Fought in early December 2001, the Battle of Tora Bora saw Coalition and Afghan forces attacking the Tora Bora cave complex in the White Mountains near the Pakistani border. Retreating before Coalition and Afghan forces, Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters, including Osama bin Laden, took refuge in the Tora Bora cave system in late 2001. Confronted by Afghan militias, they defended the area in the face of attacks and Coalition air strikes. Arriving on the scene, Special Forces troops sought to assault the caves through the mountains to the south but were denied by headquarters. A similar request to mine the passes south to Pakistan was also denied. Forced to conduct a frontal attack, the Special Forces were delayed when their Afghan allies negotiated a ceasefire with the enemy. This delay most likely allowed bin Laden to shift to a new position. Special Forces later thought they had killed bin Laden when the al-Qaeda leader was seen entering a cave which was subsequently pummeled with air strikes. The Tora Bora complex was cleared by December 17, but Coalition troops were unable to find bin Laden's body. It is believed that he escaped over the border into Pakistan on or around December 16.

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Photograph Courtesy of the National Archives & Records Administration

July 9, 1755 - British troops under Maj. Gen. Edward Braddock (right) are routed at the Battle of the Monongahela. Following Lt. Col. George Washington's defeat at Fort Necessity the year before, Gen. Edward Braddock mounted an expedition to capture Fort Duquesne at the Forks of the Ohio (present-day Pittsburgh, PA). Departing Fort Cumberland, MD on May 29, 1755, Braddock's column moved slowly through the wilderness as a road was built to accommodate the army's baggage and artillery trains. Nearing the fort on July 9, Braddock encountered a smaller force of French and Native Americans after fording the Monongahela River. Utilizing the cover provided by the wooded terrain, the French and Native Americans were able to mortally wound Braddock and drive the British from the area. Suffering nearly 900 casualties, the British were forced to retreat back towards Philadelphia.

Photograph Source: Public Domain

World War I commenced in August 1914 after a series of events sparked by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. Initially arranged in two alliances, the Triple Entente (Britain, France, Russia) and the Central Powers (Germany, Austro-Hungarian Empire, Ottoman Empire), the war soon drew in numerous other countries and was fought on a global scale. The largest conflict in history to date, World War I killed over 15 million people and devastated large parts of Europe. Start here to learn more about this massive conflict, the end of which ultimately sowed the seeds for World War II.

Photograph Source: Public Domain