Military history is packed with amazing military feats, especially those where a tiny force snatches victory from a vastly larger opponent. Below we count down ten jaw‑dropping battles where determination, clever tactics, and a dash of luck turned the tables.
Amazing Military Triumphs
10 Battle Of Longewala1971
The Battle of Longewala erupted early on December 5, 1971, during the Indo‑Pakistani War. A massive Pakistani thrust – tanks, infantry and artillery – rolled into India, only to meet Major K.S. Chandpuri and his modest contingent of about 100 men, a handful of mortar trainees, and a single jeep armed with an anti‑tank weapon. Chandpuri had entrenched his position on a sand‑dune overlooking the tiny hamlet of Longewala in the Thar desert.
Before dawn the Pakistani guns opened fire, even killing five camels. By 4:00 AM the enemy’s reconnaissance spotted roughly 55 tanks (a mix of Chinese‑built T‑59s and U.S. Shermans) together with a battalion of about 3,000 infantry and 24 artillery pieces poised to the south. Throughout the night Chandpuri’s men managed to knock out twelve of those tanks, repelling wave after wave despite having only limited firepower.
Because the Indian Air Force lacked night‑vision equipment, air support was withheld until sunrise. When two Indian hunter aircraft finally swooped in at dawn, the desert turned into a killing field; the tanks had nowhere to hide in the open sand, and their mobility was hampered. By 11:00 AM the defenders were still holding, and reinforcements arrived. The next day, December 6, Major Chandpuri’s force routed the enemy, allowing only eight enemy tanks to escape the wrath of the 101‑strong Indian detachment.
9 Battle Of Okehazama1560
In the frantic Sengoku era of 1560, the Oda clan—still a minor power—was led by the 26‑year‑old Oda Nobunaga, a charismatic yet erratic warlord. The formidable Imagawa clan, under Yoshimoto, marched toward Kyoto, crossing Owari territory held by the Oda. Yoshimoto’s army numbered between 20,000 and 40,000 men, while Nobunaga could muster only about 2,000.
After setting up camp at the temple fortress of Zenshoji on June 11, Nobunaga ordered a dummy army to be constructed, creating the illusion of a larger force. Confident in his numerical superiority, Yoshimoto let his troops feast and drink, believing victory would be effortless.
On June 22, under the cover of a thunderstorm that muffled their approach, Nobunaga’s troops slipped out of the fortress and surged up the hills behind the enemy. The Imagawa soldiers, drunk and unprepared, were taken by surprise. Their leader, Yoshimoto, was cut down before he could rally his men, and the Oda forces secured a decisive win in just two hours.
8 Siege Of Vienna1529
After seizing southern Hungary in August 1526, Sultan Suleiman I set his sights on Vienna. In May 10, 1529, the Ottoman army marched toward the Austrian capital, confronting a defense led by Marshal Wilhelm von Roggendorf and a 70‑year‑old mercenary, Niklas Graf Salm. The Viennese garrison numbered about 20,000 men and 75 artillery pieces.
The Ottoman siege force dwarfed the defenders, fielding roughly 100,000 troops and 500 guns. The attackers began with a massive bombardment—over 300 cannons blasting the walls—and attempted to undermine the fortifications by digging tunnels.
Salm’s clever counter‑measure involved placing bowls of water with dried peas around the walls; when the peas floated and were disturbed by digging, ripples warned the defenders of the miners below. Viennese engineers then dug their own tunnels to intercept the Ottoman mines, even nearly capturing the Grand Vizier. On October 6, a daring sortie of 8,000 troops attacked the mining operation, destroying many enemy tunnels at heavy cost. By October 14, Suleiman’s forces, having lost many mines to rain and counter‑mining, retreated.
7 Battle Of Galveston1863
On January 1, 1863, Confederate General John B. Magruder launched an assault on Union‑occupied Galveston, Texas. The Union‑held wharf was fortified by 260 soldiers and protected by six gunboats. The Confederates fielded 500 men, 21 artillery pieces, and two river steamers—the Bayou City and the Neptune—each reinforced with cotton bales and a single gun.
At dawn the Confederate artillery opened fire, achieving little effect. A ground assault attempted to scale the Union defenses, but ladders proved too short. Simultaneously, the two steamers tried to ram the Union gunboats. The Neptune was instantly lost, but the Bayou City pressed on, ramming and capturing the USS Harriet Lane. Meanwhile, the Union flagship USS Westfield ran aground.
A truce allowed both sides to assess the situation. Union Commodore Renshaw, aboard the Westfield, decided to scuttle his ship, planting explosives. The first attempt failed; when he returned to the vessel, it detonated, killing Renshaw and 13 of his crew. The Union fleet, now leaderless, fled. The Confederates suffered 26 killed and 117 wounded, while the Union lost 400 prisoners, roughly 150 shipboard casualties, and the Westfield itself.
6 Battle Of Tolvajärvi1939
The Winter War’s opening salvo saw the Soviet 139th Division—about 20,000 men, 45 tanks, and 150 artillery pieces—push the 4,000‑strong Finnish defenders out of the Tolvajärvi sector. Colonel Paavo Talvela devised a daring pincer maneuver across two frozen lakes, splitting his outnumbered troops into three groups targeting the Soviet line’s north, centre, and south.
At 8:00 AM on December 12, 1939, the offensive began. The northern Finnish group engaged a superior Soviet regiment, buying time for the central and southern attacks. A small Finnish company stubbornly held its ground, preventing the 718th Soviet Division from reinforcing the south.
The central Finnish force overran an entire Soviet division, storming a hotel‑turned fort that served as the enemy’s command post, despite weak artillery support. The southern contingent captured Kotisaari Island after fierce fighting. The Finns suffered roughly 100 casualties, while Soviet losses topped 1,000 killed, plus a substantial haul of weapons.
5 Second Battle Of Lacolle Mill1814
During the War of 1812, Major General James Wilkinson led a force of 4,000 men and 11 artillery pieces in a push toward Montreal. On March 30, 1814, his troops crossed the Lacolle River bridge and encountered a British garrison at Lacolle Mill. Major Richard Handcock commanded 180 British soldiers and Marines, reinforced by 160 Canadian Fencibles.
Wilkinson could bring only three of his eleven guns to bear on the stone mill, resulting in a prolonged bombardment that inflicted little damage. Outnumbered roughly 12‑to‑1, Handcock—running low on ammunition—ordered a daring charge to seize the American artillery. The first assault failed, but a second, bolstered by about 550 men, briefly captured the guns before being forced to withdraw.
By 6:00 PM Wilkinson’s forces retreated. American casualties numbered 254 killed or wounded, while the British side suffered 61 casualties.
4 Battle Of Gate Pa1864
In April 1864, the British under Duncan Cameron—1,700 soldiers and 17 artillery pieces—attacked the Maori fortress of Gate Pa, located right on the doorstep of their main camp. The Maori defenders, 235 warriors led by Rawiri Puhirake, braced for the onslaught.
On April 28‑29 the British barrage rained down, delivering roughly 136 kg (300 lb) of explosives per defender. Remarkably, only 15 Maori were killed. The defenders deliberately ceased fire, deceiving Cameron into believing they were on the brink of annihilation. Believing the fort empty, the British sent a storming party inside, only to be ambushed when hidden Maori fighters emerged from bunkers, trenches, and floorboards.
The surprise forced the British to withdraw twice, costing them about 120 killed. Maori casualties remained minimal. That night the Maori evacuated, carrying captured weapons and leaving Cameron’s pride behind.
3 Second Battle Of Sabine Pass1863
On September 8, 1863, Union General William B. Franklin attempted an amphibious invasion of Texas via Sabine Pass. His force comprised four gunboats, 18 transport ships, and roughly 4,000 troops.
Confederate Lieutenant Richard W. “Dick” Dowling, with just 47 men of the First Texas Heavy Artillery and six cannons positioned at Fort Griffin, stood between the Union fleet and the Texas coast. When the Union ships entered the pass, Dowling’s batteries opened fire, disabling the USS Sachem and the USS Clifton. The Confederate artillery’s accurate barrage blocked the river, forcing the Union vessels to retreat and their ground troops to surrender.
The Confederates suffered no casualties. Union losses amounted to 28 killed, 75 wounded, and 315 captured—making it one of the Union’s most humiliating defeats.
2 Battle Of Vitkov Hill1420
During the Hussite Wars, July 1420 saw a massive crusading army of about 150,000 men march on Prague. Jan Žižka, leading a peasant Hussite force, had already secured the city before the siege began.
The defenders concentrated their effort on Vitkov Hill, a pivotal part of Prague’s fortifications. Armed with only sharpened tools, the outnumbered Hussites repelled successive assaults over two days. Their steadfast defense bought time for a relief force to arrive and rout the crusaders, much to the Pope’s chagrin.
1 Battle Of Cerami1063
In 1063, Norman knight Roger I of Calabria and his 130 knights defended the Sicilian settlement of Cerami against a vastly larger Muslim army. The battle raged throughout the day, with the Normans surviving an initial charge and holding their ground until the enemy withdrew under cover of night.
Contemporary chronicles boast exaggerated figures—claims of 15,000 Saracens slain and even a miraculous appearance of St. George—but modern historians agree the Normans inflicted casualties far exceeding their own numbers. The victory at Cerami marked a turning point in Roger’s conquest of Sicily, earning the Normans a papal banner for their valor.