{"product_id":"the-firearm-revolution-from-renaissance-italy-to-the-european-empires-hardcover","title":"The Firearm Revolution: From Renaissance Italy to the European Empires - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eCatherine Fletcher\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA groundbreaking account of how firearms changed Europe and the world\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn Renaissance Italy, the gun was not only a tool of war but also a desirable object, a luxury item carried at court. Guns were in use on the battlefield by 1440; later in that century Leonardo da Vinci sketched a design for a faster-firing, more portable handgun that could be hidden beneath a cloak. As the gun proliferated in society, it became both a means of self-defence and a threat to civic order. In \u003ci\u003eThe Firearm Revolution\u003c\/i\u003e, historian Catherine Fletcher explores the emergence of firearms in Renaissance Italy and beyond, describing the social transformations that accompanied the evolution of the handgun from innovative military technology to widely used personal accessory. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFletcher shows that as guns became smaller and the new wheellock mechanism made concealed carry possible, Italian states increasingly tried to control their use--even as they viewed firearms as necessary for their militias. In the end, Fletcher reports, the importance of civic defence trumped the concern for social order. As guns became ever more acceptable, stories of how firearms aided Europeans' overseas conquests created a new and more positive image for a weapon once considered the devil's work. Debates over the regulation of firearms five centuries ago--which included arguments over the restriction of gun ownership, the use of guns for self-defence and the regulation of an armed militia--in many ways anticipate discussions about gun control today. Fletcher's groundbreaking account sheds new light on how governments weighed the competing priorities of defence and social order as they set out to build empires.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eCatherine Fletcher\u003c\/b\u003e is professor of history at Manchester Metropolitan University. She is the author of several books on early modern Italy, including \u003ci\u003eThe Roads to Rome\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Beauty and the Terror: An Alternative History of the Italian Renaissance\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Black Prince of Florence: The Life of Alessandro de' Medici\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 352\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.4 x 9.4 x 6.4 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 14, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52029902651693,"sku":"9780691272672","price":32.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0938\/3185\/6429\/files\/Gy8OBjs71h9780691272672.webp?v=1777492230","url":"https:\/\/ishookbooks.com\/products\/the-firearm-revolution-from-renaissance-italy-to-the-european-empires-hardcover","provider":"iShook Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}