"dark age legs" Topic

I have just started painting some Essex Dark Age spearmen. Their legs look like they are bare, but I am not sure if they should have tight trousers or leggings on as most of the few pics I can find show them as trousered. After all Europe isn't Greece I suppose….

Thanks Will

After all Europe isn't Greece I suppose

Well, Greece is in Europe (though in the earlier times, there were also Greek settlements in Asia minor).

I would say that the situation would depend on what part of the Europe, and what time of the year, your spearmen would be fighting. In a warm summer day, they might very well want to go around without leggings.

Griefbringer

Perhaps in the dark age Europe was Greece. Between the 9th century up to 1350 there seems to be a hot age (I donīt know the exact english term – english is not my native laguage) in Europe. The temperature was higher then today. As always at the Dark age there are not many facts about legwearing too, but even before the age mentioned before the picts living in what we now call Scotland are told to have bare legs. My vikings of that time I painted most with trousers, only one or two figures of normal vikings I painted without. (Another thing are berserkers and ulfhednars)

Werner G. Elb aka Samurai Elb

Remember that most men would work out-of-doors. It's easier to have leggings for bad weather and remove them as wanted than but up with freezing in cold weather.

I have had reservations on this pictish manliness – bracken and heather play hell with bare calves.

Irish and Picts might have bare legged troops. Other than that, I would guess they would have pants.

The science behind the Medieval Warm Period suggests a very minimal temperature difference in Europe today and the Medieval period (less than 1 degree Celsius). Historians of the 1980's and 1990's suggested greater temperature fluctuation than is currently accepted.

The conjecture that exposed legs were more common in the Dark Ages might have more to do with personal insusceptibility to the elements from constant exposure or the labor required to produce textiles rather than increased temperature.

All my dark-agers have nekkid legs. Highlanders in Scotland appear to have gone bare-legged into the 18th c.

I don't think that medieval men generally went bared-legged except when expecting to get wet. And I don't see evidence for "skin-tight" leggings either! Even hosen has wrinkles and obvious bulk that even a 25mm figure should show off. A few odd individuals with their pants off shouldn't be a problem in a unit. But an entire unit of guys getting ready to "moon" the foe? No way. Gibson should be T&Fed.

This has to be one of the most unintentionally hilarious thread titles this year!
-Kle.

In historical times it was noted the people of Tierra del Fuego in the tip of South America would live outdoors completely naked except for a brief cape.
I think you can acclimatise to extremes of hot and cold.
Indians eat lots of curry dont they?

Re-reading Richard Holmes 'Redcoat' last weekend there was an amusing passage about Kilts and how in Spain and America they changed into trousers, and of new recruits sobbing from cold in their Kilts.

The whole northern hardiness stuff is a crock IMHO.

Pat

Except for us North Easterners eh Max ;0)

Ah of course. It takes, for example, a special resilience to live in Sunderland. A certain manly refusal to just give up and die, when you could sell your house, drive a few miles North and Live in Newcastle.

North Easterners are tough. Perhaps that's where all the Picts ended up, leaving Scotland to the Soppy Johny-Come-Lately Scots and Saxons.

Pat

<<when you could sell your house, drive a few miles North and Live>> IN A CAMPER VAN <<in Newcastle.>>

Pat