Was medieval armor effective?

Plate armor was effective against cuts and pushes, but was expensive. In addition, contrary to popular belief, knights in armor could move around in plate armor: they could get on and off a horse and get up if they were knocked down. But over time, when firearms began to be used, plate armor became ineffective. Armor was used in ancient wars to protect the wielder from normal swords and arrows.

Knights and nobles had better armor and were almost invincible against normal weapons. However, the armor had cracks and weak spots that could be exploited with sharp weapons and concussion blows. Now, the battlefield was dominated by a small (but increasingly large) number of mounted and heavily armored elites who were nearly impossible to stop. Swords, spears, and most other ordinary infantry weapons were more or less useless against a knight in full armor.

The use of plate armor declined in the 17th century, but it remained common both among the nobility and among cuirassiers during the European religious wars. After 1650, plate armor was mainly reduced to the simple breastplate (breastplate) worn by cuirassiers. This was due to the development of the flintlock musket, which could penetrate armor over a considerable distance. For the infantry, the breastplate acquired renewed importance with the development of shrapnel at the end of the Napoleonic Wars.

The use of steel sheets sewn in bulletproof vests dates back to World War II, and since the 1950s they have been replaced by more modern materials, such as fiber-reinforced plastic. Likewise, many role-playing systems cause metal to interfere with the casting of spells, so there's a good reason why wizards wear cloth armor. Since they are the group of people best known for wearing medieval armor for modern people, this skews the way most people view armor. Despite wearing armor that covered practically their entire body, armed warriors did die in battles, which makes one wonder how knights who wore such heavy armor were knocked down with nothing more than swords and arrows.

The “shield of plates” was created by sewing or gluing metal plates to the lining of the colorful furrow of the gentleman, the forerunner of the armored jacket of the bandits of the late Middle Ages. The evolution of medieval armor was a complex mix of technological innovation, social change and changing symbolism, and its story reveals the deep underlying currents of medieval history. At the end of the 14th century, medieval plate armor was being produced on a large scale for the first time since the Roman Empire. Mesh armor expanded from the short-sleeved, waist-high Byrnie of the early Middle Ages to the long hauberk that covered the wearer from knee to wrist.

Consequently, most of the elves of the early Middle Ages were dressed in sturdy local fabrics (usually linen and wool) and were equipped with a wooden shield, which was undoubtedly the most effective form of cheap medieval armor, which could defend its bearer from thigh to neck. Therefore, armor, in general, was completely discarded and replaced by lightweight fabrics and pieces of leather to protect them from injuries and scratches on the surface. Then, in the early Middle Ages, there was an explosion of new styles and types of experimental armor amidst the unleashed power of flourishing kingdoms. But most medieval soldiers don't actually spend that much time being hit repeatedly by heavy weapons, just like most modern soldiers don't spend much time shooting at long ranges.

And, of course, gunpowder weapons, which would ultimately mean the end of medieval plate-based armor, began to be widely adopted starting in the 15th century. Iron Man and all his armored adversaries can attest to this fact in the modern world, and so was it in medieval battles. While the vast majority of soldiers were likely to remain equipped with little more than sturdy clothing and wooden shields, the number of troops wearing effective metal armor on a given battlefield would likely have been in the hundreds or a few thousand, rather than dozens. .

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