Armor and Protection
Armor Types Compared: How Padded, Mail, Scale, Brigandine and Plate Armor Differ
How armor types differ in construction: padded gambeson, mail, scale, lamellar, brigandine, plate, hardened leather and modern soft vs hard plates.
Armor types differ in how they are built: quilted cloth, linked rings, small overlapping scales, plates riveted inside fabric, or large shaped steel plates. Each build changes what the armor stops, how it moves and what it was worn with. Modern body armor adds a split between soft fiber vests and hard plates.
This page compares the construction types. For what each kind of armor is used for (body, vehicle, animal or riding armor), see types of armor and their uses. The armor and protective gear hub covers riding standards.
Key takeaways- Mail resisted cuts well but was weaker against blunt blows.- Scale armor sews or laces scales to a backing; lamellar laces small plates to each other in rows.- A brigandine hides many small plates under cloth and stays very flexible.- Plate armor was worn over a padded arming jacket, with mail at the joints.
Armor types compared
| Type | How it is built | Strength | Limit or trade-off | Fact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Padded (gambeson, aketon) | Quilted linen or wool with stuffing | Worn alone or under metal | Cloth only | – |
| Interlocking iron or steel rings | Good against sword cuts | Less useful against crushing blows | – | |
| Scale | Small scales fixed to cloth or leather in overlapping rows | Made from many materials | Material varied with what was available | – |
| Lamellar | Small rectangular plates laced into rows | Looks solid but is laced | Not the same as banded (laminar) armor | – |
| Brigandine | Many small plates attached inside a cloth covering | Light and very flexible | A vest-like body defense, not a full suit | – |
| Plate | Shaped steel plates joined into a suit | Covers almost the whole body | Needs padding and mail beneath | – |
| Hardened leather | Leather treated to be tough and rigid, often molded | Cheaper and lighter than plate | Less protective than plate | – |
| Soft body armor | Ballistic fiber layers | Moderate to substantial protection | No hard plate | – |
| Hard-plate body armor | Ceramic or metal plate on fiber backing | Maximum protection | Adds plates to the vest | – |
Padded armor
A gambeson is a quilted jacket of linen or wool. It could be worn as armor by itself or under mail or plate. The same garment goes by several names, including aketon and arming doublet.
Mail is a mesh of interlocking iron or steel rings, as a Cleveland Museum of Art hauberk record describes. The knee-length mail hauberk was the main metal body defense in Europe until about 1350. It turned blades well but did less against blunt weapons, so it went over a padded aketon.
Scale and lamellar armor
The two look alike but are joined differently. Scale armor fixes each scale to a cloth or leather backing in overlapping rows, like roof tiles. Lamellar armor laces small plates to each other in horizontal rows.
Scales were made of bronze, iron, steel, rawhide, leather, horn and other materials, depending on what was available. Lamellar was used widely in Central and East Asia and in Eastern Europe.
Brigandine
A brigandine is a vest-like defense of many small plates attached inside a cloth covering. Knights and infantry wore it from the 1400s to about 1550, and finer ones were faced with velvet. Its main advantage is flexibility.
Plate armor
Plate armor is made of shaped bronze, iron or steel plates. In Europe, full plate developed in the Late Middle Ages and peaked in the 15th and 16th centuries. The plates overlapped and were laced to a padded arming jacket that also carried their weight. Mail under the plate covered the joints. The torso piece, the cuirass, joins a breastplate and a backplate; the back of armor names the rear pieces.
Weight figures vary by source: 15 to 25 kg (33 to 55 lb) on Wikipedia, 20 to 25 kg (45 to 55 lb) in World History Encyclopedia, and 50 to 60 lb (23 to 27 kg) for a field suit at the Denver Art Museum. The museum adds that the wearer could still be quite nimble.
In this video from Adam Savage's Tested, a Metropolitan Museum of Art curator shows how plate armor bends and rotates using pivot rivets, sliding rivets and overlapping plates. Watch the breastplate demonstration near the start to see why plate is not as stiff as it looks.
Hardened leather
Hardened leather, or cuir bouilli, was cheaper and lighter than plate but less effective. It was also used for scales. Our page on what hardened leather is covers how it was made.
Modern armor: soft vs hard
Today's body armor splits into soft, non-plated armor and hard-plate armor. Soft vests use ballistic fibers such as Kevlar or Dyneema. Hard plates have a ceramic face that breaks up the bullet and a fiber backing that catches what is left. For US rating names, see what Level I armor means.
Motorcycle armor is built for impact instead. Hard foams, soft materials such as D3O and hard shells over foam each handle a crash differently.
Where armor sits in riding leather
Riding jackets carry impact armor in pockets. Many Leather Collection motorcycle jackets have shoulder and elbow pockets, and some styles add a back pocket. Check each product's specifications for the armor supplied.
FAQ
What is the difference between "armor" and "armour"?
Only spelling. "Armor" is American English and "armour" is Commonwealth English.
What is the definition of armor?
A covering that protects a person, animal or vehicle from injury or damage, especially from weapons and projectiles.
HitKB Editorial Team
HitKB articles are researched from published sources, cited in the text, and reviewed before publication.