Plate Armour - Plate Armour in Japan

Plate Armour in Japan

In Kofun period Japan, during the 4th and 5th centuries, very advanced iron plate cuirasses called tanko and helmets were made. Plate armour was used in Japan during the Nara period (646-793), both plate and lamellar armours have been found in burial mounds and haniwa (ancient clay figures) have been found depicting warriors wearing full armour.

In Japan the warfare of the Sengoku period (15th and 16th centuries) required large quantities of armour to be produced for the ever growing armies of foot soldiers (ashigaru). Simple munition quality (okashi or "lent") chest armours (dou or dō) and helmets (kabuto) were massed produced.

In 1543, the Portuguese brought matchlock firearms (tanegashima) to Japan. The Japanese started to manufacture the Portuguese acquired matchlocks and the use of these firearms in warfare caused the gradual decline in the use of the centuries old lamellar armour that the samurai were known for; the Japanese armour makers started to use solid iron plates in their armour designs which were based on European armours, and eventually plate armour became the standard for samurai warriors. The new style Japanese plate armours were called tosei gusoku (new armours) in order to differentiate from the old style lamellar armours. Japanese armour makers designed bullet proof iron and steel plate armours called tameshi gusoku or (bullet tested), which allowed them to continue wearing armour despite the heavy use of firearms in the late 1500s.

In the 1600s warfare in Japan came to an end but the samurai continued to use plate armour until the end of the samurai era in the 1860s, with the known last use of samurai armour occurring in 1877 during the satsuma rebellion.