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Matchlocks to Flintlocks: Warfare in Europe and Beyond, 1500–1700
Unavailable
Matchlocks to Flintlocks: Warfare in Europe and Beyond, 1500–1700
Unavailable
Matchlocks to Flintlocks: Warfare in Europe and Beyond, 1500–1700
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Matchlocks to Flintlocks: Warfare in Europe and Beyond, 1500–1700

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“A big picture view of how changes in the way war was waged between 1500 and 1700 affected the world at large . . . an exemplary book.” —War in History

In the early modern world three dominant cultures of war were shaped by a synergy of their internal and external interactions. One was Latin Christian western Europe. Another was Ottoman Islam. The third, no less vital for so often being overlooked, was east-central Europe: Poland/Lithuania, Livonia, Russia, the freebooting Cossacks, a volatile mix of variations on a general Christian theme.

William Urban’s fascinating narrative is an integrated account of early modern war on the ground: of campaigns and battles, soldiers and generals. Temporally it extends from the French invasion of Italy in 1494 to Austria’s Balkan victories culminating in the 1718 Treaty of Peterwardein. Geographically it covers ground from the Low Countries to the depths of the Ukraine.

That narrative in turn focuses Urban’s major analytical points: the replacement of “crowd armies” by professionals, and the professionals’ integration into crown armies: government-supervised, bureaucratized institutions. The key to this process was the mercenary. Originally recruited because the obligations of feudal levies were too limited, mercenary forces evolved operationally into skilled users of an increasingly complex gunpowder technology in ever more complex tactical situations. By the end of the seventeenth century, soldiers were identifying with the states and the rulers they served.

“This book will have a particular appeal for arms and armor collectors because it is written from the soldier’s perspective. It charts the fighting man’s transition from warrior to soldier and from soldier to servant of the state.” —Classic Arms and Militaria
LanguageEnglish
Release dateDec 13, 2011
ISBN9781781599426
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Matchlocks to Flintlocks: Warfare in Europe and Beyond, 1500–1700
Author

William Urban

William Urban is the Lee L. Morgan professor of history and international studies at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois. He is considered a leading expert on the Crusades and the Teutonic Knights. His many books include Matchlocks to Flintlocks, Bayonets for Hire and the highly acclaimed The Teutonic Knights.

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