A Study of Warfare in Europe Between 1300 and 1500

In response to the use of castles and fortresses, siege weapons were created. Siege weapons ranged from short range weapons such as the battering ram to longer range ones like the trebuchet or the ballista. The battering ram was usually a big shed with an armored roof and wheels to protect the men inside operating a thick beam with an iron head hung from the roof that was swung into enemy walls to bring them down. The siege tower, a wheeled tower filled with men that would be used to get over the walls, also saw its use during this time. The trebuchet was used for longer range, the missiles launched by the trebuchet ranged from using dead bodies of animals or people to spread disease, a primitive example of biological warfare, to using large boulders to take down fortress walls. In response

The Crusades of the High Middle Ages (a.d. 1050-1300) was a period of conquest or rather, reconquest, of Christian lands taken from Muslims in the early Middle Ages. It is an era romanticized by fervent Christians as the time when Christianity secured its honorable status as the true religion of the world. The affect of the Crusades is still with us today. It sailed from Spain and Portugal to the Americas in the fifthteenth century aboard sailing ships carrying conquistadors who sought new territory and rich resources. They used the shield and sword of Christianity to justify a swift conquest of mass territory and the subjugation of the indigenous peoples; a mentality learned, indeed,

During the Middle Ages, or also known as the Medieval Ages, change was a major part of that period. Europe was watching war become much different. In the older times, a few thousands of troops were considered a large army. Nowadays, nobody has ever seen such size of an army with such variety in weapons including guns, munitions, and artillery that were all developed during that period. Besides, it was obvious that the face of warfare was changing by the end of the fifteenth century. Two of the most significant developments were the maintaining of a fair amount of troops on a permanent basis at the ready, and the rising need of gunpowder weapons and munitions. In essence The Middle

This second edition of DeVries and Smiths’ book, Medieval Military Technology, encompasses many of the weapons, fortifications, vessels, machines, and armour developed throughout the medieval period, to provide a brief cultural history of the relationship between military technology and medieval society. DeVries and Smiths’ purpose in compiling this book was to lay out their argument in a way to which the reader can understand the purpose of medieval military and its relationship to society. The central

The 100 Years’ War was given a misleading name, as this conflict between England and France was not a war that lasted one hundred years, it was rather a series of related clashes that lasted just over a century. However, the fact that this conflict lasted more that one hundred years meant that many new tactics and weaponry came into play that changed the concepts of warfare forever. During this one hundred years, tactics changed from the system of feudal armies dominated by heavy Calvary, to the first attempt at some sort of ‘standing army’. The evolution in the types of tactics and weapons that nations used caused the battlefields of Europe to be covered in blood, as the more advanced the weapons, became, the more casualties amounted. The 100 Years’ War was the first time that strategy was used in order to command troops on the battlefield, and it was during this time that the fabrication of early martial handbooks also came into the battle. One of the more famous authors of one of these books was “the great Swabian practitioner and teacher, Johannes Liechtenauer” . Unfortunately, there are no French texts concerning martial handbooks that predate 1570, meaning that in order to look at tactics, sources from surrounding nations at the time have to suffice. Another thing that evolved extremely rapidly during the 100 years’ war, was the escalation of the types of weapons used during conflicts. Inasmuch there were 100 years of outright fighting, each side had a chance to

In the Medieval times a sword was a knight’s most important weapons. The fact was found on this website: http://medievalweaponsrds.weebly.com/fun-facts.html. In Medieval times, the armor would vary with leather, chain mail, and plate armor, all coming as technology advanced and blacksmith’s skill increased. Over the Medieval period, weapons were advancing and the elegant rapier began to be obsolete as the musket became popular. A battle was brewing during these times with Queen Elizabeth just trying to survive the war and King Phillip trying to take over England. The advancement of armor, that was made different throughout the Middle Ages, and having a variety of weapons gave England an advantage against the Spanish in Battle.

The origins of the Hundred Years war included Joan of Arc Liberates the Orleans war, The Battle of Agincourt and Philip VI. All of these battle and people had a huge impact to this war with both the French and English. They had many disputes and disagreements within these wars and many had greats wins and horrific defeats. The Hundred Year war was related to another war called The Battle of Crecy. This war was also between both the French and English and was a resounding victory for the English. Philips army attacked but were soon overwhelmed by Edward’s 10,000 longbowmen. This marked a rise for the English as a world Power( The Battle of Crecy,

Medieval warfare is warfare in the middle ages or the time period before the 18th century. (McDonald, James 2010). Advancements in weapons caused for more gruesome and bloody war. The use of swords, spears, axes and arrows caused for many fierce and bloody battles. Advancements in intelligence made for better tactics, strategies, travel and more important more victories.

Why did the feudal order of Medieval society fall apart? The feudal order of the Middle Ages was a system of local rule, where powerful lords gave land and protection in exchange for loyalty and military service from lesser lords. Tradition dictated that this exchange would be held in place by the feudal contract, consisting of multiple pledges. This resulted in small communities consisting of one powerful lord, peasants, and serfs who worked for the lord. These people gave their loyalty locally, and had no sense of nationalism. This type of society was predominant in the Early Middle Ages, but soon started to fall apart during the Late Middle Ages. One major event that contributed to the fall of the feudal society was the Hundred Years’ War. This war was fought between England and France, lasting for a total of 116 years. During the war, peasant uprisings became frequent, as the inordinate cost of military campaigns resulted in heavier taxes. Events such as these were caused by the Hundred Years’ War and further contributed to the decline of feudalistic society. The Hundred Years’ War was the most important cause of the fall of the feudal order, acting as a turning point in Medieval society by marking the transition from feudal knights to the masses of common foot soldiers, changing the balance of power within Medieval social hierarchies, and strengthening nationalism while creating a more modern militaristic society.

loser class societies were drawn to the artillery aspect of the army was so they

Parker states, during the Hundred Year’s War, that major states of western Europe could reduce the vertical defense of a fortress to rubble within days, whereas a similar siege without gunpowder-backed artillery could take up to 6 months. It wasn’t until almost 100 years later when Niccolo Machiavelli, using his third technique of installing modern fortifications, provided an adaptation to bombardments that would allow fortresses to defy even the largest armies of the day. Machiavelli called for a fortress that reduced its height and increased the depths of existing walls, which would allow for them to absorb incoming fire more effectively.

Not only are gunpowder powered infantry weapons more deadly than medieval infantry weapons, but gunpowder powered artillery is more lethal than

The Hapsburg Valois Wars of 1494 to 1559 are often confused with the Italian Wars. However the Italian War were a completely different set of wars. The Hapsburg Valois Wars were very much intertwined with these wars. The latter arose from the instability of the Italian peninsula, which was divided among a number of vulnerable powers, and also from a new willingness of outside rulers to intervene. Initially, the most influential was Charles VIII of France (1483–1498), he invaded Italy in 1494, and manage to take over Naples that following March.

During the 17th century the European powers developed a whole new array of firepower. The old gunpowder weapons that fired by

Creating a video game genre entirely of its own, the popular and successful Total War series offers six titles to date with a seventh near completion due for release in the fall of 2008. The first game Shogun Total War was a cut above the rest for its time where players chose one of the main feudal Japanese factions and vied for a unified ancient Japan. There was a strategic phase where players ruled their lands and a battle mode where players controlled their units like chess pieces from a 'god mode' like view. Then came Medieval Total War with some improvements to the concept. 'Medieval Total War (1)' took the game to feudal Europe, Northern Africa, and part of the Middle East. Improvements included more manageable armies in the combat