Product Description The Renaissance at War Toward the end of the fifteenth century, modern artillery and portable firearms became the signature weapons of European armies, radically altering the nature of warfare. The new arms transformed society, too, as cities were built and rebuilt to limit the effects of bombardment by cannon. This book follows these far-reaching changes in comprehensive and fascinating detail and demonstrates how the innovations of the Renaissance paved the way to further changes in warfare. An in-depth technical look at the weaponry of the age and the tactical drills that honed the skills of Renaissance soldiers The epic wars abroad between Western Christians and the Muslim Turks Civil strife at home between despotic rulers and rebellious forces Kingly duels that play out on an international stage [ ^Top ]
Excellent Book
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This book is part of a series of Cassell works on war. The series is rather hit and miss, with some (like the 17th Century one) being good and others (like the 18th century one), being quite bad. However, I did enjoy this one, which covered several different perspectives and types of conflict. There was a good use of maps and charts which is important, and the writing was good.
Recommended.
A Most Excellent Work
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This book provides a thematic discussion of the Renaissance at War, with many excellent illustrations and maps of battles--some famous, some more obscure, and all dealt with in a factual and often humorous manner. I have not read any of the other books of this series, but this volume--easy to read and an excellent reference as well. The excellent discussions in this volume about the spread of gunpowder and the subtle challenge it posed to chivalric nobility, as well as the way in which kings and nobles straddled between the old and new ways of war are discussed well here. In addition, this book contains the finest description of the French Wars of Religion, the complicated battles in Italy between the French, Swiss, Germans, Spanish, and Turks I have seen, as well as a well-done examination of the Dutch Revolt. In short, if you like military history at all, and you are curious about the wars of the Renaissance, you will find much of value in this book.
Excellent overall analysis of the period
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This slim but lavishly illustrated volume offers a very perceptive analysis of the late-fifteenth and early-sixteenth century re-examination of military matters that occured in Europe and the eastern Mediterranean. It discusses the technological and tactical advances, in a more concise manner than similar works like David Eltis's, but it also integrates them into the renaissance of military philosophy, and indeed of all facets of society, that was occuring at the time. That analysis, combined with illuminating sidebars, several key case studies, and gorgeous artwork make this perhaps the top general reference for Renaissance military history.
superb introductory work
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Indeed a very nice book, with a lot of interesting information. The writer avoids the complicated style most historians dealing with the Renaissance prefer, and writes clearly, with regard of and respect to the ones who never have dealt with the complexities of the history of warfare, especially in a period such as this, when the wide use of gunpowder marked a turning point in the style of warfare and the perception of military tactics. Arnold covers every basic aspect of the Renaissance warfare, the decline of the Knight (in that old, medieval sense), the change in styles of fortifications, the change of the role of the general, the use of the artillery, etc, and does so while giving in the same time an accurate account of the main historical events (of military nature, obviously). Thus, the reader has an accurate, viewed from all sides, perspective of the matter. If there were more stars to give, I would definitely give them (!) although one must remember that this is an introductory study, and for particular details and a more in depth analysis there are other books to consider. In all this book is...a great place to start.
A Nice Surprise- fascinating book with excellent graphics
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First off, I knew nothing about war during the European Renaissance before reading this book, so I went in with pretty low expectations. I was pleasantly surprised- this book is fascinating. Thomas Arnold writes in a very clear style, that is easy to follow. His research is detailed, but he does not bog the reader down with too many minute details. Also, this book is full of excellent graphics. It has many period prints, maps, tapestry images, and some well done battlefield graphics. I thought this illustrations really helped emphasize many of the author's key points.This is the first book in the series that I have read, so now I have rather high expectations for the other volumes I purchased with this one. I highly recommend this book to any military history student, or anyone interested in learning more about how warfare changed in Europe during the Renaissance.
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