These are some of the most bizarre wars in history!
Wars are bad; no matter the circumstances, they will never end well. History taught us, but we seem to never learn from our past mistakes. When we recall historical events such as the Civil War or World War II, we picture the “good guys” battling and defeating evil forces to improve the world.
We are hopefully at least at a point where we can honor and thank the soldiers who fought in those terrible conditions, even in less benevolent wars like Vietnam or Iraq, even if we are a little less understanding of the governments involved and their intentions.
However, this article isn’t about lecturing our readers, more like learning about the bizarre wars in history that still make us wonder why they happened in the first place. Spoiler alert: one of them is about pastries!
If we managed to make you curious, come on, make yourself comfortable because the list is pretty generous.
The Pig War
Who knows about the pig war? It’s one of the most bizarre wars in history that happened in America. Here’s the story: An argument over a killed pig almost turned into a full-scale conflict between the United States and Great Britain during the appropriately called Pig War. San Juan Island, a piece of land sandwiched between Vancouver Island and the US mainland, was the scene of the controversy in 1859.
Both British workers of the Hudson’s Bay Company and American settlers had claimed the island’s fertile soil at the time. When an American farmer named Lyman Cutlar found a British-owned black boar rooting through his potato patch on June 15, 1859, he shot the animal to death, marking the first and last shots of the Pig War. Tensions between the two groups of settlers escalated after the subsequent argument over the dead hog, and Cutlar was ultimately threatened with arrest.
When the Americans informed the military about the incident, the U.S. Army sent Captain George Pickett, who would go on to become a Confederate general in the Civil War, and a small contingent of soldiers to San Juan.
After that for several excruciating weeks, the situation remained uncertain. With the exception of one poor animal, the Pig War would end in a bloodless standoff in October 1859 when the two countries would finally negotiate an agreement permitting joint military occupation of San Juan Island.
The War of the Stray Dog
Among all these bizarre wars there is this one that was “ignited” by a dog, which almost caused Greece and Bulgaria to go to war in 1925. According to legend, Bulgarian forces shot a Greek soldier who was pursuing his stray dog across the border.
As tensions skyrocketed, Bulgaria retaliated, and Greece invaded Petrich. By intervening, the League of Nations avoided war. This strange conflict, known as the War of the Stray Dog, was soon forgotten even though it had resulted in the deaths of some 50 people.
The Football War
Do you think the World Cup is serious? Heh, then you never heard of one of history’s most bizarre wars that happened in 1969. For those who are hearing this for the first time, El Salvador and Honduras’ long-simmering hatred broke out when their teams played each other in a World Cup qualifying match.
Tension over Salvadoran migration to Honduras sparked riots after every game. They broke diplomatic ties and launched a surprise military attack after El Salvador won the final game. Before a ceasefire was mediated, fighting raged for four days, killing over 3,000 people.
This peculiar conflict—known as the Football War—proved that politics and sports can occasionally collide fatally.
The War of the Two Jeannes
Although the Breton Civil War began in 1379, what was its most well-known phase? The Two Jeannes’s War. Why? Because Jeanne was the name of both important players!
The conflict between John of Montfort and Charles of Blois over Brittany’s duchy began in 1341. Jeanne of Montfort, Montfort’s wife, assumed command and spearheaded the battle after her husband was taken prisoner. Jeanne of Penthièvre, Charles’s wife, performed the same action for her husband’s side in the meantime. These two brave women led armies in an indirect conflict between France and England for more than two decades.
Ultimately, the Montforts prevailed in 1364, but they swore allegiance to the French king rather than England. Epic battles, political tangles, and two fearless women influencing history—this war had it all. If that isn’t the height of medieval drama I don’t know what is it.
The War of Jenkins’ Ear
If you’ve reached this far with reading, then you can agree that these bizarre wars in history were also downright silly. Pigs, dogs, strong women, football disputes, and so on were just a few things that made us say “What in the actual hell?” but the list isn’t over yet.
The next war is about an ear. Yes, you’ve read it well. Robert Jenkins, a British sailor, presented a severed and rotting ear to Parliament in 1738. Years before, he said, a Spanish Coast Guard officer had cut it off for smuggling.
The bizarrely named War of Jenkins’ Ear began when Britain, infuriated, declared war on Spain. In actuality, territorial disputes in Georgia and Florida had been the source of tensions for years. The conflict kicked off in 1739 and went on for two years without anyone really winning, eventually becoming part of the wider War of the Austrian Succession, which lasted until 1748.
The Pastry War
Who knew that being hungry or desperate to have at least one bite of a pastry could spark a war? A French pastry chef’s café in Mexico City was destroyed by an enraged mob in 1828. He asked France to go to war for him after the Mexican government disregarded his grievances, as any sane baker would have done.
When King Louis-Philippe eventually took notice of the request ten years later, he was already furious about unpaid Mexican debts and demanded 600,000 pesos in compensation—a lot of money for a pastry shop, let’s face it. In 1838, France sent warships and blockaded Veracruz after Mexico refused. Battles, cannon fire, and even Santa Anna coming out of retirement (only to lose a leg) were all part of the escalation.
The British intervened by March 1839, mediated a peace deal, and Mexico grudgingly made the payment. And that, people, is how one of the most absurd wars in history began with a conflict over croissants.
The War of the Three Sanchos
Ole! Last but not least of the weirdest wars in history is the War of the Three Sanchos. If you feel that two Jeannes is not enough, how about three Sanchos? In what is now Spain, the Kingdom of Leon and Castile faced a succession crisis during the War of the Three Sanchos. Three distinct Spanish kingdoms, each headed by a Sancho, engaged in a war between 1065 and 1067 to determine who would rule their respective territories.
Castile eventually overtook Navarre as the dominant group after their grandfather died in 1035. Sancho II, the son of Castilian King Ferdinand the Great, demanded the return of the territories his father had given to Navarre after he died in 1065.
The conflict continued until his brother assassinated Sancho IV of Navarre in 1076. After that, the strange and messy conflict came to an end when his kingdom was divided between Aragon and Castile.
Which of these wars do you think is the weirdest? Tell us in the comments.
Do you love history so much that you can proudly say that you (may) know everything about it? We don’t want to discourage you, but you can always know even more. And how would reading more be fun if it’s not turned into a sort of trivia game?
The book The Ultimate History Buff Challenge: Over 600 Quiz Questions for Curious History Lovers is a great exercise for the brain covering more than 5,000 years of world history. It’s a must to have it in your collection!
