A Complete Guide to Heraldry - Arthur Charles Fox-Davies

When the field is striped vertically it is said to be "paly" of so many (Fig. 57).

Fig. 96.—Pallets.	Fig. 97.—The arms of Amaury de Montfort, Earl of Gloucester; died before 1214. (From his seal.)	Fig. 98.—Arms of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester; died 1265. (From MS. Cott., Nero, D. 1.)
Fig. 99.—Fess.	Fig. 100.—Fess engrailed.	Fig. 101.—Fess invecked.

The arms shown in Fig. 97 are interesting inasmuch as they are doubtless an early form of the coat per pale indented argent and gules, which is generally described as a banner borne for the honour of Hinckley, by the Simons de Montfort, Earls of Leicester, father and son. In a Roll temp. Henry III., to Simon the younger is ascribed "Le Banner party endentee dargent & de goules," although the arms of both father and son are known to have been as Fig. 98: "Gules, a lion rampant queue-fourchée argent." More probably the indented coat gives the original Montfort arms.

THE FESS

The fess is a broad horizontal band crossing the escutcheon in the centre (Fig. 99). It is seldom drawn to contain a full third of the area of the shield. It is subject to the lines of partition (Figs. 100-109).

A curious variety of the fess dancetté is borne by the Shropshire family Plowden of Plowden. They bear: Azure, a fess dancetté, the upper points terminating in fleurs-de-lis (Fig. 110). A fess couped (Fig. 111) is found in the arms of Lee.

Fig. 102.—Fess embattled.	Fig. 103.—Fess embattled counter-embattled.	Fig. 104.—Fess raguly.
Fig. 105.—Fess dovetailed.	Fig. 106.—Fess indented.	Fig. 107.—Fess dancetté.
Fig. 108.—Fess wavy.	Fig. 109.—Fess nebuly.	Fig. 110.—The arms of Plowden.

The "fess embattled" is only crenellated upon the upper edge; but when both edges are embattled it is a fess embattled and counter-embattled. The term bretessé (which is said to indicate that the battlements on the upper edge are opposite the battlements on the lower edge, and the indentations likewise corresponding) is a term and a distinction neither of which are regarded in British armory.