DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER
805 KIDDER BREESE SE -- WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
WASHINGTON DC 20374-5060

Wars and Conflicts of the United States Navy

Overviews of Naval History

Dates in American Naval History

A list of notable dates in naval history, arranged by month and day.

History of the United States Navy by Michael A. Palmer.

Used by permission of Charles Scribner's Sons, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Macmillan from Encyclopedia of the American Military, John E. Jessup, Editor in Chief. Vol. I, pp. 365-380. Copyright c 1994, Charles Scribner's Sons, 1633 Broadway, New York, NY 10019.

Casualties: U.S. Navy and Marine Corps personnel killed and wounded in wars, conflicts and incidents with hostile forces, 1775-present.

Instances of Use of United States Forces Abroad, 1798 - 1993.

This Library of Congress report lists 234 instances in which the United States has used its armed forces abroad in situations of conflict or potential conflict or for other than normal peacetime purposes. It brings up to date a 1989 list that was compiled in part from various older lists and is intended primarily to provide a rough sketch survey of past U.S. military ventures abroad.

Naval History By Period

Documents on this home page are arranged chronologically for ease of access. The Battle Streamers contain a brief history of the Navy's role in the war, conflict or operation.

Revolution, 1775-1783	Quasi-War, 1798-1801	Barbary Wars, 1801-1805, 1815	War of 1812, 1812-1815	Slave Trade Patrols, 1820-1861	Anti-Piracy Patrols, 1822-1830s	Indian Wars, 1835-1842
Mexican War, 1846-1848	Civil War, 1861-1865	Spanish American War, 1898	Philippine Insurrection, 1899-1902	China Relief- Boxer Rebellion 1900-1901	Latin American Campaigns, 1906-1933	World War I, 1917-1918
Yangtze Service, 1926-27, 1930-32	China Service, 1937-39, 1945-57	World War II, 1941-1945	Cold War	Korean Conflict, 1950-1954	Vietnam Service, 1962-1975	Desert Shield-Desert Storm, 1991

• Revolutionary War 1775-1783
  • Battle Streamer: Revolutionary War 1775-1783
  • "Birthday" of the U.S. Navy
  • Bibliography: American Revolution, 1775-1783
  • Bibliography: American Revolution-Biography
  • Congress and the Continental Navy, 1775-1783: Chronology and Documents
  • Jones, John Paul
  • Officers of the Continental Navy and Marine Corps
  • Rules for the Regulation of the Navy of the United Colonies of North America, 1775
  • Vessels of the Continental Navy
• Quasi-War with France 1798-1801
  • Battle Streamer: Quasi-War with France 1798-1801
  • Bibliography: Quasi-War With France and Barbary Wars
  • Old Ironsides's Battle Record: Documents of USS Constitution's Illustrious Deeds
  • Officers, Famous in the U.S. Navy, 1794-1815: Select Reading List
  • Shipboard Life in the 19th Century
  • Uniform Regulations, 1797
• Barbary Wars 1801-1805, 1815
  • Battle Streamer: Barbary Wars 1801-1805, 1815
  • Officers, Famous in the U.S. Navy, 1794-1815: Select Reading List
  • Old Ironsides's Battle Record: Documents of USS Constitution's Illustrious Deeds
  • The United States' War with Tripoli (1801-05) and the War on Terrorism (2001-)
• War of 1812
  • Battle Streamer: War of 1812
  • Bibliography: War of 1812
  • Bibliography: War of 1812-Biography
  • Navy Regulations, 1814
  • Officers, Famous in the U.S. Navy, 1794-1815: Select Reading List
  • Officers of American Naval Victories in the War of 1812
  • Officers of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps in the War of 1812
  • Old Ironsides's Battle Record: Documents of USS Constitution's Illustrious Deeds
  • Uniform Regulations, 1814
• African Slave Trade Patrol 1820-1861
  • Battle Streamer: African Slave Trade Patrol 1820-1861
  • USS Alligator, submerged wreck of
  • Amistad and the U.S. Navy
  • Seizing a Slaver: Old Ironsides's Battle Record: Documents of USS Constitution's Illustrious Deeds
• Operations Against West Indian Pirates 1822-1830s
  • Battle Streamer: Operations Against West Indian Pirates 1822-1830s
• The Indian Wars 1835-1842
  • Battle Streamer: The Indian Wars 1835-1842
• Mexican War 1846-1848
  • Battle Streamer: Mexican War 1846-1848
  • Bibliography: Mexican War
• Civil War 1861-1865
  • CSS Alabama, submerged wreck of
  • Battle Streamer: Civil War 1861-1865
  • Bibliography: Civil War, 1861-1865
  • Bibliography: Civil War-Biography
  • Chronology of Events: Civil War
  • Documents of the Civil War, Selected
  • Emancipation Proclamation, General Order No. 4, 14 Jan. 1863
  • H.L. Hunley, submerged wreck of
  • Medal: Civil War
  • 1865 Register of Officers on Navy Yards, Shore Stations and Vessels
  • USS Tecumseh, submerged wreck of
  • Uniform Regulations, 1864
• Spanish-American War 1898
  • Battle Streamer: Spanish-American War 1898
  • Bibliography: Spanish-American War; Historical Overview and Select Bibliography
  • USS Maine, destruction of
  • Battle of Manila Bay
  • Medal: Battle of Manila Bay (Dewey Medal)
  • Medal: Spanish Campaign
  • Medal: West Indies Naval Campaign (Sampson Medal)
  • Medal: West Indies Campaign
  • Photographs: Spanish American War
  • Selected Naval Documents of the Spanish American War
  • "War Plans and Preparation and Their Impact on the U.S. Naval Operation in Spanish American War"
• Philippine Insurrection Campaign 1899-1902
  • Battle Streamer: Philippine Insurrection Campaign 1899-1902
  • Medal: Philippine Campaign
• China Relief Expedition 1900-1901 (Boxer Rebellion)
  • Battle Streamer: China Relief Expedition 1900-1901
  • Bibliography on the Boxer Rebellion
  • The Boxer Rebellion and the U.S. Navy (Frequently Asked Questions)
  • Documents of the Boxer Rebellion
  • Medal: China Relief Expedition
• Latin American Campaigns 1906-1933
  • Battle Streamer: Latin American Campaigns 1906-1920
  • Battle Streamer: Second Nicaraguan Campaign 1926-1933
  • Bibliography: Between World Wars, 1919-1941
  • Medal: Cuban Pacification
  • Medal: Nicaraguan Campaign
  • Medal: Mexican Service
  • Medal: Haitian Campaign (1915)
  • Medal: Haitian Campaign (1919-1920)
  • Medal: Dominican Campaign
  • Medal: Second Nicaraguan Campaign
• World War I 1917-1918
  • Naval Aviation in World War I (download as a .pdf file)
  • Battle Streamer: World War I 1917-1918
  • Bibliography: World War I, 1917-1918
  • American Naval Participation in the Great War (with special reference to the European Theater of Operations) by CAPT Dudley Knox
  • Homing Pigeons, Instruction on Reception, Care, and Training at U.S. Navy Air Bases
  • Medal: (World War I) Victory
  • Uniform Regulation: Navy Nurse Corps, 1917
  • Uniform Regulation: Women Reservist, Yeoman (F), 1918
• Yangtze Service 1926-1927, 1930-1932
  • Battle Streamer: Yangtze Service 1926-1927, 1930-1932
  • Medal: Yangtze Service
• China Service 1937-1939, 1945-1957
  • Battle Streamer: China Service 1937-1939, 1945-1957
  • Medal: China Service
  • Medal: Navy Expeditionary
• World War II
  • Abbreviations: Glossary of U.S. Naval Abbreviations, 1949
  • Aces, U.S. Navy and Marine Corps
  • Appendectomy on board a Submarine: Oral History
  • Armed Guard, Naval
  • Battle Streamer: American Theater 1941-1946
  • Battle Streamer: Asiatic-Pacific Theater 1941-1946
  • Battle Streamer: European-African-Middle Eastern Theater 1941-1946
  • Bibliography: World War II General Works
  • Bibliography: World War II-Atlantic Theater
  • Bibliography: World War II-Pacific Theater
  • Bibliography: World War II-Biography
  • Bismarck, German Battleship, sinking of
  • Bureau of Medicine and Surgery chronology from Navy Medicine
  • Casualties, World War II
  • Code Talkers, World War II
  • Code Words, Glossary of Naval (NAVEXOS P-474)
  • Combat Demolition Units, Naval
  • Communicaton Intelligence Contributions to World War II Submarine Warfare
  • Cruise Books of the United States Navy in World War II
  • Destroyers for Bases Agreement, 1940
  • Exercise Tiger, Training Exercise for Normandy
  • Fleet Admirals
  • German Espionage and Sabotage Against the U.S. during World War II
  • Indianapolis, USS, Loss of
  • Iwo Jima Flag Raising, oral history by Navy Participant
  • Juneau, USS, Loss of
  • Lend Lease Act, 1941
  • Medal: American Campaign
  • Medal: Asiatic-Pacific Campaign
  • Medal: European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign
  • Medal: Navy Expeditionary for Wake
  • Medal: American Defense Service
  • Medal: World War II Victory
  • Medal: Navy Occupation
  • Midway, Battle of, 4-7 June 1942
  • Naval Aviation Combat Statistics, World War II (download as .pdf file)
  • Naval Aviation in the Pacific (download as .pdf file)
  • Naval Expansion Act, 14 June 1940
  • Naval Expansion Act, 19 July 1940
  • Normandy Invasion, 6-25 June 1944
  • Operation Tiger
  • Oral Histories: Recollections of World War II Experiences
  • Pearl Harbor Attack, 7 December 1941
  • Port Chicago Naval Magazine Explosion, 17 July 1944
  • Presidents who served in the U.S. Navy in World War II
  • Prisoners of War, World War II
  • PT-109: Information on the vessel and Patrol Torpedo Boats
  • Q-Ships (anti-submarine vessels disguised as merchant ships)
  • Quonset and Nissen Huts
  • S-33, USS, submarine
  • Ships, U.S. Navy and Coast Guard, Sunk and Damaged in Action
  • Sullivan Brothers and Policy Towards Family Members Serving Together
  • Tokyo Bay: Surrender of Japan, 2 September 1945
  • Typhoon, 18 December 1944
  • Typhoon, June 1945
  • Typhoon, October 1945
  • U-505, Capture of, 4 June 1944
  • U-571, a brief history
  • U-1105, The submerged wreckage of
  • VT Fuze or Radio Proximity Fuze
• Cold War
  • Battle Streamer: Armed Forces Expeditionary Service, 1958-
  • Berlin Airlift: Naval Aviation's Involvement in
  • Bibliography: Postwar Years, 1946-1991
  • Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962
  • Dominican Republic Intervention, 1965
  • Grenada: Operation Urgent Fury, 1983
  • Medal for Humane Action-Berlin Airlift
  • Medal: Armed Forces Expeditionary
  • Operation Crossroads: Bikini Atoll
  • Pueblo, USS- Some Experiences Reported by Crew
  • U-2 and Aircraft Carrier Deployment
  • U.S. Navy in the Cold War Era, 1945-1991
• Korean Conflict 1950-1954
  • Assault from the Sea: The Amphibious Landing at Inchon (.pdf version)
  • Battle Streamer: Korean Service 1950-1954
  • Bibliography: Korean Conflict
  • Carrier- Korean Combat Action Reports
  • Carrier Air Groups- Korean Combat Action Reports
  • Chronology of U.S. Pacific Fleet Operations, 1950-1953
  • History of United Naval Operations: Korea by James A. Field, Jr.
  • Medal: National Defense Service
  • Medal: Korean Service
  • Naval Aviation's Involvement in the Korean War
  • Order of Battle for Carriers and Carrier-based Squadrons
  • Photographs: Korean War
  • Pirate, USS; Loss of 12 October 1950
  • "Remembering the Forgotten War: Korea, 1950-1953"
  • Ships, U.S. Navy, Sunk and Damages in Action During the Korean Conflict
  • Ships, Other Navy Commands and USMC Commands Eligible for Korean Service Medal
  • Special Operations in the Korean War, Navy
  • USN and USMC Tactical Aircraft operating in the Korean Theater
• Vietnam Service 1962-1975
  • Battle Streamer: Vietnam Service, 1962-1973
  • Bibliography: Conflict in Southeast Asia
  • Bibliography: Conflict in Southeast Asia- Biography
  • By Sea, Air, and Land: An Illustrated History of the U.S. Navy and the War in Southeast Asia
  • Enemy Aircraft shot down by Naval Aviators in Southeast Asia
  • Medal: Vietnam Service
  • Medal: Armed Forces Expeditionary
  • U.S. Medal of Honor Recipients with citations
  • Oral History: Vietnam Conflict, Post 1946
  • Order of Battle for Carriers and Carrier Based Squadrons in the Western Pacific (WESTPAC) and Vietnam (1964-1975) (also available as a .pdf file)
  • Prisoners of War - Some Experiences Report by
  • Religions of Vietnam
  • "Surprised at Tet: U.S. Naval Forces in Vietnam, 1968"
  • Tonkin Gulf Crisis, August 1964
  • United States Naval Operations (Monthly), Highlights
  • "The Vietnam Experience": an Online Art Exhibit
• Desert Shield/Desert Storm 1991-1992
  • Battle Streamer: Southwest Asia Service, 1991-1995
  • Bibliography: "United States Naval Forces in Desert Shield and Desert Storm: A Select Bibliography;" (also available as .pdf file)
  • History: "The United States Navy and The Persian Gulf"
  • History: "The U.S. Navy in Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm"
  • Medal: Southwest Asia Service
  • Naval Units participating in Desert Shield and Desert Storm
  • Role of Women in U.S. Military during Desert Shield/Desert Storm
• Kosovo Conflict, 1999
  • U.S. Naval Lessons Learned During Operation Allied Force, March-June 1999
• War Against Terrorism 2001-
  • Guide to Conflict with Iraq
  • Oral Histories from September 11, 2001 Attack, Operations Nobel Eagle and Enduring Freedom
  • Terrorism: A Navy Department Library Research Guide
  • The United States' War with Tripoli (1801-05) and the War on Terrorism (2001-)

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