Pavia 1525: The Climax of the Italian Wars

Osprey Campaign #44

by Angus Konstam, Graham Turner (Illustrator)

Osprey's Campaign title for the climax of the Italian Wars (1494-1559). The battle of Pavia has been hailed as the first modern battle, marking the rise of hand held weapons as a tool of warfare. In this titanic clash - the most decisive of the Italian Wars, caused by French territorial ambitions in first the Kingdom of Naples and then the Duchy of Milan - the French troops were smashed by the Spanish Imperial Army. King Francis I was captured, and the cream of his nobility slaughtered. France's greatest defeat since Agincourt, the battle dramatically swung the balance of power in Western Europe.

Genres: History, Renaissance, Military History, Italy, Military Fiction

96 pages, Paperback

First published November 15, 1996

About the author

Angus Konstam is a Scottish writer of popular history. Born in Aberdeen, Scotland and raised on the Orkney Islands, he has written more than a hundred books on maritime history, naval history, historical atlases, with a special focus on the history of piracy.

Reviews

[Marcus · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of better installments in Osprey Campaign cycle, to a large degree because of the simple fact that battle at Pavia somehow fits like a glove into standardized and formulaic format used in publications that are part of this series.

As always, the booklet starts of with short overview of overall situation and introduction to major personalities playing major role in the events. Next, the reader is briskly walked through the campaign which leads to the battle. The battle in this case is a relatively simple affair and can be analysed in depth. The narrative is supported by significant amount of contemporary graphics materials and decent maps.

I doubt that people already familiar with history of Italian Wars will find this volume very exciting. I however am pretty much unfamiliar with this topic and found this volume (as well as the one dedicated to battle at Fornovo) quite interesting.

[Bruinrefugee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another Osprey Campaign book that does a pretty good job filling in a time period that doesn't get much detailed coverage in your standard histories. It explores the French defeat at Pavia that had an impact on the French/Spanish/Holy Roman (German/Hapsburg) struggles in Italy just a couple of decades after Machiavelli, the Borgias, and da Vinci were busy across the Italian peninsula. Sandwiched between the Spanish reconquest of Granada (and discovery of America) and the big Ottoman pushes the the latter half of century.