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You are here: Home / History / Why did Knights wear full plate armor for tournament jousting when it was impractical in battle in the Middle Ages?

Why did Knights wear full plate armor for tournament jousting when it was impractical in battle in the Middle Ages?

July 2, 2020 by Karen Hill

Knights wore full plate armor for tournament jousting because the battlers simply had to charge in one direction and see clearly enough to point.

At the same time, their squires could rush out and attend to them once they were knocked on their breastplates or cruppers.

However, if a squire were to help scoop his fallen knight out of the mud in battle he surely would be vulnerable—probably killed on the spot by the enemy.

Most squires back in the Middle Ages found it safer to simply run for the hills than stick around to rescue their fallen knights, and so plate mail fell out of favor.

Besides, it became more and more difficult to produce usable armor that was also thick enough to keep those newfangled gun bullets from penetrating.

Related Facts

  • Why did Knights abandon chain mail for plate armor during the Middle Ages?
  • Why did knights use chain mail for protection and armor during The Middle Ages?
  • How did knights in the Middle Ages walk and mount their horses in their bulky heavy armor?
  • Who invented the screwdriver to bolt plates of armor together for knights in the Middle Ages?
  • How could Knights afford armor and weapons when metal was expensive in the Middle Ages?
  • How was the merry-go-round invented during the Middle Ages as a device for training knights to joust?

Filed Under: History

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

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