Getting dressed in plate armour

[Brian G Turner]

A nice video showing getting dressed in plate armour, with some explanation about what the different pieces mean and how they fit together. It is a little long, though - nearly 30 minutes - not least because it takes a while to get suited up.

 

[The Ace]

I thought lifting chainmail up over my head was bad.

 

[-K2-]

I thought lifting chainmail up over my head was bad.

I had an opportunity to try on a full suit of mail without the padding and I was stunned at how heavy it is. Once on it isn't bad, until you realize how much all that weight will wear you out all the quicker. Fortunately never to see such need, I'd have to opt for less taxing attire, regardless.

K2

 

[.matthew.]

Ha. I assumed this was going to be a question and was all ready to link that exact video as an answer

I'd also suggest his Wearing Armour in Winter video, as we often have knights in cold weather just bandying about like it's nothing.

 

[sknox]

Good videos. It's hard to underestimate how valuable is this sort of thing for the writers of historical fiction. In earlier times, all we had to go by were static illustrations and, if we were very lucky, maybe some local re-creationists who'd done their homework.

 

[BAYLOR]

I had an opportunity to try on a full suit of mail without the padding and I was stunned at how heavy it is. Once on it isn't bad, until you realize how much all that weight will wear you out all the quicker. Fortunately never to see such need, I'd have to opt for less taxing attire, regardless.

K2

Imagine how strong tough and in good shape a Knight had to be to be able to move and fight in that armor .

 

[.matthew.]

Imagine how strong tough and in good shape a Knight had to be to be able to move and fight in that armor .

It depends how much time they have to train really. As (I think) most knights were essentially professional soldiers, they would spend their lives training from a young age to handle it fairly easily. Not like someone working in an office and wearing armour on the weekend

 

[-K2-]

Imagine how strong tough and in good shape a Knight had to be to be able to move and fight in that armor .

Ehh... I'd 'guess' that there were a few physical differences between then and modern humans that might have helped (shorter, more compact frame suited to heavier labor than today). Though conversely, I agree (to a point). I'm relatively lean (though that's fluctuating more than I'd like to admit), but from repetitive practice with a bow, some have referred to my back across my shoulders as resembling a linebacker's So, I suspect to a point that is also true.

BUT... I'd also guess that how we see battle portrayed over long spans of time of constant fighting, isn't how it happened--armored or not. Battles--guessing here again--I'd think were much shorter, and/or troops such as knights rotated in and out often.

However, there seems to be enough experts on the subject in this forum to correct me if wrong. But until then I'll still wager on sparsely clad--wise tactically instead--forces such as Indigenous/'barbarian' peoples (as extreme examples) to win the day if the battle is drawn out.

K2

 

[Boaz]

I thought lifting chainmail up over my head was bad.

I thought putting on shoes was bad.

 

[.matthew.]

BUT... I'd also guess that how we see battle portrayed over long spans of time of constant fighting, isn't how it happened--armored or not. Battles--guessing here again--I'd think were much shorter, and/or troops such as knights rotated in and out often.

From what I understand, battles were actually fought over longer periods than usually portrayed. It's very hard to convince people to charge heedless into the fray. I recently watched another video by our favourite Lindybeige where he posited just this issue (it ended up being rows of spearmen gently prodding at each other until an opening presented itself). Historical battles (example) also show many last a minimum of a few hours once the main engagement begins (after arrows and repositioning etc).

 

[sknox]

.matthew. is right, some battles lasted all day. Some lasted even into the night (thinking here of Mansourah in the 7th Crusade, or Towton, cited above). This doesn't mean an individual was swinging a sword or charging with lance couched for ten straight hours. There was an ebb and flow to most battles, and individuals or groups (nearly always groups) either pulled aside to rest or simply found themselves somewhat isolated with time to catch a breath. That said, there were also times when the fighting was relentless, and chroniclers would note that.

It makes sense if you think about it: several centuries and an entire continent. There's bound to be every sort of battle experience you could imagine.

 

[.matthew.]

A slightly off-topic revival, but same guy and same period and clothing related...
Medieval Hoods and a interesting evolution

 

[-K2-]

A slightly off-topic revival, but same guy and same period and clothing related...
Medieval Hoods and a interesting evolution

Clever!

K2

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

In my younger days I knew many young men in the SCA who put on their armor for a few hours of fighting practice a couple of times every week, and they could move around in it without seeming to notice the weight. I have even seen them dance galliards in their armor.

How much easier it must have been for medieval knights, who practiced even more and from an earlier age, to carry the weight.

 

[.matthew.]

Clever!

I really like the roll up around the face bit, that would be so warm and cosy.

How much easier it must have been for medieval knights, who practiced even more and from an earlier age, to carry the weight.

Especially when they were apprenticed (or whatever the pages were). They'd build up a lot of muscle grafting for their master, then learnt fighting and slowly built up to heavier armour. Their bodies would be conditioned like granite.