Samurai
Reviewing the best military history exhibitions, with Peter Popham.
armour
Samurai
A new exhibition at the British Museum traces the story of Japan’s famous warriors from the medieval period to the present day, separating history from myth and exploring how their image has evolved over the last 1,000 years. Carly Hilts visited to learn more.
Recreating a Mycenaean battle
An innovative study has brought to life Late Bronze Age warfare to test the utility of a 3,500-year-old suit of armour.
Helmet eyebrow arch
Helmet parts of this date are rare finds in Denmark… What is it? This piece of a remarkable pre-Viking Age helmet comprises two fragments that fit together perfectly to make up a section c.10cm long in total, representing two-thirds of…
Research finds that ancient Greek armour may have been used in battle after all
New research has found that an ancient suit of armour may have been used in battle, and not just for ceremonial purposes as was previously thought. The 3,500-year-old Mycenaean armour is one of the best and most complete examples of…
Ranjit Singh: Sikh, Warrior, King
Reviewing the best military history exhibitions with Peter Popham.
Back to the drawing board: The A38 Valiant Infantry Tank
David Porter on military history's doomed inventions.
Armour of the English Knight, 1450-1500
The English armourers of the 15th century were great craftsmen, artists, and innovators. That is the essential conclusion of Tobias Capwell’s monumental study of the armour of the English knight in this period. It was once assumed that the domestic…
Edward III, the Black Prince, and the Battle of Crécy
Graham Goodlad analyses the joint careers of the father and son who led England’s armies in the early campaigns of the Hundred Years War.
Samurai armour goes back on display after conservation
The suit was made in around 1830 in the Japanese province of Kaga, an important centre of armour production
Samurai armour goes back on display after conservation
The armour is the property of National Trust's Snowshill Manor in Gloucestershire and is part of the largest collection of its kind in the UK.
Uncovering Kalkriese
A remarkable piece of Roman armour has been discovered at the site of the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest.
Rare medieval equestrian armour goes on display for first time in a century
It is one of only three complete medieval equestrian armour displays in the world. Now, the 15th-century masterpiece can be viewed by the public for the first time in over 100 years.
Anglo-Saxon ‘warrior’ burial uncovered
The grave of a 6th-century man – a possible warrior – has been uncovered on a hilltop near Marlow, overlooking the Thames Valley. Its location within the borderlands of prominent neighbouring Anglo-Saxon kingdoms – at different times Wessex, Kent, and…
Bring me my chariot: investigating burial practices in Iron Age Yorkshire
What sparked the unusual chariot burials associated with the Arras Culture in East Yorkshire? Migration has been proposed as an explanation, but a new book asks whether there are other ways by which chariot-making knowledge and burial practices could have been transferred. The reality is perhaps more mundane but, at the same time, highly informative about the diversity of lifestyles and burial practices in the British Iron Age and the ways in which people expressed their regional identity. Chris Catling reports.
The delightful (baker’s) dozen: artefactual insights into Hadrian’s Wall
The 73-mile length of Hadrian’s Wall, as well as the forts and structures associated with it, has yielded thousands of intriguing objects shedding vivid light on life on the Roman frontier. Rob Collins picks out 13 key finds that highlight how the material culture of the monument can enhance our understanding of the people who lived and worked along it.
Clash of armour: the art of English warfare in the late 15th century
In this first part of a special feature on the dynastic struggle between the rival houses of Lancaster and York, Neil Faulkner presents a study of the strategy and tactics of the time.