ÉPAULIÈRES AND PAULDRONS.
It is not easy to follow the development of épaulières in the earlier stages, as the shoulders on monumental effigies are usually draped by the surcoat, but the principle of laminated or overlapping plates, so early applied to sollerets, was not long in being extended to the upper arm and shoulder, where special mobility for striking and parrying was so needful—indeed, we have instances of articulated épaulières late in the first quarter of the fourteenth century. These pieces at their highest development were admirably adapted for giving great freedom to the arm. Plates over the shoulders, as distinctive from ailettes, first appeared in England late in the thirteenth or very early in the fourteenth century, but they were merely rondelles or discs. Articulations, as already mentioned, came a little later, and rondelles protect the shoulder-pit and inner arm. A brass of a knight of the Cuttes family in Arkesdon Church, Essex (1440), is a good example of what may be termed the development of épaulières into pauldrons. Pikeguards, generally applied to “Maximilian” armour, are to be found occasionally much earlier—see example in Southerly Church (1479).[28] The Beauchamp latten figure at Warwick (1454) shows these pieces. Viscount Dillon mentions an example as early as 1424. Suits are often seen with only one of these projections, but it will always be noticed on examination that there are screw holes in the other pauldrons for its fellow. They are guards against pike thrusts, and are occasionally found double on each shoulder. These shoulder-guards are usually known by English writers as pass-guards, but Viscount Dillon considers this to be a mistake, as he thinks the real pass-guard to have been an extra tilting-piece. The absence of these pieces is far from always implying that they have been omitted, for in many cases a close examination will reveal holes on the shoulders, showing that they have been originally present. Pauldrons were usually attached to the cuirass by straps and buckles, and consist of plates in successive lames over the shoulders and upper arm. Sometimes the attachment is by a pin, as in [Fig. 22]. In armour of the second half of the fifteenth century the upper plate scarcely reached beyond the shoulder, while in “Maximilian” and later armour they came well over the chest, assuming a resting wing-like form before and behind. They were sometimes very large and uneven in size, that for the right arm being the smaller, for using the lance. There are many instances late in the sixteenth century where gorget and pauldrons are joined together in one piece, and then elbow-gauntlets are used. This is the case in armour called “allecret.” In the second half of the sixteenth century pauldrons were often smaller and wingless—indeed, more like the older épaulières, and then rondelles reappear for the protection of the weak place, “defaut de la cuirasse.”
PALETTES, RONDELLES, OR DISCS,
were plates attached to the armour, variously applied for the shoulders or any weak places, later specially to defend the armpits, where there was a vulnerable place called “vif de l’harnois,” and later, “defaut de la cuirasse,” and leave the arms free to parry or strike. These pieces assume various forms, and were not invariably in pairs; in cases where they differ, that over the right armpit is the smaller—an instance of this may be seen on a brass in Harpham Church, Yorkshire (1420). In this instance the left rondelle is round, while the other is scroll-shaped. There is a portion of a “Gothic” suit at Dresden with an oblong rondelle on the right side, while a projection on the épaulière, to a certain extent, protects the left armpit. They appear very early, and may be seen freely and beautifully applied on a figure in Alvechurch, Worcestershire, of the earlier half of the fourteenth century. They vary very much in size, and in armour of the next century were very handsome, being ridged throughout with escalloped flutings, and often charged with a heraldic rose, and sometimes spiked in the centre. They became very large in tilting suits, little short of a foot in diameter. The earliest application of these discs was to the elbow-guard. Rondelles for the armpits reappear freely in the second half of the sixteenth century, as shown in examples at Dresden and Berlin. They are frequently on the right side only.
REREBRACE, COUDIÈRES, AND VAMBRACE (FRENCH BRASSARD, ITAL. BRACCIALE).
These pieces are the armguards—the rerebrace for the upper arm, the vambrace for the lower; they first appear in plate in the second quarter of the fourteenth century, and became general a quarter of a century later. Coudières for the elbows first appeared in the thirteenth century in the disc form, about the same time as genouillières for the knees; and these pieces exhibit one of the earliest applications of plate to body armour. Both may be seen on an effigy of William Longespee the younger (1233) in Salisbury Cathedral. Coudières are elementary in the early stages, with rondelle, then cup-formed and laminated both above and below the elbow, with shell-like side expansions to protect the inner bend of the arm, and later going all round the elbow joint. This was the completed form, but all these improvements did not come at once. The De Bohun effigy exhibits the second-mentioned form. The outer guard assumes many forms, fan-shaped, bivalve, escalloped, etc., and is sometimes preposterously large. The rerebrace and vambrace do not appear in England before the fourteenth century. The effigy of the Black Prince at Canterbury exhibits these pieces. The armour for the arm, that is the three pieces dealt with, is termed brassards or brassarts. The garde-de-bras, an additional protection for the left arm for tilting, attachable to the elbow plate by a screw, was introduced in the fifteenth century.
GAUNTLETS.
The earliest form after chain-mail was of cuir-bouilli, both plain and fortified with scale work, and such largely prevailed in the thirteenth century, and even later. An example occurs on the tomb of Sir Richard de Burlingthorpe, of about 1310. The earliest form of plate gauntlets occurs in the middle of the fourteenth century, and shows articulated fingers—see an example on a brass of Thomas Cheyne, Esq. (1368), at Drayton Beauchamp, Bucks; after which mitten gauntlets of laminated plates, with a separate thumb-guard and peaked cuffs, prevailed. Late in the fourteenth century an attempt is made to copy the finger nails. An example occurs on the monument of Sir Robert de Grey, at Rotherfield Greys, Oxfordshire. Late in the fifteenth century, the earlier form, with articulated fingers, was reverted to. Gadlings, or knuckle and finger spikes, were in vogue throughout the century—a truly dangerous weapon of offence for the mêlée. Again, later we have the fingers covered with overlapping plates, very narrow and flexible. Another common form, though late, is the elbow gauntlet. There is a pair in the Castle of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and there are others at Naworth Castle and in the author’s collection. A locking gauntlet was invented in the latter part of the sixteenth century, the object of which was to prevent the weapon from being knocked out of the hand, to which it was fastened by a hook and staple. It is stated that this gauntlet was often barred in single combats, it certainly was in foot-tournaments. There is an example of this contrivance in a suit in the Tower of London. Gauntlets were sometimes made of brass.
TACES, TUILLES, TASSETS, BRAYETTE, AND GARDE-DE-REINE OR RUMP GUARD.
Taces were the laminated plates at the bottom of the cuirass, and to these the tuilles or upper thigh guards were attached by straps and buckles. It was common to wear mail below the taces, often with escalloped edges, but the lower portion was often the bottom of a shirt of mail still worn beneath the cuirass. The mail skirt appears so late as 1578 on an effigy at Whitchurch, Denbigh. Taces usually consisted of three, and sometimes of five, and even of eight lames, as noticeable in the brass of Sir John Lysle (died 1407), whose armament is entirely of plate; but early examples are in one piece, and indeed late examples also. An early example, with taces only, is to be found on the brass of Sir John Drayton, but part of the lower portion is missing. Laminated taces first appear late in the fourteenth century; the brass of Nicholas Hawberk (died 1406), at Cobham, is an example. The introduction of “Almayne” rivets (sliding) gave great elasticity to the armour. Tuilles are peculiar to armour dating from the second quarter of the fifteenth century; the earlier form is short and square, but later it becomes pointed and an escalloped shell or tile-like plate in one piece, extended down so as to cover the top of the cuisse, and was attached to the taces by straps and buckles as a guard against an underthrust of the sword. There is an early example on the brass of John Leventhorpe, in Sawbridgeworth Church, Hertfordshire (1433). This, like all tuilles of its time, was small and attached by straps or hinges to the lowest rim of the taces—indeed, it differed but little in shape from the plate to which it was attached. It lingered long in England, as shown in the Stanley and Lementhorp brasses in Westminster Abbey and Great St. Helen’s Church, 1505 and 1510 respectively; and there is a very late example on a suit of armour of the time of Philip II. of Spain, but this may perhaps more properly be looked upon as a solid tasset, the suit having been used for tilting. The Beauchamp effigy shows four tuilles, two large and two small. Tassets followed on these pieces, though they were for a time contemporaneous. They were practically the same piece as the tuille in laminated plates, but were generally attached directly to the bottom rim of the cuirass, taces being then usually dispensed with, unless in one plate, forming the connecting link. It was not uncommon to find them in two parts during the second half of the sixteenth century, as shown in the Alnwick example ([Fig. 33]), and there are also cases where they are in one solid piece, as shown on a gilded suit in Windsor Castle, and in the other example referred to. Tassets gradually increased in length as time went on until they reached the knees, forming then the cuisse itself of laminated plates. This was the last stage before the introduction of the jackboot. The brayette or cod-piece is a hollow cap-like projecting plate for fixing on to the bottom of the cuirass for the protection of the fore-body. Fig. 14 represents this piece in chain-mail. We are not aware of the existence of another specimen in chain-mail. The fortunate possessor of this unique piece is Dr. Edgar von Ubisch of Berlin, and we are indebted to his kindness for the illustration. The garde-de-reine was a projecting piece attached to the rim of the backplate; it was of overlapping plates, and protected the rump and small of the back.