List of Polish wars

Below is a list of military conflicts in which Polish armed forces participated or which took place on Polish territory.
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Middle Ages

During the Middle Ages, Poland fought mostly to defend itself from the German eastward expansion, but at the same time tried to conquer its eastern neighbor, Ruthenia. Occasionally, it encountered Bohemian, Tartar, Prussian and Lithuanian raids, to be finally challenged by a new powerful neighbor from the north – the Teutonic Order.

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

The 17th century saw fierce rivalry between the then major Eastern European powers – Sweden, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). At its heyday, the Commonwealth comprised the territories of present-day Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and parts of Russia, and was militarily able to intervene in and occupy Moscow. However, starting with the civil war following a Cossack uprising, a series of bloody wars weakened Poland enough to make it merely a pawn in European politics by the turn of the next century.

During the 18th century the Commonwealth was more a battlefield for neighboring European powers (Russia, Sweden, Prussia and Saxony) than an active warring party itself. Only at the end of the century did Poles start to defend their country from growing foreign, chiefly Russian, influence in their internal affairs. These late attempts to preserve independence eventually failed and ended in Poland's partitions.

Nineteenth century

Poles unsuccessfully struggled to win back their independence throughout the 19th century. At first, they put their hopes in Napoleon. Later, they tried to ignite national uprisings every now and then – all of them bloodily repressed.

Twentieth century

In the turmoil of the First World War, Poles managed to regain independence and then to expand their territory in a series of local wars and uprisings; only to be occupied again during the next world war. The second half of the 20th century was more peaceful, but still tense, as Poland was involved in the Cold War on the Soviet side.

Twenty-first century

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