Since antiquity, nations and tribes have invaded one another to capture territory or reclaim lost land. These military attacks, ranging from Gengis Khan’s conquest of Central Asia to Vladimir Putin’s war in eastern Ukraine, have shaped the world we live in today. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed a variety of historical and military sources to identify the most famous invasions and how they shifted the global landscape.
Military invasion is a complex process that involves many factors that influence the success of an attack. In the past, prior to modern communications and rapid transportation, armies needed to move as a mass force to ensure that enough soldiers could reach their destination in time for a battle. Invasions that lacked sufficient resources to support the advancing army often suffered setbacks and defeat.
Often, the most effective way to protect against an invasion is to place fortifications along a nation’s borders. These defensive structures can delay an invading force and provide the defending country with enough time to mobilize its forces. In addition, they can interdict the invader’s supply lines by forcing the invading force to conquer towns to obtain fresh supplies. Xerxes I’s invasion of Greece, for example, required him to conquer many cities as a source of food.
Other defense strategies can be deployed to prevent an invader from reaching its destination, including blockade and establishing a naval presence near the nation’s coastline. These approaches, however, often require a preponderance of naval power and the ability to sustain that force during an invasion. Furthermore, a successful naval invasion can be complicated by underwater hazards such as coral reefs.