THE ARMIES AND WARS OF THE SUN KING 1643-1715: Volume 1 - The Guard of Louis XIV

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Volume 1 deals with the Sun King's early years, from his birth in 1638, the resounding victory of Rocroi when he was five and a child king, the unstable years of the Fronde civil wars, his seizure of absolute power in 1661, the initial foreign military adventures, and the French army's blitzkriegs of 1667-1668.

This is followed by a look at the command systems, short biographies of the senior officers, their own guards, their lifestyles and orders of chivalry. Closing with several chapters on the Royal Guard including their more mundane or obscure duties with their battle record, uniforms and material culture. Of the appendices, the largest is devoted to the opponent Spanish army of the 17th century. Includes about 200 illustrations, most in color, taken from contemporary sources joined by many works by now nearly forgotten 19th century eminent military illustrators such as Marbot, Titeu, Philippoteaux, and JOB.

As a bonus, each volume has five especially commissioned color plates of three figures each showing usually never before seen uniforms reconstructed from descriptions and three especially commissioned color plates showing colors and standards.