The Educational Enrichment for Young Patriots A Lesson on Sacrifice and Selflessness

2019 Wilderness Memorial Day Observance

Thank you for your commitment to a noble cause; developing next generation leaders by providing examples of great leaders in history who made a difference and how to function and excel in complex and diverse society. This event is dedicated to the men and women who served their country, both in military and civil service, who made the ultimate sacrifice. As we discuss the meaning of sacrifice with students, please be mindful of the sacrifice of educators and even volunteers (substitute teachers) who join the ranks of casualties while serving their communities. Mission Statement: The Educational Enrichment for Young Patriots shall provide at no cost to Virginia public schools K-12 sustained instructional enrichment of specific Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) in history and social sciences by way of, but not limited to, living historical interpretations in period dress, advocating principles of leadership and civics, to augment and enrich textbook and classroom instruction and aid in reducing a 30% benchmark failure rate in history and social sciences or civics, reinforcing the requisite knowledge and skills for informed, responsible participation in public life and develops a basic understanding of good citizenship by instilling relevant skills for students to deal intelligently with controversy.

Historical Statistics

Sacrifice and Selflessness

Wars ranked by total number of U.S. military deaths

Rank War Years Deaths

1 American Civil War 1861–65 750,000

2 World War II 1941–45 405,399

3 World War I 1917–18 116,516

4 Vietnam War 1961–75 58,209

5 Korean War 1950–53 54,246

6 American Revolutionary War 1775–83 25,000

7 War of 1812 1812–15 15,000

8 Mexican–American War 1846–48 13,283

9 Iraq War 2003–2011 4,497

10 Philippine–American War 1899–1902 4,196

11 Spanish–American War 1898 2,246

12 War in Afghanistan 2001-present 2,216

Detailed Wars

Total Casualties

War or conflict Date Total U.S. deaths

Wounded Total U.S. casualties Combat Other Total

American Revolutionary War

1775–1783 8,000 17,000 25,000 25,000 50,000

Northwest Indian War 1785–1796 1,056+

1,056+ 825+ 1,881+

Quasi-War 1798–1800 20 494 514 42 556

First Barbary War 1801–1805 35 39 74 64 138

Other actions against pirates

1800–1900 36 158+ 194+ 100+ 294+

Chesapeake–Leopard Affair

1807 3 0 3 18 21

War of 1812 1812–1815 2,260 12,740~ 15,000~ 4,505 20,000~

Nuka Hiva Campaign 1813–1814 5 0 5 11 16

Creek War 1813–1814

575

575

Second Barbary War 1815 4 134

10 148

First Seminole War 1817–1818 47 0 47 36 83

First Sumatran Expedition 1832 2

2 11 13

Black Hawk War 1832 47 258 305 85 390

Second Seminole War 1835–1842 328 1,207 1,535

1535

Mexican–American War 1846–1848 1,733 11,550 13,283 4,152 17,435

Cayuse War 1847–1856 40 1 41 74 115

Rogue River Wars 1851–1856 190 6 196 293 489

Yakima War 1855–1856 32 2 34 92 126

Third Seminole War 1855–1858 26

26 27 53

Second Opium War 1856–1860 12

12 39 51

Coeur d'Alene War 1858 36

36 60 96

Civil War: total 1861–1865 214,938 450,000 655,000

Union Army

140,414 224,097 364,511 281,881 1,031,881

Confederate Army

74,524 225,000 290,000

Dakota War of 1862 (Little Crow's War)

1862 70–113

70–113 150 220–263

Shimonoseki Straits 1863 4–5 0 4–5 6 10

Snake Indian War 1864–1868 30

30 128 158

Indian Wars 1865–1898 919

1,025 1944

Red Cloud's War 1866–1868 126

126 100 226

War or conflict Date Total U.S. deaths

Wounded Total U.S. casualties Combat Other Total

Korea (Shinmiyangyo) 1871 3

3 9 12

Modoc War 1872–1873 56

56 88 144

Great Sioux War 1875–1877 314

314 211 525

Nez Perce War 1877 134

134 157 291

Bannock War 1878 12 0 12 22 34

Ute War 1879 15 0 15 52 67

Sheepeater Indian War 1879 1

1 10 11

Samoan crisis 1887–1889 0 62 62

62

Ghost Dance War 1890–1891 35

35 64 99

Sugar Point Pillager Band of Chippewa Indians

1898 7 0 7 16 23

Spanish–American War 1898 385 2,061 2,446 1,622 4,068

Philippine–American War 1898–1913 1,020 3,176 4,196 2,930 7,126

Boxer Rebellion 1900–1901 68 63 131 204 335

Santo Domingo Affair 1904 1 0 1 2 3

United States occupation of Nicaragua

1910, 1912–1925 1927–1933

90 69 159 290 449

Mexican Revolution 1914–1919 120 61 181 319 500

Occupation of Haiti 1915–1934 10 138 148 26+ 184+

World War I 1917–1918 53,402 63,114 116,516 204,002 320,518

North Russia Campaign 1918–1920

424

424

American Expeditionary Force Siberia

1918–1920 160 168 328 52+ 380+

China 1918; 1921; 1926–1927; 1930; 1937

5

78 83

World War II 1941–1945 291,557 113,842 405,399 670,846 1,076,245

Greek Civil War 1944–1949 1 5 6

6

Chinese Civil War 1945–1950 14 150 164 51 215

Berlin Blockade 1948–1949

31

31

Korean War 1950–1953 33,686 2,830 36,516 92,134 128,650

U.S.S.R. Cold War 1947–1991 32

12 44

China Cold War 1950–1972 16

16

Vietnam War 1955–1975 47,424 10,785 58,209 153,303 211,454

War or conflict Date Total U.S. deaths

Wounded Total U.S. casualties Combat Other Total

1958 Lebanon crisis 1958 1 5 6 1+ 7+

Bay of Pigs Invasion 1961 4

4

4

Cuban Missile Crisis 1962 1 19 20

20

Dominican Republic 1965–1966 27 20 47 283 330

USS Liberty incident 1967 34

34 171 205

Iran 1980 0 8 8 4 12

El Salvador Civil War 1980–1992 22 15 37 35 72

Beirut deployment 1982–1984 256 10 266 169 435

Persian Gulf escorts 1987–1988 39 0 39 31 100

Invasion of Grenada 1983 18 1 19 119 138

1986 Bombing of Libya 1986 2 0 2 0 2

Invasion of Panama 1989 23

40 324 364

Gulf War 1990–1991 149 145 294 849 1,143

Operation Provide Comfort

1991–1996 1 18 19 4 23

Somalia 1992–1993 29 14 43 153 196

Haiti 1994–1995 1 3 4 3 7

Colombia

1994–present

0 8 8

8

Bosnia-Herzegovina 1995–2004 1 11 12

12

Kosovo War 1998–1999 4 14 18 N/A 18+

War in Afghanistan

2001–present

1,833 383 2,216 20,050 22,266

Iraq War 2003–2011 3,836* 961 4,497 32,222 36,710

Operation Inherent Resolve

2014– 14 47 61 64 125

Raid on Yemen 2017 1

1 3 4

Total 1775–present

666,441+ 673,929+ 1,354,664+ 1,498,240+ 2,852,901+

Detailed Wars

The American Civil War

The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House

The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, sometimes more simply referred to as the Battle of

Spotsylvania, was the second major battle in Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Overland Campaign of the

American Civil War. Following the bloody but inconclusive Battle of the Wilderness, Grant's army

disengaged from Confederate General Robert E. Lee's army and moved to the southeast, attempting to

lure Lee into battle under more favorable conditions. Elements of Lee's army beat the Union army to the

critical crossroads of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia, and began entrenching. Fighting occurred on

and off from May 8 through May 21, 1864, as Grant tried various schemes to break the Confederate line.

In the end, the battle was tactically inconclusive, but with almost 32,000 casualties on both sides, it was

the costliest battle of the campaign.

Following the Battle of Trevilian Station, who began to return on June 13, 1864 from their unsuccessful

raid. They crossed the North Anna at Carpenter's Ford and then headed on the Catharpin Road in the

direction of Spotsylvania Court House.

The American Indian Wars

After the American Revolution, many conflicts were local to specific states or regions and frequently

involved disputes over land use; some entailed cycles of violent reprisal. The British Royal Proclamation

of 1763 included in the Constitution of Canada prohibited white settlers from taking the lands of

Indigenous peoples in Canada without signing a treaty with them. It continues to be the law in Canada

today, and 11 Numbered Treaties covering most of the First Nations lands limited the number of such

conflicts.

As white settlers spread westward after 1780, the size, duration, and intensity of armed conflicts

increased between settlers and Indians. The climax came in the War of 1812, which resulted in the

defeat of major Indian coalitions in the Midwest and the South; conflict with settlers became much less

common. Conflicts were resolved by treaty, often through sale or exchange of territory between the

federal government and specific tribes. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 authorized the US government

to enforce the Indian removal east of the Mississippi River to the other side of the sparsely populated

American frontier. The policy of removal was eventually refined to relocate Indian tribes to specially

designated and federally protected reservations.

World War I

World War I was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918.

More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in one of the

largest wars in history. Over nine million combatants and seven million civilians died as a result of the

war, a casualty rate exacerbated by the belligerents' technological and industrial sophistication, and the

tactical stalemate caused by grueling trench warfare. It was one of the deadliest conflicts in history and

precipitated major political change, including the Revolutions of 1917–1923 in many of the nations

involved. Unresolved rivalries at the end of the conflict contributed to the start of the Second World

War twenty-one years later.

World War II

World War II was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's

countries—including all of the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the

Allies and the Axis. It was the most global war in history; it directly involved more than 100 million

people from over 30 countries. In a state of total war, the major participants threw their entire

economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between

civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to

85 million fatalities, most of which were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres,

the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease,

biological and chemical warfare, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

Korean War

The Korean War dates from 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 between North Korea (with the support of

China and the Soviet Union) and South Korea (with the principal support of the United States). The war

began on 25 June 1950 when North Korea invaded South Korea following a series of clashes along the

border. The United Nations, with the United States as the principal force, came to the aid of South

Korea. China came to the aid of North Korea, and the Soviet Union also gave some assistance to the

North.

As a product of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States, Korea was split into two

regions with separate governments. Both claimed to be the legitimate government of all of Korea, and

neither accepted the border as permanent. The conflict escalated into open warfare when North Korean

forces—supported by the Soviet Union and China—moved into the south on 25 June 1950. The United

Nations Security Council authorized the formation and dispatch of UN forces to Korea to repel what was

recognized as a North Korean invasion. Twenty-one countries of the United Nations eventually

contributed to the UN force, with the United States providing around 90% of the military personnel.

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955

to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought

between North Vietnam and the government of South Vietnam. The North Vietnamese army was

supported by the Soviet Union, China and other communist allies and the South Vietnamese army was

supported by the United States, South Korea, Australia, Thailand and other anti-communist allies. The

war is therefore considered a Cold War-era proxy war. The majority of Americans believe the war was

unjustified.

The Viet Cong, a South Vietnamese communist common front aided by the North, fought a guerrilla war

against anti-communist forces in the region, while the People's Army of Vietnam, also known as the

North Vietnamese Army (NVA), engaged in more conventional warfare, at times committing large units

to battle. As the war continued, the military actions of the Viet Cong decreased as the role and

engagement of the NVA grew. U.S. and South Vietnamese forces relied on air superiority and

overwhelming firepower to conduct search and destroy operations, involving ground forces, artillery,

and airstrikes. In the course of the war, the U.S. conducted a large-scale strategic bombing campaign

against North Vietnam. The North Vietnamese government and the Viet Cong were fighting to reunify

Vietnam. They viewed the conflict as a colonial war and a continuation of the First Indochina War

against forces from France and later on the United States. The U.S. government viewed its involvement

in the war as a way to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam. This was part of the domino

theory of a wider containment policy, with the stated aim of stopping the spread of communism.

Direct U.S. military involvement ended on 15 August 1973. The capture of Saigon by the North

Vietnamese Army in April 1975 marked the end of the war, and North and South Vietnam were reunified

the following year. The war exacted a huge human cost in terms of fatalities. Estimates of the number of

Vietnamese soldiers and civilians killed vary from 966,000 to 3.1 million. Some 240,000–300,000

Cambodians, 20,000–62,000 Laotians, and 58,220 U.S. service members also died in the conflict, and a

further 1,626 remain missing in action.

Iraq and Afghanistan

The Iraqi conflict (2003–present) is a long-running armed conflict that began with the 2003 invasion of

Iraq by a United States-led coalition that toppled the government of Saddam Hussein. However, the

conflict continued as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces and the post-invasion Iraqi

government. The United States officially withdrew from the country in 2011, but became re-involved in

2014 at the head of a new coalition. This intervention ended in 2017 with the loss of Islamic State

territory in Iraq.

The history of Afghanistan since the United States invasion of Afghanistan of October 7, 2001 is a period

sometimes referred to as the War in Afghanistan, code named Operation Enduring Freedom –

Afghanistan (2001–2014) and Operation Freedom's Sentinel (2015–present).

The U.S. in their 2001 invasion was supported initially by the United Kingdom and Canada and later by a

coalition of over 40 countries, including all NATO members. The war's public aims were to dismantle al-

Qaeda and to deny it a safe base of operations in Afghanistan by removing the Taliban from power. The

War in Afghanistan is the second longest war in United States history.