A shield is a protective device, meant to intercept attacks. The term often refers to a device that is held in the hand, as opposed to armour or a bullet proof vest. Armour (or armor) is protective covering most commonly manufactured from metals to prevent damage from being inflicted to an individual or a vehicle through use of direct contact A ballistic vest is an item of protective clothing that absorbs the impact from gun-fired Projectiles and shrapnel fragments from explosion
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Prehistoric and Antiquity
The oldest form of shield was a protection used to block attacks by hand weapons, such as swords, axes and maces or missiles like spears and arrows. A personal weapon is a weapon that can be carried and employed by a single person although its use may be restricted to specialist members of attack or defense teams A ranged weapon or missile weapon is any Weapon that launches a Projectile or that is a projectile itself Shields have varied greatly in construction over time and place. Sometimes shields were made of metal, but wood or animal hide construction was much more common; wicker and even turtle shells have been used. Wood is hard fibrous lignified structural tissue produced as secondary Xylem in the stems of Woody plants notably trees but also shrubs Rawhide is a hide or animal skin that has not been exposed to Tanning. Wicker is hard woven Fiber formed into a useful object Wicker is usually used for Baskets or Furniture. Many surviving examples of metal shields are generally felt to be ceremonial rather than practical, for example the Yetholm-type shields of the Bronze Age or the Iron Age Battersea shield. Yetholm-type shields were used in 1200-800 BC ( Bronze Age) The known Shields come from Britain and Ireland excepting one from Denmark. The term Bronze Age refers to a period in human cultural development when the most advanced Metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use included techniques for This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age for the mythological Iron Age see Ages of Man. The Battersea Shield is a sheet Bronze Shield. It probably dates from the first century BC to early first century AD though an earlier date is possible
Size and weight varied greatly, lightly armored warriors relying on speed and surprise would generally carry light shields that were either small or thin. Traditionally light infantry (or skirmishers) were soldiers whose job was to provide a Skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of Infantry, harassing Heavy troops might be equipped with large heavy shields that could protect most of the body. Heavy infantry refers to heavily armed and armoured ground troops as opposed to medium or Light infantry, in which the warriors are relatively lightly-armoured Many had a strap called a guige that allowed it to be slung over the user's back when not in use or on horseback. A guige is a long Strap, typically made of Leather, used to hang a Shield on the shoulder or neck During the 14th-13th century BCE, the Sards or Shardana, working as mercenaries for the Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II, utilized either large or small round shields against the Hittites. A mercenary is a person who takes part in an armed conflict who is not a national or a party to the conflict and is "motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by The Hittites were an ancient Anatolian people who spoke a language of the Anatolian branch of the Indo-European language family and established The Ancient Greek hoplites used a round, bowl-shaped wooden shield called an aspis. The word hoplite ( Greek: hoplitēs; pl hoplitai) derives from hoplon ( plural hopla) meaning an item of armour or equipment thus 'hoplite' For the poem traditionally attributed to Hesiod see The Shield of Heracles An aspis (ˈæspɨs Ancient Greek: ασπίς Examples of German wooden shields c350 BC - 500 AD survive from Weapons sacrifices in Danish bogs. The Greeks and Romans set up trophies after victories in battle Free standing shields called pavises were used by medieval crossbowmen who needed protection while reloading. A pavise (or pavis, pabys, pavesen) is a large convex Shield of European origin used to protect the entire body A crossbow is a Weapon consisting of a bow mounted on a stock that shoots projectiles often called bolts
The heavily armored Roman legionaries carried large shields (scuta) that could provide far more protection, but made swift movement a little more difficult. For other uses see Legion The Roman Legion (from Latin legio "military levy Conscription," Scutum ('skjuːtəm in English pl scuta) is the Latin word for " Shield " although it has in modern times come to be specifically The scutum originally had an oval shape, but gradually the curved tops and sides were cut to produce the familiar rectangular shape most commonly seen in the early Imperial legions. Famously, the Romans used their shields to create a tortoise-like formation called a testudo in which entire groups of soldiers would be enclosed in an armoured box to provide protection against missiles. In Ancient Roman Warfare the testudo or tortoise formation was a formation used commonly by the Roman Legions during battles particularly sieges
Many ancient shield designs featured incuts of one sort of another. This was done to accommodate the shaft of a spear, thus facilitating tactics requiring the soldiers to stand close together forming a wall of shields. The formation of shield wall, or Skjaldborg in Old Norse is a Military tactic that was common in many cultures in the Pre- Early Modern warfare age
Middle Ages
In the early European Middle Ages kite shields were commonly used; these were rounded at the top and tapered at the bottom. A kite shield was a distinct type of Shield from the 10th–12th centuries They were easily used on horseback and allowed easier leg movement when dismounted. As personal body armour improved, knight's shields became smaller, leading to the familiar heater shield style. Knight is the English term for a social position originating in the Middle Ages. The heater shield is a form of Shield characterized by its distinctive shape Both kite and heater style shields were made of several layers of laminated wood, with a gentle curve in cross section. The heater style inspired the shape of the symbolic heraldic shield that is still used today. Escutcheon (ɪ'skʌtʃən (also called scutcheon) is the term used in Heraldry for the Shield displayed Eventually, specialised shapes were developed such as the bouche — which had a lance rest cut into the upper corner of the lance side, to help guide it in combat or tournament. The term lance has become a catchall for a variety of different Pole weapons based on the Spear.
In time, some armoured foot knights gave up shields entirely in favour of mobility and two-handed weapons. Other knights and common soldiers adopted the buckler (origin of the term "swashbuckler"[1]). A buckler (French bouclier 'shield' from old French bocle boucle 'boss' is a small Shield, 15 to 45 cm in diameter gripped in the fist Swashbuckler or swasher is a term that developed in the 16th century to describe rough noisy and boastful Swordsmen It is based on a fighting style using a The buckler is a small round shield, typically between 8 and 16 inches in diameter. The buckler was one of very few types of shield that was usually made of metal. Small and light, the buckler was easily carried by being hung from a belt; it gave little protection from missiles and was reserved for hand-to-hand combat. The buckler continued in use well into the 16th century.
In Italy, the targa, parma and rotella were utilized by common people, fencers and even knights. Targe (from Old Franconian *targa "shield" Proto-Germanic *targo "border" was a general word for Shield in late Parma or parmula was a type of round Shield used by Roman army, especially during the later period of Imperial history.
The development of plate armour made shields less and less common as plate armour eliminated the need for a shield. Lightly armoured troops continued to use shields after men-at-arms and knights ceased to use them. Man-at-arms (also called armsman or coistrel) was a medieval term for a Soldier, almost always a professional Shields continued in use even after gunpowder powered weapons made them essentially obsolete on the battlefield. Gunpowder is a an explosive mixture of Sulfur, Charcoal and Potassium nitrate (also known as saltpetre/saltpeter that burns rapidly producing volumes In the 18th century, the Scottish clans used a small, round shield called a targe that was partially effective against the firearms of the time although it was arguably more often used against British infantry bayonets and cavalry swords in close-in fighting. The 18th century lasted from 1701 to 1800 in the Gregorian calendar, in accordance with the Anno Domini / Common Era numbering system Scottish clans (from Scottish Gaelic clann, "children" give a sense of identity and shared descent to people in Scotland and to their relations Targe (from Old Franconian *targa "shield" Proto-Germanic *targo "border" was a general word for Shield in late
In the 19th century, non-industrial cultures with little access to guns were still using shields. The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar Zulu warriors carried large lightweight shields made from a single ox hide supported by a wooden spine, these were called Ishlangu. The Zulu ( IsiZulu: amaZulu) are the largest South African ethnic group of an estimated 10-11 million people who live mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal [2] This was used in combination with a short spear (assegai) and/or club. An assegai or assagai (originally Berber zaġāya "spear" from Old French azagaie Old Spanish azagaya A club (also known as cudgel, baton, truncheon, night stick, and bludgeon) is among the simplest of all weapons
Modern Shields
Shields for protection from armed attack are still used by many police forces around the world. Police are agents or agencies usually of the executive, empowered to enforce the law and to effect public and social order through the legitimatized use of force These modern shields are usually intended for two broadly distinct purposes.
The first type are used for riot control and can be made from metal or synthetics, such as Lexan or Mylar. Riot control refers to the measures used by police military or other forces to control, disperse and arrest civilians that are involved in a Riot, demonstration The M acro E xpansion T emplate A ttribute L anguage complements TAL, providing macros which allow the reuse of code across For similar products offered by other companies see Polycarbonates Lexan ( LEXAN) is a registered trademark for SABIC Innovative Biaxially-oriented Polyethylene terephthalate (boPET Polyester film is used for its high Tensile strength, Chemical and dimensional Stability These typically offer protection from relatively large and low velocity projectiles, such as rocks and bottles as well as blows from fists or clubs. Synthetic riot shields are normally transparent, allowing full use of the shield without obstructing vision. Riot shields are lightweight protection devices deployed by Police and some Military organizations Similarly, metal riot shields often have a small window at eye level for this purpose. These riot shields are most commonly used to block and push back crowds when the users stand in a wall, and to protect against shrapnel, projectiles, molotov cocktails and during hand-to-hand combat. Shrapnel is the term originally applied to an anti-personnel artillery shell which carried a large number of individual bullets to the target and then ejected them forwards relying A projectile is any object propelled through space by the exertion of a force which ceases after launch The Molotov cocktail, also known as the booze bomb, alcohol bomb or Molotov bomb, is a generic name used for a variety of improvised incendiary Hand-to-hand combat (sometimes abbreviated as HTH or H2H is a generic term for Close quarters fighting, particularly when the outcome is potentially fatal as in Melee
The second type of modern police shield is typically manufactured from advanced synthetics such as kevlar and are designed to be bulletproof, or at least bullet resistant. Kevlar is the registered Trademark for a light strong para-aramid Synthetic fiber, related to other Aramids such as Nomex and These are typically employed by specialist police, such as SWAT teams, in high risk entry and siege scenarios, but are also used on a daily basis in many areas of the US. SWAT ( Special Weapons And Tactics) is an elite special operations tactical unit in American Police departments similar to the Taiwan Thunder Squad
Many non-martial devices also employ shielding of a kind--not usually a single device worn on an arm but various protective plates or other insulation positioned where needed. Space craft have heat shields to ensure a safe re-entry. Electronics uses shielding to reduce electrical noise and crosstalk between signals. Electronics refers to the flow of charge (moving Electrons through Nonmetal conductors (mainly Semiconductors, whereas electrical In Electronics, the term crosstalk ( XT) refers to any phenomenon by which a signal transmitted on one circuit or channel of a Transmission system People and systems that must work in the presence of ionizing radiation are protected with shielding. Image talkNew_radiation_symbol_ISO_21482svg for details --> Ionizing radiation
Science fiction writers have imagined many futuristic protections they often call "shields," usually using force fields. In Science fiction and Fantasy literature a force field or protective shield is a barrier made up of energy to protect a person area or object from These include personal shields, as in the Dune series, or larger ones for spacecraft as in Star Trek. Dune is a Science fiction novel written by Frank Herbert and published in 1965. See Energy shield for more. An energy shield is a form of technology commonly found in Science fiction, but also in development for real-life space travel
References
Literature
- Schulze, André(Hrsg. ): Mittelalterliche Kampfesweisen. Band 2: Kriegshammer, Schild und Kolben. - Mainz am Rhein. : Zabern, 2007. - ISBN 3-8053-3736-1
External links
- The Shield: An Abridged History of its Use and Development, myArmoury. com article.
- The Shape of the Shield, Baronage article on shield shapes in heraldry.
- Shields: History and Terminology Anthropological Analysis
- http://www.hadesign.co.uk/SRS/html/buckler.htm, The Buckler, The Sussex Rapier School
- Classical Greek Shield Patterns
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