Knight's Plate Armor

Timeline

1. c. 1300–1345Armor workshop districts of Northern Italy · LombardyIn the early 14th century knights still wore mail as a base, supplemented by plate pieces such as breastplate, elbow guards, and greaves (coat of plates), fixed by riveting or lacing; craftsmen in Northern Italy were the first to systematically produce replaceable plate pieces, laying the foundation for mid-period plate armor.
2. 1351–1360Battlefields and armories of northern France · FranceFacing crossbow and lance threats in the 1350s, Western European knights increased breastplate and limb plate coverage, and barrel helmets and visored helmets became common; the number of plate pieces increased and curved shaping techniques improved, forming a recognizable mid-period plate armor form, tested in battle on the Anglo-French battlefields.
3. c. 1370–1400Western Holy Roman Empire · Holy Roman EmpireIn the later 14th century, pauldrons, faulds, and more joint plates were added to the system, and mixing plate armor with brigandines remained common; German and French nobles commissioned more armor, and plate armor craft evolved toward greater enclosure and ergonomics, paving the way for 15th-century Gothic plate armor.