13 Times Nothing Was Fair in Love and War

After World War II, the British started Operation Masterdom. A task force that also included Indian and French soldiers fought Vietnamese forces for control of the territory after Japan's surrender. The last battle took place in Biên Hòa, where almost a thousand Vietnamese soldiers tried to occupy a camp, but were repelled by well-armed British and Indian soldiers. The battle lasted throughout the night and ended with more than 100 casualties from the Vietnamese forces, and none from the British.

This battle during the Gulf War is considered the last great tank battle of the 20th century. The British and American forces were trying to cut off the Iraqi forces' retreat from Kuwait in Operation Desert Sabre. While the Iraqis had more tanks, they were outnumbered and totally scattered after other battles, and they suffered heavy losses. The US and UK forces only lost six soldiers in battle.

Operation Weserubung was the start of Nazi Germany's Norwegian campaign after occupying Denmark without much resistance. The Germans went all-in with their Army, Navy, and Air Force soldiers, and Norway got help from the UK and France. All sides suffered heavy losses, with Norway losing more than 100 ships and its territory, instrumental for the rest of the war.

This ancient battle was fought in 53 BC, between the Roman Republic and the Parthian Empire. Seven legions of Romans were lured to fight in a desert against an army of heavy cataphracts and light horse archers. The Romans didn't have tactics for that kind of battle and had to endure constant attacks. It's considered one of the biggest defeats in Roman history.

This was one of Napoleon's biggest and most important battles, and that guy fought a lot. The French faced both the Russian and the Austrian Empire in 1805 and won, proving Napoleon was a tactical genius. He lured the enemies by weakening his right flank and made use of the mist to hide his troops. The odds were against him, and he knew it. The attacks against the French weren't well coordinated, which gave him another advantage to win.

In 1982, the Argentinian dictatorship invaded and occupied the Falkland Islands. Three days later, the British forces conducted a series of amphibious attacks on the islands, overpowering the Argentinian's old war tech and weapons. The conflict ended in ten weeks after Argentina's surrender.

The invasion of Poland marked the beginning of World War II and lasted only three days. According to Polish historians, between 300 and 700 Polish soldiers held the line against more than 40 thousand Germans.

The invasion lasted a month and ended with the capture of Baghdad by US soldiers aided by British, Australian, and Polish forces. Iraq lost tens of thousands of soldiers in that short period.

This battle took place in 1893 during the First Matabele War. A British Company of 700 soldiers was attacked by Ndebele Kingdom warriors during the night, but their superior firepower decimated the enemy. By the time they realized the outcome, the Ndebele forces had already lost more than a thousand men, and they retreated.

The war between Israel and a coalition of Arab states that included Egypt, Syria, and Jordan took place from 5 to 10 June 1967. Israel started the conflict by attacking unsuspecting Egyptian forces, destroying their aircrafts to have total control of the air. While Israel suffered 900 losses, the Arab coalition lost thousands in mere days.

This war in 1898 ended with the US gaining sovereignty over Puerto Rico, Cuba, Guam, and the Philippines. It lasted less than four months, and while the Americans suffered heavy casualties, the Spanish forces lost three to four times more.

Also known as the Paraguayan War, it's one of the deadliest Latin American conflicts in history. The Uruguayan War caused a new conflict between Paraguay and Brazil in 1864, and Argentina and Uruguay joined in 1865 to form the Triple Alliance with Brazil, completely outnumbering the Paraguayan forces. Paraguay lost 40% of its territory, which was divided between Argentina and Brazil, and both sides lost hundreds of thousands of men.

The shortest recorded war in history lasted 38 minutes. The United Kingdom faced the Sultanate of Zanzibar on 27 August 1896. Only one British sailor was wounded, while 500 Zanzibar soldiers were killed by the British Navy before they surrendered.