The Samurai Class Was Authoritatively Dissolved Over 150 Years Ago.

Nonetheless, the warrior's elaborate armour is still recognized globally as an iconic emblem of Japanese military strength and virtue. The word samurai comes from an old Japanese verb to serve. 

They were an elite group of strictly trained and well-armoured soldiers even the horses were armoured. Every element of a samurai's armour was significant and personalized for him, each suit took months to make.

Why did they need such armours? 

Wars raged almost constantly throughout the 700 years of Japanese military rule and the nature of battle was perpetually in flux. Equestrian archery has a way to masses of infantry with swords, that in turn gave way to soldiers doing firearms imported from China or Europe.

The many changes of a military campaign required a suit of armour that was both flexible and impenetrable. Attempts to build the all-around perfect suit of armour led to the improvement of the distinctly Japanese defensive carpeting. The samurai was encased of the head to toe in a series of overlying layers made of iron, precious, leather, and silk or semi-precious metals.

A typical samurai ensemble added shoulder guards, shin guards, sleeves, a skirt, thigh protectors, and a chest protector, along with a helmet, mask and boots, gloves, and a cushioning layer of silk underwear. They also had a range of indispensable accessories including two swords and a longbow. Yet notwithstanding all of this, the samurai suit of armour weighed only about 18 kg, compared with the 27 kg of armour worn by European knight.