ABSTRACT
The concept of a ‘military revolution' in early modern Europe was first put forward by Professor Michael Roberts in 1956. The idea of a ‘military revolution' during the century after 1550 centred round four main propositions:
the revolution in military tactics (i.e. the arrow and musket replaced the lance and pike, marking the end of the feudal knights);
the major growth in the size of armed forces;
the strategic reforms to back up such forces with appropriate logistics (e.g. the campaigns of Gustavus Adolphus);
the increasing devastation wrought on society in general by war (e.g. the Thirty Years' War).
