Curated playlist
Wars of succession involving the states and peoples of Europe
- Year of the Five EmperorsFive men claimed the Roman throne in AD 193, and only one was still in power by year's end.
- Year of the Four EmperorsA general sent to crush a Jewish rebellion in Judaea ended up as Roman emperor. His dynasty held power until AD 96.
- Carnatic warsThe Carnatic Wars in India began with a war in Europe. France and Britain were pulled apart in 1740.
- Civil wars of the TetrarchySoldiers at York made Constantine emperor in 306 AD, breaking Rome's four-emperor system.
- Hundred Years' WarThe Hundred Years' War actually lasted 116 years, from 1337 to 1453. It was never one continuous fight.
- Second Schleswig WarBismarck gave Denmark 48 hours to scrap its new constitution. Denmark refused, and war began in 1864.
- Fourth CrusadeThe Fourth Crusade set out to retake Jerusalem but sacked Constantinople. It never reached Egypt or Jerusalem.
- Trajan's Parthian campaignRoman emperor Trajan dragged his fleet overland to capture Ctesiphon, the Parthian capital.
- Time of TroublesRussia's Time of Troubles began when Tsar Feodor I died in 1598 without an heir.
- Polish–Russian War (1609–1618)Polish troops once marched into Moscow and garrisoned the Kremlin. The Polish-Russian War began in 1609.
- Decembrist revoltIn the 1825 Decembrist revolt, about 3,000 soldiers waited in a square for help that never came.