History of Medieval Chainmail Armor

First, I should tell you something about the chainmail armor. It is armor made of tens of thousands metal rings. This armor offers great flexibility to the wearer.

The most people associate chainmail armor only with European medieval ages. Not everybody knows that chainmail armor was invented much sooner in antiquity and not only in Europe. It is assumed that chainmail armor was invented sometimes in half of first millennium BC in Europe and it may have been independently invented in Eastern Asia. Chainmail was probable invented by Germans or Celts. Chainmail armor was also used by Gauls in Cisalpine Gaul (Northern Italy). The Roman army adopted this type of armor.

Later, it became available to every Roman soldier. Chainmail was replaced by newer type of armor in first century AD. In thirteenth century chainmail armor covered the whole body of a warrior (even legs). However, the flexibility of chainmail armor was also its weakness. Stronger slash could kill a soldier even without breaking through chainmail hood. That's why warriors wore separate helmet over (or sometimes under) their chainmail hood. When plate armor came in fourteenth century, it replaced chainmail armor. Many warriors still used chainmail armor, even though it was often more expensive than plate armor.

The chainmail was also known in Japan. Also, there have been many differences between European chainmail armor and the Japanese one. Japanese didn't make complete chainmail sets. Chainmail was always stitched onto cloth or leather backing.

The chainmail armor was also used during the First World War. Chainmail armor still has its uses. Today it serves mostly divers as protection from sharks, butchers and animal control officers.