The Art of Renaissance Warfare: From The Fall of Constantinople to the Thirty Years War

by Stephen Turnbull

The Art of Renaissance Warfare details the changes in warfare that occurred between the fall of Constantinople in 1453 to the outbreak of the Thirty Years' War in 1618. During this period, new technology on the battlefield posed deadly challenges for the mounted warrior; but they also stimulated change, and the knight moved with the times. Having survived the longbow devastation at Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt, he emerged triumphant, his armor lighter and more effective, and his military skills indispensable. This was the great age of the orders of chivalry and the freemasonry of arms that bound together comrades and adversaries in a tight international military caste. Such men as Bertrand du Guesclin and Sir John Chandos loom large in the pages of this book - bold leaders and brave warriors, imbued with these traditions of chivalry and knighthood. How their heroic endeavors and the knightly code of conduct could be reconciled with the indiscriminate carnage of the 'chevauchee' and the depradations of the 'free companies' is one of the principal themes of this book.

Genres: History, Military History, European History, War, Military Fiction, Nonfiction

388 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 17, 2006

About the author

Stephen Richard Turnbull is British a historian specializing in eastern military history, especially the samurai of Japan. His books are mainly on Japanese and Mongolian subjects. He attended Cambridge University where he gained his first degree. He currently holds an MA in Theology, MA in Military History and a PhD from the University of Leeds where he is currently a lecturer in Far Eastern Religions. He has also written a number of books on other medieval topics. He is semi-retired but still holds the post of Visiting Professor of Japanese Studies at Akita International University in Japan.

Reviews

[Zare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Covering period of little more than 150 years, from fall of Constantinople to Polish-Russian wars, this book gives a very good overview of evolution of military thought and technology. This is by far the best book I read that gives short overview of the events and military evolution of the period (because to be honest for every part of the story there are at least 2 or 3 books of same size for those interested in the full details). Interspersed we find stories about renown names of military thought and science at the time, from nobles (like William the Silent) to mercenary captains (like John Smith). Together with this author stresses how cruel and savage wars became, with forces of thousands of soldiers invading countries getting paid by pillaging the countryside, burning and killing off the entire cities. This was time of mercenary captains who would fight one day for one side, next day for the opposition and then come back and be hired by their original employers. Life was cheap and war was perpetual.

We follow how might of artillery and gun-powder slowly changed the front-line landscape but also how proven old methods like use of well drilled cavalry lance charges, infantry organized in "boxes", like Spanish tercios or Swiss pike formations followed by German Landsknechts, proved their value time and time again even when confronted with modern firepower. Book proves that no matter the technological advancements if they are not practical or cannot be put to work en-masse to make a difference (I especially liked the chapters on reiters and cavalry caracole maneuver) it is discipline and drill of soldiers that will always prevail.

I recently read another book, one about the Cataphracts and evolution of this type of heavy cavalry and only comment I had was that book lacked graphical elements - it was well written but without graphics and pictures that would enrich the text.

Here we have no such situation. Book is beautiful, with great color photographs, especially of fortifications that became more and more sophisticated in this period, and black and white contemporary graphics of people, battlefields and fortified cities.

Highly recommended to everyone interested in birth of modern military. Do note that if you seek details, bibliography provided is extremely rich and provides a starting point for further reading.

Excellent book.

[Michael Burnam-Fink · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Art of Renaissance Warfare is a light, popular gloss of the title. It's an odd choice for Turnbull, who's written something like 70 books on the military history of pre-modern Japan, to switch continents and focus on Europe, and I think both the detail and analysis suffer.

Intrinsically, though, the 150 years discussed marked a major shift in how war was conducted, from feudal retinues centered around armored knights, to professional mercenary companies where linear formations of arquebusers and blocks of pikemen resisted cavalry more often than not. Meanwhile, siege artillery made millennia of vertical stone fortresses obsolete, and gunpowder went from a curiosity to the core of military power.

Turnbull tells engaging stories, ranging from Granada to Constantinople and Antwerp to Moscow, with lots of details of the supreme commander (oh, and great illustrations). But there's little sense of tactics, let alone strategy in this book, or what might make one soldier artful and another a clod.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Turnbull chose a fascinating topic and did an excellent job at summarizing most of the most important battles of the 16th Pike & Shot Era. He understands what happened and why such events were important. From Charles the Bold to Suleiman the Magnificent, he correctly notes the important players and examines the strength and weaknesses of early firepower.

Yet there are deep flaws to this book. Why did this book then not get a 5 star you may ask? The above paragraph is the only reason it received a 4. I find it proper that the average reviews veer towards 4. Beggars can't be choosers, but there were times I wanted to be a Sea Beggar and attack the publishers for being so sloppy with a book that could've rewritten this era's history.

There are literal lies on the back cover. There is no cited mention of Edward III or Agincourt. No chapter on the end of the Hundred Years War. That's fine; I never expected that. So why mention it in the back cover?! This sloppy editing and weak oversight is a great illustration of the flaws in this story. Frankly any analysis of the 16th CE that spends an entire chapter studying light cavalry (aka early dragoon) tactics, but has only one citation to the famous Spanish tercio, is deeply flawed. Similarly, in a book that gives each important battle a nice little subheading, it was notable how the incredibly important battle of Pavia (the one that ended the Italian wars, saved the Habsburg Empire and captured the French King) gets far too short shrift.

Priorities are therefore not Turnbull's strength. Turnbull's book properly focuses time on the Swiss in Southern Europe and the Ottomans and Poles in Eastern Europe, but he strangely chooses to focus several chapters on light cavalry caracole tactics (tactics which incidentally were rapidly phased out when they proved cumbersome in both the Balkan and Thirty Years Wars). And while the Spanish were but one player in this era, they were an incredibly important one who deserved far more space for their codification of the use of combined-arms.

I look forward to finding another military history on this subject-matter. This one is a bit too obvious in its flaws to truly enjoy. However, in the absence of competition, it is definitely worth a read if you want a concise history of military developments in 16th CE Europe.

[Franco Luciano · Rating 5 out of 5]

The thing that struck me the most about this book was the prose. A subject like military history can easily become dry, tedious fare. But Stephen Turnbull keeps it light, jovial, and even humorous at times. He keeps the reader interested by moving from one point to the next without lingering too long in any one place, segueing from one statement to the next historical account almost before you know what has happened. Self-references are common through this book, which in my opinion keeps the reader honest. "Are you sure you're paying attention?" Yet the author isn't too shy to add some personal opinions into the mix occasionally when the situation calls for it. It feels less like a textbook, more like a podcast.
This is a fascinating period in military history, a sea of sweeping changes; some of which still echo to this day. Not only in military technology and tactics (firearms, professional armies) but also in geopolitics (the creation of Belgium, thanks Duke of Alba.) The wars of religion also held my attention, whether they were the Catholics vs the Hugenots, Turks vs Hungarians, or Spanish vs Moors. While the author stops just short of the titanic, bloody struggle that is the Thirty Years' War, it is easy to trace the path to war from the days of Martin Luther.
In one chapter, through the lives of 3 prominent military men of the period (the chevalier Bayard, Blaise de Monluc, and Francois de la Noue) Turnbull takes the reader through the changes in military history as seen through their eyes. From the knightly chivalry of the middle ages to the semi-industrial warfare of the 1600s, the views and writings of these 3 men often differ, but always fascinate. The author makes it a point, however, to state their mutual disdain for firearms!
In short, this book was exactly what I was looking for. A niche subject is not often covered in such an adept and professional way. If I had but one complaint, it was that this book is too short! At 347 pages, I read this book in just a few days. I would have loved a few hundred more. Bravo, Mr. Turnbull.

[Simon Mee · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main body if Swiss set out on 26 December and advanced through Alsace, making a point of attacking Jews on the way and looting their property.

There are plenty of books on Europe covering the period 1453-1618… …but there is perhaps the tiniest smidgeon of a gap for an accessible book on warfare during that period. The Art of Renaissance Warfare unconvincingly sneaks through that gap.

Visibility was very poor, and the first sign of Burgundian life that the allied army came across was a scout who as in a church tower acting as a lookout. He was thrown to his death.

The Art of Renaissance Warfare is clearly thrown together from source materials that stick fondly in Turnbull's memory, then organised into chapters that are semi-chronological/semi-topical.

Ottoman sources state that the pretence was maintained for three weeks, and that even the sultan’s personal physician was strangled as a precaution.

It is readable. It has some interesting perspectives on siege warfare in the gunpowder age, with the first ravelin built at Sarzenello at 1497. Turnbull enjoys writing about the subject and does cover conflicts that tend to be skipped over, such as Ottoman advances into Europe outside the sieges of Constantinople and Vienna; the Burgundian collapse; and the Dutch Revolt. I would not consider it close to being a substitute for a detailed geopolitical (and religious) overview of the period though. There’s far too much vagueness and skipping over of events outside the chosen battles and occasionally campaigns.

Thirty-four standards, many cannon and six hundred prisoners were taken. Many of the latter were then hurled to their deaths from the bridge at Namur.

Better than the embarrassingly incorrect blurb at the back of it (reproduced on the Goodreads page), but that error does point to it being a bit of an afterthought of a book, so this is an afterthought of a review.

[Phil Yates · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book, just not quite there for me. I would have liked a little more detail and discussion on the tactical changes and how things worked. As it is, I learned a lot about what was going on at the time across Europe.

BTW, pay no attention to the blurb! Almost nothing mentioned in the blurb is in the book. It's like some marketing drone wrote something targeted at an English (as in lives in England) market using names and events they might recognize from English history. The actual book focuses exclusively on European events, barely mentioning the British Isles or its inhabitants at all. Not being English, I found this quite humorous.

[Paul Jerome Kroeger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great overview of technological and tactical developments

Turnbull’s book is an interesting read and a great overview of how exactly technology and tactics changed warfare in the Renaissance. He shows developments did not immediately lead to radical changes in the conduct of war, but gradually and sometimes haltingly led to developments as soldiers learned how best to employ new ideas and sometimes blundered in the execution. The book is engaging, concise, and accompanied by plenty of illustrations. It’s a great read for anyone interested in Renaissance warfare or how new ideas change warfare.

[Paul A · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty light, fast paced overview of the military developments that took place over a 150 year period beginning in 1453. Each chapter briefly covers a specific theater of war, as well as the changes that were enacted during each conflict, such as the rise and fall of dedicated pike squares, increasing emphasis on artillery and handheld firearms, and the changing role of cavalry in both eastern and western Europe. Overall, this is a succinct and well written overview that can definitely serve as an entry point to further study!

[Simon Vickery · Rating 5 out of 5]

Accessible history of warfare from 1450 to 1600 covering the main developments in artillery, fortification and infantry and cavalry doctrine.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

An overview of an important period of military development in Europe. Rather too much overview and not enough detail for my tastes. Some good information and well enough written.

[Ricardo Ribeiro · Rating 1 out of 5]

How can an author who publish a map of Iberian Peninsula with the simple inscription "Spain" is supposed to be taken seriously?

['Aussie Rick' · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book by Stephen Turnbull offers an interesting and concise history of the development of tactics and weapons from the fall of Constantinople to the Thirty Years War. The author covers warfare on land and sea and discuss most of the major and some of the minor conflicts and battles to highlight the development of certain weapons, designs or tactics. This is an easy and enjoyable book to read and should interest anyone who has a passion for military history or this period of time.