Philippe Contamine (1932–2022)

"War in the Middle Ages" by Philippe Contamine seemed, to me, to take a very long time to read. Many books possess this trait and more times than not this can be construed as a negative. I found myself wishing that it would go a bit quicker at some times, other times I enjoyed the pace. Being such a comprehensive work, it covers nearly all aspects of warfare during this period and will certainly illuminate the reader's interest level in the different fields of the subject.
I found the first show more two chapters of the book, the Barbarian period and overview of the beginning of the fuedal era respectively, a bit dry and ponderous to read.
The book picks up a bit from that point on and I found myself slowly enjoying it more and more. This is a very thorough exploration of the subject and Mr. Contamine touches on nearly every facet of the period. He is a tad slim on some of the more technical aspects, the down to earth details on arms and armour, which is something that I would have enjoyed, but in a work of this size it was probably space prohibitive to delve into that subject too intensely.
This is overall a fine book for the student or historian. I found it to be very informative and generally useful. He does skip around a lot, both geographically and in his timeline but it does not prove to be a huge obstacle. He is un-biased and approaches several controversial subjects with a critical eye and really allows the reader to make up their own mind. I recommend it, but only for those with a seasoned knowledge or interest in this fascinating period. show less

Among the illustrations is one of 'Dulle Griet' of Ghent - Mad Meg or Mad Margot - a giant bombard, mid 15th century (length 5m, weight 16.400 kg).
Ghent mentioned on p 114, 124, 142, 145, 148, 191, 199, 240, 299