The definition of war as stated by the Electric Law Library is a "contention by force; or the art of paralyzing the forces of an enemy." Inside of this definition there are all types of interpretations. There are private wars and public wars, local and national wars. National wars can be offensive or defensive. The descriptions could go on, and to the United States the definition is the same. Over the three hundred years history of this great country there have been nearly 50 serious wars or conflicts. Each war discussed in this paper can be broken down so that one can see the motivations or the necessity for the war.
             Even before the first ship of European settlers landed in America there was war. The group that we associate with being the first peoples to live in North and South America are the Native Americans. In all actuality they were not the first people to inhabit this land. There was a group of prehistoric people on this continent who were of earlier Mongolian descent. These early people were wiped out when the group of people known today as Native Americans came in and fought against and destroyed these people. Over the years the Native Americans migrated and split into many different tribes, some peaceful, others not so peaceful. These groups often clashed, fighting over hunting ground, water sources, or simply to please their gods. In early times, the most important qualities to insure the survival of a group of people were intelligence, ability to adapt, and strength. The group that possessed these qualities would either fight and dominate the lesser group, or blend with that group.
             In Europe wars were rampant, some lasting for incredible amounts of time. Most of these wars were involved somehow with England. England, with the monarch at its most powerful, had colonies everywhere. It had colonies in Australia, South Africa, Russia, China, and just about everywhere else that they could r...