Why did medieval knights wear such heavy armour? How did weapons change after the invention of gunpowder? Which invention killed millions of soldiers in the First World War?

This book helps children at Key Stage 2 to discover the answers to these and other fascinating questions. It also recommends sites on the Internet and sources in local libraries where they can find out more about weapons and armour. The detective shows children how to research weapons and armour in their own area, find out how weapons have changed over time and describe a re-enacted battle.

Packed with fascinating information, The History Detective Investigates series inspires children's curiosity to find out more about the past.

This book features in the following series: The History Detective Investigates, The History Detective in .

This book is suitable for Key Stage 2. KS2 covers school years 4, 5 and 6, and ages 8-11 years. A key stage is any of the fixed stages into which the national curriculum is divided, each having its own prescribed course of study. At the end of each stage, pupils are required to complete standard assessment tasks.

There are 32 pages in this book. This book was published 2015 by Hachette Children's Group .

Philip Parker is a professional historian specialising in the ancient world.

This book has the following chapters:

• 1: What weapons did ancient peoples fight with?
• 2: What weapons did an ancient Roman soldier use?
• 3: Why were people so afraid of the Vikings?
• 4: Why did medieval knights wear such heavy armour?
• 5: Why were Mongol bows and arrows so deadly?
• 6: How did weapons change after the invention of gunpowder?
• 7: Why was the Japanese samurai sword so special?
• 8: What were the winning weapons in the Battle of Waterloo?
• 9: Why were rifles so important in the US Civil War?
• 10: Which invention killed millions of soldiers in the First World War?
• 11: What kinds of weapons were used on D-Day?
• 12: What weapons do modern Special Forces use?
• 13: Your project
• 14: Glossary
• 15: Answers
• 16: Further Information
• 17: Index