List of Minor Wars in Turtledove's Work

The following is a list of the fictional wars known to have taken place in one of the fictional works of Harry Turtledove. Because they are usually only mentioned in passing, with limited information as to the causes, belligerents involved, duration, and outcomes, they have not been given individual entries nor this wiki's usual in-universe descriptions.

As Turtledove leaves many of these wars unnamed, descriptive names have been assigned by this wiki for simplicity's sake. Wars that were unnamed in-universe are marked with an asterisk (*).

"After the Last Elf is Dead"

 * War Between the Dark and the Light*, when the Western Realm (ruled by the High King) was overrun by the forces of the Dark Brother. The story depicts the very last thrust of the war, and its immediate aftermath. Turtledove has inferred that the war is meant to be a generic analog of all the better-known good-versus-evil conflicts in fantasy literature; he simply wanted to explore the question of what if evil was the winner for a change.

Home timeline

 * The Second Iranian Intervention was a war in the 21st century. The United States and the European Union had sent troops into Iran on the side of the monarchy, but things didn't go the way they planned. It is not clear whether the restoration of the monarchy is a result of the Second Intervention or its cause.

Curious Notions

 * War of the 1930s*. Having won an analog of World War I in 1914, Germany faced the revanchist attacks of Great Britain and France, and triumphed once again, becoming the undisputed master of Europe.


 * War of 1956*. Germany, led by Kaiser Wilhelm IV, attacked the United States with atomic bombs, destroying a dozen cities in one day. Germany subsequently invaded and occupied the whole country. By 2096, the United States remained an occupied vassal state of the Kaiserreich.

The Disunited States of America

 * War of 1812; Virginia was a belligerent. The relation between this war and the home timeline War of 1812, if any, is unrevealed.


 * War of 1833, Virginia was a belligerent.


 * First Northeastern War, Virginia was not a belligerent.


 * Second Northeastern War 1837, Massachusetts annexed Rhode Island. Virginia doesn't seem to have been a participant.


 * Third Northeastern War; Virginia doesn't seem to have been a participant.


 * Rocky Mountain War; which saw Deseret establish its independence.


 * First Ohio-Virginia War


 * Three States' War; Virginia was a participant.


 * First Black Insurrection; a revolt of Negroes in Virginia.


 * Great War; an analog of World War I, wherein different North American states sided with either the British or the Prussians and fought against each other.


 * Second Black Insurrection; a second revolt of Negroes in Virginia.


 * Atlantic War; Virginia was a participant.


 * War of the Three Emperors, circa 1947, in which Russia was a participant, and Tsaritsyn was the site of an apocalyptic battle. Possibly a loose analog of World War II.


 * Florida Intervention; Florida was partitioned into three areas, the southernmost was annexed to Cuba. Virginia was a participant.

A Different Flesh

 * The Russo-Prussian War took place in the mid-20th century, and appears to be a partial analog of World War II. The war produced horrifying images of emaciated concentration camp survivors which became iconic the world over.

"The Emperor's Return"
Soviet-Turkish War*. In 2003, the Soviet Union invaded Turkey with the aid of Greece. The story focuses on one battle - the Greek capture of Istanbul - and leaves the war's overall scope only vaguely defined.

"Ready for the Fatherland"

 * Sunbomb War*. In 1953, the Soviet Union smuggled a sunbomb into American-occupied Tokyo, destroying the city. The Americans retaliated by sunbombing Vladivostok, but escalation into World War III was averted when Soviet leader Joseph Stalin abruptly died of natural causes and an armistice was called. German dictator Erich von Manstein mediated the final peace settlement, which resulted in status quo ante bellum.

"The Road Not Taken"

 * The Second Syrian Crisis in the 2030s caused the United States to reintroduce conscription. Billy Cox was one of the first men drafted into the United States Army as a result of this.

"Running of the Bulls"

 * Ecnarfian War* A vague analog of World War I, this global war was fought nearly a decade before the story takes place. One front of the war was fought in Ecnarf and involved soldiers from Dubyook (including Baek Jarns and Obert Ohn) and Dunlin (including Kime Kelbam) as allies. The overall scope of the war is unrevealed, as is the name of any nation on the other side.

Southern Victory

 * Peruvian War*; Peru fought a war with its neighbors in the years following the Great War. Confederate mercenaries connected to Jake Featherston's Freedom Party fought on behalf of Peru to build experience in warfare.

The Two Georges

 * Nuevespañolan War*, fought between the British Empire and the Franco-Spanish Holy Alliance in the early 1860s. It resulted in American annexation of territory from Nueva España which became the Provinces of Cranmer, Phoenix, Upper California, and Lower California. A vague analog of the OTL Mexican War.

"Vilcabamba"
Krolp Wars*. Over the course of the 22nd century, the alien Krolp conquered most of Earth. The story deals with the final stand of independent humans in the North American theatre, with the overall scope of the wars only vaguely alluded to.

The War Between the Provinces

 * War of 1218; Hesmucet, the king of a blond tribe, scored major tactical victories against the Detinans, but was ultimately killed and his side defeated. While "War of 1218" is an anagram of "War of 1812," it is not clear how closely the two wars resemble each other. As the years of the Detinan Civil War are never numbered, the Civil War may have happened as few as 50, or as many as 200, years after 1218.


 * Kermitic Wars*; Approximately 50 years before the Detinan Civil War, Great King Kermit invaded Sorb and occupied Pahzbull. A vague analog of the Russian phase of the Napoleonic Wars, it is not known whether the invasion took place concurrent with the War of 1218.