Re: (TFT) Stewing in Your Own Juices

["Neil Gilmore" <raito@raito.com>]

> Ventilation is a serious factor in armor. Some scholars have claimed that
> men who fell in full plate could have expired from suffocation. I'm not so
> sure about that particular claim, though I guess on a hot day, and/or for
> people who panicked or were heavily trampled, had horses on them, or
> whatever...

Don't know about that, but there was the one guy who drowned because the
face of his helmet got stuck in the mud.

> Note too that medieval knights typically did have cloth surcoats over
their
> armor, which as Rick suggest might help against heat from sunlight. See
> also ancient Greeks and Romans (ever been to Italy or Greece during hot
> weather?) who wore metal armor with cloaks - I expect that was useful for
> reducing heat.

Only up to a certain period (I want to say sometime in the 1400's) after
which it was done less.

> There is a fun series of television programs created by cable companies
> like Discovery Channel or History Channel about what it's like to use
> medieval weapons and armor, which gets re-shown from time to time. They
> took a group of people including modern mounted police, fire fighters,
> soldiers, etc., and trained them to get around, ride horses and fight in
> armor. Fun to watch, and gives some good perspective on some of these
> questions.

And it would be even better if they were taught real medieval techniques.

Neil Gilmore
raito@raito.com
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