03-19-2019, 07:55 AM
(This post was last modified: 03-21-2019, 12:00 PM by Dan Howard.)
The only type of Roman armour that seems to need a separate arming garment is segmentata and that is mainly because of the shoulder padding. Scale armour had an integrated padded liner. Solid plate cuirasses had integrated padded liners. There are plenty of examples of medieval mail with integrated padded liners so I don't see why the Romans couldn't have worn mail with an integrated liner. The edging on mail that is depicted in some Roman illustrations seems to suggest some kind of liner.
Under-padding was just a few layers of cloth. It was meant to stop chafing and to improve the fit of the armour. Any additional protection it provided was incidental, not a design feature, and was no more than what regular clothing provided. It was never meant to stop this "blunt trauma" that some have fixated upon. Any under padding that can stop blunt trauma would be so thick as to make the armour unwearable. That kind of padding was worn over the top as the outermost layer, not underneath.
The best person to ask is Rod Walker. He has been jousting for years. At one event he attempted to recreate 13th century equipment as accurately as possible. He wore mail with just a lined tunic underneath and his opponent wore a light felt tunic under mail and nothing else. They were both solidly hit multiple times with lances and swords from horseback and neither of them suffered anything more than bruising.
If my own experience is worth anything, I've worn mail over a knitted woollen sweater and been repeatedly hit with baseball bats hard enough to knock me off balance. I suffered no more than bruising. One interesting bruise bore the pattern of the mail links.
these threads would be worth reading through
http://myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=34802
http://myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=15219
Under-padding was just a few layers of cloth. It was meant to stop chafing and to improve the fit of the armour. Any additional protection it provided was incidental, not a design feature, and was no more than what regular clothing provided. It was never meant to stop this "blunt trauma" that some have fixated upon. Any under padding that can stop blunt trauma would be so thick as to make the armour unwearable. That kind of padding was worn over the top as the outermost layer, not underneath.
Quote:That confirms my views on the topic. Also if it's not too much to ask, is there any chance you could point me to some of them? Wouldn't mind a chat about the topic
The best person to ask is Rod Walker. He has been jousting for years. At one event he attempted to recreate 13th century equipment as accurately as possible. He wore mail with just a lined tunic underneath and his opponent wore a light felt tunic under mail and nothing else. They were both solidly hit multiple times with lances and swords from horseback and neither of them suffered anything more than bruising.
If my own experience is worth anything, I've worn mail over a knitted woollen sweater and been repeatedly hit with baseball bats hard enough to knock me off balance. I suffered no more than bruising. One interesting bruise bore the pattern of the mail links.
these threads would be worth reading through
http://myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=34802
http://myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=15219
Author: Bronze Age Military Equipment, Pen & Sword Books
