We've read the history books. The Age of the Knight came to an end with advent of the gun. Secrets of the Shining Knight the Nova documentary on PBS examines both that question and the nature of the shiny plate armor the knight wore itself.
I am not going to discuss much of what Secrets of the Shining Knight here. It's a very excellent documentary. If you haven't seen it yet, you should. Get to watch plate mail forged!
So did guns eliminate the knight? Not quite the way the history books say. Yes, most armor isn't very effective against muskets. Remember the ridiculous looking lobster armor the knight is popularized as wearing? Not only is lobster armor the ultimate evolution of plate and medieval armor; but it worked against the musket balls of its time. Secrets of the Shining Knight demonstrates that quite excellently.
The following is an insight I gleaned from hints Secrets of the Shining Knight provides.
If the lobster armor worked, why did the shining knight go the way of the dodo? Because the lobster armor was expensive and the emerging nation-states with their standing armies didn't need the wealthy knight who wore the armor to fight their battles.
Shining knight armor disappeared because it was too expensive to field an army with the lobster armor required to resist the muskets of the time. Thus, began the trend of focusing on firepower over armor.
Talk about PBS's billing of 'Think Wednesday' living up to its moniker! Never would have thought of this post' s topic without seeing today's documentary.
Next time.
Dramatis Personae
11 hours ago
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