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

David Nicolle (Author), Gerry Embleton (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Men-at-Arms | Publication Date: March 24, 1983

Mercenaries were a common feature throughout most of Europe in the 14th and 15th centuries, and had been known far earlier. But nowhere did such a sophisticated system of hiring, payment and organisation of mercenaries develop as it did in Italy. The condottiere – whose name came from the condotta or contract between himself and his employer – was the result. Whether commander or humble trooper, the condottiere was a complete professional. His skill has never been doubted, but his loyalty and dedication to a particular cause often has. David Nicolle provides a fascinating exploration of the condottiere; his roles, arms and equipment.

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 was born in 1944. He worked in the BBC Arabic service for a number of years, before going 'back to school', gaining an MA from the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, and a doctorate from Edinburgh University. He later taught world and Islamic art and architectural history at Yarmuk University, Jordan. He has written many books and articles on medieval and Islamic warfare, and has been a prolific author of Osprey titles for many years. David lives and works in Leicestershire, UK.

Product Details

• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing (March 24, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0850454778
• ISBN-13: 978-0850454772
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.1 x 9.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #476,041 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Italian Medieval Armies 1300-1500, February 4, 2008

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: Italian Medieval Armies 1300-1500 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

'Italian Medieval Armies' is a detailed look at the endemic and savage warfare of late medieval Italy. Here the political scene was dominated by fierce mercenary generals, while the battlefield was ruled by the condottiere mercenaries. Indeed, while early medieval Italian armies were populated largely by patriotic citizens fighting for their homes and families, those of this period were known for their cruel and flamboyant mercenaries from Central Europe and England.

Towards the close of his book Nicolle looks at 8 important battles and campaigns of this era to give a summary of Italian battle tactics and leadership. All throughout the book are black-and-white photos of suits of armor, castles, and contemporary artwork that help flesh out some of these events and those that lived them. Gerry Embleton's color plates in this book are among his betters; they are pretty much on par with his great artwork in the 'Armies of Medieval Burgundy' title.

Shortly, this is a nice men-at-arms title and a good companion to the recently published 'Condottiere 1300-1500'.

3.0 out of 5 stars Purchase Osprey's "Condottiere" Instead, May 30, 2011

By 

Marco Antonio Abarca (Colorado) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Italian Medieval Armies 1300-1500 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

"Italian Medieval Armies" is a typical Osprey Publishing book from the mid 1980's. The text by David Nicolle is mediocre at best. Nicolle's writing reminds me of reading someone's master's thesis. It is all very earnest but nevertheless clumsy and not very deep. The illustrations by G.A. Embleton are competent but appear flat and dull by comparison with the improved quality of illustration in recent Osprey publications. My advice is to avoid this book and instead purchase "Condottiere 1300-1500" by David Murphy. It is part of Osprey's Warrior Series and is a much better book.

2 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not bad but could be better, October 26, 2007

By 

Datus (Connecticut) - See all my reviews

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

There is a reason I'm trying to learn Italian. The reason is that as an armchair historian, I've discovered that few English titles are able to do justice to anything Italian. This is especially true with Renaissance era literary works as the Italian language is far less vulgar then that of English - which is considered a "power language". Although David Nicolle does a descent job, I feel the book is too small to really go into detail as the Italian political and social climate of the day was incredibly treacherous and even small aspects would cover volumes. Also some of his viewpoints lack credibility. One such viewpoint is that the French and English invaders were bigger in physical size. Perhaps Mr. Nicolle has seen one too many Joe Pesci movies? From the Armour pieces I've studied, there's certainly nothing to indicate Italians of the day were smaller in size. Today, if you look at the sports teams in Europe, Italians are among the tallest. Goes for both Rugby, Football(soccer), and fencing. Anyway I can't imagine why someone would make such a broad assumption. It's hard to imagine the Romans - the greatest empire known to man - being smaller people then the rest of Europe. Unless the Italians shrank during the Middle Ages? Hmmm not likely. Although it did remind me of Time Bandits when Napoleon says with great disappointment, "I wanted to invade Italy because I thought they were all small people". :)

Anyway decent book if you want some nice pics and a summary of events from the period.