Editing Plate armour (section)

== Japan ==
{{Main|Japanese armour}}
[[File:南蛮胴具足.jpg|thumb|upright|A Japanese 16th–17th century suit of plate armour with a western-style cuirass (''nanban dō gusoku'')]]

In the [[Kofun period]] (250–538),<ref>Jref. (2012, December 5). Kofun period. Japan Reference. https://jref.com/articles/kofun-period.208/</ref> iron plate cuirasses (''[[tankō]]'') and helmets were being made.<ref name="robinson167">[https://books.google.com/books?id=Kh-to448NTEC&dq=Japanese+plate+armour&pg=PA167 ''Oriental Armour'', H. Russell Robinson, Courier Dover Publications, 2002, page 167].</ref> Plate armour was used in Japan during the [[Nara period]] (646–793); both plate and [[lamellar armour]]s have been found in burial mounds, and ''[[haniwa]]'' (ancient clay figures) have been found depicting warriors wearing full armour.<ref name="robinson167" />

In Japan, the warfare of the [[Sengoku period]] (1467–1615) required large quantities of armour to be produced for the ever-growing armies of foot soldiers (''[[ashigaru]]''). Simple munition-quality<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8APyY3eIONcC&dq=samurai+Munitions+armor&pg=PA130 ''The Watanabe Art Museum Samurai Armour Collection'', Volume I, Kabuto & Mengu'', Trevor Absolon, page 130].</ref> chest armours (''[[Dō (armour)|dō]]'') and helmets (''[[kabuto]]'') were mass-produced.

In 1543, the Portuguese brought matchlock firearms ([[Tanegashima (Japanese matchlock)|''tanegashima'']]) to Japan.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=6WQnNqhDNhAC&q=tanegashima ''Tanegashima: the arrival of Europe in Japan'', Olof G. Lidin, Nordic Institute of Asian Studies, NIAS Press, 2002].</ref> As Japanese swordsmiths began mass-producing matchlock firearms and firearms became used in war, the use of Lamellar armour (''[[ō-yoroi]]'' and ''[[dō-maru]]''), previously used as samurai armour, gradually decreased. Japanese armour makers started to make new types of armour made of larger iron plate and plated leather.<ref name = "gusoku">[https://web.archive.org/web/20190425051228/http://costume.iz2.or.jp:80/column/554.html 日本の甲冑] Costume Museum</ref> This new suit of armour is called ''tōsei gusoku'' (gusoku), which means modern armour.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=IQ3FAZG94ZsC&dq=Tosei+gusoku&pg=PA32 ''Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior'', Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004, page 32].</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=jGsVHV098K0C&dq=last+use+of+samurai+armour&pg=PA36 The Grove encyclopedia of decorative arts, Volume 1, Gordon Campbell, Oxford University Press US, 2006, page 36].</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=04S4YdDarD0C&dq=Japanese+plate+armour&pg=PA145 ''The Hutchinson dictionary of ancient & medieval warfare'', Matthew Bennett, Taylor & Francis, 1998, page 145].</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=IQ3FAZG94ZsC&dq=last+use+of+samurai+armour&pg=PA49 Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior, Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004, page 49].</ref> The type of ''gusoku'', which covered the front and back of the body with a single iron plate with a raised center and a V-shaped bottom like plate armour, was specifically called ''nanban dou gusoku'' ("Western style ''gusoku''{{-"}}) and was used by some samurai.<ref name = "gusoku"/> Japanese armour makers designed bulletproof plate armour called ''tameshi gusoku'' ("bullet tested"), which allowed soldiers to continue wearing armour despite the heavy use of firearms in the late 16th century.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8APyY3eIONcC&q=Japanese+plate+armour&pg=PA16|title=The Watanabe Art Museum Samurai Armour Collection Volume I ~ Kabuto & Mengu|first=Trevor|last=Absolon|date=28 February 2018|publisher=Trevor Absolon|isbn=9780986761508|via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8APyY3eIONcC&dq=Tameshi+gusoku+(&pg=PA78 ''The Watanabe Art Museum Samurai Armour Collection'', Volume I, Kabuto & Mengu, Trevor Absolon, page 78].</ref>

In the 17th century, warfare in Japan came to an end, but the samurai continued to use plate armour until the end of the samurai era in the 1860s, with the known last use of samurai armour occurring in 1877, during the [[Satsuma rebellion]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=IQ3FAZG94ZsC&dq=last+use+of+samurai+armour&pg=PA58 ''Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior'', Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004, page 58].</ref>