Among the many wars of history, the under-documented “weird wars” deserve some spotlight. Two of wackiest include the French Navy declaring war over pastries and Australia’s battle with emus. These stories scale from baseless to just flat-out weird.

The Pastry War

-The Pastry War began when multiple foreign countries demanded reparations from Mexico for what was called “civil disturbances.”

-After pressure from France, and a militant threat, the Good Offices of Great Britain intervened and paid France to stop the conflict.

-It is rumored that the war began when a few Mexican soldiers damaged a French cook’s restaurant.

The Emu War

-On November 2, 1932, the Australian Government declared formal war on emus, lasting for roughly a month.

-It started as a wildlife management project and quickly escalated into battle.

-The emus came out victorious. 

     Throughout history there have been many weird and unusual wars, but the one thing we can learn from all of them is that not everything requires a war.