Historical Time Periods Used For This Site
Historical time periods:
For purposes of searching for memorials, this site is divided historically into general time periods and then also broken down by location. The time periods cover general historical periods and are not connected to specific military developments such as tactics or weapons. The earliest period goes from prehistory to 476 C.E. and thus covers all of the ancient regimes. The medieval period covers from 476 to 1500. The more modern periods are divided into the following categories: 1500-1700, 1700-1900, 20th century and 21st century to present. Key subdivisions will be provided within each time period such as World War I and World War II. Individual entries will be tagged by time period, place and conflict in order to expedite the search process. For conflicts that fall into more than one time period, the conflict will be listed under the time period in which it began. As more individual entries are added, more subdivisions will be created as needed.
The Ancient Period: The Ancient Period will cover all military conflicts around the world up until approximately 476 C.E. or the Fall of Ancient Rome. These conflicts are very diverse and range across a wide spectrum from Assyrian warfare to the Warring States of China and beyond. Ancient military conflicts will mainly be focused upon the ancient civilizations found around the world. Individual conflicts will not be singled out , so for example there will not be separate pages for The Punic Wars and Roman Civil Wars. These individual conflicts will have tags so that one can search for them, however. Also one could search for Rome or Persia or Egypt during the ancient period. The time period will be divided by location more than time. Ancient conflicts have fewer memorials that have survived but they provide an excellent examination of warfare in ancient times. Most ancient memorials commemorate the exploits of powerful military or political leaders with little remembrance of the ordinary soldier or sailor who gave his life. And most surviving commemorations are structures.
The Medieval period: The Medieval Period includes the period from 476 to 1500. This middle period covers many small and large conflicts around the world as civilizations transitioned from ancient times to the modern period. This time period includes but is not limited to Crusades, Hundred Years War, Byzantine Empire, Mongol Empire, and Islamic Conquests.
1500-1700: The early modern period was wracked by a large number of conflicts. These included the Thirty Years War, English Civil War, Religious Wars in Europe, Colonial Wars, Suleiman’s Wars, and Babar’s wars in India.
1700-1900 This two hundred year period of war saw the completion of the transition to modern warfare with the development of modern standing armies. From the American Revolution to the Franco-Prussian War and the colonial wars in areas such as South Africa, this period saw the rise of powerful national armies and conflicts across the globe.
20th century (1900s): This century saw the world wracked by devastating conflicts that inflicted massive loss of life including large civilian casualties. Technological developments also led to the creation of weapons of mass destruction.
21st century (2000s): This century began with the 9/11 Attacks that led to wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. These conventional wars have proven to be long and deadly with unclear outcomes. Civil wars in many places such as Syria and Yemen have devastated societies and brought high death rates to civilians.