Conquest (military)

Conquest involves the act of military of an enemy by force of arms. The Norman conquest of England provides an example: it led to the subjugation of the Kingdom of England to Norman control and brought William the Conqueror to the English throne in 1066. Military history provides many other examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of the entire Indian subcontinent, the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire and various Muslim conquests, to mention just a few.

The ancient civilized peoples conducted wars on a large scale that were, in effect, conquests. In Egypt the effects of invasion and conquest are to be seen in different racial types represented in paintings and sculptures.

Improved agriculture production was not conducive to peace, it allowed for specialization including the formation of ever larger militaries and improved weapon technology. This combined with growth of population and political control, war became more widespread and destructive. Thus, the Aztecs, Incas, African Kingdoms Dahomey and Benin and the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Babylonia, Assyria and Persia all stand out as more militaristic than the less civilized tribes about them. Military adventures were on a larger scale and effective conquest now for the first time became feasible.

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