Kutsyn M. Crisis of knight’s troops and the beginning of the forming of professional armies in the XIV–XV centuries: historiographic aspect.

In this paper, based on deep analysis of the historiography and a large range of sources the major stages of the crisis and changes in the way of formation of the royal army, which came as a result of this, are highlighted. The author argues that the conversion of the feudal forces as professionally hired on a permanent basis as well as the beginning of dominance of infantry formations were irreversible. Dissertator stressed that strengthening of the role of infantry happened thanks to the military-technical improvement (the enhanced use of bows and crossbows, the evolution of handguns and artillery), as well as the moral and ethical crisis of knighthood and giving up the traditional chivalry rules of war.