The strength of plate armor against arrows in the 14th-15th century

Introduction

The battle of Agincourt 1415 implanted the idea that it were the skillful English longbowmen that defeated the numerous well-armed French knights. We are led to believe that the longbow was a marvelous technological advance of this period that they could shoot powerful arrows that pierce through plate armor.

Battle of Agincourt 1415

Sometimes history is not what it really is, but what we want it to be. We understand past events in accordance to what we wish to be. We d over-zealously defend aspects that fit our beliefs and downplay other important aspects.

While the longbow was the subject of popular myths and legends, the importance of the newly addition of plate armors was largely underappreciated. A few decades before the battle, the first plate armors were created to strengthen vulnerable body areas that were already protected by mail (chainmail, maille). Afterwards, it became very popular among European Knights due to its effectiveness even though this significant event was largely ignored by history enthusiasts. 

In 2019, Tod Todeschini gathered a group of world class in their fields of expertise, armour, arrows, shooting and historical context to debunk the myth of the longbows. It is proven that plate armor was very capable of protecting the wearer against the powerful longbow.
The original video can be find here

Set up the experiment

Breastplate:

- The 0.5% carbon steel breastplate was made based on Churburg-Style Armor.
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​- It had the thickness of 2.5 mm in the central area, but gradually decreasing to 1.5 mm on the sides.
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- It had the V-shaped pieces to prevent arrows and weaponry from skating to the wearer's neck. 
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- Beneath the breastplate is a layer of riveted maille  and a piece of arming doublet. These layers of protection reflects what knights wore in battle. 

Armor from The Churburg Castle Armory

The breastplate. Dr Tobias Capwell (on the right) and armorer Kevin Legg (on the left)

Breastplate on top. Riveted maille in between. Arming doublet at the bottom.

Multiple layer of fabric in the arming doublet.

The Longbow and Arrows:
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- The bow that was used for the experiment is a 160lbs (73Kg) mountain yew English Longbow.

- The distance of shooting is 25 m, and 10 m. At 10 m, the arrow delivered the maximum impact on the target, but archers either kept a longer distance or switched to hand-to-hand weapons when the enemy reached this distance.

- The types of armor-piercing arrow were used in subsequent order: (1) wrought iron unhardened arrow, (2) wrought iron case-hardened arrow, and (3) modern steel case-hardened arrow. 

- The longbow and arrow shafts were based on archaeological evidence from the Mary Rose wreckage. The arrowhead was modeled after the surviving arrowhead located in the Museum of London.

Archer Joe Gibbs and his longbows

Arrowhead with socket and square point -London Museum type 9. ID: 7568, L 74mm; socket ext DM 10 mm, WT 24.06g. Digital image copyright Museum of London

Armor-piercing arrowheads. The shafts were black poplar (Populus Nigra) and ash (Fraxinus Excelsior).

Fletchings were swan, bound with silk into a beeswax, kidney fat and copper verdigris compound.

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Observations and results

Experiment 1: Wrought arrow, not hardened, 25 m

Observation: with the exception of the first arrow, none of the arrows ran through the armor.
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- The first arrow hit the low edge of the breastplate then skated to the mail area that was not protected by the plate. The first arrow pieced through the maille and the gamberson underneath.

- The second and third arrow hit the plate hard, then were defected out the the breast plate

Experiment 2: Wrought iron arrow, case-hardened 25m

Observation: None of the wrought iron case-hardened arrow penetrated the breastplate.

- The first arrow hit the breastplate hard to the point that the arrowhead was broken.

- The second arrow was deflected by the breastplate
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- The final arrow hit the breastplate the hardest and was knocked back. There was a clear visible big dent on the plate.

Experiment 3: Arrow to the Jupon over the breastplate
French Knight in the period often wear a piece of fabric over the breastplate, called jupon. The jupon significantly altered the projectile of the arrow

Observation: No arrow pierced through the breastplate. The jupon captured all the arrowheads

- The first arrow hit the center of the breastplate, but did not go through the plate. The arrow was held in place by the jupon

​- The second and third hit the center hard enough to break the arrowheads. In both case, both the arrow shafts were knocked back, leaving the arrowhead in the jupon.  

Experiment 4: Modern Steel case-hardened Arrow head, Distance 10 m (best chance for penetrating breast plate)

Observation: Not even the modern steel case-hardened arrow could punch through the armor. But it did leave the biggest dent on the breastplate.

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Conclusion:

European plate armors in the late 14th and early 15th century were too tough for arrows to pierce through. Even the modern steel case-hardened arrow was ineffective against the plate.

Armor piercing arrows could wound and kill a knight in armor when hitting areas that are not protected by plates. A wrought iron unhardened arrow did pierce through both the maille and the gamberson and hit the gel (represented a human body) behind. 

A wrought iron unhardened arrow pierced through both the maille and the gamberson.

Credits:
Dr Tobias Capwell - Arms and Armour Curator, The Wallace Collection
Joe Gibbs - Archer and bowyer https://www.facebook.com/Hillbillybows/
Will Sherman - Fletcher – http://www.medievalarrows.co.uk
Kevin Legg - Armourer - http://www.plessisarmouries.co.uk
Chrissi Carnie - Fabric armour – http://www.thesempster.co.uk
​Tod Todeschini - Host - http://www.todsworkshop.com http://www.todcutler.com