I decided to choose the two books to compare based on the topic of the book, so I searched for military architecture themed texts. I found the following books:
- Architectura militaris (1645) – Andreas Cellarius
This work by Andreas Cellarius is historically speaking of about the same age as my assigned book. Cellarius though was of German origin, unlike Francois Blondel who was French. Also, I found out Cellarius was not as linked to military as Blondel, who was in fact an officer in the French army. Cellarius was more of a scientist, active in mathematics, physics, and cosmic sciences. The book contains less of a guide as how to build a fortified place but is rather a collection of existing military buildings. It contains detailed drawings, just like Nouvelle manière de fortifier les places.
- L’expérience de l’architecture militaire (1687) – Des Martins
The second book I found was another French piece of work. There are many similarities, which is why I chose it. Interestingly enough, it’s almost of the exact same age, they are just one year apart, and therefore the authors probably worked on their books simultaneously at some point. Also, the content of the two books are very similar. They both offer text and illustrations, serving as a guide on how to construct defensive military architecture. Through a quick internet research, I was able to find out that Des Martins was an army officer though, he was rather a private architect and/or engineer.