The Cambridge Illustrated Atlas of Warfare: The Middle Ages, 768-1487 (1996)

I don't usually make it a habit to read dictionaries or encyclopedias, or even atlases, but since the subject of this book was Medieval warfare I assumed that I would find it somewhat informing and entertaining, at least, to me. It fills the role of "atlas" quite well, providing the reader plenty of maps and a chronology of warfare, along with the many advancements of warfare during the period.
It would be hard to label this book as some sort of "required" reading for the student or enthusiast as all of the information contained wherein can be found in many other, and better, sources. Still, it is not a wast of time reading it.
I found the first couple of sections of the book rather tedious and boring, but as the study advanced to post 1066 it seemed to settle down into a comfortable rhythm and dispensed with the tedium of date and place regurgitation. I found the last section, "The Theory and Practice of Medieval Warfare", very interesting. It quickly covered topics such as arms and armor, military manuals, naval warfare and seige warfare,
The most striking thing I noticed about this book was its lack of useful illustrations. The maps were extremely "busy" and really not worth the effort. The photo inserts were in many cases very small, hard to make out, and quite useless. Overall, coffee table material to be read, not browsed. ( )