Medieval armor in Western Europe. Armor Weight Light Medieval Armor

In this article, in the most common features ah, the process of development of armor in Western Europe in the Middle Ages (VII - the end of the XV centuries) and at the very beginning of the Early Modern Age (the beginning of the XVI century) is considered. The material is supplied large quantity illustrations for a better understanding of the topic. Most of the text has been translated from English.

Mid 7th - 9th centuries Viking in Wendel helmet. They were used mainly in Northern Europe by the Normans, Germans, etc., although they were often found in other parts of Europe. Very often has a half mask covering upper part faces. Later evolved into the Norman helmet. Armor: short chain mail without a chain mail hood, worn over a shirt. The shield is round, flat, of medium size, with a large umbon - a metal convex hemispherical overlay in the center, typical for Northern Europe of this period. On shields, a gyuzh is used - a belt for wearing a shield while hiking on the neck or on the shoulder. Naturally, horned helmets did not exist at that time.

X - the beginning of the XIII centuries. Knight in a Norman helmet with a rondash. An open Norman helmet of a conical or ovoid shape. Usually,
Nanosnik is attached in front - a metal nasal plate. It was widely distributed throughout Europe, both in the western and eastern parts. Armor: long chain mail to the knees, with sleeves of full or incomplete (up to the elbows) length, with a coif - a chain mail hood, separate or integral with chain mail. In the latter case, the chain mail was called "hauberk". There are slits on the hem at the front and back of the chain mail for more convenient movement (and it’s more convenient to sit in the saddle). From the end of the 9th - beginning of the 10th centuries. under the chain mail, the knights begin to wear a gambeson - a long armored garment stuffed with wool or tow to such a state as to absorb blows to the chain mail. In addition, arrows were perfectly stuck in gambesons. Often used as a separate armor by poorer infantrymen compared to knights, especially archers.

Tapestry from Bayeux. Created in the 1070s. It is clearly seen that the archers of the Normans (on the left) do not have armor at all

Shosses were often worn to protect the legs - chain mail stockings. From the 10th century a rondash appears - a large Western European shield of knights of the early Middle Ages, and often infantrymen - for example, Anglo-Saxon huskerls. could have different shape, more often round or oval, curved and with an umbon. Among the knights, the rondash almost always has a pointed shape of the lower part - the knights covered it with it. left leg. It was produced in various versions in Europe in the X-XIII centuries.

Attack of the knights in Norman helmets. This is what the crusaders looked like when they captured Jerusalem in 1099

XII - beginning of the XIII centuries. Knight in a one-piece forged Norman helmet in a surcoat. Nanosnik is no longer attached, but forged together with the helmet. They began to wear a surcoat over chain mail - a long and spacious cape of different styles: with sleeves of various lengths and without, one-color or with a pattern. Fashion went from the first crusade when the knights saw similar cloaks among the Arabs. Like chain mail, it had slits on the hem in front and behind. Cloak functions: protection from overheating of chain mail in the sun, protecting it from rain and dirt. Rich knights, in order to improve protection, could wear double chain mail, and in addition to the nose guard, attach a half mask that covered the upper part of the face.

Archer with a longbow. XI-XIV centuries

End of XII - XIII centuries. Knight in a closed pothelm. Early pothelms were without face protection, they could have a nasal. Gradually, the protection increased until the helmet completely covered the face. Late pothelm - the first helmet in Europe with a visor (visor) that completely covers the face. By the middle of the XIII century. evolved into a topfhelm - a pot or big helmet. The armor does not change significantly: the same long chain mail with a hood. Muffers appear - chain mail mittens woven into the hauberk. But they were not widely used; leather gloves were popular among the knights. The surcoat somewhat increases in volume, in the largest version becoming a coat of arms - clothes worn over armor, sleeveless, which depicted the coat of arms of the owner.

King Edward I of England (1239-1307) in an open sweatshirt and tabard

First half of the 13th century Knight in topfhelm with targe. Topfhelm - a knight's helmet that appeared at the end of the 12th - beginning of the 13th century. Used exclusively by knights. The shape can be cylindrical, barrel-shaped or in the form of a truncated cone, completely protecting the head. Topfhelm was worn over a chain mail hood, under which, in turn, a felt balaclava was worn to soften blows to the head. Armor: long chain mail, sometimes double, with a hood. In the XIII century. appears, as a mass phenomenon, mail-brigantine armor, providing stronger protection than just chain mail. Brigantine - armor from metal plates, riveted on a cloth or quilted linen base. Early mail-brigantine armor consisted of breastplates or vests worn over chain mail. The shields of the knights, in connection with the improvement by the middle of the XIII century. protective qualities of armor and the appearance of fully enclosed helmets, are significantly reduced in size, turning into a targe. Tarje - a kind of shield in the form of a wedge, without an umbon, actually a version of a drop-shaped rondache cut off from above. Knights no longer hide their faces behind shields.

Brigantine

The second half of the XIII - the beginning of the XIV centuries. Knight in topfhelm in surcoat with ailettes. specific feature topfhelms is a very poor review, so they were used, as a rule, only in a spear collision. For hand-to-hand combat, the topfhelm is not suitable because of the disgusting visibility. Therefore, the knights, if it came to hand-to-hand combat, threw him off. And so that the expensive helmet was not lost during the battle, it was attached to the back of the neck with a special chain or belt. After that, the knight remained in a chain mail hood with a felt balaclava under it, which was a weak defense against the powerful blows of a heavy medieval sword. Therefore, very soon the knights began to wear a spherical helmet under the topfhelm - a cervelier or a hirnhaube, which is a small hemispherical helmet, tightly fitting the head, similar to a helmet. The cervelier does not have any elements of face protection, only very rare cerveliers have nose guards. In this case, in order for the topfhelm to sit more tightly on the head and not move to the sides, a felt roller was put on under it over the cervelier.

Cervelier. 14th century

The topfhelm was no longer attached to the head and rested on the shoulders. Naturally, the poor knights did without a cervelier. Ailettes are rectangular shoulder pads, similar to epaulettes, covered with heraldic symbols. Used in Western Europe in the XIII - early XIV centuries. as primitive pauldrons. There is a hypothesis that shoulder straps originated from the Ailettes.

With late XIII- early 14th century tournament helmet decorations - various heraldic figures (kleinods), which were made of leather or wood and attached to the helmet, were widely used. Among the Germans, various types of horns were widely used. Ultimately, topfhelms completely fell out of use in the war, remaining purely tournament helmets for spear collision.

First half of the XIV - beginning of the XV centuries. Knight in a bascinet with aventail. In the first half of the XIV century. the topfhelm is replaced by a bascinet - a spherical helmet with a pointed top, to which an aventile is attached - a chain mail cape that frames the helmet along the lower edge and covers the neck, shoulders, nape and sides of the head. The bascinet was worn not only by knights, but also by foot soldiers. There are a huge number of varieties of bascinets, both in the shape of the helmet and in the type of fastening of the visor of various types, with and without a nosepiece. The simplest and, therefore, the most common visors for bascinets were relatively flat claps - in fact, a face mask. At the same time, a variety of bascinets with a hundsgugel visor appeared - the ugliest helmet in Europe, nevertheless very common. Obviously, security at that time was more important than appearance.

Bascinet with visor hundsgugel. End of the 14th century

Later, from the beginning of the 15th century, bascinets began to be equipped with plate neck protection instead of chain mail aventail. Armor at this time also developed along the path of strengthening protection: chain mail with brigandine reinforcement is still used, but with larger plates that better hold a blow. Separate elements of plate armor began to appear: first, plastrons or placards that covered the stomach, and breastplates, and then plate cuirasses. Although, due to their high cost, plate cuirasses at the beginning of the 15th century. were available to few knights. Also appear in large numbers: bracers - part of the armor that protects the hands from the elbow to the hand, as well as developed elbow pads, greaves and knee pads. In the second half of the XIV century. the gambeson is replaced by the aketon - a quilted underarmor jacket with sleeves, similar to the gambeson, only not so thick and long. It was made from several layers of fabric, quilted with vertical or rhombic seams. In addition, nothing was stuffed. The sleeves were made separately and laced to the shoulders of the aketon. With development plate armor, which did not require such thick underarms as chain mail, in the first half of the 15th century. aketon gradually replaced the gambeson among the knights, although it remained popular among the infantry until the end of the 15th century, primarily because of its cheapness. In addition, richer knights could use a doublet or purpuen - essentially the same aketon, but with enhanced protection from chain mail inserts.

This period, the end of the 14th - the beginning of the 15th centuries, is characterized by a huge variety of armor combinations: chain mail, chain mail-brigantine, components of a chain mail or brigantine base with plate breastplates, backrests or cuirasses, and even tire-brigantine armor, not to mention all kinds of bracers , elbow pads, knee pads and greaves, as well as closed and open helmets with a wide variety of visors. Shields of small sizes (targe) are still used by knights.

The looting of the city. France. Miniature from the beginning of the 15th century.

By the middle of the 14th century, following the new fashion that had spread throughout Western Europe to shorten outerwear, the surcoat was also greatly shortened and turned into a jupon or tabar, which performed the same function. The bascinet gradually developed into a grand bascinet - a closed helmet, rounded, with neck protection and a hemispherical visor with numerous holes. It went out of use at the end of the 15th century.

First half and end of the 15th century. Knight in salad. All further development armor goes the way of strengthening protection. It is the 15th century. can be called the age of plate armor, when they become somewhat more accessible and, as a result, appear en masse among knights and, to a lesser extent, among infantry.

Crossbowman with pavese. Middle-second half of the 15th century.

As blacksmithing developed, the design of plate armor improved more and more, and the armor itself changed according to armor fashion, but Western European plate armor always had the best protective qualities. By the middle of the XV century. the arms and legs of most knights were already fully protected by plate armor, the body - by a cuirass with a plate skirt attached to the lower edge of the cuirass. Also in mass order, instead of leather gloves, plate gloves appear. Aventail is replaced by a gorge - plate protection of the neck and upper chest. Could be combined with both a helmet and a cuirass.

In the second half of the XV century. arme appears - a new type knight's helmet XV-XVI centuries, with a double visor and protection for the neck. In the design of the helmet, the spherical dome has a rigid rear part and a movable face and neck protection in front and from the sides, on top of which a visor fixed to the dome is lowered. Thanks to this design, arma gives excellent protection both in a spear collision and in hand-to-hand combat. Arme is the highest stage in the evolution of helmets in Europe.

Arme. Mid 16th century

But he was very expensive and therefore available only to rich knights. Most of the knights from the second half of the XV century. wore all kinds of salads - a type of helmet, elongated and covering the back of the neck. Salads were widely used, along with hats - the simplest helmets, and in the infantry.

An infantryman in a cap and cuirass. First half of the 15th century

For the knights, deep salads were specially forged with full face protection (the front and sides were forged vertically and became actually part of the dome) and neck, for which the helmet was supplemented with a bouvier - protection for the collarbones, neck and lower face.

Knight in cap and bouvier. Middle - second half of the 15th century.

In the XV century. there is a gradual abandonment of shields as such (due to the massive appearance of plate armor). Shields in the 15th century turned into bucklers - small round fist shields, always steel and with a umbon. They appeared as a replacement for a knightly targe for foot combat, where they were used to parry blows and strike with an umbon or an edge in the face of an enemy.

Buckler. Diameter 39.5 cm. Early 16th century.

Late 15th - 16th centuries Knight in full plate armor. 16th century historians no longer refer to the Middle Ages, but to the early modern times. Therefore, full plate armor is a phenomenon to a greater extent of the New Age, and not of the Middle Ages, although it appeared in the first half of the 15th century. in Milan, famous as the center for the production of the best armor in Europe. In addition, full plate armor has always been very expensive, and therefore was available only to the most wealthy part of the knighthood. Full plate armor, covering the entire body with steel plates, and the head with a closed helmet, is the culmination of the development of European armor. Half-drones appear - plate shoulder pads that provide protection for the shoulder, upper arm, shoulder blade with steel plates due to their rather big size. Also, to enhance protection, tassets - thigh guards - were attached to the plate skirt.

In the same period, bard appears - plate horse armor. They consisted of the following elements: chanfrien - protection of the muzzle, critnet - protection of the neck, neutral - protection of the chest, krupper - protection of the croup and flanchard - protection of the sides.

Full armor for knight and horse. Nuremberg. The weight (total) of the rider's armor is 26.39 kg. Weight (total) horse armor - 28.47 kg. 1532-1536

At the end of the XV - beginning of the XVI centuries. two mutually opposite processes take place: if the armor of the cavalry is more and more strengthened, then the infantry, on the contrary, is more and more exposed. During this period, the famous landsknechts appeared - German mercenaries who served during the reign of Maximilian I (1486-1519) and his grandson Charles V (1519-1556), leaving themselves from all protection at best only a cuirass with tassets.

Landsknecht. End of the XV - first half of the XVI centuries.

Landsknechts. Engraving from the beginning of the 16th century.

“Oh, knights, get up, the hour of deeds has come!
You have shields, steel helmets and armor.
Your dedicated sword is ready to fight for faith.
Give me strength, oh God, for new glorious battles.
I, a beggar, will take rich booty there.
I don't need gold and I don't need land,
But maybe I will, singer, mentor, warrior,
Heavenly bliss forever awarded "
(Walter von der Vogelweide. Translation by V. Levik)

A sufficient number of articles have already been published on the VO website on the topic of knightly weapons and, in particular, knightly armor. However, this topic is so interesting that you can delve into it for a very long time. The reason for the next appeal to her is a banal ... weight. Weight of armor and weapons. Alas, recently I again asked students about how much knight's sword, and received the following set of numbers: 5, 10 and 15 kilograms. They considered the chain mail of 16 kg to be very light, although not all of them, and the weight of the plate armor of 20 and a few kilos is simply ridiculous.

Figures of a knight and a horse in full protective gear. Traditionally, knights were imagined just like that - “chained in armor”. (Cleveland Museum of Art)

At VO, of course, “things with weight” are much better due to regular publications on this topic. However, the opinion about the exorbitant heaviness of the "knight's suit" of the classical type has not been outlived so far here. Therefore, it makes sense to return to this topic and consider it with specific examples.

Western European chain mail (hauberk) 1400 - 1460 Weight 10.47 kg. (Cleveland Museum of Art)

Let's start with the fact that British armament historians created a very reasonable and clear classification of armor according to their specific characteristics and eventually divided the entire Middle Ages, focusing, of course, on available sources, into three eras: the “epoch of chain mail”, “the era of mixed chain mail and plate protective weapons" and "the era of one-piece forged armor". All three eras together make up the period from 1066 to 1700. Accordingly, the first era has a framework of 1066 - 1250, the second - the era of chain mail and plate armor - 1250 - 1330. But then this: an early stage in the development of knightly plate armor (1330 - 1410) stands out, “ great period"in the history of the knights in" white armor "(1410 - 1500) and the era of the decline of knightly armor (1500 - 1700).

Chain mail with a helmet and aventail (aventail) of the 13th - 14th centuries. (Royal Arsenal, Leeds)

During the years of "wonderful Soviet education We have never heard of such a periodization. But in the school textbook "History of the Middle Ages" for the VΙ class for many years, with some rehashings, one could read the following:
“It was not easy for the peasants to defeat even one feudal lord. The equestrian warrior - a knight - was armed with a heavy sword and a long spear. With a large shield, he could cover himself from head to toe. The body of the knight was protected by chain mail - a shirt woven from iron rings. Later, chain mail was replaced by armor - armor made of iron plates.

Classic knightly armor, which was most often discussed in textbooks for schools and universities. Before us is Italian armor of the 15th century, restored in the 19th century. Height 170.2 cm. Weight 26.10 kg. Helmet Weight 2850 (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

The knights fought on strong, hardy horses, which were also protected by armor. The armament of the knight was very heavy: it weighed up to 50 kilograms. Therefore, the warrior was clumsy and clumsy. If the rider was thrown off his horse, he could not get up without outside help and was usually captured. To fight on a horse in heavy armor, a long training was needed, the feudal lords were preparing for military service since childhood. They constantly practiced fencing, horseback riding, wrestling, swimming, and javelin throwing.

German armor 1535. Presumably from Brunswick. Weight 27.85 kg. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

war horse and knightly weapons were very expensive: for all this it was necessary to give a whole herd - 45 cows! The landowner, for whom the peasants worked, could carry out knightly service. Therefore, military affairs became almost exclusively the occupation of the feudal lords ”(Agibalova, E.V. History of the Middle Ages: Textbook for the 6th grade / E.V. Agibalova, G.M. Donskoy, M .: Enlightenment, 1969. P. 33; Golin, E.M. History of the Middle Ages: Tutorial for the 6th grade of the evening (shift) school / E.M. Golin, V.L. Kuzmenko, M.Ya. Loiberg. M .: Education, 1965. S. 31-32.)

Knight in armor and a horse in horse armor. The work of master Kunz Lochner. Nuremberg, Germany 1510 - 1567 Dated 1548. Total weight rider equipment with horse armor and saddle 41.73 kg. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Only in the 3rd edition of the textbook "History of the Middle Ages" for VΙ class high school V.A. Vedyushkin, published in 2002, the description of knightly weapons became somewhat truly thought out and corresponded to the above-mentioned periodization used today by historians around the world: “At first, the knight was protected by a shield, helmet and chain mail. Then the most vulnerable parts of the body began to be hidden behind metal plates, and from the 15th century chain mail was finally replaced by solid armor. The combat armor weighed up to 30 kg, so for the battle the knights chose hardy horses, also protected by armor.

Armor of Emperor Ferdinand I (1503-1564) Gunsmith Kunz Lochner. Germany, Nuremberg 1510 - 1567 Dated 1549. Height 170.2 cm. Weight 24 kg.

That is, in the first case, intentionally or out of ignorance, the armor was divided by era in a simplified way, while the weight of 50 kg was attributed to both the armor of the “epoch of chain mail” and the “era of all-metal armor” without dividing into the actual armor of the knight and the armor of his horse. That is, judging by the text, our children were offered information that "the warrior was clumsy and clumsy." In fact, the first articles about the fact that this is actually not the case were the publications of V.P. Gorelik in the magazines "Around the World" in 1975, however, this information did not get into the textbooks for the Soviet school at that time. The reason is clear. On anything, on any examples, to show the superiority of the military art of Russian soldiers over the “dog-knights”! Unfortunately, the inertia of thinking and the not too great significance of this information make it difficult to disseminate information that corresponds to the data of science.

Armor set of 1549, which belonged to Emperor Maximilian II. (Wallace Collection) As you can see, the variant in the photo is a tournament armor, since it has a grand guard. However, it could be removed and then the armor became combat. This resulted in significant savings.

Nevertheless, the provisions of the school textbook V.A. Vedyushkin completely correspond to reality. Moreover, information about the weight of the armor, well, let's say, from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (as well as from other museums, including our Hermitage in St. for some reason, it didn't get there at the time. However, why is understandable. After all, we had the best education in the world. However, this is a special case, although quite indicative. It turned out that there were chain mail, then - r-r-time and now armor. Meanwhile, the process of their appearance was more than lengthy. For example, only around 1350 was the appearance of the so-called “metal chest” with chains (from one to four) that went to the dagger, sword and shield, and sometimes a helmet was attached to the chain. Helmets at that time were not yet connected to the protective plates on the chest, but under them they wore chain mail hoods that had a wide shoulder. Around 1360, clasps appeared on armor; in 1370, the knights were already almost completely dressed in iron armor, and chain mail was used as a base. The first brigandines also appeared - caftans, and lined with metal plates. They were used both as an independent type of protective clothing, and worn along with chain mail, both in the West and in the East.

Knightly armor with a brigandine over chain mail and a bascinet helmet. Around 1400-1450 Italy. Weight 18.6 kg. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Since 1385, the hips began to be covered with armor from articulated metal strips. In 1410 armor with a full cover of plates for all parts of the body spread throughout Europe, but the throat cover of mail was still used; in 1430, the first notches-grooves appeared on the elbow and knee pads, and by 1450 armor made of forged steel sheets had reached its perfection. Since 1475, the grooves on them have become increasingly popular, until fully fluted or so-called "Maximilian armor", the authorship of which is attributed to the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I, becomes a measure of the skill of their manufacturer and the wealth of their owners. In the future, knightly armor again became smooth - fashion influenced their shape, but the skills achieved in the craftsmanship of their decoration continued to develop. Now not only people fought in armor. The horses also received it, as a result, the knight with the horse turned into something like a real statue of metal polished and sparkling in the sun!

Another "Maximilian" armor from Nuremberg 1525 - 1530. Belonged to Duke Ulrich, son of Henry of Württemberg (1487 - 1550). (Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna)

Although ... although there have always been fashionistas and innovators “running ahead of the locomotive”. For example, it is known that in 1410 a certain English knight named John de Fearles paid 1,727 pounds sterling to Burgundian gunsmiths for armor, a sword and a dagger made for him, which he ordered to be decorated with pearls and ... diamonds (!) - a luxury, not only unheard of by that time, but even for him it is not at all characteristic.

Field armor of Sir John Scudamore (1541 or 1542-1623). Gunsmith Jacob Jacob Halder (Greenwich Workshop 1558-1608) Around 1587, restored in 1915. Weight 31.07 kg. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Each piece of plate armor has its own name. For example, plates for the thighs were called cuisses, knee pads - logs (poleyns), jambers (jambers) - for the shins and sabatons (sabatons) for the feet. Gorget or bevor (gorgets, or bevors), protected the throat and neck, cutters (couters) - elbows, e (s) paulers, or half-drons (espaudlers, or pauldrons), - shoulders, rep (e) braces (rerebraces) - forearm , vambraces - part of the arm down from the elbow, and gant (e) years (gantelets) - these are “plate gloves” - they protected the hands. A complete set of armor also included a helmet and, at least at first, a shield, which later ceased to be used on the battlefield around the middle of the 15th century.

Armor of Henry Herbert (1534-1601), 2nd Earl of Pembroke. Made around 1585 - 1586. in the armory of Greenwich (1511 - 1640). Weight 27.24 kg. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

As for the number of parts in the "white armor", in the armor of the middle of the 15th century their total number could reach 200 units, and taking into account all the buckles and nails, along with hooks and various screws, even up to 1000. The weight of the armor was 20 - 24 kg, and it was evenly distributed over the body of the knight, unlike chain mail, which pressed the man on the shoulders. So “no crane was needed at all to put such a rider in his saddle. And knocked down from his horse to the ground, he did not at all look like a helpless beetle. But the knight of those years is not a mountain of meat and muscles, and he by no means relied only on brute strength and bestial ferocity. And if we pay attention to how knights are described in medieval works, we will see that very often they had a fragile (!) And graceful physique, and at the same time they had flexibility, developed muscles, and were strong and very agile, even when dressed in armor, with a well-developed muscular reaction.

Tournament armor made by Anton Peffenhauser around 1580 (Germany, Augsburg, 1525-1603) Height 174.6 cm); shoulder width 45.72 cm; weight 36.8 kg. It should be noted that tournament armor was usually always heavier than combat armor. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

AT last years In the 15th century, knightly armaments became the subject of special concern for European sovereigns, and, in particular, Emperor Maximilian I (1493 - 1519), who is credited with creating knightly armor with grooves over their entire surface, eventually called "Maximilian". It was used without any changes in the 16th century, when new improvements were required due to the ongoing development of small arms.

Now quite a bit about swords, because if you write about them in detail, then they deserve a separate topic. J. Clements, a well-known British expert on edged weapons of the Middle Ages, believes that it was the appearance of a multi-layered combined armor (for example, on the effigy of John de Kreke we see as many as four layers of protective clothing) that led to the appearance of a "sword in one and a half hands." Well, the blades of such swords ranged from 101 to 121 cm, and the weight was from 1.2 to 1.5 kg. Moreover, blades for chopping and stabbing are known, and already purely for stabbing. He notes that riders used such swords until 1500, and they were especially popular in Italy and Germany, where they received the names Reitschwert (horseman's) or knight's sword. In the 16th century, swords appeared that had wavy and even serrated sawtooth blades. At the same time, their length itself could reach human height with a weight of 1.4 to 2 kg. Moreover, in England, such swords appeared only around 1480. The average weight of the sword in the X and XV centuries. was 1.3 kg; and in the sixteenth century - 900 g. Bastard swords "one and a half hands" had a weight of about 1.5 - 1.8 kg, and the weight of two-handed swords was rarely more than 3 kg. The latter reached their heyday between 1500 and 1600, but have always been infantry weapons.

Cuirassier armor "in three quarters", ca. 1610-1630 Milan or Brescia, Lombardy. Weight 39.24 kg. Obviously, since they do not have armor below the knees, the excess weight is obtained by thickening the armor.

But shortened armor in three quarters for cuirassiers and pistols, even in their shortened form, often weighed more than those that assumed protection only from melee weapons and they were very heavy to wear. Cuirassier armor has been preserved, the weight of which was about 42 kg, i.e. even more than classic knightly armor, although they covered a much smaller surface of the body of the one to whom they were intended! But this, it should be emphasized, is not knightly armor, that's the point!

Horse armour, possibly made for Count Antonio IV Colallto (1548-1620), circa 1580-1590. Place of manufacture: probably Brescia. Weight with saddle 42.2 kg. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York) By the way, a horse in full armor under a rider in armor could even swim. Horse armor weighed 20-40 kg - a few percent of the own weight of a huge and strong knightly horse.

| | Development of armor in the Middle Ages in Western Europe | Armor anatomy - 15th century Milanese armor | Armor anatomy - 15th century German Gothic armor | The process of putting on the armor of a warrior of the 15th century

In armor, you could not just climb on a horse. For example, how easy is it for a person in their everyday clothes to make a "wheel"? I'm not talking about tracksuits - just a jacket and so on. although obviously not everyone is in a tracksuit ...

And here are the approximate figures for the weight of armor and weapons in the Middle Ages: a typical armor of the 15th century weighed about 52 pounds, that is, approximately 23.6 kg. If we take individual parts, then the helmet-arme (full closed helmet) weighed from 6'-7'8" (2.7-3.4 kg), gorget (collar) - 9 ounces (0.25 kg), cuirass from the dorsal and chest parts - 12 '8" (5.7 kg), "skirt" at the bottom of the cuirass - 1'11" (0.76 kg), right bracer - 2'14" (1.3 kg), left bracer - 2'9" (1.16 kg), "legs" - 6'1" (2.74 kg) each, ringed shirt with short sleeve- 15'7" (7 kg), long sleeve - 20'11" (9.38 kg), typical longsword - 2'8" (1.13 kg).

The daily march load of an infantryman from the Napoleonic Wars to our time is between 60 and 70 pounds, that is, between 27 and 32 kg. And this weight is distributed much less conveniently than the armor of a medieval knight.

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chain mail

• Chainmail.(Germany, XV century) Length 73 cm, sleeves to the elbow, ring diameter 11 mm, wire 1.6 mm, weight 4.47 kg.
• Chainmail. Length 71 cm, sleeves to the elbow, wire 0.9 mm (flat rings), ring diameter 4 mm, weight 8.8 kg.
• Chain mail with long sleeves.(first half of the 15th century, Germany). Length 68 cm, Sleeve length (from armpit) 60 cm, wire 1 mm (semicircular rings), ring diameter 11 mm, weight 9.015 kg.
• Chain mail with long sleeves.(late XV century) Length 71 cm, wire 1 - 1.2 mm (flat rings), ring diameter 11 - 9.9 mm, weight 7.485 kg.
• Chainmail sleeves.(XV - XVI centuries) Total length 90 cm, sleeve length 64 cm, rings with a diameter of 5.4 mm of two types: riveted (wire 0.9 mm) and stamped (0.4 mm), weight 1.94 kg.
• Chainmail sleeves.(XVI century) Total length 60 cm, sleeve length 53, rings 7 mm in diameter, weight 1.57 kg.
• Mail cap(Germany (?) XV century) Weight 0.59 kg.

full armor

Unengraved parts (dark in the picture) were painted in purple (the drawing was preserved in the "catalog" of the gunsmith)

The weight:
helmet (without puff) - 2.8 kg
puff - 1.42 kg
"collar" - 1.7 kg
front plate of the cuirass - 5.38 kg
back plate - 4.03 kg
skirt and caps - 2.3 kg
shoulder pad left - 3.7 kg
shoulder pad right - 3.5 kg
gloves - 0.705 kg each
leg pads with knee pads - 1.2 kg each
left leg and boot - 1.5 kg
right leg and boot - 1.6 kg

Total weight- 32 kg or 70 lbs

Of the tournament parts for this armor, there is only a poster (placate - reinforcement of the breastplate of the cuirass) weighing 4 kg.

The total weight is 29 kg or 66 lbs.

The weight of the rider's armor is 27 kg, plus 7 kg of chain mail.

The weight of horse armor (including an armored saddle - 9 kg) is 30.07 kg, plus 3 kg of chain mail.

They preferred armor. Mail armor began to lose its relevance when longbows and crossbows were invented. Their penetrating power was so great that the nets of metal rings became useless. Therefore, I had to protect myself with solid metal sheets. Later, when the dominant position was occupied by firearms, they also abandoned the armor. The rules were dictated by military progress, and gunsmiths only adjusted to them.

Knight in chain mail, over which a surcoat is worn
There are espaulers on the shoulders (progenitors of the epaulette)

Initially, chain mail covered only the chest and back. Then it was supplemented with long sleeves and mittens. By the XII century, chain mail stockings appeared. So almost all parts of the body were protected. But the most important thing is the head. She was covered by a helmet, but her face remained open. Then they made a solid helmet, which also covered the face. But in order to put it on, a thick fabric cap was first put on the head. A chain mail headband was pulled over him. And from above they put a riveted metal helmet on their heads.

Naturally, the head was very hot. After all, the inside of the helmet was still covered with suede. Therefore, many holes were made in it for ventilation. But this did not help much, and the knights immediately tried to remove heavy metal protection from their heads immediately after the battle.

Knight helmets of the XII-XIII centuries

Shields were made teardrop-shaped. They were decorated with knights' coats of arms. Coats of arms were also displayed on special shoulder pads - espaulers. Subsequently, they were replaced by epaulettes. The espaulers themselves were made not of metal, but of leather, and performed purely decorative functions. Helmet decorations were made of wood and covered with leather. Most often they were made in the form of horns, eagle wings or figures of people and animals.

The knight's armament included a spear, a sword, a dagger. The handles of the swords were long so that they could be clasped with 2 hands. Sometimes used instead of a sword falchion. It is a cutting blade similar in shape to a machete.

Falchion on top and two knightly swords

At the end of the XII century, the first armor for horses appeared. It was at first quilted, and then chain mail blankets. A mask was pulled over the muzzle of the animal. It was usually made of leather and covered with paint.

In the XIII century, leather plates began to be applied to chain mail. They were made from several layers of boiled leather. They were added only to the arms and legs. And, of course, surcoat. It was a very important piece of clothing. It was a fabric caftan, which was worn over armor. Wealthy knights sewed surcoats from the most expensive fabrics. They were decorated with coats of arms and emblems.

This type of clothing was required. According to the concepts of Catholic morality, uncovered knightly armor was akin to naked body. Therefore, it was considered indecent to appear in them in public. Therefore, they were covered with cloth. In addition, the white fabric reflects the sun's rays, and the metal heats up less on hot summer days.

Knight in armor

Knights in armor

As already mentioned, long bows and crossbows appeared in the second half of the 13th century. The bow reached a height of 1.8 meters, and an arrow fired from it pierced chain mail at a distance of 400 meters. Crossbows were not that powerful. They pierced armor at a distance of 120 meters. Therefore, chain mail had to be gradually abandoned, and they were replaced by solid metal armor.

The swords have also changed. Previously, they were chopping, but now they have become stabbing. The sharp end could pierce into the joint of the plates and hit the enemy. A visor in the form of an elongated cone began to be attached to the helmets. This shape did not allow arrows to hit the helmet. They skimmed over the metal, but did not pierce it. Helmets of this form began to be called Bundhugels or "dog snouts".

By the beginning of the 15th century, armor had completely replaced chain mail, and knightly armor had taken on a different quality. Metal began to be decorated with gilding and niello. If the metal was without decorations, then it was called "white". Helmets continued to improve.

From left to right: arme, bundhugelam, bicok

The helmet was quite original bicoque. His visor did not rise, but opened like a door. The strongest and most expensive helmet was considered arme. He withstood every blow. It was invented by Italian masters. True, he weighed about 5 kg, but the knight felt absolutely safe in him.

Whole schools of craftsmen appeared who competed with each other in the manufacture of armor. Italian armor outwardly differed greatly from German and Spanish. And those had very little in common with the English.

Craftsmanship improved, and the price grew. The armor was getting more and more expensive. Therefore, armored headsets came into fashion. That is, it was possible to order a complete set, but it was possible to pay for only part of it. The number of parts in such prefabricated armor reached 200. The weight of a complete set sometimes reached 40 kg. If a person chained in them fell, he could no longer get up without outside help.

But do not forget that people get used to everything. The knights felt quite comfortable in armor. It was only necessary to walk in them for two weeks, and they became like family. It should also be noted that after the appearance of armor, shields began to disappear. A professional warrior, chained in iron plates, no longer needed this type of protection. The shield has lost its relevance, since the armor itself served as a shield.

Time passed, and knightly armor gradually turned from a means of protection into a luxury item. It was associated with the appearance firearms. The bullet pierced the metal. Of course, armor could be made thicker, but in this case their weight increased significantly. And this negatively affected both horses and riders.

They fired at first from wick guns with stone bullets, and later with lead. And even if they did not pierce the metal, they made large dents on it and made the armor unusable. Therefore, by the end of the 16th century, knights in armor became a rarity. And at the beginning of the 17th century they disappeared completely.

Only a few elements remained from the armor. These are metal bibs (cuirasses) and helmets. Home strike force arquebusiers and musketeers became in the European armies. The sword replaced the sword, and the pistol replaced the spear. A new stage in history began, in which there was no longer a place for knights dressed in armor..