Word of the Day -- Barding

Barding (also spelled bard or barb) is armour for horses. During the late Middle Ages as armour protection for knights became more effective, their mounts became targets. This tactic was effective for the Scots at the Battle of Bannockburn in the fourteenth century when horses were killed by the infantry, and for the English at the Battle of Crécy in the fourteenth century where archers shot horses and heavy infantry killed the French knights after they were dismounted. Barding developed as a response to such events.

Surviving period examples of barding are rare; however, complete sets are on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Wallace Collection in London, the Royal Armouries in Leeds.