The Fesse is a band athwart the shield, filling, according to the rules of the heraldic writers, a third part of it. By ancient use, however, as in the case of the chief and pale, its width varies with the taste of the painter, narrowing when set in a field full of charges and broadening when charges are displayed on itself. When two or three fesses are borne they are commonly called Bars. “Ermine four bars gules” is given as the shield of Sir John Sully, a 14th-century Garter knight, on his stall-plate at Windsor: but the plate belongs to a later generation, and should probably have three bars only. Little bars borne in couples are styled Gemels (twins). The field divided into an even number of bars of alternate colours is said to be barry, barry of six pieces being the normal number. If four or eight divisions be found the number of pieces must be named; but with ten or more divisions the number is unreckoned and “burely” is the word.
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| Bermingham. | Caldecote. | Colevile. | Fauconberg. |
Colevile of Bitham bore “Gold a fesse gules.”
West bore “Silver a dance (or fesse dancy) sable.”
Fauconberg bore “Gold a fesse azure with three pales gules in the chief.”
Cayvile bore “Silver a fesse gules, flowered on both sides.”
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| Cayvile. | Devereux. | Chamberlayne. | Harcourt. |
Devereux bore “Gules a fesse silver with three roundels silver in the chief.”
Chamberlayne of Northamptonshire bore “Gules a fesse and three scallops gold.”
Harcourt bore “Gules two bars gold.”