Medieval Armour

Martin J. Dougherty is a former defence consultant, he has written numerous books on history and military history, including Vikings: A History of the Norse People, Medieval Warrior, Weapons and Fighting Techniques of the Medieval Warrior 1000–1500AD and books on personal self-defence. He lives in northern England.

• 1: Historical context European warriors of the early Middle Ages used both locally-developed body armour as well as forms derived from late Roman types, with chain mail being the most common. The evolution of armour has paralleled the development of increasingly effective weaponry on the battlefield, with armourers seeking to create better protection without sacrificing mobility. For example: mounted Mongol horse archers valued mobility over protection, and consequently wore layers of ox-hide skins; while the typical European knight sought to overwhelm his opponent in close combat and so used the maximum body protection of either chain mail or plate armour. Plate armour first appeared in Medieval Europe when water-powered trip hammers made the formation of plates faster and cheaper. By the late 1300s, solid breastplates first appeared to protect the chest as part of the short, tight-fitting coat of plates called a brigandine, while smaller plates covered the abdomen, hips and back. By about 1420, full head-to-toe plate armour was in use, completing the image of the knight in shining armour.2: Types of Armour There are three main types of armour: armour made of leather, fabric, or mixed layers of both; chain mail, made of interwoven rings of iron or steel; and rigid armour made of metal, horn or wood, including the famous plate armour that protected knights during the late Middle Ages. Ailette – Short-lived 13th century French leather armour that was focused on placing quadrangular pieces of leather or wood on shoulders and upper arms of the user. Rest of the wearer was covered by full-body chain or ring mail, with lower legs being guarded by metal protectors fastened with leather straps. Banded mail – Shortly used metal armour that mixed designs of lorica segmentata and traditional splint mail. Bases – Made as an extension of the French cloth military skirts. Its armoured version was made from plates, with optional removable back plate so that user can sit on a horse. Boiled Leather armour – Very common armour in medieval Europe, made from thick leather that was boiled in oils, waxes and other ingredients. Because boiled leather was brittle, leather was usually cut in smaller pieces and then stitched together for scale or lameral armours. Brigandine armour – Brigandine body armour was made from hard cloth (usually canvas or leather) with starched steel plates that were riveted to the inside of the fabric so that from outside only leather is visible. Gambeson – Heavily padded leather or canvas armour that was used as body protection both as standalone piece or a base for wearing mail or plate armour. Armours were padded with scrap cloth, horse hair or other components. Hauberk – Very finely made shirt made from thin interloping rings of metal that could be worn just as a metal shirt, or interwoven into ordinary shirt or tunic. Jack of plate – Very similar to Brigandine that combined small metal plates inside layers of leather shirt, but with this armour, pieces were sown and not riveted. Jazerant – Light armour that placed mail armour between the layers of leather or fabric. It was mostly used in Middle East, Persia and Asia. Kasten-brust armour – German type of plate armour that was used mostly in 15th century, but was highly popularized by the later paintings in Renaissance. Lamellar armour – Armour made from laced pieces of hard leather, iron or bronze plates, used mostly in Eastern Europe and Asia. Laminar armour – Famous for being used by Roman Empire under the name “lorica segmentata” It is composed from several segmented metal strips that were held together with leather strips. They were only used to protect chest, back, shoulders and sometimes hands. Mail armour – Very popular type of armour made from interlocking metal rings that formed tightly woven mesh. Plated mail (or Splinted mail) – Armour made from small plates that were interwoven with metal wires. They were used in Eastern Europe, large part of Asia and by the Moors. Ring armour – armour that used rings that were stitched to the leather or to themselves, but they were not interwoven one with another to form dense mesh. Scale armour – Armour that imitated scales of reptiles by using small metal pieces made from various types of metal that were sown or laced one to another into overlapping rows. Splinted armour – Made from long strips of metal that were sown or laced together. This approach of armour making was mostly used for the creation of armour pieces that protects hands or legs.3: Construction & Parts Helmets and head gear: Mail coif – This hood made of metal mails that was often combined with other types of helmets. Great helm Cervelliere – Steel protector worn below great helm. Bassinet Helmet with protector that can be lowered to protect entire face of the wearer. Armet – Strong metal helmet that protected entire face of the full plate knight. Sallet – Medieval metal helmet. Barbute – Close fitting full-head helmet with protective suits over eyes, nose and mouth, designed to look like Ancient Greek helmets. Burgonet – Open faced metal helmet that had integrated protectors for neck and shoulders. Neck gear: helmet. Aventail – Metal coif that covered only neck and shoulders that is attached to the metal Gorget – Steel metal colar that protected little of the front chest and the upper back of the wearer. Bevor – Chest armour that had integrated piece that covered neck and jaw of the wearer. Body: Brigandine – Sleeves leather shirt enhanced with oblong steel plates. Hauberk – Shirt enhanced with rings of metal. Cuirass – Metal armour piece that protected only chest. Pixane – Mail collar that extended over chest and back. Plackart – Similar as cuirass, but with extra layer of protection on the belly. Faulds – Chest armour extension that protected waist and hips. Culet – Metal extensions that protected back or the buttocks. Gousset – Detachable armour protector that can be placed anywhere on the user. Arm gear: Cowter – Metal elbow protector that is either fixed or can move. Spaulder – Metal plate or bands that protect shoulders. Pauldron – 15th century shoulder protector. Gardbrace – Specialized protector that guards front of the shoulder. Rerebrace – Armour piece for area between shoulder armour and elbow. Besagew – Armpit protector usually made as dangling circular plate. Vambrace – Forearm protector made as solid piece or by connected metal splints. Gauntlet – Metal gloves. Leg gear: Chausses – Metal protection for legs, can be used for lower legs or complete legs. Poleyn – Knee protector, either with fixed form or for allowing articulation of the limb. Schynbald –Metal plates that protect just the shins. Greave – Lower leg protection. Cuisse – Thigh metal protectors. Sabaton – Metal boots. Tasset – Chest armour extensions that protected upper legs.4: Feature: The Armoured Knight At the height of the Middle Ages, Saint Anselm (ca. 1033–1109) listed the equipment of a knight: his war horse (which by the thirteenth century was protected by mail and fabric), bridle, saddle, spurs, hauberk (a long-sleeved mail shirt, sometimes with a hood, or coif), helmet, shield, lance, and sword.