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38 WARS : MATERIALS, FIRE ARMS, EQUIPMENTS & MISSILES:

Q1. What are Combat Vehicles?
Motorised vehicles used in modern warfare through land, water and air are known as combat vehicles. They are called as Combat Vehicles on Land, Combat Aircraft on Air and Combat Vessels on water.
Q2. Combat vehicles in land include?
Armoured Cars and Tank.
Q3. What are the types of Combat Aircrafts?
Airship, Bomber, Dirigible Balloon, Fighter Aircraft, Fighter Bomber.
Q4. What are the types of Combat Naval Vessels?
Aircraft Carrier: A warship designed to deploy and recover aircraft that is acting as a sea-going air-base. Battleship: A large battleship, heavily armoured with a main battery consisting of the largest caliber of guns. Battle Cruisers: Large warships - were in use during mid 20th century. Cruiser: A medium sized warship, a predecessor to the Battle Cruisers. Frigate: A type of warship. Destroyer: A fast and easy manouevrable, yet long endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, or battle group, and defend them against smaller, short range but powerful attackers. Submarines: A watercraft that can operate under water. Torpedo Boat: A relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry Torpedoes into battle. (Torpedo= self propelled explosive projectile weapon) Hovercraft: An amphibians (land and water) vehicle or craft designed to travel over any sufficiently smooth surface - land or water - supported by a cushion of slowly moving, low pressure air, ejected downwards against the surface close below it..
Q5. What are Bombs?
An explosive device that generates and releases its energy very rapidly, creating a violent destructive shock waves. Causes injury and destruction to living things and objects. They are generally used through air forces and by naval deviations.
Q6. What are the different classification of Bombs?
1. Conventional: Filled with chemical explosives.
2. Dispersive: Filled with submunitions, chemicals or other destructive agents which are spread on or shortly before impact.
3. NuclearHydrogen bomb is the most powerful nuclear bomb in existence. It's destructive power is measured in megatons of TNT.
Q7. What is the most powerful bombs ever used in recent times?
The bombs used in the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan during WW II, by United States. The bomb used Uranium 235 as the fission Material and its devastation measured at 13 kilotons of TNT.
Q8. Bombing is generally made by what means and when was the first bombing ever recorded?
Bombing is generally made by dropping from air. The first ever such recorded bombing was in October 1912 by Bulgarian Air Force.
Q9. What are the different types of Bombs?
Car Bomb: Improvised explosive device that is placed in a car or other similar vehicle and then exploded through various means like timer, remote control etc., Normally used by terrorist activities in assassinations, guerilla warfare etc., These are often fixed through trucks, cycles, tractors and other vehicles of choice. Chlorine Bomb: A small scale device using the pressure of chlorine gas to produce an explosion. It is made with air tight container part filled with rubbing alcohol or similar material. When a chlorine tablet is added, it produces an expansive pressure increase, shattering the container.
Cluster Bomb: Air dropped or ground launched that eject multiple smaller submunitions (bomblets). It causes damages at different locations at the same time.
Dirty Bomb: A radiological weapon which combines radioactive material with conventional explosive materials.
Dry Ice Bomb: A simple bomb typically made from a plastic bottle, water and dry ice. It is a simple and easy to construct, high bursting pressure and sound, make it more popular in recreational activity.
Earthquake Bomb: A very large free ball bomb developed by the British Aeronautical Engineer Barnes Watts in 1944 - weight 22000 pounds - intended for use against large and protected buildings, structures etc., Also called "Grand Slam Bomb".
Nail Bomb: An anti-personnel bomb, explosive device, packed with nails, to increase its wounding ability. Similar bombs with sharpnels like ball bearings, nail heads, broken razors, bits and pieces of metals are also added.
Napalm Bomb: Containing any number of inflammable liquids, used in warfare, often jellied gasoline.
Neutron Bomb: A tactical nuclear weapon developed specifically to release a relatively large portion of its energy as energetic neutron radiation.
Nuclear Bomb: A weapon which derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions of fission or fusion.
Pipe Bomb: A simple type of improvised explosive device, a tightly sealed Section of pipe filled with an explosive material. In this the fragments of the pipe itself acts as sharpnels.
Hand Grenade: A small hand held bomb designed to be thrown. Personnel who have trained in the use of this bomb are called Grenadiers. It is also fired from guns, launchers etc., Rifle loadable grenades and Rocket propelled grenades are also there. Landmines: A self contained explosive device designed to be placed onto or into the ground, exploding when triggered by an operator or self operated by a victim unknowingly or at the close proximity of a vehicle, personnel or animal. "Blue Peacock" is the most well known land mines. There are lot of varieties and types. It is the worst kind of bomb, as it kills or incapacitates animals or human being who have no relation with the movement, fight, battle etc., Global efforts are there to stop and ban the manufacture and use of this. Time Bomb: An improvised explosive device comprised of a battery, detonator, explosive charge and a timer. Designed to detonate by a preset timing. While it causes damages to life and property on being detonated, the planter of the bomb escapes by the time set for detonation.
Q10. What is Carpet Bombing?
Use of large number of unguided gravity bombs often with a high proportion Of incendiary bombs to attempt the complete destruction of a target region, means of demoralizing the enemy.
Q11. What is the expansion of RADAR?
Radio Detecting and Ranging. The word Radar was coined in 1941.
Q12. The Radar functions on...?
The system uses electromagnetic waves to identify the objects.
Q13. What are the uses of Radar?
It is used to identify the range, altitude, direction or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as aircrafts, ships, vehicles, weather formations and terrain. Its specific uses are in meteorological detection of precipitation, air traffic control, police detection of speeding vehicles and by military.
Q14. Who invented Radar?
Christian Hulsmeyer of England invented it in 1904. He used the radiowaves to detect the presence of distant metallic objects via radio waves and patented it.
Q15. What is the contribution of Nikholay Tesla towards development of Radar?
Nikholay Tesla - a Serbian American physicist and electrical engineer, in 1917, first established principles regarding frequency and power level for the first primitive Radar Units.
Q16. What contribution did Robert M. Page, USA make towards Radar?
He was the first to successfully test Monopulse Radar in 1934.
Q17. When did the modern day Radar came into use?
Between 1934 and 1936 on larger areas, after the radar of modern day was fully developed by Robert Watson Watt. Zoltan Bay of Hungary produced a working model in 1936 at the Tungstram Laboratory.
Q18. What are the various categories of Radars?
1. Early Warning Systems
2. Target Acquisition
3. Surface Search
4. Height Finder
5. Gap Filler
6. Target Tracking
7. Multi Function
8. Air borne intercept
9. Missile Guidance
10. Battle Field and Reconnaissance.
11. Air Traffic Control & Navigation
12. Space Range Instrumentation
13. Weather Sensing and Biological Research. Each category has different models, types meant for specific purpose.
Q19. What are Battle Tanks?
A tracked armoured combat vehicle designed to engage enemies head on, using fire from a large caliber gun, with supporting machine guns firing. It is a heavy armour and has high degree of mobility irrespective of the terrain. It is widely believed that tanks were first invented and used in the WWI.
Q20. Which was the first prototype tank developed?
Little Willie in UK in 1915.
Q21. Who was instrumental in developing tanks?
Winston Churchill - the first Lord of Admiralty.
Q22. Which was the first tank used in battle?
D1 - Mark 1 - used in 1916 in the battle of Flers-Courcellette as part of Battle of Somme.
Q23. What was Bren-Gun Carrier?
British designed military tank with machine gun platform widely used during WWII.
Q24. What are the famous Battle Tanks?
T - Series: Manufactured by Russia and widely used by various countries, including India. Type - 69: Manufactured by China and used by a few countries. TAM - Designed by Germany and manufactured in Argentina.
Q25. List the names of tanks manufactured and used by various countries?
M1 Abrams and Patton - United States of America. Leopard - Germany. MT-LB & T Series: Russia. M - 84 - Yugoslav (T72 Russian series). FV 101 - Scorpion - UK. PT 76 - Russia. Leclerc - France. Arjun, Vijayanta, T.72 - India. Zulfiqar - Iran. M 95 - Degman - Croatia. Merkava - Israel. C1 Ariete - Italy. Type 90 - Japan. Challenger 1 - UK Ch'onma - HO - Korea North. K1 - 88: South Korea. PT 91 - Poland. Khalid MBT 2000 - Pakistan. TR 85 - Romania. Centurion MK 5/2 - UK. T 84 - Ukraine. M41 - Walker Buldog - Uruguay. AMX 30 - France.
Q26. Where in India, Battle Tanks are manufactured?
Heavy Vehicles Factory and T72 Unit at Avadi, Chennai, Tamilnadu.
Q27. What is a Gun?
A common name given to an object that fires high velocity projectiles. A Variety of them available for different purposes.
Q28. Which was the forerunner in the development of Guns?
Arquebus: A primitive fire arm used between 15th to 17th centuries. Musket succeeded this fire arm. It was the forerunner of the rifle and other long fire arms of the present day. It was preceded by "Gonne" a hand held portable fire arm used from 14th century.
Q29. What are the various types of Guns?
Shot Gun, Rifle: Hand held guns coming in different varieties for different purposes. Air Soft Guns: Are spring, electric or gas powered air guns that fire small spherical plastic pellets of either 6 or 8 mm dia.
Gatling Gun: A field weapon, mounted on a wheeled cart, with multiple Rotating barrels turned by a hand crank. It is fired with Gun powder. Invented by Richard J. Gatling in 1861.
Q30. What are machine guns?
A fully automatic mounted or portable fire arm usually designed to rifle cartridges in quick succession from an ammunition bolt or large capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute. Its earlier version was the Gatling Gun which was a manually hand cranked machine gun. They are classified as light, medium and heavy and general purpose.
Q31. Who invented the first true Machine Gun?
Hiram Maxim in 1881 - American born British - The gun invented by him is known as Maxim Gun.
Q32. What are the various types of Machine Guns?
1. M2 Browning: Heavy - invented by John Browning.
2. Cei-Rigotti/ Circa 1900: Designed and developed by Cei Rigotti of Italian Army.
3. AVS 36: Russian - Automatic Gun.
4. MP 44: German - Automatic Gun.
5. , M2, M3: USA - made semi/automatic guns.
6. AR 15: US made automatic and semi automatic rifle.
Q33. Who designed the most talked about AK 47 machine gun?
Mikhail Kalashnikov, Russia - It came to be known as AK 47 as it was Popularized and standardized in 1947.
Q34. What are the types of Guns in use?
Hand Gun: Also known as Pistols. They come different types as single shot pistols, revolvers, semi automatic pistols, fully automatic pistols, and machine pistols.. A large varieties are there.
Recoilless Rifle: A lightweight weapon that allows the firing of a heavier projectile than would be practical with a recoiling weapon.
Revolver: It is a multishot fire arm, usually a hand gun, in which multiple firing chambers are grouped into a cylinder which rotates to align each round sequentially with a single barrel. Samuel Colt was the inventor of revolver.
Rifle: A firearm with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves Cut into the barrel walls. This pattern is known as rifling and produces raised areas or lands which make contact with the projectile (bullet), imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the orientation of the weapon. When the projectile leaves the barrel, the conservation of angular momentum improves accuracy and range. Normally used in warfare, competitive target shooting, hunting and sports shooting.
Sub-machine Gun: A fire arm that combines the automatic fire of a machine gun with the cartridge of a pistol and is usually between the two in weight and size.
Tank Gun: It is the main armament of a tank. Modern tank guns are large caliber high velocity guns, capable of firing kinetic energy penetrators, high explosive anti tank rounds, and in some cases guided missiles.
BB Guns: Are a type of air gun designed to fire usually spherical projectiles called BBs after the Bird shot pellets of approximately the same size. These are usually used for bird hunting. BB stands for "Ballistic Ball".
Howitzer: A type of artillery piece that is characterized by a relatively short barrel and the use of comparatively small explosive charges to propel projectiles at trajectories with a steep angle of descent. Cannon: Any large tubular fire arm designed to fire a heavy projectile over a long distance. They were in use even in primitive stages of cannons from 14th century.
Q35. What is Artillery?
A general term used for Guns by the military. They are also called as "Naval Guns" or "Tank Guns" depending on the use from the main base platform.
Q36. What is Musket?
Is a muzzle ( end of the barrel) loaded smooth bore long gun, which is Intended to be fired from the shoulder. The term "Musketeer" originated from this.
Q37. What is Flint Lock?
It is the term for the locking system or mechanism, introduced around 1630, remained in use for nearly two centuries, till it was replaced by other advanced techniques, like percussion cap and later cartridge based systems.
Q38. What is Muzzle Loader?
It may be any fire arm in which the firing material is loaded from the muzzle i.e. from the front of the gun to end of the barrel. Normally kept on a ground on a stand support, fired over short ranges. Also called "Mortars".
Q39. What is SLR with reference to Guns?
Self Loading Rifle.
Q40. In which city the famous gas operated light machine gun :Bren Gun was developed?
BRNO - Czech Republic.
Q41. What is Ammunition?
It is the firing material made of different compounds, mostly of chemical, encompassed in a shell of different material, in different proportions for different purposes.
Q42. What is Carcass?
A kind of bomb or shell, originally oblong or oval, and later spherical in Shape, consisting of an external casing filled with highly flammable matter and having three to five holes through which the internal flames could blaze outward. They were meant to be shot from Howitzers, Mortars and other Cannons.
Q43. Mention a few high profile projectiles or ammunitions?
M107-105MM: High explosive projectile for Howitzers. It is a bursting round with fragmentation and blast effects. There are different sizes and capabilities. M687 : It is chemical weapon artillery shell, containing two canisters separated by a rupture tank. The compartments were filled with two liquid percussor chemicals for Sarin (.....); Methyl Phosphonyl Diffluoride and a mixture of Isopropyl Amine is in the second canister. The Isopropyl Amine binds the hydrogen fluoride generated during the chemical reaction. When the shell is fired, the force of the acceleration would cause the disk between them to breach and the spinning of the projectile facilitated mixing. The percussor chemicals would react in flight to produce Sarin and when the shell reaches its target, the Sarin would be released. (Sarin = Organophosphorous compound - colourless and odourless liquid used as a chemical weapon).
M712 Copper Head: A Cannon launched, fin-stabilised, terminally and optically guided, explosive projectile, intended to engaged hard point targets such as tanks, howitzers or other high value targes, range of 3 Km to 16Kms. Can function only if the target is illuminated with a laser.
XM 982 Ex Calibur: An extended range guided artillery projectile with a range of upto 5 Kms.
Q44. What is a Missile?
A weapon or other objects like Spear, bullet or rocket etc., designed to be thrown or launched toward a target. When the same missile is guided technologically (electronic gadgets) to a precise target, it is termed as Guided Missile. Such a missile is only guided during the powered phase of flight and its course is governed by the laws of orbital mechanics and ballistics.
Q45. Who was the forerunner of missile usage?
Tipu Sultan in the Third and Fourth Anglo Mysore Wars during the later 18th century. Manned by a brigade called "Kushoons".
Q46. After Tipu Sultan, who developed the rockets or missiles?
Sir William Congreve of UK developed the rockets which were named as Congreve Rockets, in 1809 and were first used in the Battle of Leizpig in 1813.
Q47. How the Missiles are launched?
Being governed by laws of orbital mechanics and ballistics, they are called as "Ballistic Missiles". They can be launched from fixed sites or mobile launchers, vehicles, aircrafts, ships and submarines. They vary widely in range and use and often divided into different categories depending on their range.
Q48. Based on their range, how the missiles are classified?
SRBM - Short Range Ballistic Missile: Range is below 1000 Kms. MRBM - Medium Range Ballistic Missile: Range is 1000 to 3000+ Kms. IRBM - Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile: Range is 3000 to 5000 Kms. ICBM - Inter Continental Ballistic Missile.: Long Range - more than 5500 KMs.
Q49. What are the SRBMs used in the recent past?
V2 Rocket: The first ballistic missile and first man made object to be Launched into space, the progenitor of all modern rockets and a direct ancestor of the Saturn V Moon rocket. Manufactured by Germany and used against "Allies" targets in WWII. Its use in WWII (1944) has caused more than 7000 deaths. Scud: A series of tactical ballistic missile developed by the Russians. The name is generally used by all to similar missiles manufactured and used by other countries too. The Russians have renamed it as "R" series and the NATO has recorded it as "S" series. SS 21-Scarab: Introduced in 1976 by Russians. It is the name given by NATO and its Russian version is 9K79.
Q50. What are the various MRBMs - medium range ballistic missiles?
Agni Series: India - In this the Agni III has a range of about 3500 Kms and Can target cities like Beijing and Shanghai in China.
Dong Feng 21 - DF 21: Chinese - Range 3100 Kms.
Gauri : Pakistan - 2003 - Gauri III has a range of 4000 Kms.
Rodong: North Korea - introduced in the 1980s.
Shahang: Iran - 2003 - 2100 Kms.
SS 3 and SS 4: Russia - NATO reported MRBM - equivalent to R series. MRBMs are already in used in US, UK, France, Russia followed by India (Agni), Pakistan (Gauri), N.Korea (taepodong), Iran and Israel (Jericho).
Q51. What is ICBM - Inter Continental Ballistic Missiles - and which countries have developed/developing the same?
It is a long range, more than 5500 Kms - ballistic missile typically designed for nuclear weapons delivery, that is, delivering one or more warheads, carrying the most destructive force. US, Russia, France, UK and China have already developed the same, with India and Pakistan are developing it.
Q52. When from India has started developing missiles?
1958 - by Defence Research & Development Laboratory,
Pune. 1983 - Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme.
Q53. Who is considered as the father of Indian Missile Programmes?
Dr. A.P.J.Abdul Kalam.
Q54. What are the various Missile Programme Developments in India?
Prithvi Series: February 1988 - it was first test fired. It is a surface to surface short range ballistic missile - range of upto 350 Kms, differing in its variants. The designing and manufacturing of the Prithvi Series was codenamed "Operation Dhanush" and its variants are: Prithvi Series: Prithvi I: Army version 150 Kms - introduced in the Army in 1994. Prithvi II : Air Force version - 250 Kms. Prithvi III: Naval version - 350 Kms. Agni Series: It was the second series of missile programme to follow. It is a SR/IRBM first Tested in 1989. Agni I : 700 - 800 Kms. Agni II: 800 - 3000 Kms. Agni III: Upto 3500 Kms. Capable of reaching and targeting some western China cities. Successfully tested in July 2006 and April 2007.
Q55. Where is the Missile testing Centre of India?
Chandipur in Odisha - Wheeler Island off eastern coast of Odisha.
Q56. What is "Sagarika" a missile of India?
A nuclear cruise missile, capable of being mounted in ships and submarines, under development for use in submarines.
Q57. What are the various other missile programmes of India?
Akash: A medium Range surface to air missile, with an intercept range of 30 Kms. It flies at supersonic speed, reaching around 2.5 Mach and can reach an altitude of 18 Km. It is supported by a multi target, multifunction phased array control radar called "Rajendra" with a range of about 60 Kms. Trishul: A short range surface to air missile developed by India - range is about 12 Kms. Nag: India's third generation "Fire and Forget" anti-tank missile. It is an all weather "top attack missile" with a range of 4 to 7 Kms. Astra: It is an air to air, beyond visual range, missile under development. The range of this missile is 80 Km in head on chase and 15 Km in tail chase. It was successfully tested in May 2003 and March 2007. It is being developed for use in Indian Air Force planes viz: Mirage, Sea Harrier, Sukhoi 30 and Light Combat Vehicles/ Aircrafts.
Q58. What is the name of the ICBM under development by India?
SURYA - India's prestigious project. Expected to be introduced into use by 2015. Surya I has a range of 10000 Kms with Surya II aiming for 20000 Kms. Launchable from PSLV/GSLV launch pads.
Q59. Who is credited with the development of machine guns?
Surprisingly, Leonardo da Vinci the famous painter. He first designed an 8 Barreled gun in mid 19th century.
Q60. Expand AK-47?
Automatic Kalashnikov - 47 (47 for 1947 when it became very popular).
Q61. What are the first types of war machines, the tanks?
Big Willy and Little Willy.
Q62. Which war material is thrown after pulling out a pin?
Grenade (Hand).
Q63. Which was the earliest nuclear bomb used?
Little Boy during WWII.
Q64. What was the name of the project by which USA made its first atomic bomb in 1945?
Manhattan Project.
Q65. When were the tanks first used in a battle?
Battle of Somme, as part of WWI.

WARS ABROAD

Battle of Megiddo: 608 BC - Between Necho of Egypt and Josiah of Judahs. Egypt victorious.
Battle of Marathon: 490 BC - Between Athenians and Persians - King Darius Of Persia got defeated.
Battle of Thermo Plyae: 480 BC - Between Spartans led by Leonidas and Persians led by Xerxes.
Battle of Salamis: 480 BC - Between Athenian fleet and Persian fleet in Bay of Salamis. Persians defeated.
Battle of Platae: 479 BC - Between Greek and Persian fleets - Persians defeated.
Battle of Mycale: 479 BC - Between Greek and Persian fleets - Persians defeated.
Spartan War I: 459 BC - Also called the Peloponesian War - Between Spartans and Athenians - lasted for 30 years.
Spartan War II : 431 BC - Spartans and Athenians - Spartans victorious.
Battle of Arabia: 331 BC - Between Greek and Persian forces - Greek victorious.
First Punic War: 264-241 BC - Between Romans and Carthiginian over possession of Sicily. Romans victorious.
Second Punic War: 218-201 BC - Hannibal's invasion of Italy led to war. Eventually Hannibal (of Carthage) had to withdraw and surrender his army.
Third Punic War: 149-146 BC - Between Carthage and Romans - Carthage completely defeated.
Servile War: 73-71 BC - Also called the Slaves revolt - Spartacus a young gladiator along with 1000 others revolted against the strong Romans and perished.
Roman Invasion of Britain: 55 BC - Julius Caesar along with a big naval force attempted an invasion and returned to Rome without any success.

Second Roman Invasion of Britiain: 43 AD - General Aulus Pluntius and his army marched into Britain and defeated all opposition. The invasion was at the instance of Roman Emperor Cladius.

Battle of Mount Badon: 500-540 AD - Anglo Saxon invasion of Britain. Emergence of King Arthur as a Great King.

Battle of Malson: 991 AD - Danish successful invasion of Britain - taking advantage of a minor King Aethelre who was the son of Elfrida - She killed King Edward of England at Corte Castle to facilitate her son becoming the King.

Succession War: 1066 AD - To the throne of England between Harold Godwinson, Earl of Essex who got elected to the throne and other claimants William, Duke of Normandy and Harold Hardrada, King of Norway. Harold Godwinson won the battle which took place at Stamford Bridge.

The Hundred Year War: 1338 -1453AD: It is a war of succession for the French throne, between Edward III of England and the King Philip IV of France, without any heir, his nephew Edward III claimed the throne. This led to the confrontation leading to war between France and England intermittently, lasting the whole of 14th century and into mid 15th century. Henry V of England won eventually and by the Treaty of Troyes in 1420, the entire France came under English. However, the arrival of Joan of Arc in 1429, the battle revived and the English were completely phased out by 1453, excepting a small area Calais remaining under British.

War of the Roses: 1455-1485: It was a Civil war of Britain for the throne between the two royal houses of Lancaster and York between 1455 to 1485. It is called the "War of Roses", because the Yorkists chose the White Rose as their symbol and the Lancasterians chose the Red Rose as their symbol. The war went on for 30 years at regular intervals between the two sides represented by King Henry VI and his Lancastrians supporters versus Richard and Edward, Duke of York for the Yorkists. The War ended with the crowning Henry Tudor as King Henry VII.

Anglo Spanish War: 1588 - Spanish and English fleets fought in the English channel. Spanish got defeated.

Thirty Year of War: 1618-1648: A revolt between Lutherans and Protestant Christians, became a religious war and finally turned into an international political struggle involving France, Sweden and Germany. The War ended in 1648 with the Treaty of Westphalia.

Civil War in England: 1642-1649: Between King Charles I supporters, called Cavaliers and forces of Parliament led by Oliver Cromwell. King Charles I got executed.

Battle of Gibraltar Bay: 1607 - The Dutch defeated the Spaniards and the Portuguese.

Austrian War of Succession: 1740-1748: Queen of Austria Maria Teresa, daughter of Charles VII was challenged by King Frederick of PrussiEngland supported the Queen and Frederick was helped by France. Ended with a Treaty which recognized the Queen's right to the throne after the death of King Frederick.

Seven Year War 1756-1763: It was a war of struggle for European domination and colonial supremacy with Britain and Prussia on one side and the alliance of France, Austria and Russia on the other.Britain and France fought over the control of colonies of India and USFrance lost the struggle for colonial power and thus the power of British Empire rose in IndiAustria fought against Prussia to recapture Silesia, which it had lost earlier during the Austrian War of Succession. The War ended with the Treaties of Hubertsburg, signed in Paris in 1763, when British and Prussia gained considerably, when Britain won Canada through James Wolf' victory of Quebec, while Robert Clive's victory at Battle of Plassey. Prussia became the dominant power in Europe. The war lasted for seven years.

Battle of the Nile: 1798: When the French revolution spread to other parts of Europe, Britain and other countries declared war against France. The emergence of Napoleon Bonaparte and his capture of Egypt worried the British. The British deputed Admiral Horatio Nelson to suppress Napoleon's naval fleet marching towards IndiUnfortunately Nelson's ship "Vanguard" got damaged in a storm. Before Nelson could rearrange his fleet, Napoleon marched by Sea to AlexandriHowever, Nelson was able to meet the Napoleon fleet on 1.8.1798 and destroyed most of Napoleon's fleet and his advancement towards India was thwarted.

Battle of Trafalgar: 1805: Fought between British naval fleet commanded by Admiral Nelson and Franco-Spanish fleet led by French Admiral Villeneuve at Cape Trafalgar. In October 1805, while French fleet were defeated, Admiral Nelson got killed. The defeat of the French prevented Napoleon's desire of capturing Britain.

Battle of Austerlitz: 1805: Napoleon's capture of Prussia and Austria, prompted the already aligned forces, to wage a war against Napoleon with a strong force of 85000. However, Napoleon with few thousand lesser force managed to defeat the allies, inflicting heavy casualities to Russian and Austrian forces. The war ended with the "Treaty of Pressburg" signed by Alexander I of Russia and Francis II of AustriThis victory was Napoleon's greatest victories.

Battle of Borodino: 1812 - Napoleon's ill fated attack on Russia, where Napoleon lost a majority of his forces due to extreme cold and shortage of food and had to retreat. This war and setback marked the beginning of down fall of French Empire.

Battle of Leipzig: 1813 - Germany with its allies Austria, Prussia and Russia defeated Napoleon.

Battle of Waterloo: 1814-1815 - Napoleon's last and greatest defeat in battle. Allied forces of Russia, Austria, Britain, Germany and Belgium together captured Paris, France. Napoleon was exiled to Island Elba in the Mediterranean Sea, he escaped from this place with the support of King Louis XVIII - with a troop of more than a lakh marched towards Belgium, while the allies Austrians, Russians and Duke of Wellington with Dutch, German and Belgian troops, organized attack from all sides. Napoleon lost many of his best marshals and the battle. Napoleon was abdicated and exiled to the Island of St. Helena, South Atlantic where he died in 1821.

First China War: 1840 - It is called the "Opium War". It was a trade war between China and England. It was against the British carrying on illegal trading of Opium with Chinese merchants. China forced British to surrender the Opium and attacked British warship. In turn, British with the support of France and other European countries, resorted to military action against Chin China succumbed to the pressure and renewed opium trade with Britain.

Crimean War: 1854 - The war arose out of disputes in the Turkish empire and the fear of Russian expansion. It all began with a dispute over the rights of Christians in the Turkish empire, with Russians claimed to be protecting Christians. Russians moved into the outlying provinces of Turkish Sultan, and declared war in 1854. Britain and France supported and reached Crimea in September 1854, defeating the Russians on the banks of River AlmThe war ended with Treaty of Paris in 1856. But, the war brought to the world the noble service of Nursing. Florence Nightingale of Britain, reorganized hospitals and devoted herself to the wounded soldiers. She was assisted by 38 nurses. For this service, she was named the "Lady with the Lamp".

American Civil War: 1861-1865: Between northern and southern states of America on the issue of abolition of slavery. Abraham Lincoln representing north, defeated the southern states.

Boer War: 1899-1901 - Boers belonged to the Dutch Protestant stock, who opposed the British' presence when slavery was abolished in Britain too. The revolt of the Transvaal Boers was suppressed by the British forces.

Russo-Japanese War: 1903 - It is also called the Battle of Port Arthur and Battle of Yalu. The war was between Russia and Japan in the sea of Japan. Russia was defeated.

Balkan War I: 1912 - Between Turkey and the Balkan countries of Montenegro, Serbia, Bulgaria and Greece. Turkey was defeated.

Balkan War II: 1913 - Invasion of Serbia and Greece by BulgariBulgaria was defeated by the combined forces of Serbia, Greece, RomaniTurkey was stripped of its European territories by Montenegro.

World War I : 1914-1918 - Archduke Ferdinand, the heir to the Austrian throne was murdered by a Serbian at Sarajevo. France and Germany's rivalry is also a major reason for the war. Besides the above two reasons, the distrust, hatred, rivalry, patriotism, imperialism, military capabilities, between the two factions of countries, were also contributing factors for the war. Thus, no particular country could be fixed of the responsibility for the war. The war was between two factions: 1.Central Powers: Germany, Austria, Hungary, Turkey, Bulgari2.Allied Powers: Comprised mainly of England, France, Belgium and Serbia and later joined by Russia and Italy in 1915 and 1917 respectively. The Central powers suffered heavy casualities and were defeated badly. The war concluded by the Treaty of Versailles, France in 1919. The treaty had a telling effect on Germany and on its allies, by way of loss of territory, colonies, their military powers reduced considerably and a large indemnity forced on them. Another major effect of the war was rearrangement of boundaries of Europe and the birth of new countries like Poland, Yugoslavia, Lithuania, Estonia etc., During the period of WW I, a separate war between England and Germany - a naval war - was also fought in which Germany was defeated. The War was called the Jutland War.

World War II: 1939-1945 - There are many reasons for the happening of WWII. 1.The unjust Treaty of Versailles. 2.Behaviour of France 3.Rise of Nazi's Germany. 4.Italy's dissatisfaction over the Treaty of Versailles. 5.Japan's expansion. 6.England's imperialistic attitude. The effect of Treaty of Versailles reduced Germany to a weak and humiliated nation. Economic crisis cropped up in Germany. At this time, Adolf Hitler joined the German Workers' Party in 1919, which later became the National Socialist Workers' Party (Nazi Party). He became the Chancellor of Germany, then a dictator and then the President. Adolf Hitler, joined hands with Mussolini of Italy (he was a fascist leader) and broke the Treaty of Versailles by capturing Rhineland of France in 1936. He also annexed Vienna and AustriHe also captured Czechoslovakia in 1939. This aggressive attitude of Germany and Hitler, alarmed Britain and France. Adolf Hitler was emerging as a great dictator in Europe and demanded a corridor to link Germany with Prussia and surrender of the Port of Danzing, which Poland rejected. This forced Germany to attack Poland on 1.9.1939. Britain and France under obligation to support Poland, joined the war against Germany on 3.9.1939. There were two factions involved World War II - namely- 1.Axis Powers: Also called the Central Powers which mainly included Germany, Italy and Japan. 2.Allied Powers: This group comprised of Britain, France, Russia, USA, Poland and other countries. The events of the beginning and ending of WWII are as follows: 1939: Germany attacked Poland - Britain and France declared war against Germany. 1940: Germany attacked France. Italy declared war against France and Britain - France surrendered - Aerial attacks on Britain - War intensified in England. 1941: Germany attacked Russia - America declared war against Japan, Germany and Italy. 1942: Japan captured Singapore - Subhas Chandra Bose formed Indian National Army - Japan suffered heavy losses at the hands of American forces in the battle of Coral Se1943: Germany got defeated at the Battle of Bismarck, Stalingrad - America defeated Japan in a naval battle - Italy invaded by the Allies - Italy entered into an Armistice with the Allies. 1944: Rome fell to the allies - Under the command of General Ike (Eisenhower) Allied Forces invaded Normandy - Paris got liberated. 1945: Germany surrendered to the Allies - USA dropped atom bomb at Hiroshima and Nagasaki - Japan surrendered - Armistice signed - UN Established.

Effects of World War II: 1.Adolf Hitler committed suicide on 30.4.1945. 2.Germany got divided into two - East Germany was controlled by Russia and West Germany came under the Allies viz - England, France and Americ3.Italy got deprived of its colonies. 4.Russia emerged as the single largest/biggest power in the world. 5.Asian countries like India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Egypt etc. applied political pressure for freedom. 6.Japan suffered the history's worst damages when USA dropped first atom bomb on 6.8.1945 at Hiroshima and the second one on 9.8.1945 at Nagasaki. 7.Japan surrendered unconditionally on 14.8.1945 and WWII came to an end. 8.United Nations was formed in 1945.

Desert War: 1942 - Italian army from Libya invaded Egypt in order to attack British forces as part of WW II.

Israel - Arab War : 1967 - Also called the 6 day war. In May 1967 Egypt demanded the withdrawal of US Peace Keeping Force stationed along Israel-Egypt border, which unfortunately erupted into a full scale war. Israel gained upperhand when it made air attack on Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Iraq. UN's call for peace was not accepted until June 10, by which time Israel had achieved substantial territorial gains. The peace was, however, an uneasy one during the following years and on October 5, 1973 war again broke out as Egypt claimed the territories lost in the six day war. Fighting continued till October 22, 1973 and the situation remains status quo thereafter.

Gulf War: 1991 - Iraqi forces entered into Kuwait. US led multinational forces attacked Iraq and ousted its forces. Lasted for 42 days.

US Afghanistan War : 2001 - In retaliation to the terrorist attack in USA in September 2001, the USA led coalition forces attacked Afghanistan to bring down the Taliban regime.

Gulf War II : 2003 - US led coalition forces dethroned Iraqi forces and the President Saddam Hussein ousted and later executed.

INDIAN WARS

Kurukshetra War: Between Pandavas and Kauravas as is known to us from the Hindu Epic Mahabharata. It lasted for 18 days.

Battle of Hydaes Pass: 326 BC - Between Alexander the Great (Greek) and Porous the Hindu King of Punjab on the banks of River Jhelum (called as Hydaespass by the Greeks) in which Alexander won. But appreciating the valour of Porous, he returned the territory to Porous and returned back. However, the war opened up the route for later invaders and also relations with the western world.

Kalinga War: 265-264 BC - Between Ashoka the Great and Kalinga state (odisha) Commanded by Raja Ananta Padmanabha. Ashoka won the battle but it turned out to be the turning point in the life of Ashoka and he converted to Buddhism.

Battle of Thaneshwar : 1191 AD - Also known as Battle of Tarain. Between Prithviraj Chauhan of the Hindu Chauhan dynasty ruling Ajmer and Delhi - successfully defended Muhammad Ghori's invasion.

Battle of Thaneshwar II : 1192 AD - Muhammad Ghori defeated Prithviraj Chauhan, took him to Ghazni and executed him. This paved the way for the establishment of Islamic rule in Delhi/India.

I Battle of Panipat: 1526 AD - Babur versus Ibrahim Lodi - Babur won and Mughal Empire established in India.

Battle of Kanwah: 1527 AD - Babur Vs Rana Sangha - Babur won.

Battle of Kannauj : 1540 AD - Between Humayun and Sher Shah (Afghan) - Sher Shah won the battle and became emperor of India.

II Battle of Panipat: 1556 - Between Akbar and Hemu ( Samrat Hem Chandra Vikramaaditya) - Akbar won the battle and strengthened the Mughal rule.

Battle of Talikota: -1564-65: Between combined forces of four muslim rulers of Deccan (Andhra Pradesh) and Aliya Ramaraya of Vijayanagar - The Muslim forces won -Hindu Kingdom of Deccan destroyed and the fortunes of Vijayanagar Empire sealed. The Muslim rulers included Adil Shah I, Ibrahim Quli Qutub Shah Wali etc.,

Battle of Haldighatti : 1576 AD - Between Rana Prata and Akbar - Akbar won.

Battle of Samugarh : 1659 AD - Between Aurangazeb and imperial (Mughal) forces led by Dara Shikoh - it was a war of succession - Aurangazeb won and captured the Mughal throne.

Battle of Plassey: 1757 AD - Between Siraj-ud-daula and British forces led by Robert Clive. The English have won and established their supremacy over Bengal and founded the British Rule. An important battle which laid the foundation for British rule in India.

III Battle of Panipat: 1761 AD - Between Ahmad Shah Abdali and Marathas. Ahamad Shah won - It was a set back to Marathas and their further growth prevented - British advancement made easy.

Battle of Buxar: 1764 AD - Between Muslim alliance (Mir Qasim, Shuja ud Daula, and Shah Alam II )forces and the British - British won and established their occupation in India. (Buxar is in Bihar).

Carnatic War I : 1745-1748 - Between Nawab of Carnatic and the French. French won.

Carnatic War II: 1749-1754 - Between French and British in support of the dethroned Arcot Nawab - British won and restored Nawab to the Carnatic region.

Carnatic War III : 1758-1763 - Between British and French to establish their supremacy in the South. British won and French allowed to retain some small areas as their colony until independence. Thereafter French activity in the South was nil.

Anglo Mysore War I: 1766-1769 - Haider Ali and Wodeyars Vs British with their allies Nizam of Hyderabad and the Maraths. Haider won the battle.

Anglo Mysore War II: 1780-1784 - Haider Ali Vs British - Haider and his son Tipu Sultan inflicted some major defeats on the British. Treaty of Mangalore concluded.

Anglo Mysore War III: 1790-1792 - Tipu Sultan Vs British led by Lord Cornwallis -Tipu Sultan suffered set back and loss of territory.

Anglo Mysore War IV: 1799 - Tipu Sultan Vs British led by Lord Welleslely - Tipu Sultan was defeated and also died of defending Srirangapattinam. Wodeyars restored to power.

Anglo Maratha War I: 1775-1782 - Marathas Vs British - Although the British suffered defeat at Talegaon, the entire central region was captured by the British.

Anglo Maratha War II: 1803-1805 - British defeated Scindhias and Bhonsles in the Battle of Assays and Argon in 1803. Unable to defeat the Holkars, the British entered into the Treaty of Rajpurghat.

Anglo Maratha War III: 1817-1818 - British won over the rest of the Marathas and brought the entire western region under them.

Anglo Sikh War I: 1845-1846 - British won over Lal Singh and Tej Singh and brought Lahore and other Punjab region under their control.

Anglo Sikh War II: 1848-1849 - British won over complete Punjab and appointed their own Commissioner for administering the region.

First Kashmir War: 1947-1948: Immediately after the independence, the ruler of Kashmir Hari Singh had the options - either joining India or Pakistan or remain independent. The ruler decided to remain independent. At that point the Pakistani forces, deciding to take advantage of the situation, invaded and captured some NW region like Muzzafarabad. At this point the ruler decided to join Indian Union and signed the Instrument of Accession and sought the help of India to defend its territories and recover them. Thus India deputed its army and successfully thwarted further advancement of the Pakistani forces and before the captured region could be recovered, the UN Security Council ordered a Cease Fire in January 1949 and India had to agree to it. Thus the captured region remains as "Pakistan Occupied Kashmire" and remains a controversial issue since then, even by 2011.

Sino Indian War: 1962 (20th October to 21st November 1962) - China Vs India -China during the rule of Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai invaded India through the NE region, crossed the McMohan Line and occupied Akshai Chin. Fierce battle took place for a month - China withdrew, but some portions of Tibet and Akshai Chin Area went into the control of China.

Indo Pak War: 1965 - India Vs Pakistan - Called the II Kashmir War - The war was a culmination of series of exchanges, between April to September 1965. It was the failure of Pakistan's "Operation Gibraltar" to occupy Kashmir. The war ended on UN's advice for a ceasefire. The actual full scale war took place between August to September 1965. The cease fire was signed at Tashkent/Russia (now in Uzbekistan) by PM Lal Bahadur Shastri. Unfortunately, Lal Bahadur Shastri died there, by a heart attack.

Indo Pak War: 1971 - March - April 1971 - It was a war by which Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan) was liberated.The result of an election in 1970 in Pakistan created a split among the Bengalis of East Pakistan and the West Pakistan ministrators. The tension escalated in March 1971. At this point, Sheikh Mujibur Rehman and his party Awami League launched a Civil Disobedience movement and gave the can for independence from Pakistan. On March 23, 1971, the Republic Day of Pakistan, people in East Pakistan pulled down Pakistani Flag and hoisted their own. This triggered the severe fighting between "Mukti Bahini" the separatist group of Awami League and the Pakistani Military forces stationed there. As the fighting intensity increased, the Indian forces intervened to support the liberation movement. The Pakistani forces were defeated and East Pakistan got liberated to become Bangladesh on April 17,1971.

Kargil War: 1999 - May to July 1999 - An armed conflict between India and Pakistan in the Kargil region of Kashmir, due to the infiltration of Pakistani soldiers and militants into Indian territory. Pakistan withdrew and India regained its territory.

WARS OF INDEPENDENCE

Q66. What are wars of independence?
Generally wars are fought between two factions or countries mostly to acquire new territories, expansion or for other socio-political reasons. However, there are certain wars, which were solely fought to attain independence from a foreign or autocratic ruler. These wars are called the Wars of Independence.
Q67. What are the famous Wars of Independence in modern times?
1. American War of Independence - 1775 - 1783. 2. Greek War of Independence 1821 - 1830 3. Belgian War of Independence 1830 4. Algerian War of Independence 1947 - 1962 5. Indo Pak War of Bangladesh 1971.
Q68. What was American War of Independence?
It is also known as "American Revolution". Of the number of colonies, 13 colonies waged full scale revolutionary activities and war for independence. Great Britain was controlling the territories of America prior to its independence. Its policies against the natives, triggered the discontentment and acts of rebellion and hostility, turned into a war between the British and the natives/settlers. The first such warring shots were exchanged on April 19,1775 at Lexington. Subsequently, the wars took place at Bunker Hill, Charlestown, New York and Philadephia in 1776 and 1777 in which British won all of them. At this point under the orders of the American Congress, George Washington took over to inspire them to fight, which got a boost with the issuance of "Declaration of Independence" by the Congress, drafted by Thomas Jefferson. The declaration renounced allegiance to the British throne and resolved to be Independent. Americans, aided by Britain's European enemies fought against the British. British General Burgoyne surrendered to the American natives at Saratoga in 1777. In 1781, General Cornwallis was prevented by the French ships, thus preventing any aid/supply reaching the British, and British were forced to surrender. Thus the American war of independence ended and America attained independence on 3rd September 1783 under the "Treaty of Paris". During the revolution a number of battles were fought at different places of AmericThe revolution was supported by France, Spain and Dutch. George Washington became the First President of the independent America.
Q69. What was "Boston Tea Party" associated with American war of Independence?
An incident associated with the American War of Independence which took place. On 16.12.1773, when American decided to boycott the British TeMembers belonging to the "Sons of Liberty" - patriots belonging to various colonies in America , disguised themselves as native Indians ( Americans), managed to capture HMS Beaver and HMS Eleanour, two ships carrying tea casks, about 45 tons of tea leaves, were opened up and thrown into the ocean at Boston, USThus the incident came to be known as 'Boston Tea Party".
Q70. What was Greek War of Independence?
The Turks (Ottomann's) or the Turkish had the entire Europe under their control from mid 15th century to early 19th century. Among the various settlers and ethnic groups, Greeks were the first to revolt against the Turks for independence in 1821. Russia, Britain and France supported the Greeks in their war for freedom. The war lasted from 1821 to 1830, although the Greeks declared their independence in 1822. Their independence was recognized only on 3rd February 1830 by the London Protocol.
Q71. What was Belgian War of Independence?
Belgium was actually part of the Netherlands southern provinces, which remained under the Rules of Spain and AustriDuring the period of Napoleon these regions came under the control of France. When Napoleon was defeated in 1814, these regions (Belgium of modern days) were united with Netherlands again. Dissatisfied with the alignment and with social conditions prevailing under the then Dutch King, the Belgians revolted against the Dutch which turned out to be a full scale mass revolution and war. Belgians finally declared their own independence in 1830, drew up their own constitution and declared Leopold of Saxecoburg ( a dynasty ) to become their first King. The world recognition for the independence came in 1839.
Q72. What was Algerian War of Independence?
In 1947, Algeria was part of France politically united. But, the majority of the population of this region (modern Algeria) belonging to Islam, revolted against the French for separation and independence. Though France deputed a huge force to quell the revolt, the French forces sided the agitators, thus it turned out to be a major Civil War. Finally, General De Gaulle was called upon to intervene and he decided that Algerians be granted independence.Thus Algeria was born on 5th July 1962.
Q73. What was Bangladesh Liberation War/Indo Pak War of 1971?
Awami League, a political outfit in East Pakistan, dissatisfied with West Pakistan's rule and attitude, started agitating for independence. Mukti Bahini a separatist/militant outfit of Awami League, started fighting with the military.Finally, with the support of Indian military, East Pakistan was liberated and became Bangladesh from 17.4.1971.

TREATIES:

Q74. What are Treaties?
An agreement between two/or more parties/factions/countries for the purpose of peace, friendship and economic or trade cooperations. Treaties are also termed as "Memorandum of Understanding" especially when it relates to economic and cultural cooperation. Significant among treaties are the "War Treaties" which are signed by the warring factions to bring an end to the war on certain terms of understanding as "demand" from the winning side and "conceding" from the losing side. That way, a number of war treaties have been entered into by various countries from time memorial especially after wars. Below mentioned are some of the treaties that have been entered into between different rulers of India, in the history of our country - India. These have been mentioned in the appropriate places in the respective chapter, but for easy reading, they are mentioned here again.

Q75. What are the various important treaties in the history of India before independence?
1. Treaty of Purandhar: 1665 - Shivaji Vs. Aurangazeb.
2. Treaty of Durai Sarai: 1737 - Baji Rao I of Marathas Vs. Nizam ul Mulk
3. Treaty of Alinagar : 1757 - British Vs Siraj ud Daula, Nawab of Bengal.
4. Treaty of Masulipatnam: 1759 - British Vs Nizam Salabat Khan - Friendship.
5. Treaty of Hyderabad: 1766 - British Vs Nizam Ali Khan Bahadur - Defence.
6. Treaty of Madras: - 1769 - Haider Ali, British and Raja of Tanjore.
7. Treaty of Benares: 1773 - Suja ud Daula Vs British.
8. Treaty of Faizabad : 1775 - Asaf ud Daula Vs. British.
9. Treaty of Surat: - 1775 - Raghoba of Marathas Vs. British.
10.Treaty of Purandhar: 1776 - Peshwas of Marathas Vs. British.
11.Treaty of Wadagaon : 1779 - Mahadji Scindia (Marathas) Vs. British.
12.Treaty of Salbai: 1782 - Marathas Vs. British.
13.Treaty of Mangalore : 1784 - Tipu Sultan Vs. British - II Anglo Mysore War.
14.Treaty of Srirangapattinam: 1792 - Tipu Sultan Vs. British III Anglo Mysore War.
15.Treaty of Bassein: 1802 - British Vs Baji Rao
16.Treaty of Deogaon: 1803 - Raghuji Bhonsle Vs. British.
17.Treaty of Surji Arjangaon: 1803 - Scindhias Vs. British.
18.Treaty of Rajpurghat: 1805 - Holkar Vs. British.
19.Treaty of Amritsar : 1809 - Maharaja Ranjit Singh Vs. British.
20.Treaty of Poona: 1817 - Peshwa Balaji Rao II Vs. British.
21.Treaty of Gwalior : 1817 - Daulat Rao Scindhia Vs. British.
22.Treaty of Mandsaur : 1818 - Malhar Rao Holkar II Vs. British.
23.Treaty of Lahore: 1846 - Sikh Kings Vs. British.
24.Treaty of Bhairowal: 1846 F Sikhs Vs. British. With the signing of the last Treaty in 1846, the entire India came under the rule of British. (Details of the treaties are available in the History section).

GENERAL QUESTIONS:

Q76. What was the first and most powerful bombs ever used in recent times?
The bombs "Little Boy" (Hiroshima - 6th August 1945) and "Fat Man" (Nagasaki on 9th August 1945) are the most powerful bombs used in recent times. They were of Uranium 235 bombs with a capability of 13 Kilotons of TNT.
Q77. What type of bombs are used in recreational activities?
Dry Ice Bomb.
Q78. Which bomb was called the "Grand Salm Bomb"?
Earth Quake Bomb invented/deviced by British Aeronautical Engineer Barnes Watts in 1944 - weighing 22000 pounds.
Q79. What is a Dirty Bomb?
A radiological weapon which combines radioactive material with conventional explosive materials.
Q80. What is Napalm Bomb?
Containing any number of flammable liquids, used in warfare, often jellied Gasoline.
Q81. Which type of bomb is considered as the worst one to cause huge loss of lives and incapacitates them even during non-war periods and has also been banned from production and usage?
Land mines. "Blue Peacock" is the most well of this type of bomb.
Q82. What is Carpet Bombing?
Use of large number of unguided gravity bombs often with a high proportion often with a high proportion of incendiary bombs to attempt the complete destruction of a target region.
Q83. Radar functions by using the.....to identify the objects.
Electromagnetic Waves.
Q84. Who invented Radar?
Christian Hulsmeyer of England in 1904.
Q85. Which was the first prototype tank developed?
Little Willie in UK in 1915.
Q86. Which PM of UK was responsible for development of tanks?
Winston Churchill.
Q87. Which was the first tank used in a battle?
D1-Mark 1-1916 Battle of Somme.
Q88. Where in India battle tanks are manufactured?
Heavy Vehicles Factory and T72 Factory, Avadi, Chennai.
Q89. Who invented the first true Machine Gun?
Hiram Maxim - American/British - 1881.
Q90. Who designed the most famous AK 47 machine guns?
Michael Kalashnikov - Russia.
Q91. What does AK 47 stand for?
Automatic Kalashnikov 47 ( 47 for 1947 when it became more popular).
Q92. Who invented revolver?
Samul Colt.
Q93. What is SLR with reference to Guns?
Self Loading Rifle.
Q94. In which city the famous gas operated light machine gun “Bren Gun” was developed?
BRNO - Czech Republic.
Q95. Who was the forerunner of Missile usage?
Tipu Sultan in the III and IVth Anglo Mysore War.
Q96. Who developed the rockets/missile?
Sir William Congreve of UK - thus they were named as Congreve Rockets.
Q97. When were the rockets first used in battles?
Battle of Leizpig in 1813.
Q98. What was the name of the brigade which manned the Missiles in the Tipu Sultan army?
Kushoons.
Q99. What is SRBM related to missiles?
Short Range Ballistic Missile.
Q100. What is MRBM related to missiles?
Medium Range Ballistic Missile.
Q101. What is IRBM related to missiles?
Intermediate Range Ballistic Missiles.
Q102. What is ICBM related to Missiles?
Inter Continental Ballistic Missiles.
Q103. What was the first ballistic missile and man made object to be launched into space?
V2 Rocket - manufactured by Germany and used in WWII against Allies.
Q104. Dong Feng 21 is a MRBM of which country?
China.
Q105. The MRBM of Pakistan is named…..
Gauri.
Q106. Prithvi series of missiles in India is manufactured under the code name of….
Operation Dhanush.
Q107. India's Missile testing centre is at..
Chandipur in Odisha (Wheeler Island of Bay of Bengal).
Q108. The 100 year war during 14th/15th centuries was fought for?
Succession to French throne. Fought between Edward III of England and King Philip IV of France.
Q109. Whose arrival in France changed the fortunes of England control over France?
Joan of Arc in 1429. She phased out the English occupation by 1453.
Q110. Which country's Civil War was known as "War of the Roses" and Why?
Civil War in Britain between 1455-1485 and it was named so because the warring factions (Lancaster and Yorkies) were having Red and White Roses respectively as their symbols.
Q111. Thirty Year War between 1618-1648 was a religious war. What was it?
Between Lutheran and Protestant Christians which later became an international war involving Sweden, France and Germany. The war ended with the Treaty of Westphalia.
Q112. The Seven Year War between 1756-1763 was between ..
European countries like Britain and Prussia on one side and France, Austria and Russia on the other side, for establishing colonial control over Asian countries. The war ended with the Treaty of Hubertsburg 1763.
Q113. In which war Admiral Nelson was killed?
Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.
Q114. Which battle, fought in 1812, marked the beginning of the down fall of Napoleon?
Battle of Borodino - Napoleon lost majority of his force due to extreme cold climatic conditions and shortage of food.
Q115. What was Prussia a region of..?
A German Kingdom which lasted between 15th to 18th century and ruled by the House of Hohenzollern, later to become the Germany of present day.
Q116. Napoleon's last and greatest defeat in battle was..?
Battle of Waterloo 1814-1815.
Q117. Where was Napoleon first exiled ?
Island Elba - Mediterranean Sea -escaped from here, aided by Louis XVIII fought against the forces of Belgium, Austria, Russian , Dutch, German and Bulgarian troops and was defeated.
Q118. Where was Napoleon exiled for the second time and died there?
St. Helena -South Atlantic Ocean -died in 1821.
Q119. Which was was known as "Opium War"?
First China War of 1840. Fought between England and China over trading of Opium by England to the Chinese merchants. China lost the battle and England resumed its opium trading.
Q120. What is the background behind the American Civil War of 1861-1865?
The Civil War was between the Northern and Southern states of America over the abolition of slavery in America.
Q121. Which war brought to the world the noble profession of nursing?
Crimean War of 1854-1856. Florence Nightingale dedicated herself in the service of the wounded soldiers along with 38 other nurses which brought the nursing profession the importance.
Q122. Balkan War of 1912 was fought between ..
Turkey on one side and the Balkan countries like Montenegro, Serbia, Bulgaria and Greece on the other side. Turkey was defeated.
Q123. What are the two major reasons for the WW I?
1.Archduke Ferdinand, the heir to the Austrian throne was murdered by a Serbian at Sarajevo.
2.Rivalry between France and Germany.
Q124. There were two factions viz. Central and Allied powers fighting during WWI. Which countries comprised of the two factions?
1.Central: Germany, Austria, Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria.
2.Allied: England, France, Belgium, Serbia, Russia, Italy.
Q125. Which Treaty brought an end to the WW I?
Treaty of Versailles -1919. (see question No.84 also).
Q126. Along with the WWI, there was another war between England and Germany. What was it called and its result?
Jutland War -it was a naval war and Germany was defeated.
Q127. What are the major general causes for the WWII?
1.The unjust Treaty of Versailles.
2.Behaviour of France.
3.Rise of Nazi's Germany.
4.Italy's dissatisfaction over the Treaty of Versailles.
5.Japan's expansion.
6.England's imperialistic attitude.
Q128. What was the original name of the Nazi Party of Germany ?
German Workers'Party -later to be named as National Socialist Workers'Party shortened to Nazi Party.
Q129. Like the WWI, two warring factions were there during WWII. What were they and their composition:
1.Axis: Germany, Italy and Japan, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria.
2.Allied: Britain, France, Russia, USA, Poland (and a few other countries)
Q130. What are the major effects of WWII was..
1. Adolf Hitler Committed suicide on 30.4.1945
2. Germany got divided into two as East and West Germany.
3. Italy lost many of its colonies.
4. Russia emerged as the single largest/biggest power in the world.
Q131. The most positive outcome of the WWII was..
Establishment of United Nations -Chartered on 26th June 1945 and came into effect on 24th October 1945.
Q132. What caused the Gulf War of 1991?
Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait as one of its provinces.
Q133. Gulf War of 2003 was undertaken for the purpose of..
Ousting Saddam Hussein of Iraq. The war was led by US led coalition forces and the Saddam Hussein's supporting force. Saddam Hussein was captured and executed. (for more details see under Iraq).
Q134. What was the Battle of the Nile?
Because of France's expanding revolution and emergence of Napoleon Bonaparte, and his capture of Egypt, the worried Britain waged a war against Napoleon in 1798. The British fleet was headed by Horatio Nelson and Napoleon's advancement to India (and Asia) was thwarted.
Q135. What was the major outcome of the American Civil War of 1861-1865?
1. Slavery abolished in America. 2. Emergence of the great leader of the world Abraham Lincoln.
Q136. What was the Crimean War of 1854?
Russians waging a war against the Turkish empire on the pretext of protecting the Christians, in which Russians were defeated by the combined forces.
Q137. What were the new countries born out of the WWII ?
Poland, Yugoslavia, Luthuania, Estonia.
Q138. What were the specific causes for the WWII?
1.Hitler along with Mussolini of Italy, captured Rhineland of France in 1936 and followed it with the annexation of Vienna & Austria.
2. Captured Czechoslovakia in 1939.
3. Refusal of Poland to surrender the Port of Danzig to Germany which made Germany to wage a war against Poland in September 1939.
4. Britain and France under obligation, supported Poland and entered into the war against Germany.
Q139. What was the major disaster caused during WWII?
USA bombed Hiroshima on 6.8.1945 and Nagasaki on 9.8.1945, with atom bombs.
Q140. Who was the most famous leader to emerge out of WWII for USA?
Genl. Ike -Eisenhower later to become President of USA.
Q141. What was battle of Somme?
As part of the WWI, this battle was fought in Somme, France between England and France Vs. Germany between July and November 1916, due to Germany's occupation of large areas of France during the war of 1914. Germany was defeated. This battle is considered as one of the bloodiest battle in recent times.
Q142. For how many years the Hundred Years War actually last?
116 years. (1338 to 1453).
Q143. What was battle of Midway?
An important naval battle as part of the WWII between USA and Japan fought between 4th to 7th June 1942, in which Japan lost heavily. It was fought for Japan's attacking of the Midway Atoll on the Pacific Ocean near Hawai'i.
Q144. Which battle in the 20th century is considered as the bloodiest battle?
Battle of Stalingrad -August 1942 to February 1943 between Nazi Germany and its allies Vs. Souviet Union fought for the control of Stalingrad. Germany was defeated. The combined loss of human lives is estimated to be around 2 million.
Q145. What was the name of the assassinator of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which triggered the WWI?
Gavrilo Princip.
Q146. What was the name of the Aircraft Bomber and its pilots which bombed Hiroshima on 6th August 1945?
Anola Gay - Aircraft. Major Theodore Van Kirk - Pilot. Paul Tibbets - Co Pilot Thomas Ferebee - Bombardier. "Little Boy" - name of the bomb.
Q147. What was the name of the Air Craft Bomber and its commanders which bombed Nagasaki on 9th August 1945?
Bocks Car - Aircraft; Capt. Frederick Bock & Maj. Charles Sweeney - Commanders. Capt. Kermit Beahan - Bombardier. "Fat man" name of the bomb.
Q148. In which year the Anglo Zulu war began?
1879 -Zulu are a tribal people of South Africa.
Q149. Where did the Battle of Boyne take place and for what reason?
Ireland - 1690 - Between Catholic King James and Protestant King Williams of Ireland - claimants for the throne. Won by Williams and the Protestant supremacy over Ireland continued.
Q150. How many carriers did the Japanese use in the Pearl Harbour attack?
Six.
Q151. How is the Battle of the Ardenness is commonly known?
Battle of the Bulge -16th December 1944 to 25th January 1945 as part of the WWII - German attack on Belgium, France and Luxembourg on the dense Forests of Ardenness - Germany was defeated.
Q152. Whose army was considered as the first to have used regular uniform?
Oliver Cromwell's during the English Civil War.
Q153. What is the shortest war in history?
Between England and Zanzibar on 27th August 1896 in which Zanzibar surrendered in 38 minutes. The immediate cause of the war was the death of the pro British Sultan Hamad Bin Thuwaini and the succession of anti British Sultan Khalid bin Barghash. The British preferred Hmaud Bin Muhammad as the Sultan and it was achieved.
Q154. What does "Guerilla" mean?
It is a Spanish word meaning "Little War". Actually, a tactic of attacking the enemies suddenly from a hide and surrounding them.
Q155. What was considered as the biggest raid during WWII?
Omaha Beach -known as "Operation Aquatint" - British commandos raided unsuccefully this German occupied French Beach on 12/13th September 1942.
Q156. Which country was the first to use Gun Powder for military purposes?
China.
Q157. In which year did the Korean War begin?
1950 -(25.6.1950) After the WWII, Korea got divided into US occupied South Korea and Russians occupied North Korea along the 38th Parallel Line as its border. Cross border infiltrations and North Korean invasion of South Korea on 25th June 1950 triggered this war which lasted till July 1953 when armistice was signed. South Korea had the support of US and also UN, while North had the support of Russia and China.
Q158. Which place was the scene of USA victory over Japan in WWII in 1942?
Coral Sea (or Solomon Sea).
Q159. When did the WWI come to an end?
Through an Armistice Agreement on 11.11.1918 between Germany and the Allied Forces followed by Treaty of Versailles on 28.6.1919.
Q160. "Operation Mercury" was the code name for the WWII Nazi invasion of ..
Crete -a Greek Island - on 20th May 1941.
Q161. What was the Headquarters of the allied forces during WWII?
Darwin, a port in Australia.
Q162. What are the four "D"s agreed to by the Axis (Germany & Others) at the Conclusion of WWII?
1. Democratization
2. Disarmament
3. Decartelization
4. Denazification.
Q163. Who are the three leaders who planned the defeat of Germany at Yalta in WWII in 1945?
Theodore Roosevelt (USA),
Winston Churchill (UK)
and Joseph Stalin (USSR).
Q164. Which is the world’s highest battle field?
Siachen Glacier, India.
Q165. According to the epic Mahabharata, the Kurukshetra was laster for..
18 days.
Q166. Battle of Hydaespass between Alexander the Great and Porous was fought on the banks of..
River Jhelum.
Q167. Who were the warring parties in the Kalinga War of 265-264 BC?
Ashoka the Great and Kalinga dynasty rulers commanded by Raja Ananta Padmanabha.
Q168. What was the impact of Kalinga War on Emperor Ashoka?
Disturbed by the destruction, Ashoka embraced Buddhism.
Q169. Which battle paved the way for Islamic rule to come to India?
II Battle of Thashwar 1192 AD -wherein Muhammad Ghori defeated Prithviraj Chauhan.
Q170. I Battle of Panipat was fought between..?
Babur Vs Ibrahim Lodi - 1526 AD.
Q171. Battle of Kanwah was fought between..?
Babur Vs Rana Sangha in 1527 AD.
Q172. Which battle interecepted the continuity of Mughal Rule?
Battle of Kannauj - 1540 AD in which Humayun was defeated the Afghan Sher Shah Suri and founded the Sur Dynasty rule in Delhi.
Q173. Which battle revived the Mughal rule?
II Battle of Panipat - 1556 in which Akbar defeated Hemu and restored the Mughal rule and strengthened its rule.
Q174. Which battle in the history of India, destroyed the fortunes of Vijayanagara Empire?
Battle of Talikota 1564-1565 .
Q175. Aurangazeb captured the Mughal throne through a war of succession. What was the war?
Battle of Samugarh -1659 AD -against the forces led by his brother Dara Dara Shikoh.
Q176. Which battle gave a decisive and firm footing of British Rule in India?
Battle of Plassey -1757 AD between Robert Clive and Siraj Ud Daula.
Q177. Which battle in the history of India curtailed and prevented the growth of Maratha Empire?
III Battle of Panipat -1761 AD -Ahmad Shah Abdali Vs Marathas.
Q178. How many Carnatic Wars were fought?
Three.
Q179. Which Carnatic War finally stopped the growth of French expansion and rule in India?
III Carnatic War -1758-1763.
Q180. How many Anglo Mysore wars were fought?
four. (for details see History chapter)
Q181. How many Anglo Maratha wars were fought?
Three. (for details see History chapter)
Q182. When did the Indo China war take place?
20.20.1962 to 21.11.1962 -
Q183. What is the name of the political party that Sheikh Mujibur Rehman belonged to?
Awami League.
Q184. What was the name of the militant outfit of the Awami League, Bangladesh?
Mukti Bahini.
Q185. Battle of Dharmat was fought between..?
Aurangazeb and Raja Jaswant Singh -1657/1658.
Q186. Who were the belligerents in the 3rd Battle of Panipat?
Afghans and Marathas.
Q187. What was the last major sea battle fought using boats with oars ?
Battle of Lepanto in 1571 -between a coalition of European States and the Ottoman Empire.