All of the books listed here, are ones which I have read at least once, and referred back to on many occasions. While the list is by no means exhaustive, a wealth of information on the history, tactics, politics and costume of this fascinating period, can be gleaned from a close reading of a few selected volumes. MILITARY HISTORY AND TACTICS Balfour, John Lord Kinross - The Ottoman Centuries An excellent history of the rise and fall of the Ottoman Empire. Several chapters cover the relations of the Ottoman Sultans with Renaissance Europe. Chandler, David - The Art of War in Marlbourogh's Day. Though this work actually falls outside or our period, it goes into great detail on the art of war as practiced in the late 17th century, (as background to the main focus), and will be very useful to anyone gaming the English Civil Wars, the later Turkish Wars and the myriad succession wars of the late 17th century. Cole, Hubert - The Wars of The Roses. A good discussion of this highly complex period of English History, including maps and descriptions of the major battles. An excellent work for anyone interested in wargames of this period. Cruikshank, - Elizabeth's Army. A classic, basic work on the organization and operations of the land army of Elizabeth I. Duprey and Duprey - The Encyclopedia of Military History. Provides brief descriptions of virtually all the battlefield engagements of the Renaissance, as well as a detailed examination of the Swiss tactical system and the military reforms of Gustavus Adolphus. An invaluable source for gamers interested in recreating historic battles. Knightly, Charles - Fladden; The Anglo-Scottish War of 1513. One of the books in the Almark "Great Battles" series, this is an excellent little work, aimed primarily at the wargamer. It gives a concise account of the little known war, and points out the fact that Renaissance wargames can include much more than Swiss and Landsknechnt at push of pike. The book includes fine, color illustrations, and invaluable English and Scottish flags and banners. Machiavelli, Niccolo - The Art of War. A must for a general undestanding of warfare in the Renaissance, from the point of view of a keen observer of military matters. The battle described as an example of the tactics, is one of the most vivid accounts in literature. It reads as if it were a miniature wargame battle report. Mattingly, Garret - The Armada. A detailed account of the Elizabethan Wars of the late 16th century, and a description of the maneuvers and engagements leading up to the destruction of the Armada. Monlue, Blaised - journal of Blaise du Monlue. An excellent work by a soldier who served in the armies of France from the Italian Wars through the Wars of Religion. The earlier parts are very useful to gamers wishing to experiment with small scale skirmishes in the period. The book provides a good picture of the great variety of operations that can be played on the table-top. Oman, Sir Charles - The Art of War in the 16th Century. An invaluable work, with detailed discussions of all the major powers and tactical systems of the 16th century. This book, along with Machiavelli's work, should be the basis of any Renaissance gamer's library. Rogers, Col. H.C.B. - Battles and Generals of the Civil Wars. A good, concise account of the major battles and participants in both Civil Wars, accompanied by many maps. Wagner, Eduard - European Weapons and Warfare 1618- 1648. A lavishly illustrated book, covering virtually every aspect of military life during the period of the Thirty Years War. The illustrations alone make it well worth its high price, and the material contained in it is useful for basically the entire Renaissance period. Wise, Terence - Medieval Warfare. Though most of this book falls outside of our period, there are chapters discussing the Hussities, Swiss, and the Condotierre. The section on Heraldry contains loads of coats of arms useful for flags, shields, etc. Young, Brig. Gen. Peter - Edgehill, 1642. A detailed examination of both participants in the first major battle of the Civil War, by one of Britain's foremost military historians. Calendar State Papers; Foreign and Domestic Available in most college libraries these books are the official records of the English Monarchs, and contain fascinating first hand, correspondance and descriptions of political, military and civilian affairs in the reigns of Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, James I, Charles I, Charles II and William III. WARGAMES AND UNIFORM GUIDES Featherstone, Donald - Wargaming; Pike and Shot. A good readable work on translating the Renaissance to the wargame table, by one of the best known names in the hobby. Funcken, Lilian & Fred - Uniforms Of All Ages, Vol. 1. a good source, showing several pages of uniforms from Hussites to late 17th century, figure lines are modelled after these illustrations. Gush, George - Renaissance Armies. A heroic effort at massing together a wealth of information that might normal-ly be unavailable to the average wargamer. Kannik, Prebyn - Uniforms of the World in Color. A heavily illustrated uniform guide, which begins with the year 1660, and contains several pages of uniforms for the late 17th century. Osprey Men at Arms Series. Various Authors, these inexpensive, paperbound books offer many good color illustrations and interesting and informative texts. The most useful titles for our period are as follows: 1. The Conquistadores; 2. The English Civil War Armies; 3. The Landsknecht; 4. Medieval European Armies; 5. The Samurai Armies; 6. The Swiss at War. Saxtorph, Maurice - Weapons and Warriors of Early Times. Similar in format to the Kannik book, it has several useful pages covering uniforms from the Hussite Wars to 1660. INSPIRATION AND BACKGROUND Clavell, James - Shogun. A thrilling historical novel, based on fact, recounting the adventures of an English mariner in turbulent 17th century Japan. Churchill, Winston S. - The Life of John Churchill, Duke of Marlbourogh. This 4 volume biography of Sir Winston's illustrious ancestor, gives a good look at court and civilian life in the late 17th century. Though Marlbourogh gained his fame in the 18th century, he was involved in most of the important battles of the late 17th century. Dumas, Alexander - The Three Musketeers and the Man in the Iron Mask. The classic novels of 17th century intrigue and swashbuckling, the adventures of Athos, Parthos, Aramis and D'Artangen are truely inspiring. Holland, Cecilia - Rakossy. An exciting historical novel set in 16th century Hungary, detailing the defense of two small castles against the Turks, entertainng and accurate storytelling. Machiavelli, Niccolo - The Prince. This classic work on Political theory offers great insight into the mind of Renaissance man. just the thing for creating a 16th century J.R. Ewing! Shakespeare, William - Richard III. This play from the pen of the great bard is a must for anyone gaming the Wars of the Roses. Full of intrigue and treachery, it provides excellent background. Additional Bibliography for the Renaissance Back to Table of Contents -- Courier Vol. III #2 To Courier List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1981 by The Courier Publishing Company. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com