Rotella (round shield)
The Rotella (also Rondache , Rondartsche or Rundtarge ) was a slightly curved all-metal round shield of the Renaissance . He was with about 50 to 75 cm in diameter larger than the contemporary Buckler and (hand) Targen and was in contrast to these not worn strapped to a fist grip, but using a shield bondage to the forearm. As a result, the Rotella was not quite as dynamic to use in battle. Active shield actions such as blows to the arm of the weapon still occurred. Primarily, however, the large shield was angled at an angle on the left half of the body and used to cover the sword hand during the attack. Primarily the attempt was made to tie the enemy weapon with the front edge of the shield and not to block one's view with one's own shield by holding up. During the war, soldiers equipped with such round shields were used in hand-to-hand combat after polearm formations had collided, or against enemy riflemen.
The Rotella was particularly widespread in Italy, in Spain and Portugal this type of shield was widespread under the name Rodela and found a. a. Often used by the early Conquistadors .
A later variant of the Rotella was the so-called spherical shield, which had a higher material thickness and a stronger curvature. As a result, it was partially bullet-resistant and thus better protected against the projectiles of early firearms.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Prunk-Rundschild / Rotella, Italian, around 1560/70, Milan
- ↑ Giacomo DiGrassi, "his true kind of defense", 1594: PDF