Medieval Shields of Europe and Rus’ (Construction, Military Symbolic Significance, Development)

Abstract

The article considers the problem of the development of shields, the main element of medieval protective equipment, and an important military and heraldic symbol in Ukrainian medieval state of Rus’ and in Europe in general. The state of the research and the source base are outlined. The main trends in the development of the design and symbolic significance of shields in Europe during the Middle Ages are outlined. At the same time, emphasis was placed on sources concerning Rus’ lands and adjacent territories. The author draws attention to the need to compare archaeological, written and iconographic sources in one study. The study focuses on the most representative sources, especially those that can be to apply on material from the Rus’ lands. It is emphasized that the shield as a basic element of protective equipment during the Middle Ages, іn Rus’ lands largely developed in line with European trends. Which in turn makes it impossible to isolate local features about to beginning of the ХІІІ century. At the turn of the XII–XIII centuries in some regions of Eastern Europe, namely the Rus’-Baltic-Polish border, a relatively new type of shield is being formed, the so-called “protopaveza”. This in turn had a direct impact on the armaments of Rus’ and the Teutonic Order in the ХІІІ–ХІV centuries. The author analyzes the main interactions and borrowings of types of shields between different regions of Eastern Europe during the Middle Ages. It is noted that in the Ukrainian medieval state of Rus’, which was at the intersection of Eastern and Western military traditions, shields of both European types and the eastern “kalkan” could be used. However, given the available sources, it is safe to say that the European trend of development of this protective equipment had an advantage. The author came to the conclusion that the shields used in Rus’ and Europe in the X–XII centuries generally belonged to the same types. In particular, it is round, almond-shaped and triangular shields. The issue of shields of the XIII–XV centuries remains more complicated. During this period can be observed as the influence of Western Europe on Rus’, for example, the spread of the knight's “tarch”. And trends that began in Eastern Europe, namely the spread of pavises in the XIV–XV centuries.