Armour or
armor (see spelling differences) is protective covering used to prevent damage from being inflicted to an individual or a vehicle through use of direct contact
weaponA weapon is a tool used to apply force for the purpose of hunting, attack, self-defense, or defense in combat.Weapons can be as simple as a club, or as complex as an intercontinental ballistic missile, and include those that damage individual or group morale.-Prehistoric weapons:Very simple weapon...
s or projectiles, usually during combat. Armour has been used to protect
soldierA soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
s, war animals such as war horses (the application for the latter called
bardingBarding is armour for horses. During the late Middle Ages as armour protection for knights became more effective, their mounts became targets. This tactic was effective for the English at the Battle of Crécy in the fourteenth century where archers shot horses and heavy infantry killed the French...
), and war machines such as
warshipA warship is a ship that is built and primarily intended for combat. Warships are usually built in a completely different way than merchant ships. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster and more maneuverable than merchant ships...
s and armoured fighting vehicles.
Armour has been used throughout
recorded historyRecorded history can be defined as human history that has been written down or recorded by the use of language. It starts in the 4th millennium BC, with the invention of writing. The period before this is known as prehistory.Recorded history begins with the accounts of the ancient world by...
, and manufactured from a variety of materials; starting with rudimentary leather protection, personal armour evolved to mail and full plated suit of armour. For much of
military historyMilitary history is a humanities discipline within the scope of general historical recording of armed conflict in the history of humanity, and its impact on the societies, their cultures, economies and changing intra and international relationships....
the manufacture of metal armour in Europe has dominated the technology and employment of armour. Armour production was a cause of the development of many important technologies of the Ancient World, including wood
laminationA laminate is a material constructed by uniting two or more layers of material together. The process of creating a laminate is lamination, which in common parlance refers to the placing of something between layers of plastic and sealing them with heat and/or pressure, usually with an adhesive...
,
miningMining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, usually from an ore body, vein or seam. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock salt and potash...
,
metal refiningRefining consists of purifying an impure material, in this case a metal. It is to be distinguished from other processes such as smelting and calcining in that those two involve a chemical change to the raw material, whereas in refining, the final material is usually identical chemically to the...
, vehicle manufacture (
chariotThe chariot is the earliest and simplest type of carriage, used in both peace and war as the chief vehicle of many ancient peoples. Chariots were built in Mesopotamia by the Mesopotamians as early as 3000 BC and in China during the 2nd millennium BC. The original chariot was a fast, light, open,...
), leather processing, and later decorative metal working. Its production has been influential in the evolving
industrial revolutionThe Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and transport had a profound effect on the socioeconomic and cultural conditions in the United Kingdom. The changes subsequently spread throughout Europe, North...
, and influenced commercial development of metallurgy and engineering.
Armour was the single most influential factor in the development of firearms that revolutionised warfare. First modern production technology for armour plating was used by the navies in construction of the
Ironclad warshipAn ironclad was a steam-propelled warship in the later part of the 19th century, protected by iron or steel armor plates. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or incendiary shells. The first ironclad battleship, La Gloire, was launched by the...
s, and reaching its pinnacle of development with the
battleshipA battleship is a large, heavily armored warship with a main battery consisting of the largest caliber of guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers or destroyers. There are currently no battleships in service....
. It was the naval engineers that also constructed the first
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
"tanks" giving rise to
armoured fighting vehicleAn armoured fighting vehicle is a military vehicle, protected by armour and armed with weapons. AFV's can be wheeled or tracked.Armoured fighting vehicles are classified according to their intended role on the battlefield and characteristics. This classification is not absolute; at different times...
s protected by
vehicle armourMilitary vehicles are commonly armoured to withstand the impact of shrapnel, bullets, missiles, or shells, protecting the personnel inside from enemy fire. Such vehicles include tanks, aircraft, and ships.Civilian vehicles may also be armoured...
. Air forces also sometimes employ armour. Aerial armour has been used, notably, in protecting the pilots during the
Second World WarWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and in designing heavily armoured aircraft that would be expected to suffer more than usual damage from ground fire.
In modern ground forces' usage, the meaning of armour has expanded to include the role of troops in combat. After the evolution of
armoured warfareArmoured warfare or tank warfare is the use of armoured fighting vehicles in modern warfare. It is a major component of modern methods of war....
, heavily armoured military forces are organised using armoured infantry, mounted in
armoured fighting vehicleAn armoured fighting vehicle is a military vehicle, protected by armour and armed with weapons. AFV's can be wheeled or tracked.Armoured fighting vehicles are classified according to their intended role on the battlefield and characteristics. This classification is not absolute; at different times...
s and replacing
light infantryTraditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
in many situations. In modern armoured warfare, armoured units equipped with
tankA tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility and tactical offensive and defensive capabilities...
s and
infantry fighting vehicleAn infantry fighting vehicle is a type of armoured fighting vehicle used to carry infantry into battle and provide fire support for them.- Background :...
s serve the historic role of both the
battle cavalryHeavy cavalry is a class of cavalry whose primary role was to engage in direct combat with enemy forces . Although their equipment differed greatly depending on the region and historical period, they were generally mounted on large powerful horses, and were often equipped with some form of scale,...
,
light cavalryLight cavalry refers to lightly-armed and armored troops mounted on horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the riders are heavily armored...
and
dragoonDragoons were originally infantrymen deployed by horse, but later became cavalry. They were therefore trained in horse riding as well as infantry fighting skills. Dragoon regiments were established in most European armies during the late 17th and early 18th centuries...
s, and belong to the armoured branch in a national
armyAn army An army An army (from Latin armata "armed (things)" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based Military of a nation. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
's organization (sometimes, the
armoured corps).
Etymology
Armour came into use with the age of the
knightA knight was a "gentleman soldier" or member of the warrior class of the Middle Ages in Europe. In other Indo-European languages, cognates of cavalier or rider are more prevalent suggesting a connection to the knight's mode of transport...
s, hence "shining armour" of the
RomanticismRomanticism is a complex artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Western Europe, and gained strength during the Industrial Revolution...
, the word making appearance in English as a borrowing from the French in the
Middle AgesThe Middle Ages of European history is a period of European history covering roughly a millennium in the 5th century through 16th centuries. More specific starting and ending points are sometimes adopted by scholars to suit their respective specializations or current focus...
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". The word was reintroduced into the English language with the introduction of the iron-clad warship in the mid 19th century.
Materials
Over the centuries a wide variety of materials have been used to manufacture personal and vehicle protection, including:
hidesHides are skins obtained from animals for human use. Examples of animal hide sources are deer and cattle typically used for producing leather, alligator skins, snake skins for shoes and fashion accessories and wild cats, minks and bears, whose skins are primarily sought for their fur...
,
leatherLeather is a material created through the tanning of hides and skins of animals, primarily cattlehide. The tanning process converts the putrescible skin into a durable and versatile material....
,
boneBones are rigid organs that form part of the endoskeleton of vertebrates. They function to move, support, and protect the various organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells and store minerals. Bone tissue is a type of dense connective tissue...
,
linenLinen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
, laminated wood,
bronzeBronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive, but sometimes with other elements such as phosphorus, manganese, aluminium, or silicon. It was particularly significant in antiquity, giving its name to the Bronze Age...
,
iron platePlate armour or plate armor is personal armour made from large metal plates, worn on the chest and sometimes the entire body.- History :...
,
rolled steelRolling is a fabricating process in which the metal, plastic, paper, glass, etc. is passed through a pair of rolls. There are two types of rolling process, flat and profile rolling....
, and synthetic materials such as
KevlarKevlar is the registered trademark for a light, strong para-aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora.Developed at DuPont in 1965 by Stephanie Kwolek it was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires...
, Dyneema and
ceramicA ceramic is an inorganic, non-metallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
s.
The resistance to
penetrationThe ballistic limit is the velocity required for a particular projectile to reliably penetrate a particular piece of armor. In other words, a given projectile will not defeat a given target when the projectile velocity is lower than the ballistic limit...
of armour is related to the thickness of the steel—2 mm armour requires about three times as much energy to defeat as 1 mm armour.
Use of armour
Armour has been used by all combat and many support Arms of Service, including:
infantryInfantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of the Combat Arms they are the backbone of armies...
,
cavalryCavalry were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback in combat. Cavalry were historically the second oldest and most mobile of the combat arms...
,
artilleryArtillery is a military combat Arm that employs weapons capable of discharging large projectiles in combat. They are generally capable of adding considerable fire power to the military capability of an armed force...
, warships,
armoured trainAn armoured train is a train protected with armour. Usually they are equipped with railroad cars armed with artillery and machine guns. They were mostly used during the late 19th and early 20th century, when they offered an innovative way to quickly move large amounts of firepower into position...
s,
aircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported...
, combat engineers,
military medicineThe term military medicine has a number of potential connotations. It may mean:*A medical specialty, specifically a branch of occupational medicine attending to the medical risks and needs of soldiers, sailors and other service members...
troops, and on occasion improvised use by
logisticsLogistics is the management of the flow of goods, information and other resources, including energy and people, between the point of origin and the point of consumption in order to meet the requirements of consumers...
troops.
Characteristics of armour
Since the 15th century, most parts of the
human bodyThe human body is the entire structure of a human organism, and consists of a head, neck, torso, two arms and two legs.By the time the human reaches adulthood, the body consists of close to 10 trillion cells, the basic unit of life...
have been fitted with specialised steel pieces, typically worn over linen or woollen underclothes and attached to the body via leather straps and buckles and points. Mail protected those areas that could not be fitted with plate; for example, the back of the knee. Well-known constituent parts of plate armour include the
helmA combat helmet is a helmet designed specifically for use during combat. Helmets are among the oldest forms of personal protective equipment, and are known to have been worn by the Assyrians around 900BC, followed by the ancient Greeks and Romans, throughout the Middle Ages, and up to the end of...
, gauntlets,
gorgetA gorget originally was a steel or leather collar designed to protect the throat. It was a feature of older types of armour and intended to protect against swords and other non-projectile weapons...
or 'neckguard',
breastplateA breastplate is a device worn over the torso either to protect the torso from injury, or as an item of religious significance, or as an item of status. A breastplate was sometimes worn by mythological beings as a distinctive item of clothing.- Armour :...
, and
greaveA greave is a piece of armour that protects the leg. Often in matched pairs , greaves may be constructed of materials ranging from padded cloth to steel plate...
s worn on the lower legs.
For the elite, full-body plate armour was custom-made for the individual. Most armour was bought off the shelf and some was modified to fit the wearer. The cost of armour varied considerably with time and place as well as the type of armour, coverage it provided and the cost of decoration. In the 8th century a suit of Frankish mail had cost 12 oxen; by 1600 a horseman's armour cost 2 oxen. A typical suit of full plate harness cost around 1 pound sterling in 14th century England and a man-at-arms in the same period made 1 shilling per day and so his armour cost about 20 days pay. Plate armour was limited to those who could afford it: the nobility, landed classes and mercenary professional soldiers, who did most of the fighting in the Medieval period. Soldiers of lower standing generally wore less armour. Full plate armour made the wearer virtually impervious to sword blows as well as providing significant protection against arrows, bludgeons and even early firearms. Sword edges could not penetrate even relatively thin plate (as little as 1 mm). Also, although arrows shot from bows, crossbows and early firearms could occasionally pierce plate especially at close range, later improvements in the steel forging techniques and armour design made even this line of attack increasingly difficult. By its apex, hardened steel plate was almost impregnable on the battlefield. Knights were instead increasingly felled by polearms such as the
halberdA halberd is a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries. Possibly the word halberd comes from the German words Halm , and Barte . The halberd consists of an axe blade topped with a spike mounted on a long shaft...
and blunt weapons such as maces or
war hammerA war hammer is a late medieval weapon of war intended for close combat action, the design of which resembles the hammer.The war hammer consists of a handle and a head...
s that could send concussive force through the plate armour resulting in injuries such as broken bones, organ haemorrhage and/or head trauma. Another tactic was to attempt to strike through the gaps between the armour pieces, using daggers, spears and spear points to attack the
man-at-arms'Man-at-arms was a medieval term for a soldier, almost always a professional. It was a term relating to service as a fully armoured heavy cavalryman...
eyes or joints.
Contrary to common misconceptions, a well-made suit of medieval 'battle' armour (as opposed to the primarily ceremonial 'parade' and 'tournament' armour popular with kings and nobility of later years) hindered its wearer no more than the equipment carried by soldiers today. It should be remembered that an armoured knight would be trained to wear armour from his teens, and would likely develop the technique and endurance needed to comfortably run, crawl, climb ladders, as well as mount and dismount his horse without recourse to a crane (a myth probably originating from an English
music hallMusic hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...
comedy of the 1830s, and popularised in
Mark TwainSamuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist. Twain is most noted for his novels Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which has since been called the Great American Novel, and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. He is extensively quoted...
's
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's CourtA Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is an 1889 novel by American humorist and writer Mark Twain. Some early editions are entitled A Yankee at the Court of King Arthur.-Introduction to the "stranger":...
). A full suit of medieval plate is thought to have weighed little more than 60 lb (27 kg) on average lighter than the equipment often carried by today's armies which averages at around 90 pounds.
History
Many factors have affected the development of armour throughout human history. Significant factors in the development of armour include the economic and technological necessities of armour production. For instance plate armour first appeared in Medieval Europe when water-powered trip hammers made the formation of plates faster and cheaper. Also modern militaries usually do not provide the best armour to their forces since doing so would be prohibitively costly. At times the development of armour has run parallel to the development of increasingly effective weaponry on the battlefield, with armourers seeking to create better protection without sacrificing mobility.
Ancient historical use of armour
In European history, well-known armour types include the
lorica hamataThe lorica hamata is a type of mail armour used by the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. During the 1st century it was starting to be supplemented by lorica segmentata, but had been reintroduced as sole standard-issue armor by the 4th century. It was issued for both primary Legionary and...
and the
lorica segmentataThe lōrīca segmentāta was a type of segmented armour exclusively used in the Roman Empire, but the Latin name was first used in the 16th century...
of the Roman legions, the mail
hauberkA hauberk is a shirt of mail armour. The term is usually used to describe a shirt reaching at least to mid-thigh and including sleeves. Haubergeon generally refers to a shorter variant with partial sleeves, but the terms are often used interchangeably. Slits to accommodate horseback-riding are...
of the early medieval age, and the full steel
plate harnessPlate armour or plate armor is personal armour made from large metal plates, worn on the chest and sometimes the entire body.- History :...
worn by later Medieval and
RenaissanceThe Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Florence in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe...
knightA knight was a "gentleman soldier" or member of the warrior class of the Middle Ages in Europe. In other Indo-European languages, cognates of cavalier or rider are more prevalent suggesting a connection to the knight's mode of transport...
s, and a few key components (breast and back plates) by heavy cavalry in several European countries until the first year of World War I. (1914–15).
In November 2006 it was announced in
GreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula....
that the oldest surviving armour in Greece was restored and will be put on display soon (see picture). The armour dates from the
Mycenaean EraMycenaean Greece is a cultural period of Ancient Greece taking its name from the archaeological site of Mycenae in northeastern Argolis, in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. Athens, Pylos, Thebes, and Tiryns are also important Mycenaean sites...
around 1400 BC and is referred to as the
Dendra panoplyThe Dendra panoply or Dendra armour is an example of Mycenean-era full-body armour made of bronze plates uncovered in the village of Dendra in the Argolid, Greece.- Description :...
.
In East Asian history laminated armour such as
lamellarLamellar armour is a kind of personal armour consisting of small plates which are laced together in parallel rows. Lamellar armour evolved from scale armour, from which it differs by not needing a backing for the scales. It is made from pieces of lacquered leather, iron, steel or horn held...
, and styles similar to the
coat of platesA coat of plates is a form of torso armour consisting of metal plates sewn or riveted inside a cloth or leather garment. The coat of plates makes a fairly brief appearance in the history of European armour during the era of transitional armour, during a portion of the 14th century...
, and
brigandineA brigandine, a form of body armour, is a cloth garment, generally canvas or leather, lined with small oblong steel plates riveted to the fabric....
were commonly used. Later cuirasses and plates were also used. In pre-Qin dynasty times, leather armour was made out of rhinoceros. Chinese influence in Japan would result in the Japanese adopting Chinese styles, their
samurai armouris the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
being a result of this influence.
Middle Ages armour
Mail
Mail, sometimes called by the
neologismA neologism ; from Greek νές is a newly coined word that may be in the process of entering common use, but has not yet been accepted into mainstream language. Neologisms are often directly attributable to a specific person, publication, period, or event...
"chainmail", is made of interlocking iron rings, which may be riveted or welded shut. It is believed to have been invented by the
CeltCelts is a modern term used to describe any of the European peoples who spoke, or speak, a Celtic language...
ic people in
Eastern EuropeEastern Europe is a region lying in the Eastern part of Europe. The term is highly context-dependent and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
about 500 BC. When these Celts moved West they took mail with them. Most cultures who used mail used the Celtic word
Byrnne or a variant, suggesting the Celts as the originators.
Transition to plate
Gradually, small additional plates or discs of iron were added to the mail to protect vulnerable areas. By the late 1200s, the knees were capped, and two circular discs, called
besagewsBesagews are circular defences designed to protect the armpits, as part of a harness of plate armour. Armour without besagews might employ larger shoulder defenses, such as winged pauldrons or simply leave the mail beneath exposed.-References:...
were fitted to protect the underarms. A variety of methods for improving the protection provided by mail were used as armourers seemingly experimented. Hardened leather and
splintedSplint armour, also referred to as splinted armour, is a form of armour primarily from Medieval Europe. The armour consists of strips of metal, or splints, which are attached to a fabric or leather backing or covering. Splint armour first appears in a Scythian grave from the 4th century BCE...
construction were used for arm and leg pieces. The
coat of platesA coat of plates is a form of torso armour consisting of metal plates sewn or riveted inside a cloth or leather garment. The coat of plates makes a fairly brief appearance in the history of European armour during the era of transitional armour, during a portion of the 14th century...
was developed, an armour made of large plates sewn inside a textile or leather coat.
Early plate in Italy, and elsewhere in the 13th–15th century were made of iron. Iron armour could be carburised or
case hardenedCase hardening or surface hardening is the process of hardening the surface of a metal, often a low carbon steel, by infusing elements into the material's surface, forming a thin layer of a harder alloy...
to give a surface of harder steel. Plate armour became cheaper than mail by the 15th century as it required much less labour and labour had become much more expensive after the
Black DeathThe Black Death was one of the deadliest pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. It is widely thought to have been an outbreak of bubonic plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, but this view has recently been challenged...
, though it did require larger furnaces to produce larger blooms. Mail continued to be used to protect those joints which could not be adequately protected by plate, such as the armpit, crook of the elbow and groin. Another advantage of plate was that a lance rest could be fitted to the breast plate.
The small skull cap evolved into a bigger true helmet, the
bascinetThe bascinet was a Medieval European open-faced military helmet, typically fitted with an aventail and hinged visor. It evolved from the cervelliere.The term is also written as bassinet or basinet....
, as it was lengthened downward to protect the back of the neck and the sides of the head. Additionally, several new forms of fully enclosed helmets were introduced in the late 1300s to replace the
great helmThe great helm or heaume, also called pot helm, bucket helm and barrel helm, of the High Middle Ages arose in the late twelfth century in the context of the crusades and remained in use until the fourteenth century...
, such as the
salletThe sallet was a war helmet that replaced the bascinet in northern Europe during the mid-15th century. Some sallets were close fitting except at the back of the head where they extended and formed a pointed tail. Some Italian ones followed the shape of the neck, and had an additional plate...
and
barbuteA barbute is a visorless war helmet of fifteenth century Italian design, often with distinctive "T" shaped or "Y" shaped opening for the eyes and mouth...
and later the
armetArmet is the name of a type of helmet developed in the 15th century, most likely in Italy. It was distinguished by being the first helmet of its era to completely enclose the head while being compact and light enough to move with the wearer. The typical armet consisted of four pieces: the skull,...
and
close helmIn medieval armor, the close helm was a military helmet worn by knights and other combatants in the late medieval and early renaissance era. It carried a visor that pivoted up and fully enclosed the head and neck area, unlike earlier helms such as the Sallet and Barbute, which sometimes may have...
.
Probably the most recognised style of armour in the World became the
plate armourPlate armour or plate armor is personal armour made from large metal plates, worn on the chest and sometimes the entire body.- History :...
associated with the
knightA knight was a "gentleman soldier" or member of the warrior class of the Middle Ages in Europe. In other Indo-European languages, cognates of cavalier or rider are more prevalent suggesting a connection to the knight's mode of transport...
s of the European
Late Middle AgesThe Late Middle Ages is a term used by historians to describe European history in the period of the 14th and 15th centuries . The Late Middle Ages were preceded by the High Middle Ages, and followed by the Early Modern era ....
, but continuing to the early 17th century
Age of EnlightenmentThe Age of Enlightenment, or simply The Enlightenment, is a term used to describe a time in Western philosophy and cultural life, centered upon the eighteenth century, in which reason was advocated as the primary source and legitimacy for authority....
in all European countries.
By about 1400 the full harness of plate armour had been developed in armouries of Lombardy Heavy cavalry dominated the battlefield for centuries in part because of their armour.
In the early 15th century, small "hand cannon" first began to be used, in the
Hussite WarsThe Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars involved the military actions against and amongst the followers of Jan Hus in Bohemia in the period 1420 to circa 1434. The Hussite Wars were arguably the first European war in which hand-held gunpowder weapons such as hand cannons made a decisive...
, in combination with Wagenburg tactics, allowing infantry to defeat armoured knights on the battlefield. At the same time
crossbowA crossbow is a weapon consisting of a bow mounted on a stock that shoots projectiles, often called bolts. The medieval crossbow was called by many names, most of which derived from the word ballista, a siege engine resembling a crossbow in mechanism and appearance.Crossbows historically played a...
s were made more powerful to pierce armour, and the development of the Swiss
Pike squareThe pike square was a military tactic developed by the Swiss Confederacy during the 15th century for use by its infantry.- History :...
formation also created substantial problems for heavy cavalry. Rather than dooming the use of body armour, the threat of small firearms intensified the use and further refinement of plate armour. There was a 150 year period in which better and more metallurgically advanced steel armour was being used, precisely because of the danger posed by the gun. Hence, guns and cavalry in plate armour were "threat and remedy" together on the battlefield for almost 400 years. By the 15th century Italian armour plates were almost always made of steel. In Southern Germany armourers began to harden their steel armour only in the late 15th century. They would continue to harden their steel for the next century because they
quenchA quench refers to a rapid cooling. In polymer chemistry and materials science, quenching is used to prevent low-temperature processes such as phase transformations from occurring by only providing a narrow window of time in which the reaction is both thermodynamically favorable and kinetically...
ed and
temperTemperare is the Latin origin of words like "temperature" and "tempering"; it and "tempo" come, in turn, from tempus...
ed their product which allowed for the fire-gilding to be combined with tempering
The quality of the metal used in armour deteriorated as armies became bigger and armour was made thicker, necessitating breeding of larger cavalry horses. If during the 14–15th centuries armour seldom weighed more than 15kgs, than by the late 16th century it weighed 25 kg. The increasing weight and thickness of late 16th century armour therefore gave substantial resistance.
In the early years of pistol and arquebuses, firearms were relatively low in velocity. The full suits of armour, or breast plates actually stopped bullets fired from a modest distance. The front breast plates were, in fact, commonly shot as a test. The impact point would often be encircled with engraving to point it out. This was called the "proof". Armour often also bore an insignia of the maker, especially if it was of good quality. Crossbow bolts, if still used, would seldom penetrate good plate, nor would any bullet unless fired from close range.
In effect, rather than making plate armour obsolete, the use of firearms stimulated the development of plate armour into its later stages. For most of that period, it allowed horsemen to fight while being the targets of defending arquebuseers without being easily killed. Full suits of armour were actually worn by generals and princely commanders right up to the second decade of the 18th century. It was the only way they could be mounted and survey the overall battlefield with safety from distant musket fire.
The horse was afforded protection from lances and infantry weapons by steel plate
bardingBarding is armour for horses. During the late Middle Ages as armour protection for knights became more effective, their mounts became targets. This tactic was effective for the English at the Battle of Crécy in the fourteenth century where archers shot horses and heavy infantry killed the French...
. This gave the horse protection and enhanced the visual impression of a mounted knight. Late in the era, elaborate barding was used in parade armour.
Early modern period armour
Gradually starting in the mid 16th century, one plate element after another was discarded to save weight for foot soldiers.
Back and breast plates continued to be used throughout the entire period of the 18th century and through Napoleonic times, in many European (heavy) cavalry units, until the early 20th century. From their introduction, muskets could pierce plate armour, so cavalry had to be far more mindful of the fire.
Modern period armour
Though the age of the knight was over armour continued to be used in many capacities. Soldiers in the Civil War bought iron and steel vests from peddlers (both sides had considered but rejected body armour for standard issue). The effectiveness of the vests varied widely- some successfully deflected bullets and saved lives but others were poorly made and resulted in tragedy for the soldiers. In any case the vests were abandoned by many soldiers due to their weight on long marches as well as the stigma they got for being cowards from their fellow troops.
At the start of
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
, thousands of the French
CuirassierCuirassiers were mounted cavalry soldiers equipped with armour and firearms, first appearing in late 15th-century Europe. They were the successors of the medieval armoured knights...
s rode out to engage the German Cavalry who likewise used helmets and armour. By that period, the shiny armour plate was covered in dark paint and a canvas wrap covered their elaborate Napoleonic style helmets. Their armour was meant to protect only against
sabreThe sabre or saber is a kind of backsword that usually but not always has a curved, single-edged blade and a rather large hand guard, covering the knuckles of the hand as well as the thumb and forefinger...
s and light
lanceThe term lance has become a catchall for a variety of different pole weapons based on the spear. The name is derived from lancea, Roman auxiliaries' javelin, although according to the OED, the word may be of Iberian origin....
s. The cavalry had to beware of high velocity
rifleA rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
s and
machine gunA machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rifle bullets in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute...
s like the foot soldiers, who at least had a
trench-Agriculture:Trenches have long been used to carry water. Trenches can be used for draining purposes, leading water away from a swamp or wetland that is to be dried out. Likewise they can be used for irrigation purposes, directing water into dry areas...
to protect them.
The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or incendiary
shellsA shell is a payload-carrying projectile, which, as opposed to shot, contains an explosive or other filling, though modern usage includes large solid projectiles previously termed shot...
. The first ironclad battleship,
La GloireThe French Navy's La Gloire was the first ocean-going ironclad battleship in history.She was developed following the Crimean War, in response to new developments in naval gun technology, especially the Paixhans guns and rifled guns, which used explosive shells with increased destructive power...
, was launched by the
French NavyThe French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military...
in 1859; she prompted the British
Royal NavyThe Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of HM Armed Forces . From the beginning of the 18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early...
to start building ironclads. After the
first clashes of ironcladsThe Battle of Hampton Roads, often referred to as the Battle of Monitor and Merrimack , was the most noted and arguably the most important naval battle of the American Civil War from the standpoint of the development of navies...
took place during the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
, it became clear that the ironclad had replaced the
unarmoured line-of-battle shipA ship-of-the-line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th century through the mid-19th century, to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
as the most powerful warship afloat.
Ironclads were designed for several roles, including as high seas
battleshipA battleship is a large, heavily armored warship with a main battery consisting of the largest caliber of guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers or destroyers. There are currently no battleships in service....
s, coastal defence ships, and long-range
cruiserA cruiser is a large type of warship, which had its prime period from the late 19th century to the end of the Cold War. The first cruisers were intended for individual raiding and protection missions on the seas...
s. The rapid evolution of warship design in the late 19th century transformed the ironclad from a wooden-hulled vessel which carried sails to supplement its steam engines into the steel-built, turreted battleships and cruisers familiar in the 20th century. This change was pushed forward by the development of heavier naval guns (the ironclads of the 1880s carried some of the heaviest guns ever mounted at sea), more sophisticated steam engines, and advances in metallurgy which made steel shipbuilding possible.
The rapid pace of change in the ironclad period meant that many ships were obsolete as soon as they were complete, and that naval tactics were in a state of flux. Many ironclads were built to make use of the
ramA naval ram was a weapon carried by varied types of ships, dating back to antiquity. The weapon consisted of an underwater prolongation of the bow of the ship to form an armoured beak, usually between six and twelve feet in length...
or the
torpedoThe modern torpedo is a self-propelled explosive projectile weapon, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater toward a target, and designed to detonate on contact or in proximity to a target...
, which a number of naval designers considered the crucial weapons of naval combat. There is no clear end to the ironclad period, but towards the end of the 1890s the term
ironclad dropped out of use. New ships were increasingly constructed to a standard pattern and designated battleships or
armoured cruiserThe armored cruiser, or armoured cruiser , is a type of cruiser, a naval warship. The armored cruiser is protected by a belt of side armor, in addition to the armored deck and protective coal bunkers that define the protected cruiser.Armored cruisers were the chief combatants in two naval...
s.
Armoured trainAn armoured train is a train protected with armour. Usually they are equipped with railroad cars armed with artillery and machine guns. They were mostly used during the late 19th and early 20th century, when they offered an innovative way to quickly move large amounts of firepower into position...
s saw use during the 19th century in the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
(1861–1865), the
Franco-Prussian WarThe Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between France and Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and Bavaria...
(1870–1871), the
FirstThe First Boer War also known as the First Anglo-Boer War or the Transvaal War, was fought from 16 December 1880 until 23 March 1881.-1877 annexation:...
and
SecondThe Second Boer War , commonly referred to as The Boer War and also known as the South African War , the Anglo-Boer War and in Afrikaans as the Anglo-Boereoorlog or Tweede Vryheidsoorlog , or the Engelse oorlog was fought...
Boer Wars (1880-81 and 1899–1902), the
FirstWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
(1914–1918) and
Second World WarsWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
(1939–1945) and the
First Indochina WarThe First Indochina War was fought in French Indochina from December 19, 1946, until August 1, 1954, between the French Union’s French Far East Expeditionary...
(1946–1954). The most intensive use of armoured trains was during the
Russian Civil WarThe Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed and the Soviets under the domination of the Bolshevik party assumed power, first in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a multi-party war that...
(1918–1920).
During the
Second Boer WarThe Second Boer War , commonly referred to as The Boer War and also known as the South African War , the Anglo-Boer War and in Afrikaans as the Anglo-Boereoorlog or Tweede Vryheidsoorlog , or the Engelse oorlog was fought...
on 15 November 1899,
Winston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC was a British politician known chiefly for his leadership of the United Kingdom during World War II. He served as Prime Minister from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. A noted statesman and orator, Churchill was also an officer...
, then a war-correspondent, was travelling onboard an armoured train when it was ambushed by
Boer commandos. Churchill and many of the train's garrison were captured, though many others escaped, including wounded placed on the train's engine.
Towards the end of World War I, armies on both sides were experimenting with plate armour as protection against shrapnel and ricocheting projectiles. The first proposal for a tank was by the Austrian Oberleutenant
Günther BurstynGunther Burstyn was a technician and officer of the Austro-Hungarian Army....
who, in 1911, proposed a design for "motor artillery" (
Motorengeschütz) with a turret, but his design never progressed beyond a German patent in 1912.
Tank or "landship" development, originally conducted by the British Navy under the auspices of the
Landships CommitteeThe Landships Committee was a small British war cabinet committee established in February 1915 to deal with the design and construction of what would turn out to be tanks during the First World War...
was sponsored by the First Lord of the Admiralty,
Winston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC was a British politician known chiefly for his leadership of the United Kingdom during World War II. He served as Prime Minister from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. A noted statesman and orator, Churchill was also an officer...
and proceeded through a number of prototypes culminating in the
Mark I tankThe British Mark I was a tracked vehicle developed by the British Army during World War I and the world's first combat tank, entering service in August 1916, and first used in action on the morning of 15 September 1916...
prototype, named
Mother. The first tank to engage in battle was designated
D1, a British
Mark IThe British Mark I was a tracked vehicle developed by the British Army during World War I and the world's first combat tank, entering service in August 1916, and first used in action on the morning of 15 September 1916...
, during the Battle of Flers-Courcellette on 15 September 1916.
In contrast to World War II, Germany fielded very few tanks during WWI, with only 15 of the
A7VThe A7V was a tank introduced by Germany in 1918, near the end of World War I. One hundred vehicles were ordered during the spring of 1918, but only 21 were delivered. It was nicknamed "The Moving Fortress" by the British because of the shape of the hull. By the Germans it is nicknamed "Munster"...
type being produced in Germany during the war. The first tank versus tank action took place on 24 April 1918 at
Second Battle of Villers-BretonneuxThe Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux came during the period of the battle of Lys, 24-27 April 1918, but was launched against the British lines in front of Amiens.The Germans developed a small number of tanks, and used them in this offensive...
, when three British Mark IVs met an advance of three German
A7VThe A7V was a tank introduced by Germany in 1918, near the end of World War I. One hundred vehicles were ordered during the spring of 1918, but only 21 were delivered. It was nicknamed "The Moving Fortress" by the British because of the shape of the hull. By the Germans it is nicknamed "Munster"...
s, supported by infantry. Tanks were knocked out on both sides, but the German attack failed and they retreated.
Mechanical problems, poor mobility and piecemeal tactical deployment limited the military significance of the tank in World War I and the tank did not fulfil its promise of rendering trench warfare obsolete. Nonetheless, it was clear to military thinkers on both sides that tanks would play a significant role in future conflicts.
The development of effective anti-aircraft artillery before the
Second World WarWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
meant that the pilots, once the "knights of the air" during the
First World WarWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
were left far more vulnerable to ground fire. This not only created the requirement for the introduction of the cockpit armour plating that eventually came to be known variously as the "bucket" or the "bathtub", but also the design of such aircraft as the
Il-2The Ilyushin Il-2 Shturmovik was a ground attack aircraft in the Second World War, produced by the Soviet Union in large numbers. In combination with its successor, the Ilyushin Il-10, a total of 36,163 were built, making it the single most produced military aircraft design in all of aviation...
which also were heavily armoured to protect the fuel and engine, allowing much greater survivability during ground assaults.
Current armour use
Today, ballistic vests, euphemistically known as a
flak jacketthumb|300px|The two components of an obsolete British military flak vest. On the left, the nylon vest. On the right, the several layers of [[ballistic nylon]] that provide the actual protection...
, made of ballistic cloth (e.g.
kevlarKevlar is the registered trademark for a light, strong para-aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora.Developed at DuPont in 1965 by Stephanie Kwolek it was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires...
, dyneema,
twaronTwaron is the brandname of Teijin Aramid for a para-aramid. It is a heat-resistant and strong synthetic fiber developed in the early 1970s by the Dutch company AKZO, division Enka, later Akzo Industrial Fibers. The research name of the para-aramid fiber was originally Fiber X, but it was soon...
,
spectraSpectra are conditions or values that vary over a continuum.Spectra may also refer to:* Sally Spectra, a fictional character on The Bold and the Beautiful* Kia Spectra, a car developed by Kia Motors from 2000-present...
etc.) and ceramic or metal plates are common among police forces,
security staffA security guard, is usually a privately and formally employed person who is paid to protect property, assets, or people....
,
corrections officersA corrections officer, correctional officer, detention officer, jail guard, prison guard, prison warder, or a prison officer is a person charged with the responsibility of the supervision, safety and security of prisoners in a prison, jail, or similar form of secure custody.Historically, terms such...
and some branches of the military.
The US Army has adopted
Interceptor body armourInterceptor is a type of body armor formerly fielded by the U.S. military. It is more effective than traditional bulletproof vests and is the successor to Personnel Armor System for Ground Troops . Materials for Interceptor were developed by DARPA in the 1990s and a contract for production was...
, which uses Enhanced Small Arms Protective Inserts (E-S.A.P.I) in the chest, sides and back of the armour. Each plate is rated to stop a range of ammunition including 3 hits from a 7.62×51 NATO AP round at a range of , though accounts in Iraq and Afghanistan tell of soldiers shot as many as seven times in the chest without penetration . Dragon Skin body armour is another ballistic vest which is currently in testing with mixed results.
Despite advances in the protection offered by ballistic armour against projectiles, as the name implies, modern ballistic body armour is much less impervious to
stabbing weapons unless they are augmented with anti-knife/anti-stab armour (usually a form of mail).
Riot police are usually equipped with armour against
blowsA strike is an attack with an inanimate object, such as a weapon, or with a part of the human body intended to cause an effect upon an opponent or to simply cause harm to an opponent. There are many different varieties of strikes...
.
Tank armour has progressed from the Second World War armour forms, now incorporating not only harder
compositesComposite armour is a type of vehicle armour consisting of layers of different material such as metals, plastics, ceramics or air. Most composite armour are lighter than their all-metal equivalent, but instead occupy a larger volume for the same resistance to penetration...
, but also
reactive armourReactive armour is a type of vehicle armour that reacts in some way to the impact of a weapon to reduce the damage done to the vehicle being protected. It is most effective in protecting against shaped charges and specially hardened long rod penetrators...
designed to defeat
shaped chargeA shaped charge is an explosive charge shaped to focus the effect of the explosive's energy. Various types are used to cut and form metal, initiate nuclear weapons, and penetrate armor...
s. As a result of this, the main battle tanks (MBT) designed since the late
Cold WarThe Cold War was the continuing state of political conflict, military tension, and economic competition existing after World War II , primarily between the USSR and its satellite states, and the powers of the Western world, including the United States...
era can survive multiple RPG strikes with minimal effect on the crew or the operation of the vehicle. The light tanks that were the last descendants of the
light cavalryLight cavalry refers to lightly-armed and armored troops mounted on horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the riders are heavily armored...
during the Second World War have almost completely disappeared from the World's
militaryA military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. As an adjective the term "military" is also used to refer to any property or aspect of a military...
due to increased lethality of the weapons available to the vehicle-mounted infantry.
The
armoured personnel carrierAn armoured personnel carrier is an armoured fighting vehicle designed to transport infantry to the battlefield.APCs are usually armed with only a machine gun although variants carry recoilless rifles, anti-tank guided missiles , or mortars...
(APC) is a relatively recent development, stemming from trials and experiences during the Second World War. The APC allows the safe and rapid movement of infantry in a combat zone, minimising casualties and maximising mobility. APCs are fundamentally different from the previously used armoured
half-trackA half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with regular wheels on the front for steering, and caterpillar tracks on the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. The purpose of this combination is to produce a vehicle with the cross-country capabilities of a tank and the handling...
s in that they offer a higher level of protection from artillery
burstAn air burst is the detonation of an explosive device such as an anti-personnel artillery shell or a nuclear weapon in the air instead of on contact with the ground or target or a delayed armor piercing explosion...
fragments, and greater mobility in more terrain types. The basic APC design was substantially expanded to an
Infantry fighting vehicleAn infantry fighting vehicle is a type of armoured fighting vehicle used to carry infantry into battle and provide fire support for them.- Background :...
(IFV) when properties of an armoured personnel carrier and a light tank were combined in one vehicle.
Naval armour has fundamentally changed from the Second World War doctrine of thicker plating to defend against
shellsA shell is a payload-carrying projectile, which, as opposed to shot, contains an explosive or other filling, though modern usage includes large solid projectiles previously termed shot...
,
bombA bomb is any of a range of explosive devices that typically rely on the exothermic chemical reaction of an explosive material to produce an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. The word comes from the Greek word βόμβος , an onomatopoetic term with approximately the same meaning as...
s and
torpedoThe modern torpedo is a self-propelled explosive projectile weapon, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater toward a target, and designed to detonate on contact or in proximity to a target...
s. Passive defence naval armour for use against shells and other projectile weapons has almost completely disappeared on modern warships. It has been replaced by systems designed to detect and evade, or in the case of the
cruise missileA cruise missile is a guided missile that carries an explosive payload and uses a lifting wing and a propulsion system, usually a jet engine, to allow sustained flight; it is essentially a flying bomb. Cruise missiles are generally designed to carry a large conventional or nuclear warhead many...
s, to destroy threats, including extensive use of
radarRadar is an object detection system that uses electromagnetic waves to identify the range, altitude, direction, or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as aircraft, ships, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The term RADAR was coined in 1941 as an acronym for RAdio Detection And...
,
sonarSonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels. There are two kinds of sonar: active and passive. Sonar may be used as a means of acoustic location and of measurement of the echo characteristics of "targets" in the water...
and
electronic warfareElectronic warfare refers to any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum or directed energy to control the spectrum or to attack the enemy. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponent the advantage of, and ensure friendly unimpeded access to, the EM spectrum...
.
Although the role of the ground attack aircraft significantly diminished after the
Korean WarThe Korean War is a war that started between North Korea and South Korea on 25 June 1950 and paused with an armistice signed 27 July, 1953...
, it re-emerged during the
Vietnam WarThe Vietnam War or the Second Indochina War was a Cold War military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1959 to 30 April 1975...
, and in the recognition of this, the US Air Force authorised the design and production of what was later to become the
A-10The A-10 Thunderbolt II is an American single-seat, twin-engine, straight-wing jet aircraft developed by Fairchild-Republic for the United States Air Force to provide close air support of ground forces by attacking tanks, armored vehicles, and other ground targets with a limited air interdiction...
dedicated anti-armour and ground-attack aircraft of the
Cold WarThe Cold War was the continuing state of political conflict, military tension, and economic competition existing after World War II , primarily between the USSR and its satellite states, and the powers of the Western world, including the United States...
.
See also
- Battledress
Battledress, in the general sense, is the type of uniform used as combat uniforms, as opposed to 'display' dress or formal uniform worn at parades and functions. It may be either monochrome or in a camouflage pattern...
- Ballistic vest
- Breastplate
A breastplate is a device worn over the torso either to protect the torso from injury, or as an item of religious significance, or as an item of status. A breastplate was sometimes worn by mythological beings as a distinctive item of clothing.- Armour :...
- Cuirass
Cuirass , the plate armour, is formed of a single piece of metal or other rigid material or composed of two or more pieces, which covers the front of the wearer's person...
- Hillbilly armour
- Linothorax
The linothorax was a type of armor used by the Ancient Greeks, as well as other civilizations, from the Mycenaean Period through the Hellenistic Period. The earliest attested account of a linothorax used for battle is recorded in Book 2 of Homer's Iliad. It is worn by Ajax and is described in brief...
- Powered exoskeleton
A powered exoskeleton is a powered mobile machine consisting primarily of an exoskeleton-like framework worn by a person and a power supply that supplies at least part of the activation-energy for limb movement....
- Rolled homogeneous armour
Rolled homogeneous armour is a type of steel which is used to construct armoured vehicles and tanks.-Composition:Steel for armour plate must be strong, hard, and tough . Steel with these characteristics is produced by processing cast steel billets of appropriate size and then rolling them into...
- Vehicle armour
Military vehicles are commonly armoured to withstand the impact of shrapnel, bullets, missiles, or shells, protecting the personnel inside from enemy fire. Such vehicles include tanks, aircraft, and ships.Civilian vehicles may also be armoured...