When people think of armor, images of a knight covered from head to toe in metal often come to mind. However, this outfit is just one of many types of armor used throughout history. Armor is any kind of clothing used to protect the wearer from an opponent in combat. Armor has changed through the years in response to the weapons being used. For example, clothing that was good for saving someone from an arrow might not work against bullets. Like early clothing, early armor came from animals. Thousands of years ago men cushioned their bodies against the blows of clubs with layers of furry hides. Chinese warriors in the 11th century BC wore armor made of five to seven layers of rhinoceros skin. For many centuries mail, or chain mail, was the main form of armor. Mail was made of chainlike rings of iron or steel. This arrangement made the armor quite flexible but still good against daggers and other slashing weapons. Mail could be worn as a shirt, as leggings, or as a hood. In contrast to mail, other kinds of armor were rigid. They consisted of plates made of tough material such as metal, horn, wood, or plastic. Although plate armor was not as flexible as mail, it provided greater protection to the body. The ancient Greeks used bronze plates made to fit the mold of the body and limbs. The ancient Romans favored plate armor made of iron. Leather or quilting was sometimes used to connect the plates. By the 14th century AD plate armor had been made more responsive to the movements of the body, allowing it to replace mail. The armor that protected the knights of Europe during the late Middle Ages was made of large steel or iron plates. Plate armor remained popular in Europe until the 17th century. Improvements to hand firearms around this time meant armor had to be made thicker. People often thought it too bulky. Plate armor disappeared completely in the 18th century. By then it was useless against most firearms and only slowed the soldier's ability to move. Some forms of armor continue to be important in modern times. Soldiers in both world wars wore steel helmets. In the Korean War of the 1950s, U.S. forces were protected by light and flexible body armor made of fiberglass, nylon, and heat-treated aluminum. A common form of modern body armor used today is the bulletproof vest. Worn especially by police officers, it often has a lining of overlapping steel disks. Fiberglass and other material that make the garment less bulky are sometimes used as well. |