|
Landed Army
The Landed Army (russian: Поместное войско, Pomestnoe voisko) was the feudal cavalry of the Grand Duchy of Moscow and Tsardom of Russia in the 15th to 17th centuries. History In the second half of the 14th century, the Druzhina was replaced by feudally organized units headed by Boyars or dependent Princes, and these units consisted of landed gentry (so called "''Boyar's children''" or "'' service people''") and their armed servants ( "military slaves"). In the 15th century, such organization of detachments replaced the city regiments. Foundation A completely aristocratic army, based on this local system, was formed under Ivan III of Moscow. The process of reforming the army was associated with the unification of the Russian lands. Gradually, the Grand Duchy of Moscow included new petty princedoms, courts of independent princes were dismissed, and " service people" passed to the Grand Duke. As a result, the vassal Princes and Boyars were transformed into sta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Russian Nobility
The Russian nobility (russian: дворянство ''dvoryanstvo'') originated in the 14th century. In 1914 it consisted of approximately 1,900,000 members (about 1.1% of the population) in the Russian Empire. Up until the February Revolution of 1917, the noble estates staffed most of the Russian government and possessed a Gentry assembly. The Russian word for nobility, ''dvoryanstvo'' (), derives from Slavonic ''dvor'' (двор), meaning the court of a prince or duke (''kniaz''), and later, of the tsar or emperor. Here, ''dvor'' originally referred to servants at the estate of an aristocrat. In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the system of hierarchy was a system of seniority known as ''mestnichestvo''. The word ''dvoryane'' described the highest rank of gentry, who performed duties at the royal court, lived in it (''Moskovskie zhiltsy''), or were candidates to it, as for many boyar scions (''dvorovye deti boyarskie'', ''vybornye deti boyarskie''). A nobleman is call ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wheellock
A wheellock, wheel-lock or wheel lock is a friction-wheel mechanism which creates a spark that causes a firearm to fire. It was the next major development in firearms technology after the matchlock and the first self-igniting firearm. Its name is from its rotating steel wheel to provide ignition. Developed in Europe around 1500, it was used alongside the matchlock and later the snaplock (1540s), the snaphance (1560s) and the flintlock (c. 1610s). Design The wheellock works by spinning a spring-loaded steel wheel against a piece of pyrite to generate intense sparks, which ignite gunpowder in a pan, which flashes through a small touchhole to ignite the main charge in the firearm's barrel. The pyrite is clamped in vise jaws on a spring-loaded arm (or 'dog'), which rests on the pan cover. When the trigger is pulled, the pan cover is opened, and the wheel is rotated, with the pyrite pressed into contact. A close modern analogy of the wheellock mechanism is the operation of a lighte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musketeer
A musketeer (french: mousquetaire) was a type of soldier equipped with a musket. Musketeers were an important part of early modern warfare particularly in Europe as they normally comprised the majority of their infantry. The musketeer was a precursor to the rifleman. Muskets were replaced by rifles as the almost universal firearm for modern armies during the period 1850 to 1860. The traditional designation of "musketeer" for an infantry private survived in the Imperial German Army until World War I. Asia China The hand cannon was invented in China in the 12th century and was in widespread use there in the 13th century. It spread westward across Asia during the 14th century. Arquebusiers and musketeers were utilized in the armies of the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing dynasties (1644–1911). Zhao Shizhen's book of 1598 AD, the ''Shenqipu'', contains illustrations of Ottoman Turkish and European musketeers together with detailed diagrams of their muskets.Needham, Volume 5, Par ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pike (weapon)
A pike is a very long thrusting spear formerly used in European warfare from the Late Middle Ages and most of the Early Modern Period, and were wielded by foot soldiers deployed in pike square formation, until it was largely replaced by bayonet-equipped muskets. The pike was particularly well-known as the primary weapon of Swiss mercenary and German Landsknecht units. A similar weapon, the sarissa, had been used in antiquity by Alexander the Great's Macedonian phalanx infantry. Design The pike was a long weapon, varying considerably in size, from long. Generally, a spear becomes a pike when it is too long to be wielded with one hand in combat. It was approximately in weight, with the 16th century military writer Sir John Smythe recommending lighter rather than heavier pikes. It had a wooden shaft with an iron or steel spearhead affixed. The shaft near the head was often reinforced with metal strips called "cheeks" or langets. When the troops of opposing armies both c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dragoon
Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat with swords and firearms from horseback. While their use goes back to the late 16th century, dragoon regiments were established in most European armies during the 17th and early 18th centuries; they provided greater mobility than regular infantry but were far less expensive than cavalry. The name reputedly derives from a type of firearm, called a ''dragon'', which was a handgun version of a blunderbuss, carried by dragoons of the French Army. The title has been retained in modern times by a number of armoured or ceremonial mounted regiments. Origins and name The establishment of dragoons evolved from the practice of sometimes transporting infantry by horse when speed of movement was needed. In 1552, Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reiter
''Reiter'' or ''Schwarze Reiter'' ("black riders", anglicized ''swart reiters'') were a type of cavalry in 16th to 17th century Central Europe including Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Tsardom of Russia, and others. Contemporary to the cuirassier and lancer cavalry, they used smaller horses, for which reason they were also known as ''Ringerpferde'' (corresponding to the French '' Argoulets''). They were originally recruited in the North German Plain west of the Oder at the time of the Schmalkaldic War of 1546/7. The Reiter raised firearms to the status of primary weapons for cavalry, as opposed to earlier Western European heavy cavalry which primarily relied upon melee weapons. A Reiter's main weapons were two or more pistols and a sword; most Reiters wore helmets and cuirasses and often additional armor for the arms and legs; sometimes they also carried a long cavalry firearm known as an arquebus or a carbine (although this type of horsemen soon b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smolensk War
The Smolensk War (1632–1634) was a conflict fought between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Russia. Hostilities began in October 1632 when Russian forces tried to capture the city of Smolensk. Small military engagements produced mixed results for both sides, but the surrender of the main Russian force in February 1634 led to the Treaty of Polyanovka. Russia accepted Polish–Lithuanian control over the Smolensk region, which lasted for another 20 years. Background In 1632, Sigismund III Vasa, the king of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, died. Although the Commonwealth nobility quickly elected Sigismund's son Władysław IV Vasa as their new ruler, Poland's neighbours, expecting delays in the electoral process, tested the Commonwealth's perceived weakness. Swedish king Gustav II Adolph sent envoys to Russia and the Ottoman Empire to propose an alliance and war against the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth was not ready for war. In 1631, the royal army numbere ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Moscow (1612)
The Battle of Moscow was a series of two battles, which took place in Moscow, on September 1 and 3, 1612, during the Polish–Muscovite War (1605–18), and Time of Troubles. Forces of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth were commanded by Field Hetman of Lithuania, Jan Karol Chodkiewicz, while the Russians were led by Dmitry Pozharsky. The battles ended in tactical Russian victory. Prelude After the Battle of Klushino in summer of 1610, Tsar Vasili IV of Russia was deposed and taken to Warsaw. The Polish-Lithuanian army entered Moscow on September 21, 1610, and the boyars, clergy, and citizens of Moscow, in fear of False Dmitry II, accepted the Polish Prince Wladyslaw IV Vasa as new Tsar. But the foreign Tsar was not universally accepted outside Moscow, and the country was ransacked by Poles, mercenaries, and gangs of robbers of every nation. In March 1611, citizens of Moscow rebelled against the Poles, and the Polish garrison was besieged in Kremlin by the First People ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gambeson
A gambeson (also aketon, padded jack, pourpoint, or arming doublet) is a padded defensive jacket, worn as armour separately, or combined with mail or plate armour. Gambesons were produced with a sewing technique called quilting. They were usually constructed of linen or wool; the stuffing varied, and could be for example scrap cloth or horse hair. During the 14th century, illustrations usually show buttons or laces up the front. An arming doublet (also called aketon) worn under armour, particularly plate armour of fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Europe, contains arming points for attaching plates. Fifteenth century examples may include mail goussets sewn into the elbows and armpits to protect the wearer in locations not covered by plate. German gothic armour arming doublets were generally shorter than Italian white armour doublets, which could extend to the upper thigh. In late fifteenth century Italy this also became a civilian fashion. Men who were not knights wore arming dou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mirror Armour
Mirror armour (russian: зерцало, , meaning "mirror"; zh, 护心镜, , meaning "protect-heart mirror"), sometimes referred to as disc armour or as or ( fa, چهاﺮآﻳنه meaning "four mirrors"; whence kk, шар-айна, ), was a type of cuirass used mainly in Asia, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe; including India, Persia, Tibet, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire. It literally translates to "four mirrors" which is a reflection of how these pieces looked, which resembles four (sometimes more) metal discs or rectangular armour plates. Mirror armor was used in some cultures up to the 20th century. Description and history "Mirror armour" is a type of partial plate armour which was developed initially from round metal mirrors (a kind of rondel) worn over other armour (usually over mail) as enforcement. Metal mirrors in this armour were considered as protection from not only cold steel and arrows, but also supernatural influence. It was believed that mirrors could re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mail And Plate Armour
Mail and plate armour (plated mail, plated chainmail, splinted mail/chainmail) is a type of Mail (armour), mail with embedded plates. Armour of this type has been used in the Middle East, North Africa, Ottoman Empire, Japan, China, Korea, Vietnam, Central Asia, Greater Iran, India, Eastern Europe, and Malay Archipelago, Nusantara. Types In Russia there are three known varieties of mail and plate armour. These were adopted from Iran, Persian, initially as Persian exports, and have Persian names. * Behterets (russian: Бехтерец), from Persian ''behter'':Leonid A. Bobrov "Iron hawks from the territory of Maveranahr" (sets of the defensive equipment of the warriors of the Middle Asia and the neighbouring territories in 16th–17th centuries) small horizontal plates arranged in vertical rows without gaps, joined by rings, and embedded in mail. * Yushman (russian: Юшман), from Persian ''jawshan'': long horizontal plates embedded in mail and resembling laminar armour (e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brigandine
A brigandine is a form of body armour from the Middle Ages. It is a garment typically made of heavy cloth, canvas, or leather, lined internally with small oblong steel plates riveted to the fabric, sometimes with a second layer of fabric on the inside. Origins Protective clothing and armour have been used by armies from earliest recorded history; the King James Version of the Bible (Jeremiah 46:4) translates the Hebrew סריון ''ÇiRYON'' or שריון ''SiRYoN'' "coat of mail" as "brigandine". Medieval brigandines were essentially a refinement of the earlier coat of plates, which developed in the late 12th century, typically of simpler construction with larger metal plates. This armour of Asian origin reached Europe after the Mongol invasion in 1240 that destroyed the Kievan Rus' and severely damaged the Kingdom of Hungary in 1241. The new armour became very popular first in Eastern Europe, especially in Hungary, towards the end of the 13th century and was adopted in west ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
%2C_kulah_khud_and_madu.jpg "Click for more on -> Mirror Armour")
