Armor
Armor, a defensive covering, usually made of metal. It is worn by soldiers, sailors, or airmen to protect them against enemy weapons. The term is also applied to tanks and other armored military vehicles, and to the branch of an army concerned with tank warfare.
The body armor worn by ancient Greek and Roman warriors consisted of four main pieces. The helmet was a metal cap to protect the head. The cuirass worn like a vest, consisted of a bronze breastplate and back piece laced together at the sides with leather thongs. Bronze plates called greaves covered the legs. The fourth piece was a round or oval shield, which was held in the hand.
At the beginning of the Middle Ages, armor consisted chiefly of chain mail, a flexible protection made of metal rings or links. The principal garment was the hauberk, or coat of mail, covering the arms, neck, and trunk. A padded garment was worn under the hauberk to prevent the links from chafing or cutting the warrior's skin.
In the 15th and 16th centuries, the suit of armor was made almost entirely of sheets of thin steel, which gave better protection than mail. The parts were ingeniously shaped, hinged, and riveted to allow arms and legs to move freely. When the medieval knight donned his suit of armor and lowered the visor of his helmet, he was completely encased in metal. Mounted on a horse, which might also be protected by armor, he was an imposing sight.
The great problem with armor was its weight. A complete suit of late medieval armor was so heavy that the wearer often could not mount his horse without assistance. With improved infantry weapons and tactics—particularly the use of pike-men in close formation in the 14th century and the introduction of shoulder-fired guns in the 15th century—there was a decline in the importance of armor. It was gradually discarded to increase freedom of movement, although the use of helmets and of torso armor continued for another two centuries.
Modern DevelopmentsMany attempts have been made in modern times to devise armor strong enough to give protection but still light enough for troops to wear in combat. The steel helmet, or "tin hat" as the soldiers quickly named it, was developed in World War I to give protection to troops in trenches.
During World War II and the Korean War, crew members of bombing planes wore protective clothing made of thin layers of aluminum and nylon. These "flak suits" gave good protection against "flak" (flying fragments of exploded antiaircraft shells) but were too heavy and bulky for ground combat troops. During the Vietnamese War, United States airplane and helicopter crewmen wore armor to protect the torso from bullets; it was made of fiber glass faced with a ceramic material. Infantrymen in the Korean War and Vietnamese War used relatively lightweight protective vests made of nylon and plastic. Although this armor did not stop rifle bullets, it provided protection against flying steel fragments from shells and grenades.
Newer types of armor consist of layers of a lightweight, flexible fabric made from a syn-thetic fiber called Kevlar. Many police officers and some public figures wear protective vests or other clothing made with Kevlar for protection against handgun bullets.