RENAISSANCE warfare comes under the spotlight in a new book by a Horsforth author.

Stephen Turnbull tells the stories of the knight during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries – from the great victories of Edward III and the Black Prince to the fall of Richard III on Bosworth Field.

The Art of Renaissance Warfare, From The Fall of Constantinople to the Thirty Years War

covers most of the major conflicts and battles in Europe from 1453 to 1618.

During this period, new technology on the battlefield posed deadly challenges for the mounted warrior; but they also stimulated change, and the knight moved with the times. Having survived the longbow devastation at Crécy, Poitiers and Agincourt, he emerged triumphant, his armour lighter and more effective, and his military skills indispensable. This was the great age of the orders of chivalry and the freemasonry of arms that bound together comrades and adversaries in a tight international military caste. Men such as Bertrand du Guesclin and Sir John Chandos loom large in the pages of this book – bold leaders and brave warriors, imbued with these traditions of chivalry and knighthood. How their heroic endeavours and the knightly code of conduct could be reconciled with the indiscriminate carnage of the 'chevauchée' and the depredations of the 'free companies' is one of the principal themes of the book.

Mr Turnbull is an Honorary Research Fellow at Leeds University and the author of more than 50 books on the military history of Europe and the Far East.

Published by Frontline Books, The Art of Renaissance Warfare costs £16.99.