Category: Civil Wars

Explore the human side of civil wars through authentic historical photographs. Witness the struggles, courage, and consequences of divided nations.
These images document key events and personal moments that shaped political and social transformations around the world.

#26 Mourners file past the coffin of Father Hugh Mullan, at Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Church on the Ballymurphy estate after Requiem Mass, 11 Aug, 1971

A slow-moving line of mourners fills the nave at Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Church on the Ballymurphy estate, gathering around the coffin of Father Hugh Mullan after Requiem Mass on 11 August 1971. Faces are tight with grief and fatigue, and the quiet rituals of farewell—hands resting on the coffin’s edge, a final touch, a…
#42 The aftermath of the North Street Arcade in the city center of Belfast, Northern Ireland after it was hit by a bomb blast which wrecked eight shops, shown Nov. 6, 1971.

Rubble dominates the foreground where the North Street Arcade once stood in Belfast’s city centre, a jagged mound of brick, splintered timber, and twisted fragments spilling out onto the pavement. The blast damage described in the title—eight shops wrecked—feels immediate in the way the street has been abruptly reshaped into a construction-like ruin, with barriers…
#58 A British Army Humber Pig passes through a burning barricade, 1972.

Smoke billows up a tight city street as a British Army Humber Pig edges past a barricade that’s still burning, its dark plume cutting across the façades and upper windows. The road is choked with wreckage—twisted metal, scattered debris, and what looks like an overturned vehicle feeding the flames—while the armored car’s blunt silhouette pushes…
#7 Gen. George G. Meade of the Union.

This historical Civil War-era portrait shows Gen. George G. Meade of the Union in a formal studio setting, captured in a crisp, high-contrast black-and-white photograph. He stands in three-quarter view with a steady, composed expression, offering a striking glimpse into the visual culture of wartime America.
#23 The bodies of a group of Confederate soldiers wait to be buried.

This haunting Civil War photograph shows the bodies of a group of Confederate soldiers lying in the foreground as they wait to be buried. The scene is stark and quiet, with rough ground and simple wooden markers nearby, emphasizing the immediacy and tragedy of battlefield death.
#39 People stand in front of the Battle of Gettysburg tents belonging to the U.S. Christian Commission, a group that provided supplies and services to Union troops.

This Civil War–era photograph shows a small group of people posed in front of a row of canvas tents identified in the title as belonging to the U.S. Christian Commission at the Battle of Gettysburg. Set along the edge of a wooded camp, the tents form a makeshift relief station, with figures standing and sitting…
#13 An old Greek woman takes her most precious possession, a calf, loads it onto her donkey and heads away from the battle zone during the Greek Civil War, 1948.

Bent against the pull of a rope, an elderly Greek woman trudges along a rough mountain road while her donkey follows behind, burdened not with sacks or firewood but with a living calf. The animal’s small body is strapped across the pack, its legs gathered in, turning an everyday work beast into a lifeline on…
#29 Government troops advancing during engagements at Konitzsa, Greek Civil War, 1940s.

Across a jagged slope of loose stone, government troops surge forward with rifles in hand, their bodies caught in a blur of speed and urgency. The mountainous horizon stretches behind them, emphasizing how much of the fighting during the Greek Civil War unfolded in hard country where every ridge and ravine could become a battlefield.…
#7 Paramedics evacuate an ailing hunger striker from Beijing University at Tiananmen Square, as students enter the fifth day of hunger strikes.

Urgency cuts through the crowded square as paramedics in white coats rush a stretcher forward, their faces set with concentration. The patient lies still, shoes off and legs extended, while a nurse leans in to steady the ride through the press of onlookers. Behind them, a sea of banners and red flags lifts above the…
#23 Beijing residents inspect the interior of some of more than 20 armored personnel carriers burned by demonstrators to prevent the troops from moving into Tiananmen Square.

Smoke still hangs over a broad Beijing avenue as residents on bicycles and on foot weave around the hulking shells of armored personnel carriers. Their scorched paint, warped panels, and exposed tracks turn military hardware into wreckage, while crowds press close to peer into open hatches and interiors. In the distance, the roadway narrows into…