Hungary and the Fall of Eastern Europe 1000-1568 (Men-at-Arms) [Paperback]

David Nicolle (Author), Angus McBride (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Men-at-Arms | Publication Date: March 24, 1988

Although not widely studied in the West, the medieval history of south-eastern Europe is both fascinating and complex. The Kingdom of Hungary was a vast realm, at least the size of France, that endured throughout the Middle Ages whilst the Byzantine Empire was even more extensive and enduring. The Serbians won themselves a brief but extensive local empire in the 14th century; while the Bulgarians established an effective and cultured state. Other players in the confusing Balkan scene included the Albanians; Wallachians; Moldavians; Transylvanians; Croatians and many others. How did they organise their armies and fight their wars; and why did they ultimately fail? This title answers these questions ably supported by numerous illustrations and eight colour plates.

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

David Nicolle PhD was born in 1944 and was educated at Highgate School. For eight years he worked in the BBC Arabic Service. In 1971 he went 'back to school', gaining an MA from the School of Oriental and African Studies and a PhD from Edinburgh University. For some years he taught art and architectural history at Yarmuk University, Jordan. David has written many Osprey titles, including MAA 140 Armies of the Ottoman Turks, MAA 320 Armies of the Caliphates 862–1098, and Campaign 43 Fornovo 1495.

Product Details

• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing (March 24, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0850458331
• ISBN-13: 978-0850458336
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.1 x 9.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #149,120 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #21 in Books > History > Europe > Hungary
  • #22 in Books > History > Europe > Austria

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lots of info, but how useful?, July 22, 2000

By 

J. Angus Macdonald "bibliovore" (Concord, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hungary and the Fall of Eastern Europe 1000-1568 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

This is one of the Men-at-Arms grabbag volumes. While there are wonderful illustrations and lots of facts crammed in here, one has to wonder just how accurate a book covering warfare in approximately 1/2 of Europe over a 570 year period can be. In the end, use this book as a jumping off point, but not the last word on Eastern Europe.

The Angus McBride illustrations are mostly up to their standards of excellence, although he has left the last painting only partially done for some obscure reason and he DOES like to focus on atypical arms and armour, which can be interesting, but also presents a rather skewwed vision of the armies of the period.

Nicolle tries valiantly with this volume. As I said above, there are a LOT of facts in here. There are two problems that press on the information. 1) Militarily, this is a poorly chronicled era and the sheer number of languages makes the task all the more duanting and 2) the timeframe is just far too broad for any serious considerations. Imagine lumping all of, say, American military developement from 1492 to the present (a similar timeframe) into a volume this size and you will get a notion of the enormity of the task.

The informaion is as good as the team can get it. The illustrations do their best to bring a candle to the minds of Western Europe and America as to what Eastern Europe went through. The writing is solid. In the end, though, the book has severe limitations. Take it with a grain of salt.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eastern Europe, April 7, 2007

By 

K. Murphy "Fortune favors the Bold" (The thriving metropolis of Masury, OH) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Hungary and the Fall of Eastern Europe 1000-1568 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

A useful book with fine plates. As is often the case with men-at-arms titles, it does not have enough space to get extremely detailed, but within the confines of this series it is excellent.

4.0 out of 5 stars Concise Volume about a Little Known Period of Warfare, September 28, 2008

By 

Ky. Col. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hungary and the Fall of Eastern Europe 1000-1568 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

David Nicolle has given readers a brief (perhaps too brief) but interesting book on the centuries preceeding the Ottoman conquest of Eastern Europe. Included are the late Byzantines, the Hungarians, the Serbs, and what is now Rumania amongst others. Angus McBride provides some pretty good artwork plates to augment the work. Some points of interest include the Mongol invasion of Hungary and some of the fifteenth century warlors such as Janos Hunyadi, Vlad Dracula, and Stephen the Great. Overall, there is some interesting historical facts but the book could have been better if it would have been fleshed out more.