The military has long been one of the central institutions of the state. However in the years since the beginning of the modern age this institution has been radically changed. The modern military is capable of organization, violence, and destructive power never dreamed of in the pre modern age. The small scale personal warfare of the pre modern age has been replaced with war that is impersonal and technologically driven.
The Military in the pre modern era was driven much differently and less effectively motives. It was fought almost as personal battles between kings and their families. Therefore the military would be put into action when the king's interest were at stake, instead of when the nation's interest was on the line. This is a 'kinship relation' as Giddens says, that is 'as an organising device for stabilizing social ties across tome and space' (102). Religion was also an Old Regime motive for war in a several occasions.
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Mirror of Modern Democracy: A History of the Democ...
2dRangerBnOldScrollThis was one of the very few times large armies were put together by a somewhat voluntary action. They fought for a cause they were truly willing to die for. The Crusades are examples of such action. In those wars Christians from Europe fought Muslims from the Middle East over religious grounds.
The Military officers during the pre modern era were not chosen in the best interest of the nation, but by the Old Regime idea of tradition. The officers were always Aristocrats chosen by birth, not merit. This was not a very efficient way to run an army because the people in charge were often incompetent. This was a classic example of Old Regime thinking. The Aristocracy is based on birth or tradition, and tradition in the Old Regime was more important than effectiveness or function.
Old Regime armies relied almost...