The conduct of war and the effects of warfare in the Irish Confederate (or Eleven Years) War of 1641-53 and the Thirty Years War in Germany in 1618-1648

Essay from the year 2008 in the subject History of Europe - Middle Ages, Early Modern Age, grade: 2, Trinity College Dublin (Department of History), course: From Rebellion to Restoration ¿ War and Politics in Confederate and Cromwellian Ireland, language: English, abstract: This essay will try to establish the intensity, scale and conduct of warfare in these two wars of the early modern period in Europe. It will examine the adherence to codes of conducts and institutionalized mechanisms of war in contrast to breakdown of discipline, unlicensed pillaging and atrocities. It will try to examine the socio-economic relations of warfare and assess these effects on both soldiers and civilian populations. With regard to that, the realities of warfare first of the Irish War and then of the Thirty Years War will be discussed. Then, perceptions of the war and actual demographic consequences for the two warzones will be examined. Lastly, a conclusion will be drawn to what extent similarities and contrasts can be observed between the two conflicts.