Martial Arts 18

Shield
A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the
wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged
weaponry or projectiles such as arrows, by means of active blocks, as well as to provide passive
protection by closing one or more lines of engagement during combat.
Body armor
Body armor, also known as body armour, personal armor/armour, or a suit/coat of armour,
is protective clothing designed to absorb or deflect physical attacks. Historically used to
protect military personnel, today it is also used by various types of police (riot police in particular),
private security guards or bodyguards, and occasionally ordinary civilians.[1] Today there are two
main types: regular non-plated body armor for moderate to substantial protection, and hard-plate
reinforced body armor for maximum protection, such as used by combat soldiers.
History[edit]
Greek Mycenaean armor, c. 1400 BC
Bronze lamellae, Vietnam, 300 BC – 100 BC
Many factors have affected the development of personal armor throughout human history.
Significant factors in the development of armor include the economic and technological necessities
of armor production. For instance full plate armor first appeared in Medieval Europe when water-
powered trip hammers made the formation of plates faster and cheaper. [citation needed] At times the
development of armor has run parallel to the development of increasingly effective weaponry on the
battlefield, with armorers seeking to create better protection without sacrificing mobility.
Ancient[edit]
The first record of body armor in history was found on the Stele of Vultures in ancient Sumer in
today's south Iraq.[2][3] The oldest known Western armor is the Dendra panoply, dating from
the Mycenaean Era around 1400 BC. Mail, also referred to as chainmail, is made of interlocking iron
rings, which may be riveted or welded shut. It is believed to have been invented by Celtic people in
Europe about 500 BC.[citation needed] Most cultures who used mail used the Celtic word byrnne or a variant,
suggesting the Celts as the originators.[4][5][6] The Romans widely adopted mail as the lorica hamata,
although they also made use of lorica segmentata and lorica squamata. While no non-metallic armor
is known to have survived, it was likely to have been commonplace due to its lower cost.
Eastern armor has a long history, beginning in Ancient China. In East Asian history laminated armor
such as lamellar, and styles similar to the coat of plates, and brigandine were commonly used. Later
cuirasses and plates were also used. In pre-Qin dynasty times, leather armor was made out of
rhinoceros. The use of iron plate armor on the Korean peninsula was developed during the Gaya
Confederacy of 42 CE - 562 CE. The iron was mined and refined in the area surrounding Gimhae
(Gyeongsangnam Provence, South Korea). Using both vertical and triangular plate design, the plate
armor sets consisted of 27 or more individual 1-2mm thick curved plates, which were secured
together by nail or hinge. The recovered sets include accessories such as iron arm guards, neck
guards, leg guards, and horse armor/bits. The use of these armor types disappeared from use on
the Korean Peninsula after the fall of the Gaya Confederacy to the Silla Dynasty, during the three
kingdoms era Three Kingdoms of Korea in 562 CE.[7]
Middle Ages[edit]
Turkish plated mail
In European history, well-known armor types include the mail hauberk of the early medieval age, and
the full steel plate harness worn by later Medieval and Renaissance knights, and a few key
components (breast and back plates) by heavy cavalry in several European countries until the first
year of World War I (1914–15).
The Japanese armour known today as samurai armor appeared in the Heian period. (794 － 1185)
These early samurai armors are called the ō-yoroi and dō-maru.[8]
Plate[edit]
Main article: Plate armour
Further information: Components of medieval armour
Gradually, small additional plates or discs of iron were added to the mail to protect vulnerable areas.
By the late 13th century, the knees were capped, and two circular discs, called besagews were fitted
to protect the underarms. A variety of methods for improving the protection provided by mail were
used as armorers seemingly experimented. [citation needed] Hardened leather and splinted construction were
used for arm and leg pieces. The coat of plates was developed, an armor made of large plates sewn
inside a textile or leather coat.
Early plate in Italy, and elsewhere in the 13th to 15th centuries were made of iron. Iron armor could
be carburized or case hardened to give a surface of harder steel.[9] Plate armor became cheaper
than mail by the 15th century as it required much less labor and labor had become much more
expensive after the Black Death, though it did require larger furnaces to produce larger blooms. Mail
continued to be used to protect those joints which could not be adequately protected by plate, such
as the armpit, crook of the elbow and groin. Another advantage of plate was that a lance rest could
be fitted to the breast plate.[10]
Signature Maratha helmet with curved back, side view
The small skull cap evolved into a bigger true helmet, the bascinet, as it was lengthened downward
to protect the back of the neck and the sides of the head. Additionally, several new forms of fully
enclosed helmets were introduced in the late 14th century to replace the great helm, such as
the sallet and barbute and later the armet and close helm.
Probably the most recognized style of armor in the world became the plate armor associated with
the knights of the European Late Middle Ages, but continuing to the early 17th-century Age of
Enlightenment in all European countries.
By about 1400 the full harness of plate armor had been developed in armories of Lombardy [11] Heavy
cavalry dominated the battlefield for centuries in part because of their armor.
In the early 15th century, small "hand cannon" first began to be used, in the Hussite Wars, in
combination with Wagenburg tactics, allowing infantry to defeat armored knights on the battlefield. At
the same time crossbows were made more powerful to pierce armor, and the development of the
Swiss Pike square formation also created substantial problems for heavy cavalry. Rather than
dooming the use of body armor, the threat of small firearms intensified the use and further
refinement of plate armor. There was a 150-year period in which better and more metallurgically
advanced steel armor was being used, precisely because of the danger posed by the gun. Hence,
guns and cavalry in plate armor were "threat and remedy" together on the battlefield for almost 400
years. By the 15th century Italian armor plates were almost always made of steel. [12] In Southern
Germany armorers began to harden their steel armor only in the late 15th century. They would
continue to harden their steel for the next century because they quenched and tempered their
product which allowed for the fire-gilding to be combined with tempering.[13]
The quality of the metal used in armor deteriorated as armies became bigger and armor was made
thicker, necessitating breeding of larger cavalry horses. If during the 14th and 15th centuries armor
seldom weighed more than 15 kg, then by the late 16th century it weighed 25 kg.[14] The increasing
weight and thickness of late 16th-century armor therefore gave substantial resistance.
In the early years of pistol and arquebuses, firearms were relatively low in velocity. The full suits of
armor, or breast plates actually stopped bullets fired from a modest distance. The front breast plates
were, in fact, commonly shot as a test. The impact point would often be encircled with engraving to
point it out. This was called the "proof". Armor often also bore an insignia of the maker, especially if it
was of good quality. Crossbow bolts, if still used, would seldom penetrate good plate, nor would any
bullet unless fired from close range.
Renaissance/Early Modern suits of armor appropriate for heavy cavalry
In effect, rather than making plate armor obsolete, the use of firearms stimulated the development of
plate armor into its later stages. For most of that period, it allowed horsemen to fight while being the
targets of defending arquebusiers without being easily killed. Full suits of armor were actually worn
by generals and princely commanders right up to the 1710s.
Horse armor[edit]
The horse was afforded protection from lances and infantry weapons by steel plate barding. This
gave the horse protection and enhanced the visual impression of a mounted knight. Late in the era,
elaborate barding was used in parade armor.
Gunpowder era[edit]
French cuirassier of the 19th century (Drawing by Édouard Detaille, 1885)
As gunpowder weapons improved, it became cheaper and more effective to have groups of
unarmored men with early guns than to have expensive knights, which caused armor to be largely
discarded. Cavalry units continued to use armor. Examples include the German Reiter, Polish
heavy hussars and the back and breast worn by heavy cavalry units during the Napoleonic wars.

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Shield

Bronze lamellae, Vietnam, 300 BC – 100 BC

Further information: Components of medieval armour

Signature Maratha helmet with curved back, side view

Renaissance/Early Modern suits of armor appropriate for heavy cavalry

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