The Armies And Wars Of The Sun King 1643 1715

Volume 1 of the Sun King's wars and armies goes from his early and turbulent years, from the resounding victory over Spain at Rocroi in 1643, the unstable years of the Fronde civil wars, his seizure of absolute power in 1661, his immediate control of national finances and armed forces, his measures to create the most effective army in Europe, the i

Volume 2 concerns the wars, military politics and geo-strategy from 1672 to 1688 and notably includes events in eastern Europe that had much influence on the Sun King's western fronts. The French line infantry units will be described as well as their recruitment, services, lifestyles, tactics, weapons, colours and uniforms. This includes the regime

A new and updated vision of the War of Spanish Succession largely won by the Sun King's armies. Chapters on finances, artillery, engineers, invalids and medical care, justice and law enforcement corps, regular local troops, the Bourgeois and Coast Guard local militia, and social life of regular soldiers are included.

Louis XIV's army in the War of the League of Augsburg, with a focus on the campaigns, the Irish contingent, and the cavalry.

In 1709, after eight years of war, France was on her knees. There was not enough money left in the treasury to pay, equip or feed the army and a bad harvest led to starvation throughout the kingdom. Circumstances had worsened to the point that King Louis XIV was forced to offer to end the War of Spanish Succession on humiliating terms for his country. However, the allied powers – Britain, the Dutch Republic and the Holy Roman Empire – refused Louis' offer, believing that one more successful campaign would utterly destroy French power. This book examines the campaign of 1709, culminating in the battle of Malplaquet, which would prove Louis' enemies disastrously wrong. Led by the Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugene of Savoy, the allied armies achieved a tactical victory – but it was a hollow one. The allies suffered 23,000 casualties to the French 11,000 in what was the bloodiest battle of the 18th century. The scale of casualties shocked Europe and led to a reversal of fortunes, with the dismissal of Marlborough and a newly confident King Louis resolving to fight on. When the war finally ended, it did so on terms favourable to France. In this illustrated title, Simon MacDowall examines the campaign in full and shows how, though it is generally accepted that Marlborough was never defeated, the Battle of Malplaquet was ultimately a French strategic victory.

The 'personal rule' of Louis XIV witnessed a massive increase in the size of the French army and an apparent improvement in the quality of its officers, its men and the War Ministry. However, this is the first book to treat the French army under Louis XIV as a living political, social and economic organism, an institution which reflected the dynastic interests and personal concerns of the king and his privileged subjects. The book explains the development of the army between the end of Cardinal Mazarin's ministry and the outbreak of the War of the Spanish Succession, emphasising the awareness of Louis XIV and his ministers of the need to pay careful attention to the condition of the king's officers, and to take account of their military, political, social and cultural aspirations.

Permanent armies became an organic feature of the Old Regime, a symbol of its power and strength, the means by which the prince could defend his interest and play an active role in the International policy. The Imperial Army represents an interesting laboratory, which involved the multicultural Habsburg's domains and the Holy Roman-Germanic Empire

A detailed revisionist analysis of the seventeenth-century French army.