Military Revolution Thesis

The thesis that between roughly 1560 and 1660 (Roberts) or 1530 and 1800 (Parker), European warfare underwent a revolutionary transformation in tactics, organization, and scale that fundamentally shaped early modern state formation.

Roberts (1955): the introduction of firearms and new tactics requiring drill and discipline transformed armies, requiring permanent professional forces, which required taxation, which drove state formation. Parker's revision: the trace italienne fortification system (low, angled bastions) was the core innovation, requiring massive armies to besiege and garrison. The feedback loop: larger armies → more taxation → stronger states → more armies. The most influential framework in early modern military and political history.