ABSTRACT
A theme running through a number of them is the importance of the consideration given to those who, while not active combatants, might have a significant but all too easily disregarded role to play in the outcome of particular ‘military’ events. Much influenced by the constraints of tradition, the study of war appeared to offer little by way of innovative approaches to breathe fresh life into it. Time, however, would change this, as new influences reflecting unfamiliar approaches to the study of war came to bear upon the development of medieval studies in Europe and elsewhere, with some notable effects. In an academic environment sympathetic to the use of approaches and techniques developed by other disciplines, historians stand to benefit from using methods originally created and evolved primarily for practitioners of those other disciplines. In an academic environment sympathetic to the use of approaches and techniques developed by other disciplines.
