MILITARY HISTORY
AND EVOLUTION
SCOPE OF INSTRUCTIONS
➢ Early Armies
➢ World War I Armies
➢ World War II Armies
➢ Cold War Armies
➢ Contemporary Armies
A. Early Armies
❑ Roman
❑ Crusade Armies
❑ Napoleonic
❑ Sun Tzu
❑ American Civil War
❑ Colonist
1. Roman Army
1. Roman Army
750 BC – Groups of farmers
and shepherds moved from the
North into the Italian Peninsula.
These people settled in several
small villages that grew
together to form Rome!
As the city of Rome grew its
army became stronger and
began to conquer neighboring
civilizations.
THE ROMAN ARMY WAS THE MAIN REASON THE EMPIRE
WAS SO SUCCESSFUL!
1. Roman Army
The Roman Army was very powerful and defeated one enemy after
another!
Soldiers were trained to use spears,
swords, and slings in combat.
1. Roman Army Weapons
1. Roman Army
The Roman Army was divided into
legions (army units).
Each legion had about
6,000 soldiers in it! The commander of each legion
would lead his army unit into battle
by riding in on horseback.
2. Crusade Armies
2. Crusade Armies
The Quest for the Holy Land
The Quest for the Holy Land
The Quest for the Holy Land
3. Napoleonic Wars
3. Napoleonic Wars
❑ Born in Corsica as an Italian.
❑ Became a French citizen at the age of 1.
❑ His legend began in 1795 when he put
down a Royalist threat.
❑ In 1796, the Directory appointed
Napoleon as the General of the French
Army against Austria and Sardinia.
❑ He soon swept into Italy and won series
of victories and soon became the most
famous general in France
❑ Became dictator of France for 10 years
in 1799 when he launched a coup d'état
against the Directory.
❑ Became Emperor after winning a
plebiscite.
Reason for the success of Napoleon’s army
⚫ It is a citizen army.
⚫ Excellent mobility (good cavalry, strike-retreat).
⚫ They live of the land.
⚫ They look good and very intimidating.
Napoleon’s Mistakes
1. Spain – he kicked out old king and put his brother,
Joseph, in charge of Spain. Spanish fought back with
help from the British. Guerrilla Warfare destroyed the
French. Napoleon has to pull out (300,000 French
killed)
Napoleon’s Mistakes
2. Continental System Napoleon tried to isolate trade with
Britain (to hurt their economy), but it backfired when
British formed a blockade to stop all French imports
which hurt France and angered Napoleon’s allies.
Napoleon’s Mistakes
3. Invasion of Russia (1812) - Napoleon goes in with
400,000 + troops, comes back with 10,000.
Napoleon’s Downfall
While Napoleon was “down,” the other countries ganged up to defeat him at the Battle of
Leipzig (Battle of Nations) – 1813
Britain formed a Grand Alliance against France in order to take back land Napoleon
conquered.
Within a year, the allies had defeated France and exiled Napoleon in Elba.
100 Days – Napoleon’s Return to Power
➢ People didn’t like Louis XVIII (brother of the guillotined
king)
➢ Napoleon escaped Elba (Louis fled)
➢ Napoleon regained full power
➢ Napoleon: best defense is a good offense. He attacked
the British General Wellington at Waterloo (Belgium)
➢ Napoleon was defeated for the final time.
Napoleon’s Legacy
• Rise of Nationalism
• Division of people by country not social class
• People willing to go to war based on love of country
• Wars to combine city-states, divide empires
• The need for coalitions and alliances
Diplomacy as an option to war
• Spread of ideas:
• Political philosophy
• Revolution as an option
• Equality, speech, voting, property
• Rise of a professional military
4. Sun Tzu
➢ Sun Tzu was an ancient Chinese
military general, strategist and
philosopher,
➢ He wrote the book The Art of War
which contains several military
strategies being used up to the
modern times.
“The art of war is of vital importance to the
state. It is a matter of life and death, a road
either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is subject
of inquiry which can on no account be
neglected.”
Sun Tzu as a strategist
Before hiring Sun tzu, the King of Wu tested his skills by commanding
him to train180 of concubines into soldiers.
Sun Tzu, divided them into them into two company, appointing the two
concubines most favored by the kins as the company commanders.
When Sun Tzu first ordered the concubines to face right, they giggled.
In response, Sun Tzu said that the General, in this case himself, was
responsible for ensuring that soldiers understood the commands given
to them.
Then, he reiterated the command, and again the concubines giggled.
Sun Tzu then ordered the execution of the king’s two favored
concubines, to the king’s protest.
Sun Tzu as a strategist
He explained that if the general’s soldiers understood their command
but did not obey, it was the fault of the officers.
Sun Tzu also said that, once a general was appointed, it was his duty to
carry out his mission, even if the king protested.
After both concubines were killed, new officers were chosen to replace
the. Afterward, both companies, now well aware of the cost of further
frivolity, perfumed their maneuvers flawlessly.
The Art of War
13 Chapter
Chapter 1 - Initial Estimations
Chapter 2 - Waging War
Chapter 3 - Planning Offensives
Chapter 4 - Military Disposition
Chapter 5 - Strategic Military Power
Chapter 6 - Vacuity and Substance
Chapter 7 - Military Combat
Chapter 8 - Nine Changes
Chapter 9 - Maneuvering the Army
Chapter 10 - Configurations of Terrain
Chapter 11 - Nine Terrains
Chapter 12 - Incendiary Attacks
Chapter 13 - Employing Spies
Excerpts from The Art of War
“All warfare is based on deception.”
- Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we
must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away;
when far away, we must make him believe we are near.
“Now the general who wins a battle makes many calculations beforehand. The general who
loses a battle makes but few calculations beforehand. Thus do many calculations lead to
a victory, and few calculations to defeat: how much more no calculation at all! It is by
attention to this point that I can foresee who is likely to win or lose.”
“In the practical art of war, the best thing of all is to take the enemy's country whole
and intact; to shatter and destroy it is not so good. So, too, it is better to recapture an
army entire than to destroy it, to capture a regiment, a detachment or a company entire
than to destroy them.
“The control of a large force is the same principle as the control of a few men: it is merely a
question of dividing up their numbers.”
“Whoever is first in the field and awaits the coming of the enemy, will be fresh for the fight;
whoever is second in the field and has to hasten to battle will arrive exhausted.”
American Civil War
Consequences of the War
World War I Weapons
Trench Warfare
Contemporary Armies
Modern Equipment
Modern Equipment
