History Main / DecisiveBattle

* In ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors 8'', the [[ForWantOfANail turning point]] that leads to Wei's [[WhatIf Hypothetical Route]] is Wei emerging victorious at Chibi.

** Happening concurrently with Gettysburg was the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Vicksburg Siege of Vicksburg]] in Mississippi. One of the key Union strategies in the Civil War was the capture of the entire Mississippi River, but the town of Vicksburg on its banks was turned into a massive fortress for the Confederacy to maintain a foothold. After a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicksburg_campaign months-long campaign]] led by General Ulysses S. Grant, the fortress-town was finally captured in July 1863, being the last Confederate Stronghold along the Mississippi River. With the loss of Vicksburg and the entire River, the Confederacy was effectively split in two, with the two divided sides unable to support or communicate with each other. The Eastern Confederacy could not rely on reinforcements or supplies from Texas, Arkansas, or Louisiana, while the Western Confederacy was largely left rudderless to wither on the vine. President Abraham Lincoln called Vicksburg "the key to the war."
** The battle of Chattanooga in the West. The Western Armies had been working hard to take over Tennessee, and had maneuvered Braxton Braag out of Cattanooga earlier that year. However, then the army was routed due to some mistakes at Chickamauga, and the South had some momentum to take back the city. However, Ulysses S. Grant arrived in the city for his last big fight out west, as with the help of his generals, he drove Bragg from the city, securing the state for the immediate future. The Southern Army of Tennessee would never have the strength and chance to be as offensively capable after this, and this would be the final confirmation for Abraham Lincoln to bring Grant back East as his new Supreme Commander of the Army.

** D-Day is perhaps the final and most iconic for the Western Allies, where 175,000 soldiers were able to establish a beachhead in Normandy and successfully reopened the entire Western Front against Nazi Germany, something that the Germans could not afford to have alongside the Eastern Front against the USSR. Before D-Day, the Third Reich was losing the war but did have a chance of fighting off the Soviets (albeit a small one). After D-Day, and the subsequent liberation of France, it became apparent to German High Command [[note]] With the [[IRejectYourReality exception]] of Hitler and a few hardline-Nazi Generals [[/note]] that total defeat was inevitable.

** The battle of Guadalcanal, starting just two months after Midway and ending into February of the next year, also counts. While Midway shattered Japan's hopes of conquest, this battle essentially showed that they couldn't defend their Empire in the long run. Both the Americans and Japanese committed thousands men and hundreds of ships and planes in a series of battles in and around the island. The end result was the Japanese Army and Navy losing even more men, planes, and ships that they could never afford or recover from.

*** [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Leyte_Gulf The Battle of Leyte Gulf]] is widely believed to be the largest naval battle in world history [[note]] It involved more than ''350 ships, 200,000 naval personnel'', and resulted in the loss of ''12,500 Japanese & 3,000 American'' personnel [[/note]]. It was Japan's final attempt to defeat the American Navy, committing nearly every major surface vessel into the operation. The battle was a resounding defeat for the Japanese, who suffered heavy losses and never sailed in comparable force thereafter. The operation burned through their navy's fuel reserves and afterwards their ships were stranded in bases for lack of fuel for the rest of the war, effectively giving the Americans [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Command_of_the_sea Command of the Sea]]. What remaining power the Japanese Navy had was effectively destroyed or rendered irrelevant.

** Happening concurrently with Gettysburg was the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Vicksburg Siege of Vicksburg]] in Mississippi. One of the key Union strategies in the Civil War was the capture of the entire Mississippi River, but the town of Vicksburg on its banks was turned into a massive fortress for the Confederacy to maintain a foothold. After a months-long campaign, the fortress-town was finally captured in July 1863, being the last Confederate Stronghold along the Mississippi River. With the loss of Vicksburg and the entire River, the Confederacy was effectively split in two, with two divided sides unable to support or communicate with each other. The Eastern Confederacy could not rely on reinforcements or supplies from Texas, Arkansas, or Louisiana, while the Western Confederacy was largely left rudderless to wither on the vine. President Abraham Lincoln called Vicksburg "the key to the war."

* ''Franchise/StarWars'': The Battle of Endor in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi''. The Second Death Star is destroyed, Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader are killed and with them the Banite Sith Order, and the Rebels inflict serious damage on a major Imperial fleet (including killing a number of senior flag officers aboard the Super Star Destroyer ''Executor''). Both ExpandedUniverse continuities, ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' and the new Creator/{{Disney}}-managed ''Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse'', take this as ''the'' turning point that led to the fall of the Galactic Empire.

* Fanfic/MyFathersSon: [[spoiler: Rhaegar's]] Rebellion was a near run back and forth between those supporting [[spoiler: the rebelling prince]] and Aerys's loyalists. However, all that would change with The Battle of the Bells. With the Rebels taking a defensive position around Stony Sept (ironically enough given canon), The royal armies had a perogative to wipe them out and finish the war right there. While better equipped thanks to having calvary advantages, [[spoiler: Rhaegar]] had sent out a play to finish the war by appealing to Tywin Lannister to finally decide whom to work with. And thus, he came in as TheCalvary and along with Ned Stark defeating the Tarly armies through single combat, the royals were eventually broken and defeated in summary.

* Fanfic/MyFathersSon: [[spoiler: Rhaegar's]] Rebellion was a near run back and forth between those supporting [[spoiler: the rebelling prince]] and Aerys's loyalists.

* In the backstory for ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', and its TV adaptation ''Series/GameOfThrones'', the Battle of the Trident was the decisive battle of Robert's Rebellion. The war began about 18 years before the time of the main story, and involved defiance against the unjust rule of King Aerys II Targaryen, who was called "[[TheCaligula the Mad King]]" because he, uh, [[BadBoss was]]. BoisterousBruiser Lord Robert Baratheon, his OldFriend Lord Eddard "HonorBeforeReason" Stark and their ParentalSubstitute Lord Jon Arryn agreed to rebel, instantly setting three of the setting's Seven Kingdoms against the king; via ArrangedMarriage of Eddard with Catelyn Tully, they were able to bring a fourth kingdom in as well. Meanwhile, the king had the loyalty of House Martell ([[IHaveYourWife their princess was married to the crown prince]]) and House Tully, [[KnowNothingKnowItAll which wasn't worth much]]. King Aerys's NumberTwo and [[WeUsedToBeFriends former bestie]], Lord Tywin Lannister, was the only one to sit the war out, preferring to see how things shook out. Well, at the Battle of the Trident, Robert Baratheon faced Crown Prince Rhaegar Targaryen and personally killed him. This led directly to the end of the war: Lord Tywin sided with the rebels, even going so far as to provide a CavalryBetrayal by marching to the capitol and ''claiming'' to side with the king before attacking it as a show of fealty to Robert. The Sack of King's Landing is also when Aerys II met his fate at the blade of a PraetorianGuard turned [[TheKingslayer Kingslayer]], marking a formal end to The War of TheUsurper.

** Most notably, the strategy adopted by the Imperial Japanese Navy following Midway and Guadcanal ''counted on this trope'', revolving around a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kantai_Kessen Decisive Battle]] where their fleet would crush the US one in a single, climactic battle. This strategy was epitomized on the massive ''Yamato''-class battleships. The US Navy, on the other hand, defied this trope between the loss of battleships at Pearl Harbour forcing the USN to rely on its carriers, the island-hopping strategy that intentionally avoided large concentrations of Japanese forces, and the massive industrial advantage the US had over Japan allowing it to replace its losses.

*** [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Philippine_Sea The Battle of the Philippine Sea]] was a major assault attempted by the Japanese Navy to destroy the US Fleet... and instead became one of the most [[CurbStompBattle one-sided]] naval battles in history [[note]] This was largely because most of the Japanese Pilots & Crewman, while well-trained, lacked any combat experience and were flying planes that were on the verge of obsolescence; whereas the American Pilots were highly trained/experienced and were using newer, more powerful planes [[/note]]. The Japanese lost 3 incredibly vital aircraft carriers and approximately 600 planes, whereas the Americans lost only 123 aircraft [[note]] Most of which were the result of running out of fuel after attacking the Japanese fleet just on the edge of their effective range [[/note]]. The Japanese Navy spent more than a year rebuilding its air strength after the heavy losses from 1942, only to have them eviscerated in just two days. As a result, Japan lost any effective air power that it could never recover.

** Happening concurrently with Gettysburg was the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Vicksburg Siege of Vicksburg]] in Mississippi. One of the key Union strategies in the Civil War was the capture of the entire Mississippi River, but the town of Vicksburg on its banks was turned into a massive fortress for the Confederacy to maintain a foothold. After a months-long campaign, the fortress was finally captured in July 1863, being the last Confederate Stronghold along the Mississippi River. With the loss of Vicksburg and the entire River, the Confederacy was effectively split in two, with two divided sides unable to support or communicate with each other. The Eastern Confederacy could not rely on reinforcements or supplies from Texas, Arkansas, or Louisiana, while the Western Confederacy was largely left rudderless to wither on the vine. President Abraham Lincoln called Vicksburg "the key to the war."

** Happening concurrently with Gettysburg was the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Vicksburg Siege of Vicksburg]] on the Mississippi River. One of the key Union strategies in the Civil War was the capture of the river, but the town of Vicksburg on the banks was turned into a massive fortress for the Confederacy. After a months-long campaign, the fortress was finally captured in July 1863, being the last Confederate Stronghold along the Mississippi River. With the loss of Vicksburg and the entire River, the Confederacy was effectively split in two, with two divided sides unable to support or communicate with each other. The Eastern Confederacy could not rely on reinforcements or supplies from Texas, Arkansas, or Louisiana, while the Western Confederacy was largely left rudderless to wither on the vine. President Abraham Lincoln called Vicksburg "the key to the war."

*** [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Philippine_Sea The Battle of the Philippine Sea]], was one of the most [[CurbStompBattle one-sided]] naval battles in history [[note]] This was largely because most of the Japanese Pilots & Crewman, while well-trained, lacked any combat experience and were flying planes that were on the verge of obsolescence; whereas the American Pilots were highly trained/experienced and were using newer, more powerful planes [[/note]]. The Japanese lost 3 incredibly vital aircraft carriers and approximately 600 planes, whereas the Americans lost only 123 aircraft [[note]] Most of which were the result of running out of fuel after attacking the Japanese fleet just on the edge of their effective range [[/note]]. The Japanese Navy spent nearly two years rebuilding its air strength after the heavy losses from 1942, only to have them eviscerated in just two days. As a result, Japan lost any effective air power that it could never recover.

* In the backstory for ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', and its TV adaptation ''Series/GameOfThrones'', the Battle of the Trident was the decisive battle of Robert's Rebellion. The war began about 18 years before the time of the main story, and involved defiance against the unjust rule of King Aerys II Targaryen, who was called "[[TheCaligula the Mad King]]" because he, uh, [[BadBoss was]]. BoisterousBruiser Lord Robert Baratheon, his OldFriend Lord Eddard "HonorBeforeReason" Stark and their ParentalSubstitute Lord Jon Arryn agreed to rebel, instantly setting three of the setting's Seven Kingdoms against the king; via ArrangedMarriage of Eddard with Catelyn Tully, they were able to bring a fourth kingdom in as well. Meanwhile, the king had the loyalty of House Martell ([[IHaveYourWife their princess was married to the crown prince]]) and House Tully, [[KnowNothingKnowItAll which wasn't worth much]]. King Aerys's NumberTwo and [[WeUsedToBeFriends former bestie]], Lord Tywin Lannister, was the only one to sit the war out, preferring to see how things shook out. Well, at the Battle of the Trident, Robert Baratheon faced Crown Prince Rhaegar Targaryen and personally killed him. This led directly to the end of the war: Lord Tywin sided with the rebels, even going so far as to provide a CavalryBetrayal by marching to the capitol and ''claiming'' to side with the king before attacking it as a show of fealty to Robert. The Sack of King's Landing is also when Aerys II met his fate at the blade of a PraetorianGuard turned {{Kingslayer}}, marking a formal end to The War of TheUsurper.

* In the backstory for ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', and its TV adaptation ''Series/GameOfThrones'', the Battle of the Trident was the decisive battle of Robert's Rebellion. Despite setbacks and defeats at the hands of House Tyrell, Robert Baratheon faced Prince Rhaegar Targaryen at the Trident and personally killed him, shattering the royal armies. This battle made Lord Tywin Lannister, who by then had been sitting out the war, to realize that the rebel cause would soon be victorious and so lead his own armies to King's Landing to sack it as a sign of fealty to Robert.

— Creator/WinstonChurchill