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It was May 1, 1592, mere weeks before the start of the Imjin War. Admiral Yi Sun Shin summoned a conference of high-ranking military officers and civil magistrates to his headquarters at Yosu, a port on the southern coast of Korea. Read more
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In 1490 Japan entered a crucial period of its history known as the sengoku-jidai, or the “Age of the Country at War.” Read more
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By the time of his death in 1582, he controlled 30 of Japan’s 68 provinces, was the commander of the greatest samurai army in his country’s history, and had earned the distinction of being the first of the three great unifiers of Japan. Read more
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On a hot, dusty September morning in 1631, the Imperial Army of the Holy Roman Emperor rested easily on the plains outside the village of Breitenfield, six miles north of Leipzig, Saxony. Read more
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Although the great Crusades were over by 1309 ad, one old crusading order continued to evolve, flourish, and make enemies—the Knights Hospitallers of St. Read more
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By the late 15th Century, early firearm designers were already looking at ideas for semi-automatic weapons. The matchlock had been the first mechanism to make a shoulder-aimed firearm, the arquebus, possible. Read more
arquebus
From the moment he was crowned King of France in 1514, Francis I shared the same obsession with the rich Italian territories of Milan and Naples that his predecessors, Charles VIII and Louis XII, had shown during their time on the throne. Read more
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The Spanish Empire is best remembered for its great voyages of exploration, its conquest of the New World, and its mighty Armada. Read more
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In March 1519, a small square of 400 Spanish adventurers under the command of Hernándo Cortés stood at bay on the plain of Cintla in Tabasco, Mexico. Read more
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By the latter part of the 15th century, armor worn by knights in the field had reached its pinnacle. Read more
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In the 17th century samurai were elite warriors, members of Japan’s ruling class. They were born, not made; you had to come from a samurai family to be considered samurai. Read more
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Although Charles de Lannoy, the viceroy of Naples, was the nominal commander of the Imperial forces in the battle, Fernando de Avolos, Marquis of Pescara, controlled the army’s real muscle, its arquebusiers. Read more
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Although formal training in the use of the pike—an ash-handled spear 18 to 20 feet long—did not begin until the 15th century, ancient Greeks and Romans used so-called “long spears” as standard infantry issue against cavalry. Read more
arquebus
The Muslims at the Battle of Lepanto still wore turbans and headdresses, along with the occasional steel cap with their usual kilij sabre and flowing robes. Read more
