Armour & Weapons

by Charles John Ffoulkes

The brass of an unknown knight ([Plate III], 6) is typical of what has come to be known as the ‘Camail’ period. The arm-and leg-pieces completely enclose the limb and are fastened with hinges and straps as in the later periods. The gauntlets show the Gadlings, or knuckle-knobs, which are a marked feature of this period, and the whole suit is richly decorated with engraved borders. Some writers divide the Transition Period of armour into ‘Surcoat’, ‘Cyclas’, ‘Jupon’, and ‘Tabard’. This, however, seems unnecessary if we are considering only the development of defensive armour, and not the whole question of costume. The camail is so marked a detail of the knightly equipment that it may reasonably be used to describe the fashion in armour from about 1360 to 1405. In this example the figure is clad in complete plate, though the hauberk is worn beneath, as may be seen at the lower edge of the jupon and also in the ‘vif de l’harnois’, or portion of the body at the armpit, which was unprotected by plate. In some instances this vital spot was protected by a circular, oval, crescent-shaped, or square plate attached by laces, which modern writers call the Rondel, but which Viscount Dillon, in a most interesting article, proves to have been the Moton or Besague[15] ([Fig. 15]).

The effigy of the Black Prince at Canterbury is a good example of the armour of this period, but it is interesting to note that, while the monumental brasses frequently give such details as straps, buckles, &c., this effigy shows no constructional detail whatever. We find that in Spain there were minute regulations drawn up as to the manner in which a deceased warrior might be represented on his tomb. The details of sheathed or unsheathed sword, helm, spurs, &c., all had some significant reference to his life and achievements.[16] It is almost superfluous to point out that those details which referred to the knight’s captivity, or the fact that he had been vanquished, were more honoured in the breach than in the observance.

	Fig. 16. Knightly figure in Ash Church, Kent, fourteenth century.
Fig. 15. Brass of Sir T. de S. Quentin, Harpham, Yorks, 1420.	Fig. 17. Bib. Nat., Paris, Tite-Live, 1350.

The armour of this period was often richly decorated with engraving, as may be seen on the brass to an unknown knight at Laughton, Lincs., and also on the monument to Sir Hugh Calverley at Bunbury, Cheshire. Of the jupon, King René, in his Livre des Tournois, about the year 1450, writes that it ought to be without fold on the body, like that of a herald, so that the cognizance, or heraldic blazon, could be better recognized. The jupon of the Black Prince, preserved at Canterbury and admirably figured in Monumenta Vetusta, vol. vii, is embroidered with the Royal Arms, and is quilted with cotton padding. So general is the use of the jupon at this period that it is a matter of some conjecture as to what form the body armour took that was worn under it. The effigy of a knight in Ash Church, Kent ([Fig. 16]), elucidates this mystery and shows, through openings of the jupon, horizontal plates or splints riveted together. In [Fig. 17] we see these plates worn without the jupon. The term Jazeran is often applied to such armour.

Fig. 18. a. The Camail attached to the helm. b. The Camail showing the staples.		Fig. 19. Bib. Nat., Paris, Tite-Live, 1350.

The camail, or hood of mail, which we have before referred to, was separate from the hauberk, and during the fourteenth century was worn over the jupon. It was attached to the bascinet by Vervelles or staples which fitted into openings in the helmet. A lace was passed through these staples, as is shown on [Fig. 18]. From a French manuscript of the early fifteenth century ([Fig. 19]) we see how the camail was kept from ‘riding’ over the shoulders. In the little wooden statuette of St. George of Dijon, which is a most useful record of the armour of this period, we find that, in addition, the camail is fastened to the breast with aiguillettes.

The Great Heaume, or helm, of the fourteenth century differs but little from those of the late thirteenth century which were noticed in a preceding chapter. The shape was either of the sugar-loaf order or a cylinder surmounted by a truncated cone ([Fig. 20]). Notable examples of actual specimens in England at the present day are the helms of Sir Richard Pembridge at Hereford Cathedral and the helm of the Black Prince, surmounted by a crest of wood and cuirbouilli, preserved at Canterbury. In an Inventory of Louis Hutin, made in 1316, we find: ‘ii heaummes d’acier, item v autres dans li uns est dorez.’ This seems to suggest that the gilded helm was of some other material than steel, possibly leather. It is rare to come across constructional detail in illuminations, but the illustration ([Fig. 21]) from a French manuscript of about the year 1350 shows a method of attaching the helm to the wearer’s body. In the preceding chapter we noticed the chain used for this purpose on the Trumpington brass.