In this post, I will summarize the basics of armor worn during the Medieval Era. In the following post, I will describe the process by which I build a helmet out of simple materials based off that of Medieval times. FOUNDATION Chain-mail was a very important component of a knight's armor. Interlocking iron rings were riveted or welded shut, and were effective at defending against enemy melee weapons. Over time, however, larger plates of iron were used in addition to chain-mail. Eventually, full suits of plate armor became more common, as plates of iron were cheaper to develop than chain-mail. The most famous style of armor (European knight plate armor) arose during the Late Middle Ages. HELMETS Initially sturdy skull fortresses, head armor evolved into bigger, true helmets. One such example is the great helm (below left), which was prominent from around 1200 - 1550, and was commonly used during the Crusades. Though providing better protection than previous "skull caps", these limited the knight's vision to an extent. Other types of helmets included bascinets (close fitting, 'beaked' helmets), close helms (below middle), and barbutes (below right). ARM AND LEG ARMOR Initially constructed from hardened leather, arm and leg armor pieces were eventually built with plate iron. The use of chain-mail also declined as plate iron was built to articulate at various places. Different pieces of armor could extend to reach different areas, providing varying degrees of defense. Upper arm protection often consisted of pauldrons (below left), which were large armored plates covering the shoulders. Gauntlets (below middle) protected the forearms and hands. Leg armor (below right) was composed of several pieces, which covered the thighs, knees, shins, and feet. CHEST ARMOR Torso defense originally came in the form of canvas or leather garments, which evolved into chain-mail chest armor, which was in turn combined or supplanted with stronger plate iron. The most popular form of chest-plate armor was the cuirass. Initially built from a single piece of rigid metal, the cuirass was designed to rest on the knight's hips in order to not hang from their shoulders and impede combat. Improvements to the cuirass were made over the centuries, such as the building the cuirass from more than a single piece to improve flexibility, or the addition of more plates to improve defensive capabilities. A knight's full set of armor is shown below.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Entries:1) Brief History Archive
April 2017
|