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Aristocratic Fury Profile picture
@LandsknechtPike
Oct 3, 2021 • 14 tweets • 12 min read • Read on X
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1/14 This is an Italian Wars mega thread with threads covering all the crucial battles from the battle of Fornovo in 1495 to the end of the War of the League of Cognac in 1530. I made these threads in July and many of new followers probably haven't seen them yet! Image
2/14 I think this mega thread is one of the easiest to read introductions to the Italian wars and its crucial battles. It's a long and complex conflict, but I think I covered the key on military and political events quite well for some basic knowledge about what happened. ImageImage
3/14 Battle of Fornovo 1495

Mighty French army enters Italy to claim Naples. A huge coalition of Italian cities forms against them. France fights an epic battle in Fornovo against twice larger Italian army led by Venice and migthy Margraviate of Mantua!

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4/10 Battle of Cerignola 1503

France and Spain fight over the Kingdom of Naples, the French had defeated Spanish easily at Seminara in 1495, but this time the Spanish introduce the pike and shot warfare. A battle that signaled a new era of warfare!

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5/14 Battle of Garigliano 1503

The French challenge the Spanish again in their final attempt to control the Kingdom of Naples and the south of Italy!

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6/14 Battle of Agnadello 1509

War of the League of Cambrai pits a large coalition of European powers against the Republic of Venice. The French face the Venetians at Agnadello for control of the Venetian lands in Terrafirma (Venetian mainland).

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7/14 Battle of Ravenna 1512

The alliances shift and now France is isolated and has to face combined army of Spain and Papal States. Led by the brave young knight Gaston of Foix, the French are confident as they face their mighty enemies at Ravenna.

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8/14 Battle of Novara 1513

The French continue their aggression on Italy facing the Swiss Confederation for control over the Duchy of Milan at Novara. Once serving them as mercenaries, the famed Swiss pikemen now fight against the French!

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9/14 Battle of La Motta 1513

In a chaotic turn of events, the Republic of Venice is now allied to French and faces the combined Imperial-Spanish army at La Motta. Legendary commander Georg von Frundsberg leads the Imperial Landsknecht infantry!

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10/14 Battle of Marignano 1515

The French duel with Swiss over control of Duchy of Milan again, this time led by ambitious young king Francis I. They clash in a brutal two-day long battle at Marignano!

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11/14 Battle of Bicocca 1522

French King Francis I wages another war of aggression as Spain and Holy Roman Empire are united under same ruler Emperor Charles V since 1519. The Imperial-Spanish army awaits him at Bicocca with its elite infantry.

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12/14 Battle of Sesia 1524

Tensions continue as both the French and the Imperials raise more men and look for an encounter in northern Italy. The Imperial army chases down the French and faces them at the Sesia River.

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13/14 Battle of Pavia 1525

The most famous battle of the Italian wars, the decisive encounter between the French and the Imperials.

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14/14 Battle of Landriano 1530

Following the battle of Pavia, the Pope and the Italian city states now rally behind the French and form the League of Cognac against the Empire of Charles V.

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More from @LandsknechtPike

Aristocratic Fury Profile picture
Dec 17, 2025
The early modern era saw the production of massive plan reliefs - scale models of cities, fortifications and surrounding landscape for military usage.

Venetians were the early pioneers of this in 16th century. But the French under Louis XIV took this on another level in 17th century, ordering a production of 140 1:600 scale models in 1688, in an aim to catalogue all the important military fortifications and border fortress-cities in France.

The finest military engineers of the realm such as Vauban took part in this project!

Close attention was paid to all the details.

In 1700, Louis XIV installed the huge collection of plan reliefs in the Louvre. These models could initially only be viewed by elite and were a sort of state secret, as they would provide important knowledge in an event of war.

A large number of such models was built during and after wars, to include newly captured cities and fortresses. Many new plan reliefs were made during the rule of Louis XV in 18th century, some of them to replace the old damage ones.

The construction of plan reliefs shows a new development in European military history. With the advent of siege artillery and bastion fort fortifications, it became hugely important for European states to upgrade their key fortresses and ensure that their strategic cities and towns were fortified enough to endure an enemy assault. Topographic features were studied and sieges were meticulously planned!

It also shows the centralization of European states, which felt the need to have their military capabilities carefully catalogued, helping them to better devise a grand strategy to protect their borders against all threats, studying the possible weak points.

After the fall of Ancien Regime, the production of plan reliefs was revived by Napoleon who ordered the construction of many new ones.

These plan reliefs could also end up in enemy hands, captured as spoils of war. This happened in 1814 when Prussians took 17 models with them to Berlin.

The production of plan reliefs continued into 19th century, but they would eventually be rendered obsolete by 1870 as military technology developed further and artillery became even more powerful, too powerful for the old bastion fort fortifications.

Fortunately, many of the old plan reliefs survived to this day and are stored in the Musée des Plans-Reliefs where they could be observed by curious visitors.Image
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An example of a plan relief kept in Musée des Plans-Reliefs in Paris.

Besançon and surrounding fortifications, made in 1722.

The level of detail is astonishing! Image
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The scale model of Antibes and coast fortifications is quite epic!

Vauban helped to fortify this strategically important port in the French Riviera. Image
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Read 6 tweets
Aristocratic Fury Profile picture
Dec 5, 2025
During 16th century sieges, mines and counter-mines were dug.

It was not uncommon that brutal subterranean fighting would take place in the mines!

It's incredible that such mines are still preserved today at St Andrews Castle in Scotland where a siege took place in 1546. 🧵 Image
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The well-preserved 16th century siege mines at St Andrews Castle reveal the hard work that was done by both the besiegers and the defenders to dig these tunnels.

During sieges, a lot depended on such subterranean battles. Image
Such tactics had already been in place for a long time in various medieval and early modern sieges all over Europe.

The besiegers dug tunnels trying to undermine enemy towers or sections of the wall, paving the way for the infantry to storm the city or fortification. Image
Read 16 tweets
Aristocratic Fury Profile picture
Sep 6, 2025
It's wild how Denmark had colonies in India for more than 200 years from 1620 to 1869.

Fort Dansborg, built in 1620, still stands today in the Bay of Bengal.

They had forts, factories, trading posts. But they eventually sold their possessions to British Empire. Image
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The Danish presence in India was of little significance to the major European powers as they presented neither a military nor a mercantile threat so they let them carve out their own niche.

A map of Danish trade routes in the region. Image
The operation was initially conducted by Danish East India Company.

But the early years of the Danish adventure in India in 1620s were horrible. Almost two-thirds of all the trading vessels dispatched from Denmark were lost.

Denmark also got involved in Thirty Years' War. Image
Read 12 tweets
Aristocratic Fury Profile picture
Aug 10, 2025
English explorer John Smith, famous for his involvement in establishing the Jamestown colony in America in 1607.

His coat of arms featured the heads of three Ottoman soldiers whom he beheaded in duels while serving as a mercenary in Transylvania during the Long Turkish War. Image
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John Smith is known today for his role in managing the colony of Jamestown in Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in North America, and his connection with a Powhatan woman called Pocahontas.

But John Smith was also a powerful warrior and mercenary prior to that. Image
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Born in England, he set off to sea in 1596 at age 16 after his father died to become a mercenary, fighting for the French against the Spanish.

He was looking for what he called "brave adventures".

After a truce was made in 1598, he joined a French pirate crew in Mediterranean. Image
Read 15 tweets
Aristocratic Fury Profile picture
Jun 16, 2025
The Habsburg-Irish military connection!

Many Irishmen served the Habsburgs over centuries and distinguished themselves.

Over 100 Irishmen were field marshals, generals, or admirals in the Austrian Army!

Some of the illustrious Irish warriors serving the Habsburg emperors. 🧵 Image
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In 1853 there was an assassination attempt on emperor Franz Joseph in Vienna by a Hungarian nationalist.

But the emperor's life was saved by Count Maximilian Karl Lamoral O'Donnell who cut the assassin down with a sabre.

O'Donnell was a descendant of Irish nobility! Image
Maximilian ancestors -the powerful O'Donnell clan- left Ireland during the Flight of the Earls in 1607, when Irish earls and their followers left Ireland in the aftermath of their defeat against the English Crown in the Nine Years' War in 1603. Image
Read 25 tweets
Aristocratic Fury Profile picture
May 29, 2025
Many inns appeared in medieval Europe, offering foods, drinks and a place to socialize, as well as lodging for travelers, helping transportation logistics.

In this thread I will present some of the old medieval inns that survived to this day, from various European countries!🧵 Image
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The George Inn. Norton St Philip in Somerset, England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿.

Built in 14th century and completed in 15th century, this is a proper medieval inn.

Being an innkeeper was a respected social position. In medieval England, innkeepers were generally wealthy and held influence in towns! Image
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Stiftskeller St. Peter. St Peter's Abbey in Salzburg, Austria 🇦🇹.

Often mentioned as the oldest inn in Central Europe, for it was first mentioned in 803 in a letter to Charlemagne.

It operated as part of the monastery to give food to pilgrims. Now a prestigious restaurant. Image
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Read 17 tweets

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