Warfare in the 16th century __________.a. used a combination of muskets and pikes. b. became so costly that it strained the resources of even the wealthiest monarchs. c. saw important developments in military administration to supply the growing armies. d. All these answers are correct.

Until the 15th century armies consisted of the infantry (with swords, axes, and various other weapons for cutting and clubbing the enemy) protected by pike-men, bowmen (with crossbow or longbow), and the cavalry who had been the most highly valued units. The late 15th century saw the increased power of the infantry with the introduction of the mobile pike phalanx, initially by the Swiss mercenary forces. A massed body of foot-soldiers armed with 5 metre pikes had often successfully defended against a cavalry attack, especially when assisted by bowmen. But in the late 15th and early 16th centuries the Swiss made the phalanx manoeuvrable and capable of taking the offensive, under the right conditions.

Firearms had existed in medieval armies since the 14th century but it was only in the early 16th century that their power began to be fully utilised on the battlefield. The arquebus was a matchlock handgun, about 1.2 metres long, weighing about 5 kgs. It was successfully used by the Spanish troops of Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordoba, the ‘Grand Capitan’, in the campaign against Granada (1484-92).

Field artillery had a part to play on the 16th century battlefield. The typical cast bronze field culverins of the time fired iron balls and used gunpowder, giving them a good range. But they had serious limitations with a slow rate of fire, limited accuracy, and lack of mobility. Weighing 1,600 kgs.