The silly war took 2,000 people because of a wooden crate

In the history of mankind there was a strange battle, just because the wooden crate was not worth the money but led to an unreasonable battle, robbing more than 2,000 lives.

In 1325, the battle between the Italian cities of Bologna and Modena began when a group of Modena soldiers sneaked into Bologna and stole an oak barrel . This wooden crate is used to scoop well water in the center of town.

While not worth the money and also of historical significance, for the Bologna people, the theft of the wooden crate is similar to the fact that they were offended and asked to return the box. Modena's side refuses and triggers a meaningless fight.

The war that lasted several hours of war and victory belonged to Modena. It is still stored in the basement of the city's bell tower Torre della Ghirlandina.

Picture 1 of The silly war took 2,000 people because of a wooden crate
The tank is still stored in the basement of the bell tower Torre della Ghirlandina.(Photo: Amusing Planet)

Bologna then gathered a powerful army of 30,000 infantry and 2,000 cavalry and stationed in the Zappolino area. Confront them is a weak army Modena with only 5,000 soldiers and 2,000 cavalry. Furthermore, Modena soldiers were rather embarrassed by stationing in the plains while their rival Bologna held high bases in the surrounding hills.

Surrounded by a powerful force with six times the number of soldiers, the Modena army fought bravely and in just a few hours the battle was over. The soldiers of the Bologna army failed and were chased by the Modena army to Bologna. They crossed the city gates and destroyed many castles and gates on the Reno River.

At this point, the Modena army may have surrounded the whole city of Bologna but they did not. Instead, they decided to mock to humiliate the enemy. Before returning to Modena, the soldiers even took another box outside the city gate.

Picture 2 of The silly war took 2,000 people because of a wooden crate
A version of this bucket is located in Modena City Hall.(Photo: Amusing Planet).

About 2,000 people were killed in this ridiculous war and could be avoided. But what happened that day was the culmination of a long-standing feud about medieval European political control between two factions in northern Italy, Guelph and Ghibelline.

Competition between the two sides has gone beyond the political sphere.The most famous Guelph-Ghibelline conflict is the feud between the Montague and Capulet families, which the writer relied on and wrote the love story Romeo and Juliet.

After the war, the two sides agreed to restore peace between the two towns and the Modena army showed goodwill when deciding to return some of the assets they had previously taken from Bologna. But the bucket is not and will probably never be returned.

Today, the city of Modena still retains it in the basement of the bell tower Torre della Ghirlandina. A version of this box is placed in Modena City Hall.