In most other national contexts, the term 'Renaissance' can be applied to the 16th and 17th centuries, but it cannot be said of Russia. During this time, the centralised state of the new Tsars achieved military unity under the domination of Moscow and started its expansion eastwards across Siberia and southwards towards Central Asia. Poland-Lithuania and Sweden also proved formidable threats to Russia's security. Despite their exotically Russian appearance, these armies gradually took on a more modern dimension. This book covers the armies 'invented' by Ivan the Terrible in the 16th century, looking at their development through the 17th century.

Author Biography

David Nicolle was born in 1944. He worked in the BBC Arabic service for a number of years, before gaining a doctorate from Edinburgh University. He has written many books and articles on medieval warfare, and has been a prolific author of Osprey titles for many years. David lives in Leicestershire, UK. Viacheslac Shpakovsky was born in 1954. He teaches in the History Department of Penza University in Penza, Russia. He has written a number of articles on various aspects of Russian and military history for both academic journals and popular magazines in Russia.