German Medieval Armies 1300-1500 (Men-at-Arms) [Paperback]

Christopher Gravett (Author), Angus McBride (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Men-at-Arms | Publication Date: November 28, 1985

The German rulers were forceful and powerful men, and, surrounded by potential enemies, circumstances dictated the necessity of rule by strength based on military capacity. In the later 15th Century, three houses rose above the others; the families of Wittelsbach, Luxemburg and the powerful Austrian Hapsburgs. The struggles of these and other houses, and of the knights and towns, were to be a feature of German history throughout the Middle Ages. This title details the dress, weapons, heraldry and insignia of these prolific forces, as well as various battles, such as the Battle of Goellheim of 1298.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Packed with specially commissioned artwork, maps and diagrams, the Men-at-Arms series is an unrivalled illustrated reference on the history, organisation, uniforms and equipment of the world's military forces, past and present.

About the Author

Christopher Gravett is Senior Curator at the Royal Armouries and a recognised authority on the arms, armour and warfare of the medieval world. He has worked as an advisor for numerous TV and film productions. His previous Osprey titles include Elite 17 Knights at Tournament, Warrior 1 Norman Knight 950-1204 AD and Campaign 13 Hastings 1066.

Product Details

• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing; First Edition edition (November 28, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0850456142
• ISBN-13: 978-0850456141
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 0.2 x 9.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #800,249 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Knechts und knaves, August 12, 2002

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ignorance is bliss "therazorsedge555" (Tempe, AZ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: German Medieval Armies 1300-1500 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

The usual good basic coverage by Osprey, covering the Holy Roman Empire. Wars were frequent, between principates, towns and cities, leagues, robber barons, religious groups. It's no wonder that Germany would be the site of some of the bloodiest campaigns during the later Thirty Years' War. There is also an excellent section on the Hussites and their unique method of fighting the Empire. There is even a halfway decent map in this one! The excellent color plates by Angus Mcbride start with chainmail and end with full gothic plate armor.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Deutsches Kriegern!, June 5, 2009

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ThorBjorn "Norseman" (Minnesota) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: German Medieval Armies 1300-1500 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

Yet another enjoyable book from Osprey.
Here we have a lavishly illustrated summary of the military history of Germany in the late Middle-ages, 1300-1500. A time of escalating conflicts, internally and externally, this era witnessed not only major and minor wars, but the advent of great intellectual and theological advances in the various principalities we now know as Germany.

Martin Luther protested against corruption in the church, and translated the Bible into a vernacular language for the first time. Many notable universities flourished in the German states at this time. The technology and logistics of warfare changed drastically. Firearms grew in prominence on the battle-field. Armor evolved from chain-mail or scale, to the glorious Gothic-plate suits which most people envision when they imagine the knight in full battle-gear. German armorers were second to none!

Warfare was a common occurence, and all manner of people practiced warrior skills and possessed arms. Both common-citizens and aristocracy formed leagues and guilds-of-arms to defend their country, city, property, family, and freedom from the depradations of their neighbors.

For quite some time, much of the material one found on Medieval warfare focused almost exclusively on the Anglo, Celtic, and Franco regions of Europe, or the Crusades. Now, these are also very fascinating, but there has not been much coverage of the Germanic and Slavic regions. You will learn about campaigns in Eastern Europe, the Hussite wars, in which Jan Ziska led a unique wagon-borne army that fought from improvised field-fortifications assembled from their vehicles. Conflicts with the notorious Swiss pikemen, and the battle of Visby in Gotland are also covered.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Decent Introduction and Summary of the Topic, December 26, 2008

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W. Ford "Storm Rider" (Sykesville, MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: German Medieval Armies 1300-1500 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

As with other books in this series I thought that this was a decent intro and summary to the topic. I enjoyed the color plates. However, I would have liked to have seen a MUCH more extensive Bibliobraphy so that you could continue your research into the topic. This series kind of leaves you at a dead end.