Book Review: “Women, Warfare and Armies in Early Modern Europe”
John Lynn in his book explores the participation of military women in the early modern Europe over a time span of roughly three centuries, from 1500 to 1815. The books highlights on the crucial roles that women played. The book targeted exploring the women’s lives and spotlight on their contributions as campaign militant. Lynn presents the fundamental assertion that the number of women in the campaign community of the military was large and at times even outnumbered that of the military soldiers. A number of different theses echo throughout the book. Lynn affirms that the camp women in the early modern Europe were many, and they were essential in the general maintenance of the military. He also supports that the women were vital in defining the economy of the military since they were financial and business managers in the contract army. Lynn similarly proposes that the reduction of women numbers after 1650 was because of evolution that states and armies were experiencing and the need for control and efficiency fueled by the increasing modernization that was taking place (19).
Data acquired from different sources was essential in providing rough estimate of the number of military women who were present and had participated in the military. A battle for power and the stress-charged relationship between the sexes are highlighted in the book. Women in the military camps performed different roles to ensure the smooth operations and maintenance of the military armies. Furthermore, the book argues that a considerable number of the women who served in the ranks and assumed the roles of men. These women had leadership roles and were the elite commanders. When their sons and husbands were absent, they commanded the armies and even the forts. However, a larger percentage of the women population comprised the group that marched during the army trainings and fought beside men in the battlefields. These were the cross-dressing female army representatives and the working-class defenders. Warrior women served to “highlight issues of gender in society and to stimulate military values” (166). This presented a group of extra-ordinary and rare women who created a name for themselves. The author handles case studies of a few of these women including Marie Magdelaine Mouron, Christian Davies, Catalina de Erauso and Hannah Snell. He provides special accounts of these notable women. These women were strong-willed and endured the hostile war condition. It is surprising to note that a considerable number of the military women were actually army soldiers who fought fearlessly for their country.
Lynn also highlights that some women performed gendered duties in the camps. He classifies them as prostitutes, whores and wives. Some were full-time prostitutes, but the others were part-time. The wives did general tasks such as cooking, laundering, nursing and even cooking that offered subsistence to the troops (Lynn 167). Moreover, the scholar argues that women were significant in the camps since they checked on the well-being of the individual soldiers in the armies. Working nurses took care of the sick and the wounded soldiers. Women also took up other basic daily tasks like digging up trenches and offering defenses. An immense number of memoirs and literary fictions that portrayed the picture of the military women support Lynn’s arguments. In essence, logistics indicates the military excess that these women had affirming Lynn argument that women outweighed the role of men soldiers in the armies (Lynn 168).
The significant role of women in the campaign life in defining the economic trajectory of the military can also not be underestimated. Some women sources funds by trading with the neighboring communities. Large numbers of women participated in the military economy that was essentially driven by pillage. They took part in economic crimes and offered administration for the acquired plunder. This was a contributing factor to the sustenance and success of the early modern armies. It is this economic thrive that according to Lynn “explained both their earlier extensive presence in the campaign community and their later exclusion from it” (159).
Lynn also highlights government and military reforms as crucial factors that led to the decline of women in the military. These reforms were important for the formation of the state amid the numerous changes the country was undergoing. There was a decline in the contract in the military history followed by a fast rise in the state commission army. In addition to these drastic changes, a third and popular army was introduced to the military. A bureaucratic and centralized government was developing, and standardization and innovations in the administration were catalyzing its growth (59). Lives of both the military men and women were altered by these changes. The effect to the military utility due to the large numbers of women was similarly a major cause for their decline. Particularly, large numbers affected efficiency, supplies and the movement of the troops, affecting the logistical, disciplinary and operational aspects of the military (Lynn 65). Although in the beginning the presence of large numbers of women improved the military operations, they eventually became a hindrance to efficiency and the evolution of warfare as their numbers increased.
It is apparent that Lynn’s work creates awareness on the military women as the unsung heroes who defined a large part of the military history. The book effectively highlights on the important roles these women played in supporting the military and explains the factors that led to their ultimate decline. Lynn through proper illustrations is able to identify and paint a clear picture of these military women who are often not given the emphasis they require. In Lynn’s work readers are given the privilege of seeing, associating and acknowledging these important women in history.
Works Cited
Lynn, John A. Women, Armies, and Warfare in Early Modern Europe. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2008. Print
