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Towards the end of the 15th Century, firearms began to emerge as the signature weapons of the European West. While gunpowder had been available for some time, it was only now that military leaders were able to equip their armies with proper artillery and even portable firearms. The effects were revolutionary. New style armies sprang up, with modern officers replacing medieval knights, and gunmen taking the place of archers. New strategies and tactics were necessary, and the architecture of whole cities was transformed in an effort to hold out the immense destructive power of modern

About the Author

Thomas Arnold is Professor of History at Yale University