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Michael Howard [UK]

[From "Wars in European History"]

A historian of the Middle Ages recently reminded us: "The map of Europe was hammered out on the anvil of war. [Author's note: R. A. Brown, The Origions of Modern Europe, London, 1972, p93.] Indeed, the word "war" is still too generous to describe the history of the European continent. On this continent, after the collapse of the precarious peace of the Roman Empire, waves of invaders swept the land: the Goths, a tribe of the ancient Germanic peoples. ] and the Vandals, belonging to the Germanic people. From the east, from the south, and finally, most fearedly, the Vikings. From the north. For almost six hundred years, from the first barbarian invasions in the 4th century to the end of the 10th century, the descendants of the invaders were either assimilated or ostracized. Later, it was the turn of the peoples of Europe to begin to expand, first to the east, and then to the south and west as navigation technology advanced. For this reason, the "peace" of Europe, from the thirteenth century to the modern era, the peace that Christians so earnestly prayed for in the church, existed only in the exceptional, unstable oases of time and place. Not surprising. Society as a whole needs a model - a model that enables the people of Europe to survive in a certain environment; Later generations of historians called this social model "feudalism".

A number of semi-nomadic warlike tribes came one after another, colliding or merging with each other, like the raging waves of a turbulent sea. Following the invasion of the Goths and other invaders in the 4th century, the Frankish tribes came in again. These tribes were loosely united under the leadership of the Merovingian family. In the middle of the 8th century, the Muslim invasion of France from the south was repelled, and in the early 9th century under the Carolingians, the second dynasty of the Frankish kingdom. The reign created a brief unification of Western Europe. At that time, the region east of the Rhine faced the Magyars, the main ethnic group of Hungary. ] of the slaughter for nearly a hundred years. The northern, western, and southern coasts of Europe, as well as the interior of the country, where large ships could sail upstream, were ravaged by the Scandinavian Vikings for a longer period of time—plundered, burned; Sometimes the Vikings also settled as colonial lords. This colonization first began in Normandy at the beginning of the 10th century. Over the next 200 years, the Normans converted to Christianity, established feudalism, and became recognized as excellent warriors in Europe, expanding outward, conquering the kingdom of Saxon in England and the Muslims in Italy and Sicily in the south; Finally, at the end of the 11th century, the tide of invasion was shifted away from Europe and infiltrated Asia through the First Crusade. At the same time, the Germanic warrior privileged class, having confined the Magyars to Hungarian territory in the same sacred name, began to move their frontiers eastward, subduing the Slavs, colonizing them, and forcibly converting the pagans.

The emergence of the "feudal system" was necessary not only for politics, but also for the economy. The historic trade in the Mediterranean was weakened by the collapse of the Muslims. Spices were scarce in Europe, and land became the only source of wealth. Moreover, in order to meet the threat of the Vikings and the Magyars on ponies, the Carolingians had to put their main forces in a state of maneuver. This can only be done on horseback. Once stirrups became common to the Franks in the 8th century, horses could be used not only for rapid concentration of strength, but also for warfare [See Lynn White, Medieval Technology and Social Change, Oxford, 1966, p2]. ] 。 Speed can be converted into assault. The spear does not have to be thrown, it can be caught under the armpit and carried back to the camp. A man with a mount is much superior to a man on foot; A thousand years later, there is no less doubt that a man armed with a breech gun is in a much more advantageous position than an enemy armed with a spear. In both cases, military superiority led to political control.

Thus, in the 8th and 9th centuries, a warrior with status was a warrior on a horse. That is, knights (samurai). [Author's note: It is interesting to note that the French and German words for "knight" are only interpreted as knights, and the English word "knight" refers to the modern German word for "squire" or "squire."] In 866 A.D., Charlemagne [ Sweeper's Note: Charlemagne is a Latin variant equivalent to the Latin Charles Magnus (great), or Charles the Great in English, commonly known as "Charlemagne" or "Charlemagne", the founder of the Holy Roman Empire. His grandson, Charles the Bald, summoned his tenants to the sub-feudal mansion and insisted that they accompany him when he rode out, and it became the rule thereafter. Thus began an expensive practice of gradual escalation that we are all too familiar with today. In the impact of horse power (and later with tanks or ships), the advantage comes from the combination of effective range, defense, and speed. The effective range comes from the length and weight of the spear, and the defense is provided by the armor, which is originally a collar of chain mail from the neck to the knee, which is an expensive piece of equipment, and this is a knight's most valuable possession besides the warhorse. The speed is constrained by the overload. Therefore, these horses are fed in a special way so that they can both bear weight and maintain their strength, so that they can be used immediately at critical moments. In a long-lasting battle, such horses need to have a spare. In any case, a samurai always needed another horse to help him carry more and more baggage—spears, swords, helmets, armor. At least he needed a man carrying armor, a samurai retinue, and possibly a manservant; A lighter rider searched and scouted for him; One or two soldiers on foot were in charge of the escort. For this, a knight expanded into a "Reims", that is, a group of five or six people, like a group of a large chariot. Equipping all of them becomes very expensive.

Armoured and horseback maneuvering heavily armed combat was by no means capable of being a layman, and even those who could only make ends meet could afford such equipment. Thus, by the 10th century, war became a profession for wealthy people, who began to receive specialized training from a very young age. How can we ensure that they are financially dependent so that they can devote themselves to their cause? By rewarding them with land, they rewarded their lord with service and faithfulness. This reward was the fiefdom, which became the basis of feudal society. The threefold relationship of military specialization, land ownership, and personal obligations, formed a class of warriors who owned land, were exempt from all taxes, and were only required to ride on horses for a certain number of days of the year in the service of their masters. To secure the land they owned, they built castles for themselves. These castles were usually located near the road, with a "main building" for the families, a wing for the retinue, a high perimeter wall, battlements to prevent trespassers, and a moat around the castle. In the Middle Ages, castles were a symbol of strength, and war became a battle for the protection of property.

The descendants of that warrior class (hundreds of families constantly intermarried with each other and were constantly reinvigorated by the addition of new members) held the domination of the European land until the 16th century, the political domination until the 18th century, and the domination of society until the modern era. Wearing weapons, helmets with feathers, and shields with insignia (instantly recognizable in battle), they became a symbol of nobility in European society for a thousand years. Its value remains the same today. But in the Middle Ages, from the 4th and 5th centuries, when the Western Roman Empire collapsed, to the 15th century Renaissance, known as the Middle Ages, also known as the "Dark Ages" (but mainly before the 10th century). This emblem simply indicates a person's function, and whoever has such a function can use it. The aristocracy had not yet become an inheritable privileged class; Fighting a war is still just a profession, and anyone who has the ability can participate.

However, having attained a noble position through outstanding military prowess, the knights awaited to show off themselves according to some kind of statute. Soon, the role of the warrior was enhanced by a series of semi-sacred rituals, and many of the "medieval" objects can still be seen through a distorted lens, in the legends of the 15th century, which projected the apocryphal golden charm of "chivalry" (the afterglow of vanished society) onto the world [Author's note: J. Huizinga, The Waning of the Middle Ages, London, 1937, passim.] ] 。 The concept of "chivalric demeanor" itself, which essentially refers only to the behavior of knights, is an ancient concept that was at least used by the bards of the 11th and 13th centuries, mainly in southern France and northern Italy. As old as the times, these poets were singing about the virtues of men as early as the dawn of European literature in the 12th century, not only of bravery, but also of glory, nobility, humility and purity. Knights should not only be "fearless" but also "calm." Chivalry was a way of life, sanctified by participation in certain rituals of the Church, to the point that it gradually became indistinguishable from the clergy. Indeed, in the 12th century, the military rank [ Markgraf Note: [Rank] here should obviously be the word [Order], which should be translated as [Order], which is commonly referred to as [Order]. - Templars, Knights of St. John, Teutonic Knights [Translator's note: The Teutons are said to be a Germanic people who lived on the North Sea coast near the mouth of the Elbe River in the 4th century BCE. [ Markgraf Note: The Teutonic Order, if it is German should be [Deutscher Orden], the English word Teuton [Teuton] is basically equivalent to the German word Deutsche.] The term "Teuton" here is not related to the Teutons, who historically terrified Rome, but refers to the Germanic (German) people who speak the Teutonic language family, as distinct from the Romanized Germanic people (French). -- was established in a conscious imitation of the clerical system. Different sword straps and boot spurs distinguish different knightly ranks, just as different hairstyles can distinguish between a monk (monk) and a priest. In India, Galahad, the legendary heroic knight of King Arthur, was the grandson of King Perce, and was of noble blood, so only he was entitled to the Holy Grail. This refers to the higher castes in India. There is a mystical image that can no longer distinguish between a priest and a knight, both equally dedicated, equally holy. The medieval Christian world was envious of such a concept.

This remarkable mixture of Germanic warriors and Latin clergy became part of the cultural foundation of the Middle Ages. From the very beginning, the Church welcomed and blessed the knightly class, because the warriors were to defend the Christians and repel the invasion of pagan Muslims, Magyars, and Norsemen. The bishops and abbots happily assumed their military responsibilities, and they had the estates given by the kings (whom they were crowned), and were thus able to generously finance military equipment, and in any case they themselves did not have to go to war and shed blood, but only occasionally with that useful weapon, the scepter. At the same time, after the barbarian invasion was contained, the bishops and abbots tried again and again to combine the acts of war with Christian doctrine.

None of the concepts of "the right to war" or "the right to wage war" were left to be taken into account, for the Norsemen swept across the continent like a fire engulfing everything; At the same time, the Christian clergy found it difficult to use these concepts to deal with Muslims, who were frantically determined to convert people by the sword. Otherwise, kill the man. So. In the war against the infidels, there were no rules and precepts, and the knights were forgiven for any sins they had committed. In the 12th century, under the protection of the Christian Church, the Teutonic Knights turned to the Slavs and Wends of Eastern Europe [ Translator's note: The Wends, a branch of the West Slavs, whose descendants were the Sorbians as a minority in Germany. Launching a crusade is nothing short of an exterminating war.

However, within Christendom, at least in principle, the situation is different. It is sad that Christians kill each other, and the church deeply deplores it but is powerless to stop it. Christian theologians agree that there is a war that should be considered "just," in short, a war waged by a legitimate abbot for a valid reason. It is not surprising that generations of classes specially trained to be warriors slaughter each other when there are no external enemies. In the absence of a commonly recognized authority over the judiciary, armed conflicts can occur even in societies that are not belligerent. Rights, duties, responsibilities and allegiances, but also because of the feudal system of zhan rights, intertwined, it is very easy to have endless disputes, due to the lack of a clear legal system and law enforcement agencies, people mostly have to rely on fighting to defend their rights.

Such battles were seen as a plea to God's judgment, and for most of the Middle Ages, every self-respecting person had the right to wag it. Gradually, under the influence of the Roman legal code, there was a distinction: the strife between private individuals was called "private war", and the war between monarchs (princes) was called "public war"; Later, the former kind of war was gradually recognized as illegal. "Private wars", that is, unobtrusive wars, are accepted only if they avoid as much damage as possible to society - a man can kill his enemies in battle, but he cannot burn or deprive them of their property. As for the "public war", there are much fewer restrictions. The captives could be attributed to the victors or ransom extorted from the captives; The property of the defeated enemy is legitimate spoils of war; Tribute can be levied on a per capita basis. In principle, not only the clergy and their property, but also the cultivators of the land were exempt from the spoils of war and plundered by defeat. However, if they are suspected of "aiding and approving" the war (as they usually do), the immunity does not apply. Finally, there is an even more terrible form of warfare, most commonly in siege warfare, in which the besieged castle refuses to surrender and is determined to fight to the death, and after the city is broken, not only property, but also the lives of the vanquished are at the mercy of the conqueror.

By the 14th century, restrictions and laws governing the conduct of war had been carefully crafted. Most of them were codified and were fairly generally observed in Western European Christendom. These legal provisions were codified partly by the pressure of the Church, partly by the influence of the Roman Code, and partly by the experts (heralds) employed by the Order to study the law over the course of centuries. With honorary tribunals all over Europe, the power of the law has been strengthened. These laws are not so much a definite legal system or a conscious limitation of humanitarianism as some norms of social behavior. It is to stipulate between the knights what can be done and what cannot be done. In some cases, the massacre of prisoners is tolerable (if the words "determined to fight to the death" or such an expression were made before a battle begins), otherwise it is not allowed. It is not considered wrong to kill prisoners, but it is not permissible to kill women and children. The defenders of a fortress refused to surrender, and when the city was captured, they were to be executed, and the commander was dealt with in the same way, because he refused to surrender and perished with the army.

The growing number of codifiers of the laws of war is not so much out of Christian doctrine, law, or chivalric conscience as it is due to a completely different new situation: the gradual commercialization of war [ Author's note: M.H. Keen, The Laws of War In the Late Middle Age, London, 1965, p154ff. ] . Extortion and plunder are no longer just agreed rewards, but for a growing number of combatants, they have become the main purpose of their actions. The cost of conscription is small, and the benefits of a battle make them rich. Therefore, it is important to be clear: if the war is over and peace comes as usual, then when and how much loot will be obtained, and how it will be distributed; How much ransom can be demanded and who has the right to ask for it? Because of the legitimate rewards that can be expected for loyal service, even at the risk and with the trials and tribulations, by the end of the Middle Ages such a motivation often led people to go to battle. Even in a purely feudal war, mercenaries were joined by people from all classes.

However, historians of the Middle Ages have consistently reminded us that feudalism was not the same everywhere in Europe, nor did it exclude that all other zhans had a relationship with service. It may be beneficial to look at some of the different situations:

France is the birthplace of all kinds of institutions. Since the former Carolingian dynasty could only provide symbolic protection against the Norse invasions, the central authority was dispersed to so-called subordinate "branches" (i.e., "councils", similar to the "partners" of the ancient Germanic warriors), who could be inherited from generation to generation, with real independent fiefs such as Hainault; Flanders; Brittany, Provence; Gradually, they disregarded the obligations of the royal family, which was powerless to strengthen or weaken them. In order to protect itself, the royal family relied not only on its own knights, but also on the army that paid salaries. These salaried soldiers may have been knights who had lost their land and had a precarious life, and as peace in Europe gradually came and the population increased, so did the number. Perhaps because hired cavalry were far less sophisticated in equipment than knights, they were called sergeants rather than horsemen. Perhaps because the infantry was no longer valued, or even only used as messengers, they were called "valets". Perhaps because of the crossbows, which can be described as a technological marvel of the 12th century, the "experts" who used them often had to pay a lot of money, so they were often imported from Italy or Provinse. For all these reasons, the hired cavalry army developed.

It takes money to set up a mercenary army. In the 12th century, due to the economic recovery, merchants and clergy had more and more money in their hands; Moreover, some aristocrats had become accustomed to a life of luxury, and were willing to pay instead of serving in the army. As a result, by the beginning of the 13th century, King Philip Augustus of France was able to muster a large standing army against his cousin, King Angevin of England. Anjvin relied on royal power and taxes to expand his army, but was defeated not by Philip, but by his own subordinates, several barons of the Lennemian region.

The situation in southern Europe is more complicated: partly because of years of war between Spain and southern Italy and Muslims, and partly because the Mediterranean region has been able to recover faster than anywhere else. As a result, knights were more independent and more mercenary. The knights of southern France had their own fortresses and did not recognize any feudal lords; The arrogant Castilian aristocracy was notorious in medieval Europe. In Catalonia, the counts of Barcelona, thanks to their ease of transportation, were able to effectively subordinate the princes of the farther regions to vassalage and, with the help of the insanely warlike Church, regained central and southern Spain from the Muslims with greater determination and speed.

In Italy, the urban dwellers and rural aristocracy were less affected by the widespread feudalism of the Carolingians from the Lombardy in the north and the Norsemen from the sea in the south. Merchants, landlords, city dwellers, and peasants armed themselves in the face of the threat of a Mazarian invasion from the north and a Muslim invasion from the sea. Military service is widespread. The city was defended by the militia of the city. Elsewhere, security is determined by the strength of the armed forces; And in Italy, the strength of the armed forces is not mainly in the presence of these forces, but in wealth.

In the 12th century, the invaders had been driven out of the Italian peninsula once and for all, except for the Norsemen, who imposed harsh and effective rule in Sicily and southern Italy. However, the habit of using force for 500 years will not easily disappear. At the end of the 11th century, the conflict between the pope and the king polarized Italian society, causing long-term discord between cities and families, and this civil war provided a paradise for "free" soldiers who were hired by others. The economic development of that time also prepared the conditions for such an employment system.

In Germania, feudalism developed in the Rhine Valley as much as in northern France, and chivalry prevailed as in the rest of Europe. However, the military service system in the eastern region was implemented more slowly, and the development of cavalry was equally slow. The Germanic tribes of Saxony, Franco, and Swabi, like their ancestors in the time of Tahitto, remained in the stage of peasant armies fighting on foot with axes and spears, until the Magyar invasion caused a shock in the 10th century, when nomads on horseback and archery swept westward across the vast plains of North Germania. The Germanic people rushed to catch up with their Western cousins, developed cavalry units, and improved the social system to support the armed forces. Under the leadership of Henry and Otto of the Saxonys, the Battle of Merseburg in 933 AD and the Battle of Lechfeld in 955 led to the establishment of the Otto dynasty to succeed the Carolingian dynasty, with Otto becoming emperor. Some of the newly crowned nobles followed their emperor in a disastrous expedition in Italy. The rest joined the Teutonic Knights' crusade and went east to expand their territory and save their souls. The Crusaders spread across the plains and forests of Coran, Poland, and Prussia, and all the plundering and massacres were recognized as a sacred cause by the Catholic Church. They have proclaimed themselves the ruling class there, and this kind of thing is common in European history.

As for England, the invasions from northern Europe in the 9th and 10th centuries led to the Saxony kings to build up the National Army. All freedmen were obligated to join the army, a system somewhat similar to that of the Carolingians across the Channel. However, this feudal system of military service was possible only after the conquest of all of Europe by the Norsemen. The kings of Northern Europe replaced the original Saxon gentry with their own lords, who served as a conquering force in hostile territories and built many huge castles that can still be seen today.

Militarily, the Norse dynasty and its heirs who occupied LinkedIn Gland went far in expanding their territory, not only to control the local English and extend their frontiers to Scotland and Wales, but also to maintain power on the continent. The compulsory service of the lords formed the core of the Nordic army, which later became the core of the Anjven army in the 11th and 12th centuries. However, the annual service period is only sixty days, which is not enough to form an army and take it to the mainland to fight; Not to mention the suppression of rebellions among the Scottish and Welsh hill peoples. In short, it was no longer enough to organize the army on feudal relations alone. The kings of England had to think of something else. They expanded their armed forces. They used the "vassalage of knights" to strengthen the compulsory service system under the feudal system; Then, they were allowed to pay to hire people to serve them. They also enter into contracts - fixed-term service contracts - to determine this system of employment. Especially in the event of war on the island, the lords often used this method to recruit infantry from the local population.

The soldiers on foot, among them the archers, showed their might in the guerrilla warfare fought by Edward I in the mountains of Wales at the end of the 13th century. In such warfare, heavy cavalry is useless. The heavy cavalry was accustomed to sweeping away undefended infantry from an open position that the opponent had also agreed to choose. But in Wales, they had to deal with not a military aristocracy like themselves, nor an invading tribe to drive them back to their homeland, but a hill people who defended their territory, who skillfully harassed them and were adept at keeping themselves out of the intruder's edge. It's more like a Christian hunting game: the foot soldier acts like a hunter's helper, blasting the Welsh out of hiding and then being shot down from a distance by longbowed archers. These "longbowmen" also played the role of artillery in throwing warfare - firing torches to disrupt enemy formations before the leading knights began to deliver "graceful strikes". These techniques were used to good effect in the early 14th century against the Scots. Machine-knuckle crossbows have been around since the 12th century, and six-foot-long crossbows can fire five or six arrows at a time. By the end of the 14th century, the lethal range had been extended to four hundred yards. It is well known that without the destructive power of a machine crossbow, it is impossible to penetrate chain mail.

In any case, the famous Battle of Crecy in 1346 speaks volumes. Seven years earlier, Edward III had launched a war to invade France in an attempt to seize the French throne – yet another endless succession dispute that had kept Europe's military aristocracy entertained for four hundred years. Edward III's expensive armies consisted mainly of the commercial and political alliances formed by the minor Germanic princes from the Hanseatic League [13th to 17th centuries AD] of the Norse cities, mainly the cities of northern Germany. ] The mercenaries hired by the merchant where the loan is made. The King of France cautiously avoided the battle, and Edward's allies scattered home due to lack of money. By the time of the Battle of Chrissy in 1346, Edward III had few knights left to deal with the French, who were several times superior to him. So he dismounted his knights and relied on archers to hold his position, as he had done in the old days of war in Scotland. The most important thing about Chrissy was not the catastrophe itself inflicted on the French cavalry by the longbowmen (according to credible historical accounts, more than 1,500 French were killed and nearly 100 British were killed or wounded) [ Author's note: SirCharles Omen, The Art of War In the Middle Age, Vol. II, London, 1924, p145.] Even the German historian Hans Delbruck, who was usually dissatisfied with the boasting of the British, gave a French casualty of 1,283 people. Rather, it's the sheer power it shows. No longer like in medieval warfare, where the enemy cavalry attacked. Immediately the infantry was scattered.

The Battle of Chrissy was not the first chance for a feudal lord on horseback to be defeated by a soldier on foot. In 1302, Courtrai (present-day Belgium). The freedmen of the municipality successfully defended their homeland by defending themselves against the knights of Count Altor with their spears and pikes. The French cavalry (the fashionable pacesetters of the Western world) suffered a crushing defeat at Creesy and had to even rethink equipment and tactics. They abandoned chain mail in favor of armor made of metal sheets (which soon became an ornament for wealth and status); And no longer riding horses when fighting. This is partly due to the horse's vulnerability; Another reason is that it is increasingly expensive to maintain a horse team; There is also a purely chivalrous consideration: a knight who does not ride a horse cannot escape, only persists and fights to the end. As long as the French cavalry held out and kept fighting, it would have achieved certain success. However, when they attacked, they were unable to defend themselves against arrows due to their limited mobility and poor sight, which led to two more great victories for the British: the Battle of Poitiers in 1356 and the more famous Battle of Agincourt in 1415, in which the English killed about 5,000 French (1,000 of whom were captured and killed) and the English lost only a few hundred [ Author's note: Omen, ibid., Vol. II, p384; Ferdinand Lot,L`Art Militaire eiles Armers au moyen age,Paris,1946,Vol.II,P8-P15]。 ] 。

By the 15th century, a well-armed "armed man" with an escort had proven to be both ineffective and difficult to maintain on the battlefield. Their usefulness disappeared, and their mannerism increased. Their armor is becoming more and more ornate, it is more and more expensive to hold jousting tournaments, and their social status is becoming more and more detached from their military role. The relationship with the family family is getting closer and closer, which is suitable for the study of the gate valve and the family tree. The new knighthood is modeled after the 12th-century Legion of Honour and the Spanish Honour – the Knight of the Garter being the highest order in England and the Knight of the Golden Fleece being the highest rank in Spain. The Templars and the warriors of St. John in Jerusalem are reminiscent of the most famous battle for the reconquest of Jerusalem. At the time, the Ottomans of Turkey underestimated the Crusaders' fortresses in the Eastern Mediterranean, which now threatened the Turks' bases in Western Europe. When Charles III of France invaded Italy in 1494, the reconquest of Jerusalem was a vague event before his eyes.

It was not the French cavalry (who undoubtedly inspired Joan of Arc) to finally drive the British back to the island, but another professional branch of the army, which enjoyed no social status, but only a lowly status equal to that of a soldier, that is, artillery.

During their long battles with Muslim armies, the Byzantine army used certain flammable materials, commonly known as "Greek fire", which were often used to throw fireballs from catapults in siege or naval battles. Reversing the order and using the combustion itself as a propellant is a more difficult and dangerous thing to do, and it also requires a metal casting expert. Ironically, such experts have emerged in Western Europe in the service of peace - the casting of the ball. From making balls to making bombs, there was only one step, and it appeared around the beginning of the 14th century. In the first batch of tests, each mortar could only be fired once a day, and the barrel was in the form of a bundle of tubes, like a primitive machine gun. Medieval craftsmen built adorable, demonic machines in the image of dragons and demons – described in the earliest printed books, sometimes highly imaginative. By the 15th century, two weapons that dominated the next 500 years of warfare began to take shape: cannons and pistols. People complain about these weapons, just as we complain about napalm today; Not only because of their inhumane effects, but also because they devalue the war and seem to put the lives of high-born armed men in the hands of lowly descendants. But as today, how can those who complain about the weapons in their opponents' hands explain if they themselves have them?

The combination of these two weapons was first introduced by the revived French army in the 15th century in its war against the British. Britain's political turmoil and military conformism prevented similar inventions. On the battlefield, a few shells were fired at the start of the battle, which disrupted the formation of the opposing archers and made it impossible for the warriors to fight under equal conditions. More commonly, the kings of France used a long column of siege cannons, and in front of the cannons, the castles of the British crown on French soil collapsed into heaps of ruins. The English military that dominated the continent at the end of the 14th century disappeared after another fifty years, and the archers of Chrissy and Agincott have become historic curiosities.

The future depends on another kind of infantry. The simplest weapon a foot soldier could use against cavalry was still a spear. If the spears are long enough, the array is dense enough, and the morale of the soldiers is high enough, such a formation is invincible, and it can only be destroyed unless there is some kind of artillery bombardment. The Macedonian phalanx was the first recorded infantry formation in history. The invincible cavalry of the Middle Ages, in addition to technical factors, was mainly aggressive in terms of morale and social influence. Due to its mobility and social and economic superiority, cavalry has had a monopoly on military activity for hundreds of years. The infantry was only used as assistants. But the limitations of the English Plantagenet dynasty in the 13th century were exposed when they tried to implement this method of warfare in the Welsh mountains; One hundred years later, the Austrian crown had learned an even worse lesson in the Swiss mountains.

The weapon that made the Swiss hillmen famous was not a pike, but an axe, with a handle eight feet long, which they used to kill Austrian knights and cut through their armor, winning great victories not only in the gorge of Morgarten in 1315, but also at Laupen in 1339 and Sempach in 1386. This gives the impression that the resurgence of the infantry is largely based on morale and social factors rather than technical improvements. There was a time when the pike became so powerful that the Swiss used it in 1476 and 1477 to defeat Burgundy's cavalry. At that time, the Swiss pikemen not only learned how to hold on to the guard, forming a huge, indestructible ring of fortifications, but also learned to act, and their phalanx rolled forward, ruthlessly destroying anything that dared to remain in their path. Later, they declared the independence of several states and were ready to rent their military power to neighboring armies, since their population could not be fed by their own weak livestock economy.

Swiss tactics are not unlearned. The neighbors to the south, German, were equally poor and belligerent with Austria, and began to develop their own military institutions, called mercenaries. Unlike Switzerland, the army was made up of a wider social strata, and the aristocracy had an unshirkable responsibility not only to organize and support the army, but also to participate in it and join the soldiers. Thereafter, in Germania, it became accepted military activity for people of noble origin to "drag a spear"; Later, the same was true in England. As for Spain, the heavy cavalry never became an important part of the Christian army, because of the lack of forage for military horses in the country; The kings of Spain found it no problem to hire poor but arrogant Castilian nobles as infantrymen.

Thus, by the end of the 15th century, pikemen became an indispensable part of the armed forces. Later, gradually, the long gun was replaced by a pistol, especially one with a hook - a wooden handle or an arquebus. The appearance of smoothbore guns was still two hundred years later. Only then did the real infantry appear.

As mentioned above, the cannon was extremely cumbersome and required forty horses to pull one cannon. On the battlefield, horses were in a very different situation for infantry and artillery. Since the Battle of Krisi, infantry has been able to keep cavalry out of charge with bows and arrows and dense formations, and now it is possible to break up dense formations with the same infantry or artillery fire. As long as it is properly organized, the charge can still succeed, and even if it doesn't, the light cavalry equipped with firearms now has mobile firepower. However, the light cavalry mentioned here is no longer the old-style cavalry of the former feudal lords. The knights of that time were loners and fought alone, and they regarded victory as personal glory; Today's cavalry fights collectively with different weapons according to the commander's wishes.

Transformation is slow. The French men who fought in the Italian Wars between 1494 and 1529 saw themselves as cavalrymen in their favorite collection of stories by Amadeus de Gore and Ariosto. They deliberately glorified their appearances with bells and whistles, completely ignoring the cruelty and ferocity of war. This ornate decoration became characteristic of the European hussars, which was followed for many centuries and has not completely disappeared even today.

If the invasion of Italy by French militants in 1494 was the result of loyalty to the feudal system, their economic basis was not feudal. Synchronizers, like artillery, are willing to come to war for the sole purpose of getting money.

As we have seen, there was already some salaried element in military service in the Middle Ages. For those wars that lasted for a long time and were far away, the princes did not provide enough provisions, and the lords and their subordinates needed more compensation. The transition from serving the feudal lord while receiving a little pay to earning money by serving is not a hassle; This is especially true for a class that has nothing to do but fight, and has nothing to think about except fighting. From the 12th century onwards, Europe's population and wealth began to grow. The crusader's safety valve is rapidly shutting down; On top of that, the number of fiefdoms has decreased dramatically. In Germany, wealth could be divided indefinitely, and economic support was no longer provided to the princes. The British introduced primogeniture, and the other brothers had to leave home or try their luck with the Crusaders or become mercenaries. Thus, in the late Middle Ages, a larger military class developed, and there were wars that they could fight; And if there is no war, it is not surprising that they can create it themselves.

These "free soldiers" are always ready to use their swords to serve the highest bidder. Initially, they strengthened the power of the princes, as long as they were willing to pay. By the beginning of the 14th century, we can see that the kings of England and France had practically placed all their military power on a payroll basis. Even their largest vassals, when providing a certain number of troops, sign contracts. If a prince can sustain the cost of an army in a campaign, or even a series of battles, his opponents must do the same. The money may come from the "exemption from military service", i.e., the payment of non-military service by vassals in lieu of service; Or a grant from a tax or church. But the main part came from trade, both trade over which the princes had full control, as well as loans advanced to merchants, or from special gifts, usually gifts in return for the services rendered or by the privileged classes, as well as donations from the borough representative offices and other business classes. The three classes of parliament were three classes in feudal Europe: monks, nobles, and commoners. The non-military councils of representatives, the non-aristocratic class of the community, played an increasingly important role in whether a prince could successfully prepare for war.

However, sooner or later the money will run out. The war ceased, and the soldiers (which can be used as the word exactly) were dismissed. These people have no property, no job, or even no home, and only have a "" to go to, which can provide them with a food ration and introduce them to employment.

In Italy, the wars between the pope and the king over investiture disputes began in the late 11th century and were continuous. The word loyalty is gone. This war included a number of minor wars, which were not to be financed. The hired groups remained independent and active until the 13th century, sometimes serving as soldiers for the money, and sometimes being hired to engage in extortion (more on this in Chapter 2). In France, a hundred years later, the activity of these people reached its peak. The "Hundred Years' War" [ Translator's note: Intermittent dynastic wars between England and France between 1337 and 1453. The use of mercenaries on both sides is a distinctive feature. Among the mercenaries, both noble and lowly born, lived in the countryside between wars. From the middle of the 14th century to the middle of the 15th century, these so-called "extortionists" roamed freely throughout France, committing robbery, rape and arson, collectively and individually. They continue to engage in such activities until another employer can be paid. The King of France was so disgusted with them that he waged several wars in Spain and Hungary just to get them out. It wasn't until the end of the Hundred Years' War that things began to improve. The king took advantage of the desperation of the French merchants against them and gained the power to impose a special tax, the war tax on capitation, in order to establish the royal armed forces on a regular basis. At the end of the 15th century, the poll tax became permanent and did not need to be authorized by Parliament again. In this way, the royal finances are on the right track.

The first parliamentary approval was given to Charles VII in 1439. In 1444, Charles VII decreed that many of the mercenary gangs that had caused trouble in the country were permanently brought into the royal service, while the rest were forcibly disbanded. After the captain received a large sum of money, either based on feudal obligations or according to an agreed "contract", there was no doubt that he could find a group of people to support them. All officials were appointed by the king; Officials and subordinates are paid directly by the royal government and reside in the towns designated by the king. They were a purely mercenary army, although not a national army. German, Scottish, Italian, all had such armies. For the rival of the King of France, the wealthy Duke Charles of Burgundy (Charles the Darde), these armies were a formidable force. Twenty-five years later, the duke, seeing the need for imitation, raised an army and immediately launched a series of military adventures, which resulted in a crushing defeat at the hands of the Swiss and the French, ruining the future of Burgundy, which had great hopes of becoming one of the great powers of Europe.

The kings of France were far-sighted. Within half a century, they had skillfully intermarried to consolidate their territory, increase their wealth, and amass their military might. Finally, Charles VIII came to Italy in 1494 in search of the allure of glory, adventure, might and virtue of the Renaissance, and he was able to do so thanks to the best army that Europe had ever seen: a core of Swiss pikemen forming the infantry; Each fortress was equipped with a noble, proud hussar, a long column of bronze cast cannons,...... These are financed from the abundant treasury. This army was not fundamentally different in composition from the army that Napoleon brought to the same battlefield three hundred years later. Despite the fact that the armed men themselves did not want to admit it, and in fact, the war of the knights was a thing of the past.