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The Knight and the Blast Furnace: A History of the Metallurgy of Armour in the Middle Ages & the Early Modern Period
The suit of armour distinguishes the European Middle Ages & Renaissance from all other periods and cultures. Unlike flexible defences, popular everywhere else in the world, the rigid, articulated, exoskeleton of a "suit of armour" was a more extravagant and less adaptable means of personal protection. It required greater metallurgical resources to make, but offered far better protection against available weapons. This book tells the story from its invention in 14th century Lombardy, which depended on the production of the necessary steel, until its eventual decline in the 17th century, principally because of the development of another military technology, the gun. The metallurgy of 600 armours has been analysed, and their probable effectiveness in battle is assessed by means of mechanical tests.
- GenresHistory
968 pages, Hardcover
First published November 25, 2002
3 people are currently reading
112 people want to read
About the author
Alan Williams
63 books22 followersAlan Williams worked as a script editor for the BBC, working on Absolutely Fabulous, Birds of a Feather and Keeping up Appearances amongst others. He went on to edit Writers' Monthly and now publishes two influential films and television magazines. He lives in Blackheath, London, has won awards for his short stories, and includes dieting and chocolate éclairs as his hobbies.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 6, 2022
Since its publication by Brill Academic Publishers in 2003, The Knight and the Blast Furnace by Dr. Alan Williams has become one of the primary works for the study of pre-modern armor. Widely cited by subsequent in subsequent works, this study performs a task which had never before been approached in the study of armor: the analytical, scientific study of a wide range of elements of armor from a metallurgical point of view. The author examined an impressive array of amors from collections across the world, placing them beneath his metallographer's microscope in an effort to determine their material composition and the processes that went into creating each piece, in particular whether they were hardened successfully, hardened and tempered, whether there was a failed attempt at hardening, or whether the piece was simply air cooled.
The volume is divided into nine sections, which contain a total of 45 chapters. The first section, entitled “Iron,” serves as an introduction to the basic concept of metallurgy which the author uses throughout the book. Chapter 1.1 gives a brief history of iron making, a history which relies almost entirely on archaeological material due to the dearth of historical material relevant to early iron making. Chapter 1.2 briefly discusses the metallography of swords, while chapter 1.3 covers the hardening of steel. It is chapter 1.3 in which the author provides the reader with definitions for the relevant microstructures which are to be found in steel, as well as images of what they look like under a microscope and how the images help the researcher determine whether the piece was quench hardened successfully, unsuccessfully, or not at all.
Section two, called “Mail,” only contains two chapters. The first, chapter 2.1, gives a general overview as to what mail armor is as well as the process of making various types of protective equipment. A brief analysis of the metallography of the few mail fragments that survive from the migration period and early middle ages is also provided. Section 2.2 provides an overview of the “Armour of the Later Roman Empire and Early Middle Ages” (armor which primarily consisted of mail) as well as a brief discussion on helmets of the early middle ages.
Section 3, titled “Knights,” provides further contextual information. Chapter 3.1 presents a short history of heavy cavalry as well as a history of knightly mail armor. Chapter 3.2 examines medieval infantry and the crossbow.
Section 4 begins the actual process of examining plate armor. Called “Italy,” this section focuses on armor manufactured in the Italian peninsula, with particular attention paid to the production centers in Lombardy. Chapter 4.1, which the author calls “The Flourishing of an Industry,” provides a brief discussion on the invention of the suit of full plate armor which occurred in Italy in the late 14th century. Here Williams also concisely examines the areas of Lombardy, particularly Milan and Brescia, which served as centers of production for armor, as well as the Missaglia family, the first proto-capitalist armoring family.
After this point, sections 4, 5, and 6 all follow a similar formula. First, a category of armor is presented in a chapter which discusses the broad trends in metallurgy of that category. Second, the actual pieces which were examined are presented, including both macroscopic images of the pieces themselves as well as microscopic images of the relevant microstructures. A short description of the piece’s hardness and composition are also included. Chapters 4.2 and 4.3 cover Italian made armor prior to 1510, while 4.4 and 4.5 cover Italian produced armor after 1510. The author chose this date, 1510, as a dividing point due to the introduction of fire gilding into the Italian armorer’s repertoire, an introduction which caused quench hardening to entirely disappear from the manufacture of Italian armor.
Section 5 considers “German” armor. Chapters 5.1 and 5.2 discuss “German” armor from before 1450, a time when relatively little German-made armor survives, none of which can be traced to a particular area of manufacture. The remaining chapters all concern themselves only with armor manufactured after 1450, and are divided by city. Chapters 5.3 and 5.4 detail armor made in Augsburg, chapters 5.5 and 5.6 armors from Innsbruck, chapters 5.7 and 5.8 armors from Landshut, and chapters 5.9 and 5.10 armors from Nurnberg. Nurnberg was also known as a center for tournament armor, so another chapter, 5.11, is included specifically to discuss tournament armor made there.
Little armor survives which can confidently be said to have been produced outside of Italy and Germany. As a consequence of this, section 6 is dedicated to the remainder of European armor. Chapter 6.1 discusses the metallurgy of German armor made after 1450 which cannot be traced to a particular city, while chapters 6.2/6.3 and 6.4/6.5 cover Flanders and England respectively. The remaining regions (Spain, France, Sweden, and North German and the Netherlands) are each covered in only a single chapter (6.6, 6.7, 6.8, and 6.9 respectively.)
Section 7 deviates from previous discussion about armor to turn to firearms. Chapter 7.1 covers the invention of guns, first discussing Greek fire before turning to the invention of proper gunpowder in China and its spread through the Muslim world to Europe. Chapter 7.2 examines the earliest guns in Europe as well as improvements that were made upon the design up to the 15th century. Chapter 7.3 then examines some case studies of the adoption of firearms in Europe with their first wide scale use by the Hussites in the Hussite wars and finally by the English, the last large force to widely adopt firearms during the Wars of the Roses. The final chapter in this section, chapter 7.4, covers the use of handguns in the 16th century, paying particular attention to the role of firearms at the battle of Pavia in 1524, a battle which the author calls “decisive” to the role firearms would play in the rest of the 16th century.
Section 8 is named “Production.” Chapter 8.1 goes into great detail regarding the process of making iron and steel in the middle ages using a blast furnace, while chapter 8.2 discusses the processes used by medieval armorsmiths to harden armor. Chapter 8.3 considers the mass-production of armor.
The final section of this work, section 9, uses the data gathered by the author to answer the question “does armor work?” Entitled “Protection,” the first chapter of this section examines the thickness of plate armor. Chapter 9.2 discusses the weapons that may be used to attack armor, and provides estimates in joules for how much energy each of these forms of attack may impart. Chapter 9.3 examines contemporary accounts of the effectiveness of armor, paying particular attention to firearms and crossbows, the two most powerful weapons of their day. “Proofing” armor against both crossbow and gun shot was a common method of showing the customer that the armor was of high quality. Chapter 9.4 gathers together all of the data and scrutinizes the question in order to provide an estimate on the effectiveness of armor. The final chapter, 9.5, serves as a conclusion, finally answering the question “did armor work?” Supported by a large amount of empirical data, the author concludes that yes, indeed, armor did work.
Footnotes are included at the bottom of each page, and, while the volume does include an index, no bibliography is included. Instead, the author elects to include his references at the end of each chapter. The works cited by this author include scholarship from a great variety of languages, including English, German, Italian, French, Czech, and Danish.
When first reading this work, this reviewer questioned the decision to include an entire section dedicated not to armor, but to firearms, however, upon working through this section and the sections which come after it, I have reached the conclusion that this deviation is not only helpful but necessary. The effects that the development of firearms had upon the development of plate armor are inescapable, and the subsequent discussions on production and protection would have been lacking without this contextualizing information. With this in mind, this reviewer has no criticisms for this work. Dr. Williams provides an incredible resource to all scholars of armor. The context which he provides in his introduction, as well as in later sections, mean that the reader does not need to be an expert in metallurgy coming into this book. Rather, a complete novice to the subject can understand what is laid out here. Some readers with less experience may find themselves overwhelmed with information, however, this reviewer would recommend this book as an absolute necessity to anyone interested in the study of armor.
The volume is divided into nine sections, which contain a total of 45 chapters. The first section, entitled “Iron,” serves as an introduction to the basic concept of metallurgy which the author uses throughout the book. Chapter 1.1 gives a brief history of iron making, a history which relies almost entirely on archaeological material due to the dearth of historical material relevant to early iron making. Chapter 1.2 briefly discusses the metallography of swords, while chapter 1.3 covers the hardening of steel. It is chapter 1.3 in which the author provides the reader with definitions for the relevant microstructures which are to be found in steel, as well as images of what they look like under a microscope and how the images help the researcher determine whether the piece was quench hardened successfully, unsuccessfully, or not at all.
Section two, called “Mail,” only contains two chapters. The first, chapter 2.1, gives a general overview as to what mail armor is as well as the process of making various types of protective equipment. A brief analysis of the metallography of the few mail fragments that survive from the migration period and early middle ages is also provided. Section 2.2 provides an overview of the “Armour of the Later Roman Empire and Early Middle Ages” (armor which primarily consisted of mail) as well as a brief discussion on helmets of the early middle ages.
Section 3, titled “Knights,” provides further contextual information. Chapter 3.1 presents a short history of heavy cavalry as well as a history of knightly mail armor. Chapter 3.2 examines medieval infantry and the crossbow.
Section 4 begins the actual process of examining plate armor. Called “Italy,” this section focuses on armor manufactured in the Italian peninsula, with particular attention paid to the production centers in Lombardy. Chapter 4.1, which the author calls “The Flourishing of an Industry,” provides a brief discussion on the invention of the suit of full plate armor which occurred in Italy in the late 14th century. Here Williams also concisely examines the areas of Lombardy, particularly Milan and Brescia, which served as centers of production for armor, as well as the Missaglia family, the first proto-capitalist armoring family.
After this point, sections 4, 5, and 6 all follow a similar formula. First, a category of armor is presented in a chapter which discusses the broad trends in metallurgy of that category. Second, the actual pieces which were examined are presented, including both macroscopic images of the pieces themselves as well as microscopic images of the relevant microstructures. A short description of the piece’s hardness and composition are also included. Chapters 4.2 and 4.3 cover Italian made armor prior to 1510, while 4.4 and 4.5 cover Italian produced armor after 1510. The author chose this date, 1510, as a dividing point due to the introduction of fire gilding into the Italian armorer’s repertoire, an introduction which caused quench hardening to entirely disappear from the manufacture of Italian armor.
Section 5 considers “German” armor. Chapters 5.1 and 5.2 discuss “German” armor from before 1450, a time when relatively little German-made armor survives, none of which can be traced to a particular area of manufacture. The remaining chapters all concern themselves only with armor manufactured after 1450, and are divided by city. Chapters 5.3 and 5.4 detail armor made in Augsburg, chapters 5.5 and 5.6 armors from Innsbruck, chapters 5.7 and 5.8 armors from Landshut, and chapters 5.9 and 5.10 armors from Nurnberg. Nurnberg was also known as a center for tournament armor, so another chapter, 5.11, is included specifically to discuss tournament armor made there.
Little armor survives which can confidently be said to have been produced outside of Italy and Germany. As a consequence of this, section 6 is dedicated to the remainder of European armor. Chapter 6.1 discusses the metallurgy of German armor made after 1450 which cannot be traced to a particular city, while chapters 6.2/6.3 and 6.4/6.5 cover Flanders and England respectively. The remaining regions (Spain, France, Sweden, and North German and the Netherlands) are each covered in only a single chapter (6.6, 6.7, 6.8, and 6.9 respectively.)
Section 7 deviates from previous discussion about armor to turn to firearms. Chapter 7.1 covers the invention of guns, first discussing Greek fire before turning to the invention of proper gunpowder in China and its spread through the Muslim world to Europe. Chapter 7.2 examines the earliest guns in Europe as well as improvements that were made upon the design up to the 15th century. Chapter 7.3 then examines some case studies of the adoption of firearms in Europe with their first wide scale use by the Hussites in the Hussite wars and finally by the English, the last large force to widely adopt firearms during the Wars of the Roses. The final chapter in this section, chapter 7.4, covers the use of handguns in the 16th century, paying particular attention to the role of firearms at the battle of Pavia in 1524, a battle which the author calls “decisive” to the role firearms would play in the rest of the 16th century.
Section 8 is named “Production.” Chapter 8.1 goes into great detail regarding the process of making iron and steel in the middle ages using a blast furnace, while chapter 8.2 discusses the processes used by medieval armorsmiths to harden armor. Chapter 8.3 considers the mass-production of armor.
The final section of this work, section 9, uses the data gathered by the author to answer the question “does armor work?” Entitled “Protection,” the first chapter of this section examines the thickness of plate armor. Chapter 9.2 discusses the weapons that may be used to attack armor, and provides estimates in joules for how much energy each of these forms of attack may impart. Chapter 9.3 examines contemporary accounts of the effectiveness of armor, paying particular attention to firearms and crossbows, the two most powerful weapons of their day. “Proofing” armor against both crossbow and gun shot was a common method of showing the customer that the armor was of high quality. Chapter 9.4 gathers together all of the data and scrutinizes the question in order to provide an estimate on the effectiveness of armor. The final chapter, 9.5, serves as a conclusion, finally answering the question “did armor work?” Supported by a large amount of empirical data, the author concludes that yes, indeed, armor did work.
Footnotes are included at the bottom of each page, and, while the volume does include an index, no bibliography is included. Instead, the author elects to include his references at the end of each chapter. The works cited by this author include scholarship from a great variety of languages, including English, German, Italian, French, Czech, and Danish.
When first reading this work, this reviewer questioned the decision to include an entire section dedicated not to armor, but to firearms, however, upon working through this section and the sections which come after it, I have reached the conclusion that this deviation is not only helpful but necessary. The effects that the development of firearms had upon the development of plate armor are inescapable, and the subsequent discussions on production and protection would have been lacking without this contextualizing information. With this in mind, this reviewer has no criticisms for this work. Dr. Williams provides an incredible resource to all scholars of armor. The context which he provides in his introduction, as well as in later sections, mean that the reader does not need to be an expert in metallurgy coming into this book. Rather, a complete novice to the subject can understand what is laid out here. Some readers with less experience may find themselves overwhelmed with information, however, this reviewer would recommend this book as an absolute necessity to anyone interested in the study of armor.
March 28, 2017
Winner in 2003 of the award for the book that would be most improved by a glossary, Williams examines metallurgy and the production of armour and weapons in the middle ages and early modern period. Whether this book has a main thesis that runs throughout is uncertain, but it provides a wealth of fascinating detail. The thirteenth century, and especially the fourteenth, represent a turning point in European armour production. Mail was becoming less effective in the thirteenth century due to the crossbow and so was being supplemented by iron plates, and the high labour cost of mail spelled doom for it after the Black Death. But expanding production of plate armour was not simple, as the plates were limited to the size of the blooms. Bigger and hotter furnaces were needed to make high-quality plate, which was primarily developed in Lombardy. The ultimate result was the refining of metalworking techniques, the spread of metal armour for armies, and the development of full plate, which by the fifteenth cetury could stop a crossbow but hovered on the edge of stopping shots from handguns. Williams' evidence for the late medieval expansion of metal armour is impressive - documents illustrate how the English crown purchased thousands of pieces of armour. Williams posits and interesting (but undeveloped) thesis that armour dropped out for infantry by the 17th/18th c. because the increasing use of under-nourished conscripts combined with the need for the armour to be fairly thick (4mm) meant that they simply couldn't march in the weight, not that it would be useless. The book concludes with data from penetration tests, which reveal some interesting details, such as the famed English longbow perhaps not being as deadly as one might think and fifteenth-century handguns being a lot more dangerous than one might suppose.
That said, the book does feel more than a little dis-organized, and much of it is a catalogue of armour. Some more of the cultural and social elements of changing armour and weapon technology would be much appreciated, especially since when Williams does talk about it, he has intriguing ideas.
That said, the book does feel more than a little dis-organized, and much of it is a catalogue of armour. Some more of the cultural and social elements of changing armour and weapon technology would be much appreciated, especially since when Williams does talk about it, he has intriguing ideas.
February 19, 2025
Uznajmy, że przeczytałem. Książka ma 900+ stron, a potrzebowałem jej do pracy, jednak nie ukrywam, znakomitą jej większość przeczytałem z prawdziwym zainteresowaniem.
Mamy tutaj pokrótce przedstawioną historię płatnerstwa oraz opis najważniejszych ośrodków płatnerskich Europy. Jednak najważniejszym i najdłuższym elementem tej książki jest prezentacja wyników badań metalurgii zachowanych zbroi. Na podstawie próbki pobranej z eksponatów i przebadanej, m.i. pod mikroskopem (pełna metodologia opisana w książce) autor opisuje skład metalu w zbroi, szacuje zawartość węgla oraz ocenia czy była hartowana czy nie, oprócz tego bada też mikrotwardość. Załącza do tego obrazy zarówno mikroskopowe jak i całych elementów. Żałowałem tylko, że w mojej wersji były czarno-białe (nie wiem jak jest w oryginale, ale w papierze książka kosztuje kosmiczne pieniądze).
Na końcu książki zaś coś dla fanatyków rpgów i fantastyki, czyli rozważania (i eksperymenty) nt. wytrzymałości zbroi i innych przydatnych rzeczach.
Bardzo polecam
Mamy tutaj pokrótce przedstawioną historię płatnerstwa oraz opis najważniejszych ośrodków płatnerskich Europy. Jednak najważniejszym i najdłuższym elementem tej książki jest prezentacja wyników badań metalurgii zachowanych zbroi. Na podstawie próbki pobranej z eksponatów i przebadanej, m.i. pod mikroskopem (pełna metodologia opisana w książce) autor opisuje skład metalu w zbroi, szacuje zawartość węgla oraz ocenia czy była hartowana czy nie, oprócz tego bada też mikrotwardość. Załącza do tego obrazy zarówno mikroskopowe jak i całych elementów. Żałowałem tylko, że w mojej wersji były czarno-białe (nie wiem jak jest w oryginale, ale w papierze książka kosztuje kosmiczne pieniądze).
Na końcu książki zaś coś dla fanatyków rpgów i fantastyki, czyli rozważania (i eksperymenty) nt. wytrzymałości zbroi i innych przydatnych rzeczach.
Bardzo polecam
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