system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How did soldiers in hot countries in middle east and India survive the heat during wars wearing a metal body armor when temperatures in these regions touched 35 degree celcius (95f) in summer days?
gpt
One of the popular theories is the surcoat, a light cotton coat worn over the armor. This would keep you a bit cooler because it would stop the (heat absorbing) metal armor from being exposed to sunlight while also shielding you from the sun, especially if it's a lighter color. Typical Arab clothing, even in the modern day, consists of a full-length white coat for exactly this reason. If you look at historical images of Persian, Turkish, and Mamluke warriors they're often wearing a surcoat or robe over their armor. Even more interestinglly if you look at the Bayeux tapestry, the Norman Knights are not wearing surcoats, but later depictions of English and French knights, from after the crusades, do show them wearing surcoats, suggesting it was a fashion the knights picked up in the middle east.