Italian Wars 3/10 - The Battle of Fornovo 1495

https://www.patreon.com/pike_and_shot_channel

https://twitter.com/pikeandshotbat1

https://www.reddit.com/r/PikeAndShotBattles/

https://www.facebook.com/pikeandshotbattles.documentaries.7

The Battle of Fornovo was the defining battle of the First Italian war that raged between 1494 and 1498. After the daring march of Charles VIII, the King of France, the Italian states started to panic so Pope Alexander VI called for the formation of the Holy League of 1495, or the League of Venice intended to fight the French. The Holy Roman Empire under Maximilian I and the recently unified Spain ruled by Ferdinand and Isabella also joined the league fearing the balance of power in Europe might shift in favor of France. Battle was joined at Fornovo di Taro on the 6th of July 1495. Although the League forces outnumbered the French almost 2 to 1, the shared command of their forces between Francesco Gonzaga and Rodolfo Gonzaga proved disastrous. The French were victorious and managed to retreat to France, proving that the weak and disunited Italian city-states of the renaissance could be ravaged at will by a powerful army.

The Italian Wars was a series of conflicts that raged between 1494 and 1559 between the two major European powers, the Habsburgs who ruled the Holy Roman Empire and later Spain, and the Valois kings of France. At the height of the conflict the war involved Tudor England, the Ottoman Empire, Hungary, and all of Italy either as passive or active participants.
In terms of military tactics and strategy the Italian Wars saw the greatest innovations since the Roman Empire. Artillery finally came of age during the war prompting radical changes in terms of fortifications and battlefield tactics. Swiss pikemen, Landsknechts, and Spanish musketeers were amalgamated into a new type of standardized European infantry, the pike and shot formation. Cavalry although diminished in numbers, retained its place on the battlefield, being differentiated into heavy cavalry (men at arms), light cavalry and dragoons. In terms of strategy frontal medieval charges were replaced by careful maneuvering, the use of natural or man-made obstacles, and a keen attention to logistics. Commanders no longer fought in the front lines, but rather became managers of their armies. Politically the war shaped and reshaped the destinies of European countries for centuries to come.

Bibliography:
Mallett, M (2012). The Italian Wars 1494-1559 War, State and Society in Early Modern Europe
https://amzn.to/3fl8Feq
Potter, D (2008). Renaissance France at War
https://amzn.to/2QYxnrE
Taylor, F L (1921). The Art of War in Italy 1494-1529
https://amzn.to/3fLxvTz
Turnbull, S (2006). The Art of Renaissance Warfare
https://amzn.to/3yIWmQu
Arnold, T (2001). The Renaissance at War
https://amzn.to/3bYQXLs
Hall, B S (1997). Weapons and Warfare in Renaissance Europe
https://amzn.to/3bShIkM
Koenigsberg, H G (1968). Europe in the Sixteenth Century
https://amzn.to/2RFmw6n
Guicciardini, F (1561). The History of Italy
https://amzn.to/3vkhryN
Gamberini, A (2012). The Italian Renaissance State
https://amzn.to/3hUCJPC
Martines, L (1968). Political Conflict in the Italian City States
Nicolle, D (1996). Fornovo 1495
https://amzn.to/3fMLY1D
Konstam, A (1996). Pavia 1525
https://amzn.to/3vqqUVm
Parker, G (2019). Emperor A New Life of Charles V
https://amzn.to/34kIY7p
Mallet, M (1974). Mercenaries and Their Masters
https://amzn.to/2StnOBs
Janin, H (2013). Mercenaries in Medieval and Renaissance Europe
https://amzn.to/3bXza7r
Brewer, P (1998). Warfare in the Renaissance world
https://amzn.to/3yHIOET
Murphy, D (2007). Condottiere 1300-1500
https://amzn.to/3fQ5Uk3
Lopez, I (2012). The Spanish Tercios 1536–1704
https://amzn.to/3wvzXUU
Miller, D (1976). The Landsknechts
https://amzn.to/3hVrYN9
Miler, D (1979). The Swiss at War 1300-1500
https://amzn.to/3yIR6MM
Richards, J (2002). Landsknecht Soldier 1486-1560
https://amzn.to/3g355Vx
Pohl, J (2015). Armies of Castile and Aragon 1370–1516
https://amzn.to/2TnrtRF
Held, R (1978). The Age of Firearms: A Pictorial History
https://amzn.to/3fNZe6b

0:00 Start
0:25 Preliminary Engagements
2:15 Invasion of Naples
3:33 Holy League
6:37 Fornovo
9:00 Aftermath
#ItalianWars #BattleOfFornovo #ItalianHistory

Видео Italian Wars 3/10 - The Battle of Fornovo 1495 канала Pike & Shot Channel