What has been responsible for causing the most wars? money/ oil? religion?

Question

What has been responsible for causing the most wars? money/ oil? religion?

Answer 1

people

Answer 2

Religion and land

Answer 3

'Control'! - either for land, money or resources. Religious conflicts in one way were also for control; Pagan religions fought amongst each other, Pagans were eliminated, Christians were persecuted, Jews were persecuted, Christians would persecute, Crusades, Inquisitions, some way current middle east conflict etc etc etc.

Religious conflicts would be most deadly or catastrophic dues to the nature of the conflicts. However since the dawn of time the wars have been for land. Empires changed hands many times.

Land = Control = Resources

Answer 4

religion by far.

Answer 5

money and oil!!!..religion is just used as a scapegoat

Answer 6

I would have to say it is a very close race between religion and money. Money might have a slight lead because of all the wars of antiquity that were fought before any of the big 3 religions. Oil is not even in contention, unless it is a subcategory of money, like gold would be. The person who answered religion is just a scapegoat is not very knowledgeable about world history. The Crusades and the wars of the 16th century were fought over religion.

Money can include things such as land, gold, oil, or other resources and has been around a lot longer than religion.

Answer 7

in past history it was territory, example English kings liked to go to war with France USA Scotland ...and so on

Crusades was to capture Jerusalem so Christians could go on a pilgrim to the holy land  [Islam territory]....

recently it has been oil undertones.

Ireland was not about religion but territory..... Ireland united

Answer 8

It has always been for territory and power(not necessarily money) and religion is always used as justification to enter the war

Answer 9

Religon would be the most common in this generation, Greed and ignorant Fools Also cause wars...

Answer 10

Religion.  Let's face it, most Governments seem to worship money and oil don't they?

Answer 11

Power to rule, religion helps involve the masses (population)

and money and oil finance it . who ever controls the religion controls the wealth and power too

Answer 12

religion has been round the longest so i guess that is the best answer from the choice but power causes the most wars. And with power the other things just come along with it.

Answer 13

discussions on any of the following. the mccanns, homosexuality , religion

Answer 14

Well not historian, but my bet would be religion

Answer 15

Money and oil.

Answer 16

Resources in general.

And Scott Baio.

Mainly Scott Baio.

Answer 17

If you look at documented wars and conquests over the 5300 years of written recorded history the answer has to be money/economics, which in turn equal political power.

Wars were fought from a very early age for natural resources which created wealth and power. Obviously not oil, but rather access to fertile lands, sources of water etc......this is why we see so many wars(as well as advanced civilisations) in areas such as Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus region etc.

So, in effect, money and natural resources, including oil, are really one and the same thing.

Oil is only a recent issue, and wars have been fought over oil only really since the 1950's.

With regards to Religion, there were no real wars fought in the name of religion prior to the advent of the Monotheistic religions, Judaism was an issue(although only to some degree) in the conquest of Israel by the jews in around 1000BC. The Assyrians fought under the banner of the chief god Ashur, and there was a religious element to the conquest of India by the Hindu Aryans (hence the opriginally racially based caste system)

Christianity and Islam have been the main culprits.

After Christianity was hijacked by Rome and the Europeans it became a violent, greedy,intollerant corrupt religion, and most wars fought in Europe from around 700AD through to the mid 18th Century involved religion, mainly conflicts between Christians and Pagans and various so called heretical sects, and later, between Catholics and Protestants.

Islam has been a violent religion from the outset, the Arabs conquering the middle east by force and slaughtering most of the native peoples...to the extent that Jews, Assyrians, Copts, Mandeans, Syriacs and Maronites are only small minorities today.

Islam has come into violent conflict with Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism and Sikhism in its 1400 year history.

Answer 18

Oil is a relative newcomer on the international scene - prior to the industrial age, no one needed oil (because there were no engines to run) - but since the beginning of time, people have argued about religion, and that was the single most determining factor in initiating more wars than any other reason.

Answer 19

Religion, avarice, stupidity.

Answer 20

I think most wars are about territory and the riches/resources that come with that territory -- even the ones that pretend to be about religion or some other motivation. If not territory, then just defending/advancing a country's self-interest (if there's a ruler in another country who's going to threaten something in your country, you go to war to get rid of him).

Answer 21

Mankind

Answer 22

Religion by far. Almost every war before the modern times, was fought over religion.

Answer 23

Land is the number one reason.  Religion is the most often used excuse for stealing it.

Answer 24

None of the above.  Wars have been around almost as long as man has inhabited this planet and far longer than money oil or religion played a significant role in daily lives.  Most wars have been caused by expansion and the constant desire for more territory.  money, oil & religion are usually to blame but that's to try to make the war seem more noble.  It looks better to claim that the other country has caused you to suffer financially than to say you just want their land.  If gold had not been discovered in the Black Hills does anyone really think that the west wouldn't have been settled?  It was a land grab, it was not really about money.

Answer 25

By a mile religion.Human differences were the first reason people killed each other,than money and recently oil.

Interestingly the two biggest wars,were not for any of the 3 reasons.It was for personal vanity

Answer 26

None of them..............roadrage..........its definately road rage. We only went into Iraq because Saddam Hussein cut up Tony Blairs car in birdcage walk when he was over here on holidays.

Answer 27

religion is the root of all evil, people were fighting long before oil was found.