Plate Armor (Edited from Wikipedia)
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Plate Armor (Edited from Wikipedia) SUMMARY Plate armor is a historical type of personal body armor made from iron or steel plates, culminating in the iconic suit of armor entirely encasing the wearer. While there are early predecessors, full plate armor developed in Europe during the Late Middle Ages, especially in the context of the Hundred Years' War, from the coat of plates worn over mail suits during the 13th century. In Europe, plate armor reached its peak in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. The full suit of armor is thus a feature of the very end of the Middle Ages and of the Renaissance period. Its popular association with the "medieval knight" is due to the specialized jousting armor which developed in the 16th century. Full suits of Gothic plate armor were worn on the battlefields of the Burgundian and Italian Wars. The most heavily armored troops of the period were heavy cavalry such as the gendarmes and early cuirassiers, but the infantry troops of the Swiss mercenaries and the landsknechts also took to wearing lighter suits of "three quarters" munition armor, leaving the lower legs unprotected. The use of plate armor declined in the 17th century, but it remained common both among the nobility and for the cuirassiers throughout the European wars of religion. After 1650, plate armor was mostly reduced to the simple breastplate (cuirass) worn by cuirassiers. This was due to the development of the flintlock musket, which could penetrate armor at a considerable distance. For infantry, the breastplate gained renewed importance with the development of shrapnel in the late Napoleonic wars. The use of steel plates sewn into flak jackets dates to World War II, replaced by more modern materials such as fibre-reinforced plastic since the 1950s. HISTORY Plate armor is a historical type of personal body armor made from iron or steel plates, culminating in the iconic suit of armor entirely encasing the wearer. While there are early predecessors, full plate armor developed in Europe during the Late Middle Ages, especially in the context of the Hundred Years' War, from the coat of plates worn over mail suits during the 13th century. 1 In Europe, plate armor reached its peak in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. The full suit of armor is thus a feature of the very end of the Middle Ages and of the Renaissance period. Its popular association with the "medieval knight" is due to the specialized jousting armor which developed in the 16th century. Full suits of Gothic plate armor were worn on the battlefields of the Burgundian and Italian Wars. The most heavily armored troops of the period were heavy cavalry such as the gendarmes and early cuirassiers, but the infantry troops of the Swiss mercenaries and the landsknechts also took to wearing lighter suits of "three quarters" munition armor, leaving the lower legs unprotected. The use of plate armor declined in the 17th century, but it remained common both among the nobility and for the cuirassiers throughout the European wars of religion. After 1650, plate armor was mostly reduced to the simple breastplate (cuirass) worn by cuirassiers. This was due to the development of the flintlock musket, which could penetrate armor at a considerable distance. For infantry, the breastplate gained renewed importance with the development of shrapnel in the late Napoleonic wars. The use of steel plates sewn into flak jackets dates to World War II, replaced by more modern materials such as fibre-reinforced plastic since the 1950s. By about 1420, complete suits of plate armor had been developed. A full suit of plate armor would have consisted of many different components. The very fullest sets, known as garnitures, more often made for jousting than war, included pieces of exchange, alternate pieces suiting different purposes, so that the suit could be configured for a range of different uses, for example fighting on foot or on horse. A complete suit of plate armor made from well-tempered steel would weigh around 33- 55 pounds. The wearer remained highly agile and could jump, run and otherwise move freely as the weight of the armor was spread evenly throughout the body. The armor was articulated and covered a man's entire body completely from neck to toe. In the 15th and 16th centuries, large bodies of men-at-arms numbering thousands or even more than ten thousand men (as many as 60% of an army) were fighting on foot wearing full plate next to archers and crossbowmen. This was commonly seen in the Western European armies especially of France and England during the Hundred Years War, the Wars of the Roses or the Italian Wars. European leaders in armoring techniques were northern Italians, especially from Milan, and southern Germans, who had somewhat different styles. But styles were diffused around Europe, often by the movement of armorers; the Renaissance Greenwich armor was made by a royal workshop near London that had imported Italian, Flemish and 2 (mostly) German craftsmen, though it soon developed its own unique style. Ottoman Turkey also made wide use of plate armor but incorporated large amounts of mail into their armor, which was widely used by shock troops. Renaissance German so-called Maximilian armor of the early 16th century is a style using heavy fluting and some decorative etching, as opposed to the plainer finish on 15th-century white armor. The shapes include influence from Italian styles. This era also saw the use of closed helms. During the early 16th century the helmet and neckguard design was reformed to produce the so-called Nürnberg armor, many of them masterpieces of workmanship and design. As firearms became better and more common on the battlefield the utility of full armor gradually declined, and full suits became restricted to those made for jousting (see below) which continued to develop. The decoration of fine armor greatly increased in the period, using a whole range of techniques, and further greatly increasing the cost. Elaborately decorated plate armor for royalty and the very wealthy was being produced. Highly decorated armor is often called parade armor, a somewhat misleading term as such armor might well be worn on active military service. Steel plate armor for Henry II of France made in 1555 is covered with meticulous embossing, which has been subjected to blueing, silvering and gilding. Such work required armorers to either collaborate with artists or have artistic skill of their own; another alternative was to take designs from ornament prints and other prints, as was often done. A partial exception to the declining protection offered by armor came in the Age of Discovery as Europeans encountered the natives of parts of the world still without firearms. The Spanish Conquistadors found armor extremely practical and (for both horses and men) intimidating to the Amerindians, and in the early North American Colonial period some pieces of armor, especially breastplates and helmets, continued to be worn. Plate armor was virtually invulnerable to sword slashes. It also protected the wearer well against spear or pike thrusts and provided decent defense against blunt trauma. The evolution of plate armor also triggered developments in the design of offensive weapons. While this armor was effective against cuts or blows, their weak points could be exploited by long tapered swords or other weapons designed for the purpose, such as pollaxes and halberds. The effect of arrows and bolts is still a point of contention in 3 regards to plate armor. The evolution of the 14th-century plate armor also triggered the development of various polearms. They were designed to deliver a strong impact and concentrate energy on a small area and cause damage through the plate. Maces, war hammers and the hammer-heads of pollaxes (poleaxes) were used to inflict blunt trauma through armor. Fluted plate was not only decorative, but also reinforced the plate against bending under slashing or blunt impact. This offsets against the tendency for flutes to catch piercing blows. In armored techniques taught in the German school of swordsmanship, the attacker concentrates on these "weak spots", resulting in a fighting style very different from unarmored sword-fighting. Because of this weakness most warriors wore a mail shirt beneath their plate armor (or coat-of-plates). Later, full mail shirts were replaced with mail patches sewn onto an arming jacket. Further protection for plate armor was the use of small round plates that covered the armpit area and with "wings" to protect the inside of the joint. Early Modern Period Plate armor was widely used by most armies until the end of the 17th century for both foot and mounted troops such as the cuirassiers, dragoons, demi-lancers and Polish hussars. The infantry armor of the 16th century developed into three-quarters armor by 1600. Full plate armor was expensive to produce and remained therefore restricted to the upper strata of society; lavishly decorated suits of armor remained the fashion with 18th-century nobles and generals long after they had ceased to be militarily useful on the battlefield due to the advent of inexpensive muskets. The development of powerful rifled firearms made all but the finest and heaviest armor obsolete. The increasing power and availability of firearms and the nature of large, state- supported infantry led to more portions of plate armor being cast off in favor of cheaper, more mobile troops. Leg protection was the first part to go, replaced by tall leather boots. By the beginning of the 18th century, only field marshals, commanders and royalty remained in full armor on the battlefield, more as a sign of rank than for practical considerations.