the.com/greave
the original shin guard, when shin damage came from swords instead of soccer cleats.
means A piece of armor worn to protect the shin, running from ankle to knee.
from From Old French 'greve,' meaning the shin or shank of the leg — the very part the armor was made to guard. The word arrived in English in the Middle Ages, when plate armor was being fitted limb by limb, and the deeper roots beyond Old French are uncertain, though some trace it tentatively to Arabic 'jawrab,' a stocking or covering for the leg.
- name origin
- Comes from Old French greve, meaning shin
- bronze age
- Greek hoplites wore them molded to leg muscles
- worn in pairs
- One alone left a fatal opening
- snug fit
- Good ones clipped on without straps at all
- biblical cameo
- Goliath wore bronze greaves into battle
for instance
henry viii's armor greaves — royal armouries, leeds - ornate steel leg protection worn by english king, 1520s
roman legionary greaves — bronze shin guards worn by soldiers of the roman empire, archaeological finds across europe