United States military casualties of war

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This article lists the United States of America's military dead, wounded, and missing person totals for wars and major deployments.

Overview

War or Conflict Date Total American Deaths Wounded Total American Casualties
Missing Sources & Notes
Combat Other Total
American Revolutionary War 1775–1783 8,000 25,000 25,000 50,000
Northwest Indian War 1785–1796 1,056+ 1,056+ 825+ 1,881+ [1][2][3]
Quasi-War 1798–1800 20 494[4] 514 42 556 [4][5]
First Barbary War 1801–1805 35 39 74 64 138 [6][7]:25–27[8][9]
Other actions against pirates 1800–1900 36 158+[7]:42 194+ 100+ 294+ [5][10][11][b]
Chesapeake–Leopard Affair 1807 3 0 3 18 21 [5]
War of 1812 1812–1815 2,260 12,740~ 15,000~ 4,505 20,000~ [12]
Nuka Hiva Campaign 1813–1814 5 5 11 16 [7]:34–38
Creek War 1813-1814 575 [13]
Second Barbary War 1815 4 134[14] 10 148 [15]
First Seminole War 1817–1818 47 47 36 83 [16]
First Sumatran Expedition 1832 2 2 11 13 [5]
Black Hawk War 1832 47 258[17][18] 305 85 390 [19]
Second Seminole War 1835–1842 328 1,207 1,535 [20]
Mexican–American War 1846–1848 1,733 11,550 13,283 4,152 17,435 [21]
Cayuse War 1847-1856 40 1 41 74 115 [22]
Rogue River Wars 1851-1856 190 6 196 293 489 [23]
Yakima War 1855-1856 32 2 34 92 126 [24]
Third Seminole War 1855–1858 26 26 27 53 [25]
Second Opium War 1856-1860 12 12 39 51 [7]
Coeur d'Alene War 1858 36 36 60 96 [26]
Civil War: total 1861–1865 214,938 400K-500K 750,000~ [27] [c][28][not specific enough to verify]
Union 140,414 224,097 364,511 281,881 646,392 [29]
Confederate 74,524-94,000[30] 225,000~ 299,524~
Dakota War of 1862
(Little Crow's War)
1862 70–113 70–113 150 220–263 [31][32][33][34]
Shimonoseki Straits 1863 4–5[5][35] 0 4–5 6[5] 10 [5][35]
Snake Indian War 1864–1868 30 30 128 158 [24]
Indian Wars 1865–1898 919 1,025 [21]
Red Cloud's War 1866–1868 126 126 100 226 [36][37][38]
Korea (Shinmiyangyo) 1871 3 3 9 12 [39]
Modoc War 1872–1873 56 56 88 144 [40][41]
Great Sioux War 1875–1877 314 314 211 525 [42][43]
Nez Perce War 1877 134 134 157 291 [44][45]
Bannock War 1878 12 0 12 22 34 [46][47]
Ute War 1879 15 0 15 52 67 [46][48]
Sheepeater Indian War 1879 1 1 10 11 [46]
Samoan crisis 1887-1889 0 62 62 62 [49]
Ghost Dance War 1890–1891 35 35 64 99 [50][51]
Sugar Point
Pillager Band of Chippewa Indians
1898 7 0 7 16 23 0 [52]
Spanish–American War 1898 385 2,061 2,446 1,622 4,068 [21]
Philippine–American War 1898–1913 1,020 3,176 4,196 2,930 7,126 [21]
Boxer Rebellion 1900–1901 68 63 131 204 335 0 [53]
Santo Domingo Affair 1904 1 0 1 2 3 [5]
United States occupation of Nicaragua 1910, 1912-1925, 1927-1933 90 69 159 290 449 [54][55]>[56]
Mexican Revolution 1914–1919 120 61 181 319 500 [57]
Occupation of Haiti 1915–1934 10 138 148 26+ 184+ [5][58]
World War I 1917–1918 53,402 63,114 116,516 204,002 320,518 3,350 [21][d]
North Russia Campaign 1918–1920 424 [59]
American Expeditionary Force Siberia 1918–1920 160 168 328 52+ 380+ [7]:228
China 1918; 1921; 1926–1927; 1930; 1937 5 78 83 [54]
World War II 1941–1945 291,557 113,842 405,399 670,846 1,076,245 30,314 [21]See Note DA below
Greek Civil War 1944-1949 1 5 6 6 [60]
Chinese Civil War 1945–1950 14 150 164 51 215 [60]
Berlin Blockade 1948–1949 31 [61]
Korean War 1950–1953 33,686 2,830 36,516 92,134 128,650 4,759 Note: 4,759 MIA-See Note E below
U.S.S.R. Cold War 1947–1991 32 12 44 [54]
China Cold War 1950–1972 16 16 [54]
Vietnam War 1955–1975 47,424 10,785 58,209 153,303 211,454 2,489[62] [21][63] Note as of 20 February 2014 Vietnam MIA Are 1,643[64]
1958 Lebanon crisis 1958 1[65] 5[65][66] 6 1+[67] 7+ [68]
Bay of Pigs Invasion 1961 4 4 4 [69]
Cuban Missile Crisis 1962 1 19 20 20 [60]
Dominican Republic 1965–1966 27 20 47 283 330 [54][60][70]
USS Liberty incident 1967 34 171
Iran 1980 0 8 8 4 12 0 [71]
El Salvador Civil War 1980–1992 22 15 37 35 [72][73][74][75]
Beirut deployment 1982–1984 256 266 169 [76]
Persian Gulf escorts 1987–1988 39 0 39 31
Invasion of Grenada 1983 18 1 19 119 [76]
1986 Bombing of Libya 1986 2 0 2 0 2 [77]
Invasion of Panama 1989 23 40 324 [76]
Gulf War 1990–1991 149 145 294 849 1,143 0[78] [79]
Operation Provide Comfort 1991-1996 1 18 19 4 23 [80][81]
Somalia 1992–1993 29 14 43 153 [76]
Haiti 1994–1995 1 4 3 [76]
Colombia 1994–present 0 8[82][83] 8 [84]
Bosnia-Herzegovina 1995–2004 1 11 12 [85]
Kosovo War 1999–Present 4 14 18 N/A 18+ 2 [86]
Afghanistan War 2001–present 1,742 471 2,229 18,675 20,904 0 [f][87][88]
Iraq War 2003–2011 3,527 961 4,488 32,222 36,710 2 [87]
Operation Inherent Resolve 2014- 1 7 3 1 4 1 [89]
Total 1775–present 664,440+ 673,929+ 1,354,664+ 1,498,237+ 2,852,901+ 40,917+

Wars ranked by total number of American military deaths

Rank War Years Deaths Deaths per Day US Population in First Year of War Deaths per Population
1 American Civil War 1861–65 750,000[27] 420 31,443,000 2.385% (1860)
2 World War II 1941–45 405,399 297 133,402,000 0.307% (1940)
3 World War I 1917–18 116,516 279 103,268,000 0.110% (1920)
4 Vietnam War 1961–75 58,209 11 179,323,175 (1960) 0.030% (1970)
5 Korean War 1950–53 54,246 45 151,325,000 0.020% (1950)
6 American Revolutionary War 1775–83 25,000 11 2,500,000 0.899% (1780)
7 War of 1812 1812–15 15,000 15 8,000,000 0.207% (1810)
8 Mexican–American War 1846–48 13,283 29 21,406,000 0.057% (1850)
9 Iraq War/Afghanistan Wars 2001–present 6,717 1.57 294,043,000 0.002% (2010)
10 Philippine–American War 1899–1902 4,196 3.8 72,129,001 0.006% (1900)

"Deaths per day" is the total number of Americans killed in military service, divided by the number of days between the dates of the commencement and end of hostilities. "Deaths per population" is the total number of deaths in military service, divided by the U.S. population of the year indicated.

Total American Deaths by War
American Civil War
  
750,000
World War II
  
405,399
World War I
  
116,516
Vietnam
  
58,151
Korean War
  
36,516
American Revolutionary War
  
25,000
War of 1812
  
15,000
Mexican American War
  
13,283
Iraq/Afghanistran Wars* present
  
6,717
Philippine–American War
  
4,196

Wars ranked by American combat deaths

Rank War Years Deaths
1 World War II 1941–45 291,557
2 American Civil War 1861–65 212,938
3 World War I 1917–18 53,402
4 Vietnam War 1955–75 47,424
5 Korean War 1950–53 33,746
6 American Revolutionary War 1775–83 8,000
7 Iraq War/Afghanistan Wars 2001–present 5,281 [90]
8 War of 1812 1812–15 2,260
9 Mexican–American War 1846–48 1,733
10 Northwest Indian War 1785–95 1,221+
American Combat Deaths by War
World War II
  
291,557
American Civil War
  
212,938
World War I
  
53,402
Vietnam
  
47,424
Korean War
  
33,746
American Revolutionary War
  
8,000
Iraq/Afghanistan Wars*
  
5,281
War of 1812
  
2,260
Mexican American War
  
1,733
Northwest Indian War
  
1,221+
Kosovo War
  
18+

Notes

a. ^ Revolutionary War: All figures from the Revolutionary War are rounded estimates. Commonly cited casualty figures provided by the Department of Defense are 4,435 killed and 6,188 wounded, although the original government report that generated these numbers warned that the totals were incomplete and far too low.[91] Nevertheless, the numbers are often repeated without this warning, such as on the United States Department of Veteran Affairs website.[92] In 1974, historian Howard Peckham and a team of researchers came up with a total of 6,824 killed in action and 8,445 wounded. Because of incomplete records, Peckham estimated that this new total number of killed in action was still about 1,000 too low.[93] Military historian John Shy subsequently estimated the total killed in action at 8,000, and argued that the number of wounded was probably far higher, about 25,000.[94] The "other" deaths are primarily from disease, including prisoners who died on British prison ships.

b. ^ Other Actions Against Pirates: Includes actions fought in the West Indies, the Greek Isles, off of Louisiana, China and Vietnam. Other deaths resulted from disease and accidents.

c. ^ Civil War: All Union casualty figures, and Confederate killed in action, from The Oxford Companion to American Military History except where noted (NPS figures).[21] estimate of total Confederate dead from James M. McPherson, Battle Cry of Freedom (Oxford University Press, 1988), 854. Newer estimates place the total death toll at 650,000 to 850,000.[27]
CA. ^ Civil War April 2, 2012 Doctor David Hacker after extensive research offered new casualty rates higher by 20%; his work has been accepted by the academic community and is represented here.

d. ^ World War I figures include expeditions in North Russia and Siberia. See also World War I casualties

da.^ World War II Note: as of March 31, 1946 there were an estimated 286,959 dead of whom 246,492 were identified; of 40,467 who were unidentified 18,641 were located {10,986 reposed in military cemeteries and 7,655 in isolated graves} and 21,826 were reported not located. As of April 6, 1946 there were 539 American Military Cemeteries which contained 241,500 dead.[95] Note the American Battle Monuments Commission database for the World War II reports that that in 18 ABMC Cemeteries total of 93,238 buried and 78,979 missing and that "The World War II database on this web site contains the names of those buried at our cemeteries, or listed as Missing in Action, buried or lost at sea. It does not contain the names of the 233,174 Americans returned to the United States for burial..." Similarly, the ABMC Records do not cover inter-War deaths such as the Port Chicago disaster in which 320 died. As of November 2, 2011 Total of US World War II casualties {Military and Civilian} not recovered is 73,692; by February 15, 2014 the total of US World War II Casualties {Military and Civilian} not recovered is 73,637; total of US World War II Casualties buried at sea are 6,061.

e. ^ Korean War: Note:[21] gives Dead as 33,746 and Wounded as 103, 284 and MIA as 8,177. The POW/MIA gives the figures listed here: for example: The total "Battle Dead" of 33,686 is broken down into 23,637 KIA; 2,484 DOW: 4,759 MIA; 2,806 {POWS}. 2,830 are given as non-battle deaths; wounded 103,284 is given as the Number of incidences of wounded-including individual personnel wounded multiple times ;likewise 17,730 are listed separately as having died elsewhere Worldwide during Korean War. The American Battle Monuments Commission database for the Korean War reports that "The Department of Defense reports that 54,246 American service men and women lost their lives during the Korean War. This includes all losses world wide. Since the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. honors all U.S. Military who lost their lives during the War, we have tried to obtain the names of those who died in other areas besides Korea during the period June 27, 1950 to July 27, 1954, one year after the Korean Armistice...". {For a breakdown of Worldwide casualties of 54,246 see The Korean War educator at [96] gives figures as In-theatre/non theater} After their retreat in 1950, dead Marines and soldiers were buried at a temporary gravesite near Hungnam, North Korea. During "Operation Glory" which occurred from July to November 1954 the dead of each side were exchanged; remains of 4,167 US soldiers/Marines were exchanged for 13,528 North Korean/Chinese dead.[97] After "Operation Glory" 416 Korean War "unknowns" were buried in the Punchbowl Cemetery. According to a DPMO white paper [98] 1,394 names were also transmitted during "Operation Glory" from the Chinese and North Koreans {of whom 858 names proved to be correct}; of the 4,167 returned remains were found to be 4,219 individuals of whom 2,944 were found to be Americans of whom all but 416 were identified by name. Of 239 Korean War unaccounted for: 186 not associated with Punchbowl unknowns {176 were identified and of the remaining 10 cases 4 were non-Americans of Asiatic descent; one was British; 3 were identified and 2 cases unconfirmed}; Of 10 Korean War "Punchbowl Unknowns" 6 were identified. The W.A. Johnson listing of 496 POWs-including 25 Civilians [99]-who died in North Korea can be found here-[100] and here[101]

According to report of June 24, 2008 at [102]

  • Number of remains total unaccounted for: 8,055
  • Number of remains repatriated are: 489 of whom 100 are identified

Update on report of July 6, 2010 at [103]

  • Number of remains total unaccounted for: 8,028 {6184 US Army; 910 USAF; 278 US NAVY; 656 USMC}
  • Number of remains total identified are: 134 {117 US Army; 10 USAF; 1 US Navy: 6 USMC}

Update of report of October 26, 2011 at [104]

  • Number of remains total unaccounted for: 7,983
  • Number of remains either repatriated from North/South Korea; China; Japan or disinterred from Punchbowl cemetery: 678 of which the number have been identified from 1982 to 2011: 174

Update of report as of December 21, 2011: Listed as MIA: 7,973 at [64] As of January 20, 2014:Listed as MIA: 7,891.[64]

ea. ^ Cold War – Korea and Vietnam and Middle East-additional US Casualties:

  • North Korea {Cold War} 1959:1968-1969;1976;1984 killed 41; Wounded 5; 82 captured/released.[105]
  • USS Liberty incident 1967 killed 34; Wounded 173 by Israeli armed forces
  • Vietnam War prior to 1964-US Casualties were Laos-2 killed in 1954; and Vietnam 1946–1954 2 killed see;[106]

f. ^ Iraq War. See also Casualties of the conflict in Iraq since 2003. Sources: .[107]

g. ^ Afghanistan. Casualties include those that occurred in Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guantanamo Bay (Cuba), Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Philippines, Seychelles, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkey, and Yemen.

See also

References

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  96. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  99. [6]
  100. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  101. [7]
  102. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  103. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  104. [8]
  105. List of border incidents involving North Korea
  106. Vietnam War casualties
  107. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links