Money And The Army example essay topic

WAR FROM THE 16 TH AND 17 TH CENTURY TO INVENTION OF GUNPOWDER The invention of the powerful artillery guns would change man's role in warring engagements. The artillery guns at first were very limited by their own design. The guns were very heavy and had to be transported by water, which meant that only towns and fortresses that were close to a body of water could be attacked with artillery also known as the cannon. There were also some fortresses that were impervious to the early cannon attacks based on strong designs or natural defenses. The French were able to penetrate the round shaped castles and large walls during the late 1400's by using concentrated fire of several small guns instead of a few large ones. A new design of smaller walls that were built in uneven lines, like a star shape, was implemented to strengthen the area called crownworks or horn works.

Other modifications of new designs included lower and thicker walls, gun towers that projected at an angle, intervals of guns for fields of fire, wide and deep ditches, and pillboxes. Of course with the new design of castles came new ways to attack. Some effective ways to attack these castles, but also rare ways to attack, were by surprise, by storm, or by treachery. The most common way to attack the castles were long term engagements that consisted of either surrounding the castle or getting in close enough that the castles guns would be ranged over the position. The long-term methods consisted of starving out the population, forcing surrender, or by mining and bombardment from close range. The use of firepower also began to put an end to the use of headlong charges and hand-to-hand combat during the Renaissance years.

The differences between firearms and the bow were obscene at the beginning of the rifle's evolution. An archer could accurately hit a target at lengths of 200 meters and discharge ten arrows a minute, whereas the arquebus, or rifleman, only had accuracy at 100 meters and took several minutes to reload. Although the new weapons at primacy did not have the accuracy or the range of the bow, the Italians immediately implemented them into their arsenals. The greatest advantage of the early rifles was that the weapon could be mastered in a matter of months, but it could take up to ten years to master the bow. Eventually the muskets overtook the battlefield, replacing the broadswords men, halberd, crossbowmen, long bowmen, and for a time the cavalry. The pike men maintained a position as protection of the musketeers in between reloads, because improvements needed to be made for the muskets accuracy and rate of fire.

Maurice of Nassau equipped his army with weapons of the same size and caliber in an order to attempt more efficient training methods. His cousin, Count John, began to work on making a training doctrine, which included counted movements for the pikes, arquebus, and muskets. The importance of this training method is that it would enable a commander to ensure that the army trained would be able to improve skills of reloads and master techniques of actual usage of weapons. The doctrine spread to the countries Germany, France, and England and Count John opened a military academy based on Maurice's drill, practice, and training methods of arms, armor, maps, and models. As time went on the training became more complex and eventually Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden was able through constant drill and practice bring training methods to full potential. Reloading techniques were improved so much that only six ranks of musketeers were needed to maintain a continuous barrage.

Firepower from artillery was also perfected as a result of Nassau's work, and every regiment was capable of firing twenty rounds in an hour. Gustavus also trained his cavalry to charge home with sword's drawn, rather than to skirmish with pistols. The military revolution brought the changes of improvement in artillery, increasing reliance on battlefield firepower, and a dramatic increase in the size of the army. The rapidly increasing size of the armies in Europe brought three problems: Recruitment, Finance, and Supply. The problem with recruitment was solved in many ways. The most common method of enlistment was actually through volunteering, but other men were forced to serve as well.

The volunteers were attracted to service because of the money, and recruits joined from the mountains, towns, and even in war-zones and the majority of them consisted of peasants or townsmen that needed work. Many men joined the army to escape the life of their father's work, to avoid criminal prosecution, to see more of the world, or to pursue honor. In addition to the volunteers, the governments also used forceful means of enlistment by "recruiting" an entire population of an area as a unit and forcing them to fight together. Other forms of forced recruiting included soldiers of defeated armies and the use of conscripts. The most sought after combat soldier was the veteran and many times a veteran would move from army to army depending on which one would make him the most money. Financing the large organizations was no easy task when so many mouths had to be feed, clothed, and armed.

Not only were there a lot of soldiers, but the price of weaponry was increasing as well. Combat basically comes down to one thing, money; and the army that could last the longest was eventually able to wear down the enemy instead of having to destroy their armies. Many times the kings of the 1700's would devote anywhere from 75 to 90 percent of their country's gross national product in order to finance the army. Armies of countries like France, Russia, and Britain were able to fund themselves because of sizeable resources already built. Other countries like Spain would have to go bankrupt from time to time in order to fund continuous military operations. Holland was able to fund an army by establishing war-loans based on a promise to repay money with interest.

Most soldiers agreed to serve in the army for wages that were just a little over that of a farmer. The problem in supplying these poorly paid men, laid on the government through the treasury. If armies were on the move, it would usually secure whatever it needed from the local civilian comm unities. If the locals were uncooperative than an army would threaten to set fire to the town unless it gave up either money or supplies.

Villages soon were required to make regular payments for protection, which sometimes led to poorly manufactured goods, but at least the armies were fed, equipped, and clothed. Another problem with the supply line from the community was that there was no standardization. Basically the armies would take what was given to them and many times would even use what was retrieved from the enemy or fallen comrades after an engagement. This included arms, which were the hardest commodity to obtain. The supply of horses was another item that was not easy to keep maintained, because many time an officer would go through three steeds a year or even more in combat. The creation of large armies also gave way to many other unpredicted changes.

The establishment of military hospitals became a necessity in order to preserve and maintain the increasing amount of soldiers. Other types of services that became necessary were the chaplain services that were on hand in case of a need for last rights, especially during combat. Oliver Cromwell discovered the easiest way to transport the large amounts of supplies needed to support an army, by water. The supply line had to be controlled and many different countries fought for the power of the sea. The Scandinavian Vikings, which were not interested in armies, concentrated sea borne raids against the English vessels.

The Vikings were a warrior civilization that was infamously fierce in battle and although their numbers were small, they contributed much to the art of sea maneuvers. The basic offensive maneuver of the Vikings was to board another vessel and take by force the payload. If a defensive technique was needed the vessels would line up side-by-side and form one large platform. The Vikings never did develop into a sea power, but they did enjoy the advantages of a cavalry at sea, tactical surprise, and rapid movement. One tactic utilized by the British was to throw lime into the eyes of their opponents or to cut down the sails and trap the enemy underneath. The English had learned that the sea could provide a platform to fight from just off of their opponent's shores.

The European navies were in need of ships overall if any advantage of sea-control was to be gained. The king would gives rights and privileges to merchants in order to gain occasional use of the ships when needed. The government needed not only ships, but ship handlers as well; and most of the time a crew was trained as a non-military or non-fighting part of the ship's personnel. Warships became floating castles that would soon include artillery attachments for offensive and defensive tactics. The English vessels differed from that of the Viking ships in that they only used one level of rowers instead of the double-level vessels of the Vikings. The vessels also made use of two sails and an extremely long bow.

Armament included many different types of poundage's for artillery, and the men aboard the vessels were armed and armored infantrymen lest the event of hand-to-hand combat. The English naval vessels combined the strengths of speed, gun platforms, maneuverability, length, and low center of gravity. The Spanish ships were about the same size of the English vessels, but were equipped with advantages of tonnage and manpower. The English vessels had the advantage of armament. The English ships were only able to defeat the Spanish Armada with superior strategically tactics.

The English used the speed of their vessels and superior weapons to basically outrun the Spanish fleet vessels. Once they were at a safe distance the English would turn about and fire and then quickly out run the slower Spanish vessels again. The Spanish lost six hundred men while the English only lost sixty. The English victory over the Spanish Armada established Britain as the overall sea power of the waters. The non-European countries of the world had a little different development of warfare after the invention of gunpowder. In Southeast Asia the goals of the military were not surrounded around the acquisition of land.

The goal of combat was not to exterminate the enemy but to break the enemy's will to fight. The reward for combat was the slaves that could be gathered and not the area that could be gathered. There were exceptions of malicious acts in the defeat of the enemy like tortures or head collections, but these were fairly uncommon. The need for castles was not a real necessity in this region either, but natural land barriers along with manmade barriers were utilized. Siege warfare was basically an unknown in Southeast Asia, but guerilla tactics were practiced and perfected. China had introduced metallurgy to the world, but guns were impractical to supply to the entire army of the country.

A limited supply was used and the Great Wall was modified to add pillboxes for musketeers and battlewagons carrying artillery. The Chinese preferred to not have castles but to fortify their towns. The main strength of China laid in the overwhelming amounts of personnel serving in the armed forces. Japan made quick use of the new weapons, but concentration was not focused on rapid reloading.

The Japanese put more training into accuracy and developed the volley in order to maintain a succession of well-aimed shots. The castles of Japan were also modified to sustain against any type of horizontal attack. The walls were built in front of the hills and backed strongly by the earth. Once stability was restored the Japanese empire began a phase of demilitarization by outlawing guns, tearing down fortifications of defeated enemies, and forbidding books concerning military matters. In both empires of the Far East, sieges were made by mass assaults, mining, or blockades rather than by bombardment.

Bibliography

Parker, Geoffrey. The Military Revolution: Military Innovation and the Rise of the West 1500-1800.
Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 1996).
Chap 1-4 Preston, Richard A., Alex Roland, and Sydney F. Wise. MenIn Arms: A History of Warfare and its interrelationships With Western Society. (Belmont, California: Wadsworth / Thomson Learning, 2001).