Renaissance Polish Armies 1492–1569
Renaissance Polish Armies 1492–1569
Description
This fully illustrated study assesses the armies of Poland at war in the first half of the 16th century, during the transition from feudal to standing forces.
Against a background of almost continual warfare, the 80 years after 1492 witnessed the slow transformation of Polish forces from feudal levies to standing armies. The bloody struggle between Poles, Lithuanians, Hungarians, Muscovites, Cossacks, Turks and Tatars culminated in the Union of Lublin in 1569, uniting the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
This crucial period in Polish military history saw the introduction and development of famous troop categories such as the Polish hussars, and a tactical transformation with the introduction of foot and mounted hand-gunners to replace crossbowmen. Drawing upon a wealth of sources, the author explains Polish armies' methods of recruitment; their organizational structure, and that of units of different troop categories; their weapons, armour and equipment; and their strategies and tactics.
In this engaging book, specially commissioned artwork and rare illustrations combine with authoritative text to bring this under-researched subject to life for an English-language audience.
Accessibility Information
Support for non-visual reading
- No accessibility features offered by the reading system, device or reading software are disabled or otherwise unusable with the product
- Has alternative text descriptions for images
Visual adjustments
Appearance of the text and page layout can be modified (font, spacing, colors)
Navigation
- Page list to go to pages from the print source version
- Elements such as headings, tables, etc for structured navigation
- All or substantially all textual matter is arranged in a single logical reading order
- Content is enhanced with ARIA roles to optimize organization and facilitate navigation
- Purposes of all links are made clear
Rich content
Language tagging provided
Additional accessibility information
- WCAG level AA
- WCAG v2.2 compliant
- Accessibility request contact
Table of Contents
Organization: Structure and recruitment - Organization of the roty - Command - Army size
Equipment and weapons: Armour - Shields - Helmets - Mêlée weapons - Ranged weapons
Cavalry: Lancers - Light cavalry - Rascian and hussars - Cossacks
Strategy and tactics: On campaign - In battle
Select bibliography: Published works - Primary sources
Plate commentaries
Index
Product details
| Published | Mar 26 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 48 |
| ISBN | 9781472867575 |
| Imprint | Osprey Publishing |
| Illustrations | 8 colour artwork plates; black & white photographs and illustrations. |
| Series | Men-at-Arms |
| Short code | MAA 568 |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
Reviews
ONLINE RESOURCES
Bloomsbury Collections
This book is available on Bloomsbury Collections where your library has access.
Resources
Book Vote
Tell us what titles you would like to see published by Osprey, then vote for your favourites in our monthly book vote!
Related Titles
