The word Armour (British English) or armor (American English) came into use in the Middle Ages as a borrowing from the French. It is dated from 1297, as a "mail, defensive covering worn in combat" from Old French armeure, itself derived from the Latin armatura "arms and/or equipment" with the root arma "arms or gear".
Alexander the Great's army conquered the world while wearing armor made of linen that could stop any arrow made at the time.
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| Portrait of a Gentleman in armour with two pages. Paris Bordone. |
Alexander the Great's army conquered the world while wearing armor made of linen that could stop any arrow made at the time.
Chainmail made of interlocking iron rings is believed to have first appeared some time after 300 BC. Its invention is credited to the Celts, the Romans were thought to have adopted their design.
In medieval times, it was a common practice in the battlefield not to kill knights who wore particularly strong armor. Such warriors were captured instead, and then a ransom was demanded, because only 'well off' knights wore such good armor.
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| Pixiebay |
The craft of the armorer in Europe reached its height in design in the 15th century, when knights were completely encased in plate armor that still allowed freedom of movement.
The full plate armor of a medieval knight weighed from 45 to 55 lbs. It was about the same as the weight of the gear of a modern infantry soldier.
Medieval Japanese armor was articulated, made of iron, gilded metal, leather, and silk.
In the 1500s, Incas had cotton armor so densely woven it could repel spears and arrows almost as well as metal armor.
Soldiers in the American Civil War bought iron and steel vests from peddlers (both sides had considered but rejected body armor for standard issue).
Stephanie Louise Kwolek (July 31, 1923 – June 18, 2014) was an American chemist, whose career at the chemical company DuPont spanned over forty years. She is best known for inventing the first of a family of synthetic fibers of exceptional strength and stiffness, Kevlar, which is used in bullet-proof vests.
Stephanie Kwolek was working on finding a new, lightweight substitute for steel belting in automobile tires, as a result of fears of a looming oil shortage and in anticipation of a market for lighter tires. What resulted was Kevlar, a new fiber five times stronger than steel by weight.
Modern body armor was created by a pizza delivery guy who was wounded in the head and leg after a pizza delivery turned into a shootout. Richard Davis, a former US Marine, developed the bulletproof vest using Kevlar. During testing, he shot himself in the chest 190 times.
The Kevlar Survivors Club, founded by police officers whose lives were saved by Kevlar body armor, has more than 3,000 members.
Suits of armor in the Tower of London were studied by US designers of astronaut wear.
All of the chainmail in the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy were made by hand, link by link.
It is illegal to enter the Houses of Parliament in a suit of armour.
Sources Hutchinson Encyclopedia © RM 2011. Helicon Publishing is division of RM, Wikipedia
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