In this paper, I will analyze the book The Military Revolution and the argument of the author, Geoffrey Parker. Parker is a British historian with many works focused on early military history. Moreover, Parker has accumulated several astounding honors over the years for several of these works and his general contribution to military history. In The Military Revolution, Parker argues that the three most important innovations of the sixteenth century are: firepower, fortresses, and increase in army size. He declares that these three developments transformed warfare in early modern Europe. Furthermore, I stand by Parker and his argument that artillery weapons, advancement in fortifications, growth in army size, and naval advancements constitute …show more content…
Moreover, he begins to break down the ‘military revolution’ of the Ch’in empire which lasted from 770 – 221 BC. While doing so, Parker draws attention to many of the similarities between this period and early modern Europe and he also admits to the fact that Europe did not establish a system that would last for centuries like the system created by the Ch’in empire. Nonetheless, Parker concludes that, “if one deemed to have constituted a revolution, then so must the other” (Parker, …show more content…
I believe his very detailed introduction helps to give the reader a very thorough understanding of the purpose and foundation of the book. The way Parker laid out the chapters was very helpful as well. To reiterate, he uses chapter one to explain to the reader the development of the new artillery fortifications and the advancing gunpowder weapons and how they led to increase in army size. I feel as though chapter one gives background and justification of the key developments he mentions in his introduction. He then uses chapter two to discuss how these new, larger armies were financed and supplied which consequently examines how governments were forced to change or risk being taken over by more financially capable states. I believe this helps the reader understand the more complicated aspect of the transformation. Once he gives the reader all of that information, he moves into the new advancements that allowed Europe to begin dominating the seas with the use of capital ships. Chapter four then shows how Europe began to expand and once again, chapter five talks about the imposition of western influence and how it was able to be maintained. I think it is very important that this book be set up this way. Withal, each chapter is a building block, allowing the reader to have a more foundational understanding of the time and events occurring which led to the adaptions and advancements. In addition