The epoch of chain mail (part one)
The most interesting thing on this piece of embroidery from Bayeux is how the chain mail is removed from the dead ... "Carpet Museum", Bayeux, France
As the hauberk appeared, no one, in general, knows about the guesses as to its appearance will be discussed in the second part, but here it will first of all be told how widespread it was in the epoch of the Ancient World, because it stated myself just then. And again it is difficult to say where its first, single samples appeared. But what is certain is that the Romans of the era of the Republic began to use chain mail on a massive scale. That is, the soldiers fought with Hannibal at Lake Trasimene and in other battles precisely in chain mail, but in no way in the lamellar Loric, characteristic of the Roman imperial period. stories!
However, the manufacture of many thousands of rings, which were required for chain mail, as well as their connection, was not an easy task at all. There were even experts who calculated the amount of time needed to put a whole legion on them. In particular, such a study was conducted by the English historian Michael Thomas, who, on the basis of experimental data, concluded that to make one chainmail of rings with a diameter of 6 mm, 50% of which will be brewed, and 50% riveted (and such chain mails of the Romans were also!) will require 1,3 of the year.
Thus, in order to provide a whole legion of 6000 people with mailmail (namely, there were so many warriors in it in the first century AD), 29000000 required man-hours of working time. So it is hardly worth the surprise that the Romans did not receive widespread mail and did not use mail as much as scaled armor. In addition, the repair of lamellar armor with plates sewn on the skin or on the fabric can also be done by the warrior himself: anyone who owned a needle could do it. It is noted that the chain mail of Roman legionnaires up to the 1st century. AD weighed 12-15 kg, that is, they were very heavy, which is why, according to British historians, and in particular Michael Simpkins, they were later abandoned.
Modern reconstruction of the appearance of the Roman legionnaire in the mail
The equestrian chain mail of the Romans was similar to the Celtic. They had a shoulder strap that looked like a cape, that is, they consisted of two parts, and their weight was about 16 kilograms. The lower ends of the shoulders were fastened on the rider's chest with the help of two hooks bent in the shape of the letter S. At the thighs the horse armor had cuts, which facilitated riding. On the columns of Trajan and Marcus Aurelius we see surprisingly short chain mail with a notched hem and it is not clear that this is a way of glorification of the legionaries, or it really was. On the other hand, there are quite a few reliefs and images of legionnaires in mail of both earlier and later times, where we see mail of quite normal length, that is, approximately to the knees.
Horsemen in chain mails of the late Roman republic from the altar of Lucius Domitius Agenobarba (consul 16 BC), Louvre
Interestingly, comparing the weight of Roman mail to the weight of mail of other nations, it can be noted that about the same weight and mail from Sudan, made in the second half of the XIX century, and whose weight reached 13,5 kg. At the same time, the diameter of the rings of a whole range of Roman armor was only 4 mm, which is less than the diameter of the wheels of many later and preserved era armor of the Middle Ages, the rings of which had an internal diameter of 5-7 mm.
Mail from Sudan. Trophy of the 1 Berkshire Regiment in the Battle of Tofreka, Sudan, 1885. Now the Museum of the Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiments, Salisbury
But the fact that the rings of most of the Roman armor found were not riveted, but kept together, which testifies to the "continuous" mass production at large state workshops. Obviously, this was done specifically to unify and reduce the cost of their production, even at the expense of manufacturing quality.
According to the R. Robinson British history, chain mail was widespread in Sassanian Iran, where it was used along with shell plates. Noting the excellent preservation of the rock carvings in the Tajn-and-Bostan 620 AD, he indicates how accurately and reliably the military equipment of Shah Khosrov II is depicted, because not only all the rings of his mail armor were worked there, but also docking.
Regarding the evolution of chain mail armor in the East, he notes that already in the XIV century. on Persian miniatures, you can see images of armor, representing a combination of plates and chain mail. Convex plates, above all, protected the knees - the most vulnerable part of the body of the eastern rider, using short stirrups. Well, and then the chain mail with plates gradually turned into a mixed type of armor, completely covering both the rider and his horse.
A 16th-century miniature from the poem by Firdousi “Shahnameh” depicts warriors of his time dressed in chain mail, over which bright caftans are put on. Mail helmmen are attached to the helmets, leaving the face open. British museum
In England, the so-called “burial at Sutton Hu” was discovered, investigating which archaeologists have concluded that this is the grave of the Anglo-Saxon king Radowold, who died in the year 625. In addition to the sword, they found six spears with ordinary tips, three spears with tips like “Angon”, and an original hybrid of a hammer and ax. They also found a chain mail, a shield and a unique helmet for finishing, which immediately fell on English marks and almost all publications related to the medieval theme. As for the diameter of the rings in this royal armor, fastened, by the way, with copper wire, it was equal to eight millimeters.
The Arabs of the times of the Arab conquest also knew and used mail *, which is proved by the famous “talk” of Caliph Omar and Amir Ibn al-Aza, representing the characteristic genre of medieval Oriental literature.
"What a dart?" - Amir asks a question, and the caliph answers him: - This is a brother who can betray you. - What are arrows? - Arrows are the messengers of death, which overtake, and maybe pass. - What is a shield? - This is the defense that suffers the most. - What is chain mail? “What makes up the rider and annoyance for the infantryman, but in all cases it is the best defense.” - What is a sword? “This is what could cause your death!”
The Viking chainmail was called the “shirt of the rings,” and she, in the same way as the shield, was given various poetic names. Well, let's say: "Blue shirt", "Battle cloth", "Network of arrows" and "Cloak for the fight." And again, it should be noted that the rings of the Vikings, although chained and overlapping each other, do not hold together their edges. It is clear that this technology made it possible to significantly accelerate their production and weave them right on the ship. Therefore, among them, mail was considered as the most common "uniform" of a warrior. The early chain mails had short sleeves, and they reached the hips, since the Vikings had to row them on their ships and long mail they would only have prevented them from doing so. However, already in the XI century, their length, at least for some, has greatly increased. For example, Harald Hardrada’s chain mail already reached him to the middle of the calf and was so strong at the same time that “no weapon it could not break. " Although, of course, the Vikings felt the weight of their defensive weapons and even often dumped them before the battle, as happened, for example, during the battle on the Stamford Bridge in 1066, just before the battle of Hastings.
The cavalry and the archers are in chain mail, but they are not overalls, but a long mail shirt with cuts in front and behind. "Carpet Museum", Bayeux, France
By the way, among historians for quite a long time it was believed that the famous embroidery dedicated to this battle, and most of all known as the Bayeux Carpet, depicts several different types of armor. This and armor of metal rings sewn on the skin, and each of them with the other rings are not connected. Then - quilted leather armor, stitched so that inside each square or diamond could be a metal plate. How difficult it is, and not otherwise, is difficult to say. However, it is definitely one thing, namely, that this armor could by no means be a jumpsuit, combined into one with sleeves and pants (the design of such a warrior was even placed in the Soviet-era Children's Encyclopedia!) same Obviously, this clothing was worn over the head or worn as a medical gown and then tied on the back. Proof of this is the embroidery itself, in which they are removed from fallen warriors just like a nightgown — that is, over the head. This operation would be impossible if its upper part were combined with the pants! But a square insert, which is visible on the chest of many warriors, could have a collar flap, and even a chain mail mask for the lower part of the face, not yet fastened. In any case, modern British scientists who have considered this question are related to the variety of protective armor depicted on the “Bayeux canvas”, obviously skeptical, because, in their opinion, the soldiers were quite enough at that time and didn’t looking for! Another thing is that the Duke Wilhelm and his brother Bishop Odo’s brother we see stockings of chain mail cloth, but even they don’t have one piece, they only protect the legs from the front. That is, even such wealthy gentlemen had only one piece of stockings either could not afford, or they did not see any need for them!
Warriors with embroidery from Bayeux. Warriors in mail and on the other side. "Carpet Museum", Bayeux, France
And our Soviet historians for a long time called this set of weapons “heavy”, making the knight clumsy, clumsy and mocking him as they could. And only to prove the originality of our entire development path! At the same time, the knights of Russia and the Saracen horsemen of the Middle East, with whom the knights of the West met during the Crusades, and if it was different, were in exactly the same weapon complex, and only in details!
* The most ancient mention of chain mail is found even in the Quran, where it is said that God with the hands of Daoud softened the iron and said: “Make a perfect shell of it and connect it thoroughly with rings”. Therefore, the Arabs and called the chain mail - armor Daoud.
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