A few short rules follow for the mêlée and barriers.
There is much confusion in the nomenclature employed by chroniclers in their descriptions of these chivalric war-games, and the terms “tournois,” “tourney,” “joustes” or “joûtes” and “pas d’armes,” are often confounded with each other, all or any being sometimes used in a general sense to cover various forms of jousting and the tourney: and such meetings often received the general appellation of fêtes d’armes. In a contemporary recital of the meeting in 1559, which Henry II of France received his fatal wound, the terms “joûtes,” “tournois,” and pas d’armes are all employed to express the proceedings as a whole. The term “tourney” is very frequently used to denote the mêlée.
A pas d’armes or passage of arms usually covered a variety of martial exercises. It was open to all comers, being knights and esquires qualified to take part, who were invited by proclamation to attend. The field was held by a certain number of challengers, called “les tenans” or holders of the pas; while the attacking cavaliers were known as “les venans,” or comers, who came to try and wrest the pas from them. A pas d’armes was also an imitation of an operation of war, a Scharmützel, in the attack and defence of a supposed position of strength, such as a pasteboard bridge-head, a castle of wood or the assumed gate to a town; the contest being waged with all the ardour of real warfare, though tempered by certain rules, pretences and limitations. The term pas d’armes is comprehensive, for besides jousting and strokes with the sword, etc., such meetings often included combats on foot; and, after the middle of the fifteenth century, contests on horseback with the baston or mace; and they often concluded with the tourney proper or mêlée, troop against troop.
In the Antiquarian Repertory[116] is the following account of a pas d’armes held about the end of the fifteenth century:—
“The king assigns to four maidens of his court the umpireship of the castle called ‘Loyall’; for the attack and defence of which they are to arrange as they may collectively decide upon. The castle is a mock fortress, representing one which had been subjected to a remarkable siege in history. The ladies confide its guard and custody to a captain and fifteen cavaliers to defend the ‘pas’ against all comers. A unicorn is placed within the lists, the four legs of which support as many shields, coloured white, red, yellow and blue respectively. The first shield signifies the opening jousts at the tilt, to be run in ‘hoasting’ armour, with double or reinforcing pieces; the second shield denotes that in the tourney which follows the jousting twelve strokes with the sword are to be exchanged; the third a combat on foot at barriers, the same number of strokes with one-handed swords; the fourth, the defence and assault of the castle, with swords, shields and morris-pikes. The points and edges of all the weapons employed in the four sections to be rebated, only the foyne[117] excepted. Any cavalier, except the leader of either side, if taken prisoner, may be ransomed with three yards of satin, but captains must pay the cost of thirteen yards for their freedom. The pas d’armes to continue from the 27th November to New Year’s Day. The hours, after the first day, from one in the afternoon to seven in the evening.”[118]
Other clauses in the Chapitres d’Armes are:—
“Item. Yt shalbe lawfull for the assaulters to devise all manner of engynes for the wynenge of the said castell; engyn or tole to breake the ground or howse with all only excepted.
Item. None do meddell with fier neyther within or without but to fire their gunnes.
Item. If any man be disarmed, he maye withdrawne himselfe if he will; but once past the barres, he may not com agayne into the torney for that daye. Also there shall no man have his servant within the barres with any peace of harnois, for no man shalbe within the said barres but such as shalbe assigned by the king’s grace.
Item. Who shall beste demeane himselfe at thee same arte of armes, shall have a sword, garnished, to the valew of three hundred crownes or under.