The character and career of the Elizabethan Army, 1585-1603
Description
This project is a thorough study of the makeup, organization, equipment and actions of the English Army during the eighteen years of open warfare which commenced after the Treaty of Nonesuch, which committed English troops to the defense of the Netherlands. This study considers the character of the English forces that participated in this conflict and of the actions in which they became involved during the War between England and Spain that resulted The project hopes, of course, to once and for all put to rest the common notion that England's land forces were useless and played no effective role in the Religious Wars of northwestern Europe between 1585 and 1603 My study of England's first army not to rely at least partly on feudal contingents, the army of Queen Elizabeth I, is intended to fall The study also sheds some light on certain aspects of English history, most notably as a study of how the late Tudor state organized large scale projects such as military expeditions Finally, long term involvement in continental war, the strengthening of England's home defence forces and the pressures of maintaining an army upon the finances of the Crown all had implications for the future of monarchy in England that loomed large during the next two reigns The historical approach that I have taken to the extensive research materials available pertaining to this subject is the juxtaposition of several in depth studies of major facets of the English army (the officer corps, the organization of the ranks, supply, artillery, etc.) with narrative chapters that highlight examples of these branches of the army in action The most prominent and commonly used sources have been the State Papers of the nations involved, and in this vein I have used the State Papers of England, Spain and the House of Orange-Nassau. Serving in a similar function are numerous collections of the correspondence or personal papers of participating individuals. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.)