 | Renaissance Military Memoirs: War, History and Identity, 1450-1600 Subjects: Soldiers -- Biography -- History and criticism; Renaissance -- Biography -- History and criticism; Military art and science -- Europe -- History -- To 1500; Military art and science -- Europe -- History -- 16th century; Europe -- History Military -- 1492; Renaissance military memoirs studied for what they reveal of contemporary attitudes towards war, selfhood and identity. This is a study of autobiographical writings of Renaissance soldiers. It outlines the ways in which they reflect Renaissance cultural, political and historical consciousness, with a particular focus on conceptions of war, history,selfhood and identity. A vivid picture of Renaissance military life and military mentality emerges, which sheds light on the attitude of Renaissance soldiers both towards contemporary historical developments such as the rise of the modern state, and towards such issues as comradeship, women, honor, violence, and death. Comparison with similar medieval and twentieth-century material highlights the differences in the Renaissance soldier's understanding of war and of human experience. Yuval Noah Harari received a PhD in history from the University of Oxford. He lectures at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, specializing in world history. He has written several books including Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind which became a 2016 New York Times Bestsellers. (Bowker Author Biography) |
