The road to Rocroi
Subtitle: class, culture, and command in the Spanish Army of Flanders, 1567-1659
By: by Fernando Gonzáles de León.
Series: History of warfare -- 52
Publisher: Brill
Published: 2008
Place of publication: Boston
Language: eng
Number of pages: 408
ISBN-13: 9789004170827
Subjects: Olivares, Gaspar de Guzmán, -- conde-duque de, -- 1587-1645; Spain. -- Ejército -- History -- 16th century; Spain. -- Ejército -- History -- 17th century; Netherlands -- History -- Wars of Independence, 1556-1648; Belgium -- History -- 1555-1648; Spain -- History, Military
Description: The Eighty Years War (1567-1659) has been the subject of important monographs. But the high command of the Army of Flanders, which played a decisive role in the making of Spanish strategy and was in charge of its tactics, has eluded detailed scrutiny. This work, the first study of an early modern officer corps, examines the culture, class structure, and combat effectiveness of the largest army of its day. Combining approaches and insights from social, cultural, and military history, it traces the evolution of the leading cadres of the legendary tercios in relation to major trends such as aristocratization and military modernization while revising recent perspectives on Spain's war against the Dutch and the French in the Low Countries.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.