“GOTHIC” ARMOUR, 1440–1500; AND SOME ARMOUR-SMITHS OF THE PERIOD.
The “Gothic”[31] school, as it is termed, exhibits the highest
embodiment of artistic beauty as applied to defensive armour; and it
inaugurated a new epoch in warlike panoply. The armour-smith’s best
efforts were directed not only to give increased protection to the
limbs and make the armour light, flexible, and impenetrable; but the
flutings and escalloped edges were designed to produce beauty of form
and outline, as well as with a view to deflecting the weapon of attack
from vital points; and the armour was equally mobile for fighting on
foot or on horseback. We owe its initiation doubtless to Italy, in
which country, together with Germany, it reached its highest pitch
of excellence; but the style itself is really a reproduction of the
mediæval Florentine dress. Gothic armour is greatly associated with the
sallad, large mentonnière, tuilles, and sollerets “à la poulaine.” The
cuirass is decorative; the earlier form being somewhat short with many
taces, and the later with a longer breastplate and fewer taces, thus
exhibiting the evolution from the still earlier fashion. It has been
fully described under the heading devoted to this piece. There is an
English example of this style of armour shown on a brass in St. Mary’s
Church, Thame, Oxfordshire, about 1460; and another in the effigy
already mentioned of Sir Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, in St.
Mary’s Church, Warwick. There are only very few Gothic suits preserved
in this country, our practical people having used up so many as old
iron, just as they let the weather into our fine abbeys and churches by
tearing off the roofing lead for the melting pot.
A few suits are attributed to particular ancestors in some of the
castles of long-descended German families, but, in almost every case,
with but slender foundation in fact; the only specimens in England
that may be termed historic are those in the Rotunda at Woolwich, and
these are only fragments. Few of the “Gothic” suits in this country,
if indeed in any other, are quite homogeneous, and many of them are
more or less made up of odd pieces. This is the case with the “Gothic”
armour at Parham, which is said to have come from the Church of St.
Irene at Constantinople. Many of the details of this armour are of
the most exquisite and obviously authentic character, while pieces,
such as the sallads, apparently never went with the other armour.
Reliable armour of this period is very scarce, and difficult to buy.
Four thousand pounds was recently asked in London for a suit! Fashion
was as absolute regarding armour as in dress; and with the advent of
the “Maximilian” period the “Gothic” form was greatly laid aside,
for it could not be adapted, and therefore became obsolete. This is
the main cause why so few specimens have been preserved. A historic
example in the collection at Sigmaringen Castle, the cradle of the
Hohenzollerns, is described in detail, and an illustration given (Fig.
17). Another example may be seen on the brass of Sir Robert Staunton at
Castle Donnington (died 1458), on which the épaulières extend over the
armpits. This brass probably presents the earliest English instance of
the sallad. The “Beauchamp” effigy in latten, a “species of fine brass
metal,” affords a beautiful example of the earlier Gothic school. The
suit from which the models were taken is probably the work of Tomaso
da Missaglia of Milan. This effigy, and its probable origin, raises
the question as to which country we are indebted for the “Gothic” form
until comparatively recently freely attributed to Germany; but it is
tolerably certain that it originated with the Missaglias. There is
a further interesting point brought out by the effigy itself, which
was the work of an Englishman, viz.: that the smith who could copy
a suit so faithfully would probably be able to make real armour of
a high character. We read in Blore’s _Monumental Remains_ all about
the contracts for this truly magnificent monument, where it is stated
that Dugdale, the historian of Warwickshire, has very fortunately
preserved a recapitulation of the agreement between the executors of
the Earl and the artisans employed in its erection. This document
is given _in extenso_ in Blore’s work, and, as he says, it throws
considerable light, and affords some extremely important information,
on the construction of ancient monuments in general. The original was
found among the muniments of the bailiff and burgesses of Warwick, and
bears the date June 13, 32 Henry VI. The Earl died in 1439, so that the
contract for the monument was given out in 1454. Various subsidiary
agreements of an early date are included in the main contract. The
names of the contractors were John Essex, marbler; William Austin,
founder; and Thomas Stevyns, coppersmith. The clause of the contract
regarding the effigy runs as follows, viz.:--
“The said Will. Austin, xi. Feb., 28 Henry VI., doth covenant to cast
and make an image of a man armed of fine latten, garnished with certain
ornaments, viz., with sword and dagger; with a garter; with a helm and
crest under his head, and at his feet a bear musled, and a griffon,
perfectly made of the finest latten, according to patterns, all which
to be brought to Warwick, and layd on the tombe, at the perill of the
said Austin: the said executors paying for the image, perfectly made
and laid, and all the ornaments in good order, besides the cost of
the said workmen to Warwick, and working there to lay the image, and
besides the cost of the carriages, all which are to be born by the said
executors, in totall xl li.”
A further clause refers to the agreement made with Bartholomew
Lambespring, Dutchman, and goldsmyth of London, 23 Maii, 27 Hen. VI.,
who “covenanteth to repaire, whone, and pullish, and to make perfect
to the gilding, an image of latten of a man armed, that is in making,
to lye over the tombe, and all the apparell that belongeth thereunto,
as helme, crest, sword, &c., and beasts; the said executors paying
therefore xiii li.” The accounts of one of the executors show that
the monument took twenty-one years to erect and finish, and that the
total cost was £2481 4s. 7½d. Mr. Blore continues: “The monument of
Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, consists of an altar-tomb of grey
marble, in the finest preservation. Within canopies admirably wrought,
are whole-length sculptures of fourteen of the immediate relatives of
the deceased, executed in latten, which was a species of fine brass
metal, and richly gilt; these figures are disposed five on each side,
and two at either end of the tomb. Underneath every figure, in starred
quatrefoils, is a shield with armorial bearings enamelled on brass,
and between the larger canopies, alternately, a smaller, containing an
angel executed in similar metal with the portraiture of the mourners,
and holding in one hand a scroll, on which is engraven in Gothic letter,
“Sit deo laus et gloria, defunctis misericordia.”
The image, excepting the hands and head, is in complete armour, with
the garter encircling the left leg. The head rests upon a helm,
surmounted by the family crest, and at the feet are a bear muzzled
and a griffin, badges of the ancient house of Warwick. The armour may
be considered as real, from the extreme care and exactness that have
been bestowed on it by the original artist. Mr. Charles Stothard had
the figure turned over, and found that the armour for the back was as
carefully and minutely finished as that on the front. The suit exhibits
the cuirass as shorter than we find it in later “Gothic,” while the
taces are correspondingly more extended, and consist of five lames.
The breastplate has a gracefully curved groove on either side, and a
catch for the mentonnière on the breast. The mentonnière is usually
omitted in effigies for obvious reasons. A remarkable feature of the
effigy is that there are four tuilles; the larger two do not converge
so abruptly to a point as they usually do rather later, but the smaller
ones are more sharply pointed. The coudières are of the beautiful
butterfly type, and very large; while the sollerets are far from
being extravagantly tipped. The most unusual feature of this effigy
is the early presence of pikeguards. The Earl died in 1439, so the
figure could not well be copied from any armour he left behind him,
for the general aspect of the suit would fix the date about 1450–60,
which would correspond with the date of the contract for the tomb.
As already stated, the figure was probably fashioned after models
supplied by Tomaso da Missaglia, and seems to represent his later work.
This impression is strengthened by the following comparisons with
two harnesses at Vienna, viz.: a suit by this master, made for the
Pfalzgraf Friedrich am Rhein, about the middle of the century, exhibits
points of contact with the Warwick figure, especially in respect to
the number of the taces; while another by Antonio da Missaglia, made
about thirty years later for the Count of Gajazzo (died 1487), shows a
relatively longer breastplate and fewer taces. The latter suit bears
pikeguards, which the earlier does not. One may perhaps deduce from
these examples that the Beauchamp effigy represents the later work of
Tomaso. The illustration given in Fig. 16 represents the effigy in an
upright position. It is a reproduction of that given in Blore.
[Illustration: Fig. 16.--Effigy of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick,
in St. Mary’s Church, Warwick.]
Tomaso and Antonio da Missaglia, the illustrious sire and son, were
the great Milan armour-smiths of from the end of the first quarter
to the close of the fifteenth century. To the first it seems certain
that we are indebted for the form called “Gothic,” which was, however,
merely a graceful improvement on the fashion immediately preceding it.
There was nothing very abrupt in the transition, as was the case in
the radical change from “Gothic” to “Maximilian.” The work of Tomaso
is conspicuous for purity of style and nobility of form, and, from an
artistic point of view, it has no rivals. Armour of his period was
generally plain, but the more pronounced passion for decoration of the
time found expression in the work of his son; an example of whose
skill may be seen in the case of a helmet in the Tower of London, and
at Vienna is the superb Gothic suit with pikeguards, already referred
to, made for the Count of Gajazzo. Tomaso was, it is believed, the
first master to use armourer’s marks. His monogram is the letter “M,”
surmounted by a crown. The Negrolis, who worked after the Missaglias,
seem to have been of the same family, and, as Boeheim points out, the
name “Missaglia,” like that of Ferrara, seems to have originated as a
“place” designation. Examples of the work of the Negrolis may be seen
both at Vienna and Madrid. Their work represents the full swing of the
“renaissance.”
Milan, where the Missaglias worked, is not the only town in Italy where
there is a Via degli Armorari and a Via degli Spadari, showing that
there were then separate guilds for armour- and sword-making in that
country.
SIGMARINGEN SUIT.
This beautiful “Gothic” suit, by Lorenz Kolman of Augsburg (Fig. 17),
is said to have belonged to one of the Counts of Hohenzollern-Eitel.
Demmin refers to it as being erroneously ascribed to Eitel Frederick
I. of the thirteenth century. The mistake is obvious, as there were no
Counts of Hohenzollern-Eitel then! There were two Eitel Fredericks in
the fifteenth century. On consulting the Stammbaum at Hohenzollern it
appears that
Eitel Frederick I. reigned 1426–1439.
Jost Nicolaus I. ” 1439–1488.
Eitel Frederick II. ” 1488–1512.
And the character of the armour conforms closely to the early portion
of the reign of the last-named. There was no later “Eitel Frederick.”
A later suit, made for this Eitel Frederick about 1510, is now at
Vienna. It is “Maximilian” and partly fluted, and very possibly by the
same master; for we see by the Berne example, referred to somewhat
later in these pages, that Lorenz Kolman turned out Maximilian armour
after that fashion had superseded the “Gothic.”
[Illustration: Fig. 17.--Gothic Suit at Sigmaringen.]
The sallad (Fig. 17) is very heavy, and of the usual German form. There
are traces of a leather lining, and besides the ocularium there are
two small holes above the forehead. The mentonnière is fastened to the
breastplate by a cusped clasp; the neck and chin-piece can be raised or
lowered at pleasure, and there is a spring catch for the purpose. The
cuirass is most elegant in shape, and being much longer than that on
the Beauchamp effigy brings out clearly its later date. It consists of
three plates, the two lower slightly overlapping, leaving decorative
margins, and they converge to points along the tapul at the breastbone
and below. The lower plates are riveted, and add both strength and
elasticity to the piece. There are holes on the right breast for
fixing a lance-rest, and on the left are two holes for fastening on a
grand-guard for tilting. The taces consist of three lames, and to these
the tuilles are attached by straps and buckles. The tuilles are very
graceful, with angular flutings, and terminate in a point. The cuisses
are decorative, while the genouillières are small, with bivalve guards.
The épaulières and rerebraces are laminated, the coudières pointed,
and held in their places by straps. The rondelles are unfortunately
missing. The gauntlets are articulated, with sharp gadlings over the
knuckles and first finger joints. The garde-de-reine consists of three
lames. The sollerets are “à la poulaine” in an extreme form, but the
tips can be disconnected at pleasure for foot fighting, like those on
the effigy of the Black Prince. The lower part of the body is protected
by a skirt of mail.
The Sigmaringen harness exhibits many points of contact with a
beautiful suit recently acquired by Prince Ernst of Windisch-Graetz,
which is a glorious specimen of the armourer’s art at his very best.
The tuilles of this example are not pointed, as is the case on the
Sigmaringen suit.
A “Gothic” suit from the collection of Prince Carl of Prussia now in
the Zeughaus at Berlin, of which an illustration is given in Fig. 18,
is very beautiful. The finely modelled breastplate has a fluted rim
across the upper chest, a feature that is uncommon in Gothic armour,
but of which other examples are given under the heading “The Cuirass.”
The rondelles are ornamented with curved radiating flutings, in the
matrix of which a projecting spike is fixed. The coudières are sharply
pointed at the elbow, while the tuilles are large, with a shape not
unlike that of the larger pair on the “Beauchamp” effigy, though
bevelled and pointed. The sollerets are “à la poulaine,” in the extreme
form.
The remarkable armour-smith family of Kolman of Augsburg occupied a
similar position in Germany, during the reign of the Emperor Maximilian
I., to that held by Antonio da Missaglia in Italy. Lorenz, surnamed
Helmschmied, is perhaps best known to-day for the beautiful “Gothic”
harness, made about 1490 for the Emperor Max, which now adorns the
collection at Vienna. It resembles the Sigmaringen example somewhat
closely, the points of difference lying mainly in the form of the
sallad, the shape of the tuilles (square-cut at the bottom in the
Vienna example), and the Vienna harness has an extra plate on the
breastplate. That Lorenz Kolman was employed during the later portion
of his career as Court armour-smith to Maximilian in making fluted
armour, as he had been engaged earlier in turning out “Gothic,” is
shown by an early and interesting example of fluted “Maximilian” armour
at Berne. This harness compares closely with that represented in
Fig. 24, though the Swiss example shows pikeguards, which the other one
does not. The early character of both suits is shown by the swelling
out of the breastplate over the abdomen. The figure sits on horseback,
and the horse is fully barded contemporaneously with the figure. The
saddle has the deep seat of the “renaissance.” Lorenz Kolman died in
1515. The armourer’s mark of this family is a helmet surmounted by
a cross. The mark of Hans Grünewalt of Nuremberg has not been fully
determined, so that his work cannot be identified with absolute
certainty; but a breastplate that belonged to Philip the Fair, and a
shield at Vienna, have been attributed to him. They are of exquisite
workmanship, and the mark on these specimens is a stag on a shield,
which clearly refers to the “greenwood.” He was the great rival of
Tomaso da Missaglia, and died in 1503.
[Illustration: Fig. 18.--Gothic Suit at Berlin.]
The Gothic armour at the Rotunda, Woolwich, is especially valuable from
its direct association with the Knights of Rhodes. It is fragmentary in
character, consisting mainly of isolated plates and portions of plates.
There are several sallads of the Italian type, a beautiful breastplate
in two plates, a backplate, some gardes-de-reine, a cuisse with a
small butterfly genouillière guard, rounded flutings radiating from
the centre of the upper thigh, several broken gauntlets, besides other
fragments, and a tilting helm of the end of the fifteenth century, on
which fifteen of the staples remain; the helm is perforated on one side
only.
The last Gothic suit given is one in the author’s collection, and an
illustration of it is here given (Fig. 19).
GOTHIC SUIT IN THE AUTHOR’S COLLECTION, 1460–1500.
This suit, like so many of its period, is incomplete. The armet with
it, when acquired, never belonged to the suit, and there is no
mentonnière. The sallad, shown on the figure, was made recently to
give the general effect of the period. The suit is otherwise complete,
and of fine material, proportions, and workmanship. The steel of this
period is of excellent quality. The details, with a few exceptions,
somewhat closely resemble those of the Sigmaringen suit. There are
rondelles at the armpits on this suit which are ornamented with
radiations, and these, together with the elbow-guards, are beautifully
ridged and bevelled. The tuilles are larger and squarer than those
on the Sigmaringen suit, and the sollerets not so long in the tips.
The cuirass is in two plates, with a rim across the chest, as shown
on the Berlin suit (Fig. 18)--the mentonnière therefore went partly
below the cuirass. The general details greatly resemble those of a
suit at Vienna, attributed to Sigismund of Tyrol, which is also an
incomplete suit. As the gauntlets of this suit are distinctly typical,
it may be well perhaps to go somewhat into detail concerning them. They
are of fine workmanship and material, as well as light and graceful.
The surface of the steel is very hard. The cuff is sharply pointed,
and deep flutings run in parallel lines towards the extremity; while
similar perpendicular flutings join the lowest of these lines. Three
supple articulations lend flexibility to the gauntlet, and connect the
knuckle-plate with the cuff. The last-mentioned plate and four finger
plates all work in slots, and are beaten into ridges for fitting over
the knuckles and fingers. The thumb-guard is also articulated. An
illustration is given in Fig. 19.
Transitional Gothic, where laminated tassets replace tuilles and
merge into the next stage in various ways, is also very beautiful. In
both varieties you have lovely escalloped and fluted rondelles, often
charged with a heraldic rose. A fine example of this description may be
seen in the National Museum at Munich, and an illustration is given of
it (Frontispiece), because of the beautiful details. The rondelles
are especially fine, and the mentonnière and breastplate, which latter
is in two plates, are clearly shown.
[Illustration: Fig. 19.--Gothic Suit in the Author’s Collection.]