A corselet is a piece of protective armor that covers the torso, combining a breastplate (for the chest) and a backplate (for the back). Knights in medieval times wore corselets made of metal plates or chain mail to protect themselves in battle. The word comes from the French word for “body,” which makes sense since a corselet literally protects your body's core.

In ancient times, Greek and Roman soldiers wore bronze corselets molded to look like muscular chests, which both protected them and made them look more intimidating to enemies. Later medieval knights wore steel corselets as part of their full suits of armor. A well-made corselet could stop sword strikes and even deflect arrows, though it was heavy and hot to wear.

The word can also refer to a similar piece of armor worn by cavalry soldiers in later centuries, when full suits of armor became less common. These lighter corselets protected the vital organs while allowing more freedom of movement for soldiers on horseback.

Today, you might see corselets in museums, Renaissance fairs, or movies about knights and ancient warriors. The concept lives on in modern body armor worn by soldiers and police officers, which serves the same protective purpose but uses materials like Kevlar instead of steel.