Chapter Summary: The Military Revolution

What was the Military Revolution?
Geoffrey Parker describes the military revolution as a period between 1500-1750 when changes in tactics, army size, and fortifications transformed the way wars were fought and how they were won1. Fortresses were very useful strongholds until cannons became more developed and knocked the fortresses down. Changes in the design of fortresses then made them more successful against bombardment. Firearms on the battlefield slowly became more present until it became the sole dominant choice of weapon in combat. The size of armies during this period drastically increased, partly because of the need to surround a castle during a siege. The army size of nearly every western power more than doubled during this time
In the last chapter of The Prince, Machiavelli explains how it is possible to defeat the Spanish and Swiss infantry by attacking their weaknesses. The Spanish cannot withstand a cavalry charge and the Swiss have fallen against enemy infantry. He concludes that a skilled infantry along with the ability to withstand a cavalry charge would be able to defeat both armies.1 The Military Revolution explains how direct forward combat dominated the battlefield until firepower began to slowly takeover.2 Firearms started out as clumsy and inefficient, but over time improvements were made that allowed it to dominate the battlefield. For example, the bow was the more effective weapon than a harquebus in the 16th century because it was more accurate and could reload faster, allowing for more shots.3 This is where Machiavelli and Parker contrast in their views of combat. Machiavelli believes that a well-trained and fearless infantry and cavalry would have been more than capable of defeating the dominant armies of the 15th and 16th centuries. In the final chapter of The Prince, Machiavelli talks about cavalry, bucklers, and pikes, but he does not mention firearms. The prevalence of firearms occurred shortly after Machiavelli had written The Prince. Parker and Machiavelli both also discuss the Battle of Ravenna in 1512. Machiavelli states that the Spanish infantry met the German pike men head-on and were able to bypass the pikes with the help of their bucklers before the cavalry overwhelmed them. Parker also mentions the Swiss dominance of pikemen in battle, but in the Battle of Ravenna and others he explained how field artillery and handguns caused significant damage to the pikemen.4 While both authors us the same battle to prove their points, they focused on different aspects of it. Parker concentrated on the successful use of firearms against pikemen, while