proxy war: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Photos

Italian soldiers operate an artillery gun behind protective shields on a barren landscape near Navalcarnero, outside Madrid, during the Spanish Civil War in October 1936.

A U.S. Navy boat using napalm during the Vietnam War

A Ukrainian serviceman in camouflage winter gear holds an assault rifle and looks upward from a sandbagged trench, with bare trees and cloudy sky in the background.

See All Images →

Topics

war guerrilla warfare Ethnic conflict special operations warfare cyberwar civil war trench warfare Just war asymmetrical warfare Feud electronic warfare