The Swiss achieved military prestige by the end of the fifteenth century (their fife and drum corps had already served in the battle of Sempach in 1386). Swiss mercenaries had accompanied Charles VIII on his Italian expedition; they formed an integral part of the French and Italian armies, and, wherever the fighting led them, they were attended by their fifes and drums, and the Schweizerpfeife (Swiss pipe
) was known, esteemed, described, and depicted from the early sixteenth century on. For centuries...
