In this paper there will be the analysis, comparison and contrasting of the Samurai and the Knight. Both of them used armors but they were designed differently. The knight’s armor was known as the plate armor that was made from iron and steel plates. This was a full suit of armor that enclosed the wearer from head to toe. On the other hand, the Japanese Samurai armor was different from that of the Knight in that it was not a full suit but it was made of small overlapping metal scales that were lacquered and tied together using silk cords. The armor allowed a higher degree of freedom than that of the knight (Abbasi). The helmet, shield and weaponry of the two sets of warriors will be looked into as below.
The Samurai fighting style, the Kenjutsu, eliminated the need for use of shields during battle. The swordsmanship was in such a way a close battle with the fighter improvising a way in which they could shield themselves (Rosemarie & Kleinschmidt 35-85). The knights used shields which were elegantly curved and bore the insignia of the people or causes they fought for. The knight close range battles necessitated the use of shields. It was mostly made of metal.
In battle, both warriors were suited up in armor and a sword was wielded in one or both hands. The knight used primarily the long lance and the sword and to a lesser extent the mace, polaxe or the dagger. The sword formed the foundation of the knight’s fencing training. For the knight on the other hand, the sword was just part of the three main weapons they had at their disposal (Morillo 168-176). The other two were the bow and the arrow and the yari which was a thrusting spear.
Both helmets were worn during battle to prevent battle injury. However, the knight’s helmet was part of the armor. It was a suit that was complete to protect the knight. On the other hand, the Samurai’s helmet was made independent with the rest of the armor and it could deflect arrows and lances (Archibald 53-64).
In conclusion, we can see that both the warriors used armor, weaponry and helmets but they had various variations. The shield was important to the knight but not to the Samurai. They both fought for honor and believed in camaraderie.
Works Cited
Abbasi, Mohammed. "The Japanese Samurai Versus The European Knight". Samurai-archives.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.
Deist, Rosemarie, and Harald Kleinschmidt. Knight and Samurai: Actions and Images of Elite Warriors in Europe and East Asia. Göppingen: Kümmerle, 2003. Print. 35-85.
Deist, Rosemarie, ed. Knight and Samurai: actions and images of elite warriors in Europe and East Asia. Kümmerle-Verlag, 2003. Print. 137-145.
Lewis, Archibald Ross. Knights and Samurai. 1974. Print. 48-54.
Lewis, Archibald R. Knights and Samurai: Feudalism in Northern France and Japan. London: Temple Smith, 1974. Print. 53-64.
Morillo, Stephen. Milites, knights and samurai: Military terminology, comparative history, and the problem of translation. na, 2001. Print. 168-176.
Turnbull, Stephen R. The book of the samurai, the warrior class of Japan. Arco, 1982. Print. 167-189.
