Armour & Stepping

Hi there.

Today I want to share with you two videos and a book recommendation on the topic of body armour in western Europe beyond the omnipresent shirt of mail or hauberk, namely Roman splint armour, Merovingian lamellar and Carolingian scale armour.

In addition, enthusiasts of historical fencing may care to note that my fellow swordsman and scholar Cornelius Berthold has recently been interviewed on one of his favourite subjects, that is footwork and distance management in sword-fighting.

Lots of good stuff – enjoy!

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The Kalkriese Lorica Segmentata in Action

Last week I told you about the opening of a spectacular exhibition at the Varus Battle Museum in Kalkriese. Its centrepiece is a complete Roman body armour of the 1st century AD. The sensational find allowed for an acurate reconstruction, and a replica is exhibited alongside the original.

Having had the privilege of putting on the set myself, I can attest to its ingenious design which does not restrict mobility at all. In the exhibition, a video illustrates this essential quality of the armour by showing a sports instructor doing his workout and various exercises in armour. I recorded the brief tongue-in-cheek film for you.

Watch workout in armour

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The Armour of BODI

Lamellar is an eastern style of armour which remained in use over millenia. However, only a few examples show up in the archaeological record of western Europe. One such specimen was found in the grave of a Frankish warrior of the Merovingian period. He was a horseman by the name of BODI who was buried in the Rhineland around 600 AD.

The corroded fragments of his armour remained in museum storages for 50 years before they were properly examined, restored, and ultimately displayed in the current exhibition “Life of BODI”.

The museum provides numerous interesting lectures and documentaries on their youtube channel. One of them is particularly insightful, documenting the process from examination of the original artefacts to the creation of a hand-forged replica. The 12-minute-video comes with English subtitles which you can turn on in the bottom bar menu.

The film is very well-made, you should not miss it!

Watch documentary

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9th Century Frankish Scale Armour

Surviving Frankish military equipment from the subsequent Carolingian era is almost nonexistent, mainly due to abandoning the custom of burying a deceased with grave goods. Contemporary sources such as the lavishly illustrated Stuttgart Psalter from c. 830 show some warriors wearing scale armour, a form of protection that had been in use in the Roman army in previous centuries. However, many scholars believe that the armour shown in the Stuttgart Psalter is based on Byzantine art, and does not reflect actual Frankish gear.

In his book “Armour Never Wearies”, Timothy Dawson, a leading expert for Byzantine and other medieval military equipment, makes a strong case for the psalter’s miniatures being accurate depictions of actual Carolingian body armour. He argues that some details of the depictions are actually unprecedented in Byzantine art of the day, and so the psalter's artists must have had first hand experience with exactly this type of armour. Finally he quotes from a 9th century description of the armour worn by Charlemagne to further support his conclusions.

He has me fully convinced.

The book covers scale and lamellar armour from antiquity to the 19th century, and contains numerous photos and illustrations of construction methods. A must-have for every armour enthusiast and re-enactor.

Get the book

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Footwork & Tempo with Cornelius

My fellow instructor and researcher Cornelius Berthold whom I have teamed up with for our upcoming sword & buckler online course has recently been interviewed on his take on footwork in fencing. The video is one of a series for so-called juggers, practitioners of a combat sports based on the 1989 post-apocalyptic movie “Salute of the Jugger” with Rutger Hauer.

Ruben “Uhu” Wickenhäuser hosts his interview with Cornelius on his respective youtube channel. Follow the link below to watch (or listen to) the video. Note that auto-generated English subs mistake “er ficht” (–> he fences/fights) for “er fischt” (–> he fishes). If you do not mind this, look forward to 30 minutes of well-informed and enlightening explanations by Cornelius.

Go to video

If you would like to hear more nerdy talk of this sort yet in the English language, I recommend listening to a very popular episode of The Sword Guy Podcast, which has Guy Windsor and Cornelius talking tempo.

Discover more from Cornelius on his Dimicator Schola youtube channel.

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So, that's it for today. Take care, and keep your blade well-honed.

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Yours,

Roland

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