When Americans think of the deadliest battles in U.S, history, their attention usually turns to the Civil War. Over 600,000 soldiers were killed, which was an extraordinary part of the population of men in America. Measured against the country’s population that would be about six million people. There were 51,000 casualties at Gettysburg, of which about seven thousand were deaths.
But, battles later in U.S. history were more deadly. The deadliest battle in U.S. history took place on foreign soil. Though the Civil War featured fierce fighting, the war’s battles were generally a few days long, and the deadliest single day of fighting, at Antietam, claimed roughly 3,600 lives. Yet in foreign conflicts, such as the World Wars and Korea, battles often stretched for weeks and even months, with thousands of troops killed.
To determine the deadliest battle in U.S. history, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the article The 18 Deadliest Battles in American Military History from History Collection. U.S. military engagements were ranked based on the number of troops killed in action.
Most Americans will likely be familiar with the deadliest conflicts. Names like Iwo Jima, the Battle of the Bulge, and Guadalcanal are taught in school as essential moments in American and world history. Many of these battles, and the heroic figures who fought in them, have been immortalized in classic films.
The deadliest battle in U.S. history was the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Here are the details:
> Est. U.S. deaths: 26,277
> War: World War I
> Location: France
> When: September – November 1918
Click here to read the deadliest battles in U.S. history
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