Military Revolution
The Military Revolution is the theory that a series of radical changes in military strategy and tactics during the 16th and 17th centuries resulted in major lasting changes in governments and society. The theory was introduced by Michael Roberts in the 1950s as he focused on Sweden searching for major changes in the European way of war caused by the introduction of portable firearms. Roberts linked military technology with larger historical consequences, arguing that innovations in tactics, drill and doctrine by the Dutch and Swedes, which maximized the utility of firearms, led to a need for more trained troops and thus for permanent forces. Armies grew much larger and more expensive. These changes in turn had major political consequences in the level of administrative support and the supply of money, men and provisions, producing new financial demands and the creation of new governmental institutions. "Thus, argued Roberts, the modern art of war made possible—and necessary—the creation of the modern state".
In the 1990s the concept was modified and extended by Geoffrey Parker, who argued that developments in fortification and siege warfare caused the revolution. Parker also argues that the military revolution in Europe gave European powers a distinct advantage, making it possible for the relatively small European powers to conquer the Americas, as well as large parts of Africa and Asia. Parker's argument has been criticized by Cambridge University political scientist Jason Sharman.
The concept of a military revolution during this time has received a mixed reception among historians. Noted military historians Michael Duffy and Jeremy Black strongly criticized the theory and have described it as misleading, exaggerated, and simplistic.
Origin of the concept
Roberts first proposed the concept of a military revolution in 1955 in a lecture before the Queen's University of Belfast, later published as an article, "The Military Revolution, 1560–1660," that argued European methods of warfare changed profoundly during the Early Modern Period.Chronology
Mr Roberts placed his military revolution around 1560–1660 as the period in which linear tactics were developed to take advantage of the increasingly effective gunpowder weapons; however, that chronology has been challenged by many scholars.Ayton and Price have remarked on the importance of the "Infantry Revolution" taking place in the early 14th century, and David Eltis has pointed out that the real change to gunpowder weapons and the elaboration of a military doctrine according to that change took place in the early 16th century, not, as Roberts defended, in the late 16th century.
Others have defended a later period for the military change. Jeremy Black thinks that the key time period was that of 1660–1710, which saw an exponential growth in the size of European armies, while Clifford J. Rogers has developed the idea of successive military revolutions at different periods, first an "infantry revolution" in the 14th century, secondly an "artillery revolution" in the 15th century, thirdly a "fortifications revolution" in the 16th, fourth a "fire weapons" revolution between 1580 and 1630, and finally a fifth revolution, the increase in size of European armies, between 1650 and 1715. Similarly, Geoffrey Parker has extended the period of the military revolution from 1450 to 1800, the period in which Europeans achieved supremacy over the rest of the world. Some scholars have questioned the revolutionary character of an evolution through four centuries. Clifford Rogers has suggested that the military revolution can best be compared with the concept of "punctuated equilibrium evolution", meaning short bursts of rapid military innovation followed by longer periods of relative stagnation.
The military revolution failed in the Ottoman Empire. According to a 2013 study, there are two factors that explain this failure: "civil-military relations and historical timing. In the Ottoman Empire, the emergence of an institutionally strong and internally cohesive army during the early stages of state formation—in the late fourteenth century—equipped the military with substantial bargaining powers. In contrast, the great powers of Europe drew heavily on private providers of military power during the military revolution and developed similar armies only by the second half of the seventeenth century, limiting the bargaining leverage of European militaries over their rulers. In essence, the Ottoman standing army was able to block reform efforts that it believed challenged its parochial interests."
Tactics
Linear tactics
Shallow formations are ideally suited for defensive deployments, but they are clumsy in offensive missions: the longer the frontage, the more difficult to maintain order and cohesion, or to perform any maneuver, especially wheeling. Gustavus Adolphus understood well that far from being slow and ponderous, the assault columns like those used by Tilly were in fact faster and more flexible, and the Swedish King made use of them when required, like in the battle of Alte Veste.Armies did start to use thinner formations, but in a slow evolution, and subjected to tactical considerations. Firearms were not so effective as to determine solely the deployment of troops, other considerations were also observed, like units' experience, assigned mission, terrain, or the need to meet a required frontage with an understrength unit. The debate of line vs column was carried through the 18th Century up to Napoleonic times, with a temporary reverse to deep columns in the later campaigns of the Napoleonic Wars.
Ironically, depth reduction in cavalry formations was a more permanent change introduced by Gustavus Adolphus. In conjunction with less reliance on pistol fire it had the net effect of favouring shock action over firepower, contrary to the tendency defended by Roberts.
Trace italienne
Roberts' linear tactics concept had an early critic in the younger historian Geoffrey Parker, who asked why the supposedly outdated Spanish tercios defeated the Swedish linear formations at the battle of Nördlingen in 1634. Parker instead suggested that the key development was the appearance of the trace italienne fortifications in early modern Europe. In this view, the difficulty of taking such fortifications resulted in a profound change in military strategy. "Wars became a series of protracted sieges", Parker suggests, and open-pitch battles became "irrelevant" in regions where the trace italienne existed. Ultimately, Parker argues, "military geography", in other words the existence or absence of the trace italienne in a given area, shaped military strategy in the early modern period, and lead to the creation of larger armies necessary to besiege the new fortresses and to garrison them. In this way, Parker placed the birth of the Military Revolution in the early 16th century. He also gives it a new significance; not only was it a factor in the growth of the State, it was also the main factor in the rise of the West over other Civilizations.This model has been criticised on several grounds. Jeremy Black pointed that it was the development of the State that allowed the growth in size of the armies, not the other way around, and found Parker guilty of "Technological Determinism". More tellingly, the figures presented by Parker to sustain his idea about the growth of armies have been severely criticised by David Eltis as lacking consistency and David Parrott has proved that the period of the trace italienne did not show any significant growth in the size of French armies and that the late period of the Thirty Years War showed an increase in the proportion of cavalry in the armies, contrary to Parker's thesis that the prevalence of siege warfare marked a decrease of its importance.
The infantry revolution and the decline of cavalry
Some Medieval specialists elaborated on the idea of an infantry revolution happening early in the 14th century, when in some relevant battles, like Courtrai, Bannockburn or Halmyros, heavy cavalry was routed by infantry; however, it can be pointed out that in all those battles infantry was entrenched or positioned in rough terrain unsuited for cavalry, like in other battles of the 14th and 15th century in which cavalry was defeated. In fact infantry had been victorious in earlier times in similar situations, for instance at the battle of Legnano in 1176, but in open ground infantry still had the worst, as shown for instance at the battle of Patay and the battle of Formigny in which the vaunted English longbowmen were easily run down; however, the experience of battles like Courtrai and Bannockburn meant that the myth of the invincible knight disappeared, which was in itself important for transforming medieval warfare.More substance has the case for the "return of Heavy Infantry" as Carey has named it. Pikemen, unlike other infantry, could stand in the open against heavy cavalry. While requiring drill and discipline, individual training requirements were much lower than those for knights, and the switch from heavily armoured knight to footsoldier made possible the expansion in the size of armies from the late 15th century onwards as infantry could be trained more quickly and could be hired in great numbers. But that change was slow.
The full development, in the 15th century, of plate armour for both man and horse, combined with the use of the arret which could support a heavier lance, ensured that the heavy cavalryman remained a formidable warrior. Without cavalry, a 15th-century army was unlikely to achieve a decisive victory on the field of battle; battle might be decided by archers or pikemen, but a retreat could only be cut off effectively or followed-up by cavalry. In the 16th century, a lighter, less expensive cavalry gained ground, so that the proportion of cavalry in the armies actually grew continually, so that in the last battles of the Thirty Years War cavalry actually outnumbered infantry as never before since the high feudal period.
Another change that took place in the late 15th century was the improvement in siege artillery as to render old style fortifications very vulnerable. But the supremacy of tactical offence in siege warfare was not to last for very long. As Philippe Contamine has noted, by a dialectical process which may be found in all periods, progress in the art of siege was answered by progress in the art of fortification, and vice versa. Charles VIII's invasion of Italy in 1494 demonstrated the potency of siege artillery; but in this region by the early years of the 16th century there were beginning to emerge fortifications which had been designed specifically to resist artillery bombardment. The full impact the 15th-century "artillery revolution" was blunted fairly quickly by the development of the bastion and the trace italienne. But the military supremacy which the possession of a powerful siege train conferred contributed in no small degree to that strengthening of royal authority which we find in some European states in the later 15th century.