Knights in shining armor from century to century make an indelible impression on people. The man enclosed in "steel armor" has become a symbol of an entire era in our common history. In any case, for its European part from the Pillars of Hercules to the Ural Mountains. At the same time, a lot of outright myths and misconceptions continue to exist around knightly armor.
1. The armor was heavy and uncomfortable
The most important and most popular myth regarding absolutely all metal armor. Even fully plated cavalry armor is made in such a way as to provide a person with maximum mobility. There are a lot of videos on the Internet where reenactors in full armor do physical education, do somersaults through head, pull-ups, and even wrestle each other while encased in a full set of late plate armor. Middle Ages. The weight of the armor predictably depends on the size of the person, but on average it was about 30 kg. This load is comparable to the mass of equipment of a modern soldier.
2. All knights wore full armor
The cost of even "average" protective equipment in the Middle Ages could be the income of a knight's estate for 3-5 years. High-quality armor could cost even more. Many poor and middle peasant knights most often could not afford a full set of new armor. Some parts of the equipment could even be inherited among relatives. Some were taken as trophies in the war. Although, of course, there were always problems with wearing “alien” armor.
3. Helmet decorations
One often sees knights in illustrations and in films, who have beautiful heraldic figures on their helmets with figs, beautiful ladies or totem and animals. In fact, such decorations were not worn at all in the war. Heraldic figures were tied to helmets only for the period of knightly tournaments as a kind of "advertising" for better recognition of the feudal lord.
4. The chain mail did not protect the knight well, and therefore it was abandoned
Chain mail is one of the most ancient means of protecting the body. And most importantly, this protective agent lasted almost longer than others. Some military formations wore chain mail back in the 17th century already in the era of firearms. In fact, for a long time chain mail was generally the main protective tool for equestrian warriors.
Contrary to popular misconception, in some cases it can protect against a powerful piercing blow of a spear. Good chain mail and against archery. And most importantly, even in plate armor, a chain mail base was used for a long time, to which steel plates were attached. In late medieval armor, chain mail was used for additional protection or cover for those places that could not be covered with platinum.
5. Knights gleamed in the sun
Well, some knights might have shone. Most likely those that were victorious. In fact, since the First Crusade, European chivalry widely practiced wearing surcoats - over-armored heraldic cloaks with symbols of the owner's house. In addition, the knights tried to order blued armor, which did not shine in the sun and had a gray or even black color. Blueing was done for better protection against rust. The richest knights could afford gilding.
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6. Armor can be made by any blacksmith
This is an extremely naive misconception. Not every blacksmith will make even simple armor. Modern blacksmith reenactors spend years and decades learning the trade. In the Middle Ages, future masters began to be taught in guilds from childhood in order to later grow out of them as gunsmiths and armorers. The production of armor in the Middle Ages was one of the most high-tech industries of its time. Moreover, really high-quality armor in Western Europe was made in only a few places: Italian Milan, German Nuremberg, and also in Holland. Russia had its own centers for the production of weapons and armor, although a representative part was purchased abroad, including in the Caucasus. This was due to the lack of own explored reserves of high-quality iron ore.
7. Armor destroyed firearms
When firearms appeared, armor began to be made so that they could withstand shots from reiter pistols, muskets and arquebuses. Elements of plate armor were used until the 19th century. "Killed" the armor of the economy and the military revolution in the broadest sense. With the advent of the New Age, it became increasingly difficult from an economic point of view to dress armies even in low-quality steel armor. The process of abandoning plate armor was also connected with the fact that the European and Russian nobility naturally became poorer against the background increase in own number in the conditions of not increasing the number of arable land for estates from which one could receive income. Therefore, since the 16th century, armies have become more and more massive and more and more “budgetary”.
If you want to know even more interesting things, then you should read about how many arrows to fire from a bow to defeat one medieval knight.
Source: https://novate.ru/blogs/150422/62723/