American Civil War protective vest
| American Civil War protective vest | |
|---|---|
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| Information | |
| Weapon type: | armor |
| Designations: | American Civil War protective vest |
| Use: | Protective weapon |
| Region of origin / author: |
United States of America |
| Distribution: | United States of America |
| Lists on the subject | |
The American Civil War protective vest is an armor from the United States of America.
description
The American Civil War protective vest is usually made of cotton fabric . It is cut exactly like a normal uniform vest of the Union Army of the Northern States in the American Civil War (1861 to 1865). The buttons are made of brass . The two parts of the front of the vest are hollow. This makes it possible to slide the two armor plates, which are adapted to the shape of the vest, into the hollow spaces of the vest (only the left plate is shown in the drawing). The vests were introduced in the American Civil War, but were rather unpopular at the time, as the soldiers who were supposed to wear these vests found it cowardly. The piece described and illustrated here was made by Smith, Cook & Company of New Haven, Connecticut . The vests were heavy and uncomfortable to wear (probably another reason for their moderate use in the army ). The biggest disadvantage, however, was that the armor offered little protection against fire from high-quality muskets and completely failed with the Minié projectiles that were in use at the time . Even so, it was one of the first bullet-proof west in the world.
Individual evidence
literature
- Christian G. Samito (Ed.): Commanding Boston's Irish Ninth. The Civil War Letters of Colonel Patrick R. Guiney Ninth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry (= Irish in the Civil War. No. 6). Fordham University Press, New York NY 1997, ISBN 0-8232-1812-0 , p. 70.
- Mildred Throne (Ed.): The Civil War diary of Cyrus F. Boyd, Fifteenth Iowa Infantry, 1861–1863. Louisiana State University Press, Baton Rouge LA 1998, ISBN 0-8071-2328-5 , p. 94.