The Military in the Early Modern World

When looking at the early modern period (c. 1500–c. 1800), we often speak of "the military" or "the army". But what exactly do we mean when using these terms? The forms and structures of the armed forces have not only changed between 1500 and 1800, but also varied throughout different regions of the world and even within Europe. The contributors to this volume examine twelve early modern examples of armed forces in the Holy Roman Empire, Western and Eastern Europe, Eastern Asia and North America and paint a multifarious and even disparate picture during this period. The findings suggest that modern notions of the armed forces common in the early modern period should be used more prudently to avoid prevalent implications of non-existing continuity and uniformity.



Dr. Markus Meumann studierte Mittlere und Neuere Geschichte in Göttingen und Caen, Frankreich. Seit 2017 ist er Wissenschaftlicher Geschäftsführer des Forschungszentrums Gotha der Universität Erfurt.



When looking at the Early Modern period (16th to the late 18th century), we often speak of “the military” or “the army”, but do we know what exactly these terms mean? The forms and structures of the armed forces have not only changed between 1500 and 1800, but also varied throughout different regions of the world and even within Europe. The contributors to this volume examine 12 Early Modern examples of armed forces in the Holy Roman Empire, Western and Eastern Europe, Eastern Asia and North America and paint a multifarious and even disparate picture during this period.