Although not widely studied in the West, the medieval history of south-eastern Europe is both fascinating and complex. The Kingdom of Hungary was a vast realm, at least the size of France, that endured throughout the Middle Ages whilst the Byzantine Empire was even more extensive and enduring. The Serbians won themselves a brief but extensive local empire in the 14th century; while the Bulgarians established an effective and cultured state. Other players in the confusing Balkan scene included the Albanians; Wallachians; Moldavians; Transylvanians; Croatians and many others. How did they organise their armies and fight their wars; and why did they ultimately fail? This title answers these questions ably supported by numerous illustrations and eight colour plates.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Concise Volume about a Little Known Period of Warfare:
David Nicolle has given readers a brief (perhaps too brief) but interesting book on the centuries preceeding the Ottoman conquest of Eastern Europe. Included are the late Byzantines, the Hungarians, the Serbs, and what is now Rumania amongst others. Angus McBride provides some pretty good artwork plates to augment the work. Some points of interest include the Mongol invasion of Hungary and some of the fifteenth century warlors such as Janos Hunyadi, Vlad Dracula, and Stephen the Great. Overall, there is... more info
Eastern Europe:
A useful book with fine plates. As is often the case with men-at-arms titles, it does not have enough space to get extremely detailed, but within the confines of this series it is excellent.
Lots of info, but how useful?:
This is one of the Men-at-Arms grabbag volumes. While there are wonderful illustrations and lots of facts crammed in here, one has to wonder just how accurate a book covering warfare in approximately 1/2 of Europe over a 570 year period can be. In the end, use this book as a jumping off point, but not the last word on Eastern Europe.
The Angus McBride illustrations are mostly up to their standards of excellence, although he has left the last painting only partially done for some obscure reason and he DOES... more info
