Global Military Revolution - Detailseite

Of the many revolutions that have a claimed a sonderweg for early modern Europe, the Military Revolution-thesis has proven one of the more well-known, but also hotly contested ones. The original these was advanced by Michael Roberts in the fifties, who saw in the late medieval trend towards standing armies and infantry dominance of the battlefield the beginnings of later European global military dominance. Geoffrey Parker then appropriated the these and emphasized both the unique impact of gunpowder weapons on European warfare and the advantages it gave them in establishing colonies far from their motherlands. Moreover, the these gave military history a new leash of life in the humanities, because it highlighted the importance of military developments for processes of state formation. Whilst the extent and nature of the military revolution has already for a long time been debated amongst (mainly) western historians, recently scholars belonging to the area studies, especially East Asia, have started adding their insights and criticisms, backed up by extensive knowledge of non-European sources.

            In this seminar, we will investigate the present state of the debate by looking at recent research from both the “traditional” historians and the area specialists’ response. The seminar will not offer a balanced approach to the entire global dimensions of the debate, but will instead look at the Eurasian theatre.