksburg |
American Civil War |
0,017,962 17,962[13] |
#1862 |
This list includes sieges, as well as modern battles that were fought almost exclusively in urban areas. Such battles were often very bloody, resulting in high loss of life. Battles that involved sieges or attacks on cities as secondary to the main operation are listed under "operations".
This list is sortable. Click the box next to a column heading to sort by that criterion.
This list includes major operations, i.e. prolonged battles or offensive operations fought over a large area.
| Operation |
Conflict |
Casualties |
Year |
| Battle of Leipzig |
Napoleonic Wars |
0,122,000 122,000 Casualties[18] |
#1813 |
| Battle of Shiloh |
American Civil War |
0,020,000 20,000+ Casualties[19] |
#1862 |
| Peninsula Campaign |
American Civil War |
0,036,463 36,463[20] |
#1862 |
| Battle of Chancellorsville |
American Civil War |
0,030,000 ~30,000[21] |
#1863 |
| Battle of Gettysburg |
American Civil War |
0,051,000 ~51,000[22] |
#1863 |
| Battle of Chickamauga |
American Civil War |
0,034,000 ~34,000 Casualties[23] |
#1863 |
| Overland Campaign |
American Civil War |
0,087,000 87,000[24] |
#1864 |
| Battle of Tannenberg |
World War I |
0,145,000 145,000 killed, wounded, and captured[25] |
#1914 |
| First Battle of the Marne |
World War I |
0,513,000 513,000[26] |
#1914 |
| Battle of Łódź |
World War I |
0,130,000 130,000[27] |
#1914 |
| Second Battle of Ypres |
World War I |
0,104,208 104,208[28] |
#1915 |
| Battle of Gallipoli |
World War I |
0,503,000 503,000[28] |
#1915 |
| Second Battle of Artois |
World War I |
0,186,000 186,000[28] |
#1915 |
| Second Battle of Champagne/Third Battle of Artois |
World War I |
0,440,000 440,000[28] |
#1915 |
| Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive |
World War I |
0,300,000 300,000[28] |
#1915 |
| Battle of Verdun |
World War I |
0,976,000 976,000[28] |
#1916 |
| Battle of Asiago |
World War I |
0,250,000 250,000[28] |
#1916 |
| Brusilov Offensive |
World War I |
1,600,000 1,600,000[28] |
#1916 |
| Battle of the Somme |
World War I |
1,215,000 1,215,000[28] |
#1916 |
| Romanian Campaign |
World War I |
0,240,000 240,000[28] |
#1916 |
| Battle of Messines |
World War I |
0,042,000 42,000[29] |
#1917 |
| Tenth Battle of the Isonzo |
World War I |
0,200,000 200,000[30] |
#1917 |
| Third Battle of Ypres |
World War I |
0,585,000 Over 585,000[31] |
#1917 |
| Operation Michael |
World War I |
1,046,000 1,046,000+[32] |
#1918 |
| Battle of Khalkhin Gol |
Soviet-Japanese Border Wars |
0,026,680 26,660[33] |
#1939 |
| Invasion of Poland |
World War II |
0,100,000 At least 100,000[34] |
#1939 |
| Winter War |
World War II |
0,225,000 225,000 dead[35] |
#1939-1940 |
| Operation Weserübung |
World War II |
0,010,000 10,000 dead[36] |
#1940 |
| Invasion of France and the Low Countries |
World War II |
0,202,750 202,740 dead[37] |
#1940 |
| Greco-Italian War |
World War II |
0,100,000 100,000[38] |
#1940-41 |
| Western Desert Campaign |
World War II |
0,080,039 80,039[39] |
#1941 |
| Battle of Greece |
World War II |
0,046,295 46,295[40] |
#1941 |
| Battle of Crete |
World War II |
0,016,007 16,007[41] |
#1941 |
| Operation Barbarossa |
World War II |
5,000,000 About 5,000,000, all causes[42] |
#1941 |
| Battle of Moscow |
World War II |
0,900,000 900,000[43] |
#1941 |
| Battle of Bataan/Battle of Corregidor |
World War II |
0,030,000 30,000, not including Allied prisoners[44] |
#1942 |
| Battle of Malaya/Battle of Singapore |
World War II |
0,143,800 143,800, and 60,000 prisoners[45] |
#1942 |
| Second Battle of El Alamein |
World War II |
0,082,500 Up to 82,500[46] |
#1942 |
| Guadalcanal Campaign |
World War II |
0,029,100 29,100[47] |
#1942-3 |
| Battle of Kursk |
World War II |
0,257,125 Up to 257,125[48] |
#1943 |
| Allied invasion of Sicily |
World War II |
0,036,000 At least 36,000, and over 100,000 Italian POWs[49] |
#1943 |
| Allied invasion of Italy |
World War II |
0,017,092 17,092[50] |
#1943 |
| Bougainville Campaign |
World War II |
0,021,929 21,929, and 23,571 Japanese prisoners[51] |
#1943-45 |
| Operation Shingle |
World War II |
0,052,200 52,200[52] |
#1944 |
| Normandy Landings |
World War II |
0,015,000 14,000 - 19,000[53] |
#1944 |
| Operation Bagration |
World War II |
1,430,000 Up to 1,430,000[54] |
#1944 |
| Battle of Saipan |
World War II |
0,043,500 43,500, including mass suicides[55] |
#1944 |
| Operation Market Garden |
World War II |
0,027,200 27,200[56] |
#1944 |
| Battle of Hürtgen Forest |
World War II |
0,063,000 63,000[57] |
#1944-45 |
| Battle of Leyte Gulf |
World War II |
0,012,000 12,000[58] |
#1944 |
| Battle of the Bulge |
World War II |
0,186,369 186,369[59] |
#1944-45 |
| Battle of Luzon |
World War II |
0,340,330 332,330-345,330, including sick[60] |
#1945 |
| Battle of Iwo Jima |
World War II |
0,044,821 44,821[61] |
#1945 |
| Battle of Okinawa |
World War II |
0,113,920 Over 113,920[62] |
#1945 |
| Liaoshen Campaign |
Chinese Civil War |
0,542,000 542,000 army causalities, killed, wounded or captured[63] |
#1948 |
| Huaihai Campaign |
Chinese Civil War |
0,689,000 689,000 army causalities, killed, wounded or captured[64] |
#1948 |
| Pingjin Campaign |
Chinese Civil War |
0,560,000 560,000 army causalities, killed, wounded or captured[65] |
#1949 |
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