The soldier of the late Middle Ages and what he wore in the battle

The medieval soldier, as we know him from movies and illustrated books, doesn’t always match reality. The armored knight was, indeed, a fact of the Crusades and other wars of the early Middle Ages. But by the late 14th century, the knight, usually a noble, found something else to do than go to war. He then hired somebody else to do the job. So, most former peasants forced to fight for their masters were now paid to do so. As they didn’t have much money to pay for a heavy iron outfit, which, anyway, was very inconvenient in combat, he made himself a lightweight suit with matching accessories.

the glaive

The soldier of the late Middle Ages wore a quilted jacket made from multilayered canvas.
The head was covered with a sallet helmet. This helmet had a peak in the back to protect the neck and a front visor lowered only in battle to protect the face and eyes.

He wore a sheepskin mitten, and over it, he wore a mitten gauntlet made out of iron to protect the hands and wrists, though these things limited the movement. The jacket also had metal reinforcements on the elbows and along the arms. The rich knights were still wearing light-protecting armor over the jack. The common soldier wore leather boots that usually only lasted about three months because of the long marches on foot that a medieval warrior had to endure. (He would walk at least 10 km or 6 miles daily.)

As part of his load, a medieval soldier had weapons and gears.
The most used weapon was a pole known as a glaive, made of two parts: a long wood stick and a long metal knife connected at the end of the stick. A soldier fought most of his battles with this pole that he used for stabbing, poking, or knocking the enemies aside at arm's length. Sometimes, he used a sword for one-to-one fights. The soldier would work the sword with his right hand while on his left he would keep a buckler used to deflect bows and hit an opponent in the face!

He also had many knives, from military daggers to eating knives. The medieval soldier also carried wooden bowls for eating and some wooden silverware. He had a small purse or belt bag where he kept some personal belongings and probably some money.

Because a soldier from the late Middle Ages was always on the go, his luggage was as light as it could be. There was no room for stacking food or other items. He usually ate on the road, mostly by stealing from the households he sacked. If he stole some other goods, those were given to the commander. He drank a lot of wine and beer as it was cleaner than water. This soldier was a brave man who fought many battles year-round.