Medieval Siege Warfare (Trade Editions) [Paperback]

Christopher Gravett (Author), Richard Hook (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1999 | Series: Trade Editions (Book 28)

This work covers the history of castles, sieges and artillery throughout the medieval period. It covers many famous European and Crusader sieges and presents numerous illustrations of the various weapons and equipment from the period.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

The Bringing History to Life collection is made up of Osprey's all-time favourite titles, re-released with striking new covers - selected titles also include visitor information sections.

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. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing (August 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1855329476
• ISBN-13: 978-1855329478
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,480,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great introduction to medieval siege warfare techniques, September 17, 2001

By 

Thomas Smith (Bentonville, AR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Medieval Siege Warfare (Trade Editions) (Paperback)

I bought this book since I am interested in medieval history, rather than a specific interest in medieval warfare. The book is quite short, but it is well illustrated both with drawings and color pictures which also include works done circa the period in question. The short book is very informative both from a general historical and military perspective. The book describes medieval castles and fortresses and how their design is based on military defensive needs. The book then discusses sieges as well as various machines created to overcome castle defences. Various artillery including canons and catapults are also covered. The book is well done, and though it is short, it wets the appetite for further reading.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good overall look at the whole world of Medieval siege warfare, January 24, 2008

By 

Will Kalif "StormTheCastle" (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Medieval Siege Warfare (Trade Editions) (Paperback)

This is a good look at the whole world of siege warfare in the Middle Ages. Without being scholarly it takes an interesting look at the many aspects of siege from weapons like catapults and trebuchets to digging tunnels, siege towers and more. It looks at how castles and fortifications changed over time to defend against siege and attack. Just a good introductory book with lots of pictures and prints. Plenty of pictures taken from old manuscripts and a whole series of modern drawings. If you want to learn about the whole arms race of Medieval sieges, the weapons and some of the famous ones that occurred this is a great place to start. It's peppered with many examples of real sieges and pictures and drawings of real castles.

Did lords ever pay mercenaries to guard their strongholds? Yep, and the book takes examples from history and even tells you how much they paid.

What was one of the weakpoints of a castle or stronghold and what did the builders do to strenghten it? Moats? Drawbridges? Gatehouses?

Just a good book if you want to learn about siege warfare in the middle ages how it really happened but you don't want something overly scholarly and dry.

2.0 out of 5 stars Frustratingly Uneven, February 24, 2010

By 

John S. Gale (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Medieval Siege Warfare (Elite) (Paperback)

This is one of those books where a dictionary is essential if you are not very familiar with the terms used. Nice illustration but many poorly explained. Many illustration distant from explanatory text. I got this from a library. I won't be buying my own copy!