steely quality and workmanship of such a suit would confer immunity
on the wearer; and that the relative elasticity and lightness of a
perfectly-fitting suit might confer such superiority on an active and
sinewy champion engaging with men swathed like mummies beneath their
armour in thick gambeson or mail, as to enable him to emerge from his
deeds of arms as triumphantly as the heroes of romance. Nothing was
worn beneath but the fustian doublet, well padded and lined with satin,
with the small lozenge-shaped gussets of mail under the limb-joints and
the short petticoat of mail tied round the waist. It is also unlikely
that such armour was concealed under any garment, and we may observe
that while some princes and nobles are still wearing brigandines of
velvet and cloth of gold in pageants, many more are in "plain armour,"
presenting, except when standing collars of mail were worn, a uniform
surface of smooth polished steel.
The Missaglia suit remained the type with little modification
for several years, almost to the close of the Gothic period. The
Quatremayne brass in Thame Church, of the year 1460, presents a
magnificent example of it with singularly exaggerated elbow-guards.
During the next few years the limb-pieces and gorget become more
articulated and flexible, and the breast and back plates are formed
of as many as three or four overlapping articulated plates, cut
chevron-wise, and notched and indented in an interesting manner. The
gauntlets and sollerets are also of excellent workmanship. There are
a number of peculiarly fine examples in the Museum of Artillery in
the Rotunda at Woolwich, from the Isle of Rhodes, which exhibit the
graceful outlines and ornament of later fifteenth-century Gothic armour
in perfection, and also present early and interesting examples of
engraving on armour. Lord Zouche has also some remarkable suits, said
to be from the Church of Irene at Constantinople, in his collection at
Parham. Sir Noel Paton's fine collection also comprises several Gothic
suits, and there are some in the Tower. None, however, are connected
historically with English wearers, and the destruction of Gothic
armour in this country appears to have been unusually complete. The
illustrations from the _Life of the Earl of Warwick_, an English MS.
of the second half of the fifteenth century (Figs. 20 and 21); and the
scene (Fig. 25) from the late fifteenth-century MS. of Froissart, which
belonged to Philip de Commines, both now in the British Museum, give
excellent ideas of the armour of this period in actual use, while the
brasses supply exact figures of the details.
[Illustration: FIG. 21.
The Duke of Gloucester and Earls of Warwick and Stafford chase the
Duke of Burgundy from the walls of Calais. They wear loose sleeves and
skirts of mail, and the round broad-brimmed helmet very fashionable
for a time among the higher French nobility. The balls and tufts are
probably Venice gold, with which the helmet was perhaps also laced,
over some rich material. This and Fig. 20 are from the Beauchamp MS. in
the British Museum, an exquisite production by an English hand.]
Turning now to head-defences, the great crested helm, still represented
as pillowing the head in effigies, had long since been relegated to
the joust and tilt, while the bassinet with a visor, already seen in
the Transition period, remained the fighting helmet till about the
middle of the century. The visor, however, was not unfrequently struck
or wrenched off in tourneys, and the neck pierced by the lance. Some
hardy warriors, indeed, like Sir John Chandos and the Earl of Warwick,
dispensed with it and went into the fray with faces bare, but this was
exceptional, and the pig-faced and beaked visored bassinets occur in
all delineations of combats of the first half of the century.
The bassinet began to be superseded towards the middle of the fifteenth
century by the sallad, which remained in fashion almost to its close.
Its merits were, the free supply of air it afforded, and the readiness
with which the face could be concealed and protected. It was the
headpiece of the Gothic armour, such as that of the Warwick effigy,
though monuments of this date almost always leave the head bare. The
origin of the sallad, whether German or Italian, is unknown, but the
term occurs in Chaucer. In its simplest form it was low-crowned,
projecting behind, and strapped under the chin, something like a
"sou'wester" or the heraldic chapeau, and in this form it was worn by
archers and billmen. Another kind had a higher crown, with two slits
in front as an ocularium, and could be pulled over the brows till
this came level with the eyes (Fig. 22). A hinged nose-piece was also
sometimes present, to be let down in time of danger. It was also made
more completely protective by a chin-piece called the bavier, strapped
round the neck or fastened to the breastplate for tilting; while a
lighter bavier was in two pieces, of which the upper was hinged at the
side and could be raised for speaking. It was frequently furnished
with a visor to let down. The tail-piece was occasionally so prolonged
that sallads measure as much as eighteen inches from back to front.
It occurs both smooth-topped and combed, and with a slot for plumes
approaches nearer to classic models than any other form of mediæval
helmet. This picturesque headpiece is the one so frequently represented
by Albert Dürer, and was favoured for a longer time in Germany than
elsewhere, many of the Germans in the picture of the meeting of
Maximilian and Henry VIII. appearing in it, while all the English wear
the later close helmet or armet. The form represented has the addition
of articulated pieces behind and a double visor moving on pivots at the
sides, which make it a near approach to a closed helmet.
The sallad was the principal helmet in use throughout the Wars of the
Roses, and is constantly represented in manuscripts of that period. But
one solitary example has been preserved in England from the time of
those destructive wars, in which its first wearer may have taken part.
It hangs in St. Mary's Hall, Coventry, and owes its preservation to its
use as a stage property in the Godiva processions. There are specimens,
however, in all the important collections in England and abroad.
[Illustration: PLATE V.--Grand-guard, used for tilting, belonging
to the suit of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, with the gilding
restored. In the Tower of London.]
The bassinet was sometimes richly decorated, covered with velvet,
plumed, crested, and of considerable value, Sir John de Cornwall
wagering his helmet in 1423, which he offered to prove to be worth 500
nobles. The pretty custom of garlanding them with may, marguerites,
or other flowers specially favoured by a queen or princess, or with
chaplets of pearls and other gems, seen in the early part of the
century, lasted until after the introduction of the sallad, which
provided a better field for such display. A sallad belonging to the
Duke of Burgundy, decorated with rubies and diamonds to the estimated
value of 100,000 crowns, figured in the entry of Louis XI. into Paris
in 1443. In the expenses of Henry VII. precious stones and pearls are
bought from the Lombards to the value of £3800 for embellishing sallads
and other helmets, and in France even the sallads of the mounted
archers are continually mentioned as garnished with silver.
[Illustration: FIG. 22.
1. Sallad in St. Mary's Hall, Coventry.
2. Helm of Sir Giles Capel, date 1510-1525. Formerly in Rayne Church,
Essex. Now in the possession of Baron de Cosson.]
The sallad was a relatively dangerous headpiece in tourneys on foot,
and a large-visored bassinet is often mentioned as being retained in
use for this purpose down to the sixteenth century. The Baron de Cosson
has identified this form, seen to have been fixed to the breast by two
staples and a double buckle behind, and himself possesses a magnificent
example, which once hung over the tombs of the Capels in Rayne Church.
Sir Giles Capel was one of the knights who with Henry VIII. challenged
all comers for thirty days on the Field of the Cloth of Gold. The visor
in this example is very massive, the holes so small that no point
could possibly enter, and the helm being fixed the head moved freely
inside. A second and possibly earlier example has the visor thrown into
horizontal ridges and a small bavier. The visor is hinged at the sides,
and the sight and breathing holes are short slots, parallel to and
protected by the ridges. It hangs over the tomb of John Beaufort, Duke
of Somerset, in Wimborne Minster, who died in 1444, but it is of later
date; and another belonging to the suit of Henry VIII. in the Tower,
made for fighting on foot, is not dissimilar. Baron de Cosson calls
attention to the fact that this form, called a bassinet, is shown in
the miniature of the manuscript entitled, "How a man shalle be armyd at
his ese when he schal fighte on foote."
[Illustration: FIG. 23.--_English tournament helm over the tomb of John
Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, in Wimborne Minster. Weight 14¼ lbs. Date
1480-1520. From a photograph lent by Baron de Cosson._]
Another very interesting and thoroughly English form of helm, intended,
according to De Cosson, for the tilt with lances, is preserved in
a specimen in Broadwater Church, another in Willington Church over
Sir John Gostwick's tomb, and a third in Cobham Church, the helm of
Sir Thomas Brooke, who died 1522. These all present considerable
differences of detail. A not dissimilar helm of slightly later date
with a barred visor, or the bars riveted to the helm, affording plenty
of breathing space, was used for the tourney with sword or battle-axe,
and has become the Royal and the nobles' helmet of heraldry.
A form of helm used for tilting with the lance and also frequently
depicted in heraldry, is the great helm of the time of Henry VII. and
Henry VIII., of immense weight and strength, resting on the shoulders,
and securely fixed to the back and breast. It was relatively flat
on the crown, produced in front into a kind of blunt beak, giving a
bird-like aspect with no distinct neck. The ocularium, or slit for
vision, is large and in the crown, and can only be used by bending
the body forward; the head being raised before the moment of impact
to avoid the danger of the lance penetrating. This helm is well
represented in the tournament roll of Henry VIII. in Heralds' College,
and from its massive strength and the fact that by no possibility could
a combatant be accidentally unhelmed, afforded absolute protection to
the head. Le Heaulme du Roy is represented in this roll as silvered,
with a crown-like border round the neck of pearls and gems set in gold.
There is a magnificent specimen in the Museum of Artillery at Woolwich,
one in Westminster Abbey, two in St. George's Chapel, one in Petworth
Church, and one at Parham. This form of helm was the most massive and
secure, and the last that remained in use. A very early delineation of
a helmet of this type is seen in the late fourteenth-century French
MS. (Burney, 257) in the British Museum. Some exceedingly interesting
delineations of the same kind of tilting helm in actual use are to be
seen in Philip de Commines' Froissart, Harl. MS., 4379-80 (Fig. 25).
It is there represented plain and fluted, and with various crests and
mantling, one of the most singular, and a favourite, being a close copy
of the lady's head-dress of the period, with the lady's long gauze veil
reaching below the waist. This manuscript is of late fifteenth-century
date, and very remarkable for the apparently faithful representations
of the armour worn by the English and French at that time. In one group
of soldiery alone, in the second volume, page 84, the helm of the early
fourteenth century, the beaked bassinet of the early fifteenth, and
various forms of visored and unvisored sallads are assembled together.
[Illustration: FIG. 24.--_Helm of Sir John Gostwick, died 1541._
Believed to have been worn at the Field of the Cloth of Gold, 1520, and
now hanging over his tomb in Willington Church, Bedfordshire. From a
photograph by the Rev. Augustus Orlebau, Vicar.]
All these forms of helm were more or less contemporary with the sallad,
which gave place in turn to the armet or closed helmet, first heard of
in 1443. Like, perhaps, the sallad, the armet was invented in Italy,
and did not reach England or even Germany till about 1500. In France,
however, a page of the Count de St. Pol bore a richly-worked armet on
the entry into Rouen of Charles VII.; and the royal armet of Louis XI.,
crowned and richly adorned with fleurs-de-lis, was carried before him
on his entry into Paris in 1461. It is also mentioned in 1472, in an
edict of the Duke of Burgundy.
The fundamental difference between it and all helms and helmets that
had preceded it is, that while others had either fitted the top of the
head, as a cap does, or were put right over it, the armet closed round
the head by means of hinges, following the contour of the chin and
neck. Its advantages were neatness, lightness, and general handiness,
and it conveyed the weight by the gorget directly on to the shoulders.
Its use was exclusively for mounted combatants, though the great helm
continued in use for jousts and tilts during the time of Henry VIII.
It does not appear in English costume much before this reign, but in
all the pictures of the triumphs and battle-pieces of Henry VIII. at
Hampton Court, the English men-at-arms invariably wear it, and it is
abundantly represented in works of art during the remainder of the
Tudor period.
[Illustration: FIG. 25.--_The entry of Queen Isabel into Paris in 1390._
The knights wear the great tilting helms, and the foremost has a copy
of the ladies' head-dress for crest, from which depends a fine lawn
veil. The housings are embroidered with gold. From the Philip de
Commines copy of Froissart, Harl. MS. 4379, vol. 1, fol. 99, in the
British Museum, late fifteenth century.]
An early armet, identified by Baron de Cosson as Italian, with a
double bavier riveted together, but without a visor, hangs over the
tomb of Sir George Brooke, eighth Lord Cobham, K.G. (Fig. 26), and
dates from 1480 to 1500. Baron de Cosson describes it as having a
reinforcing piece on the forehead, hinged cheek-pieces joined down the
middle of the chin, and of peculiarly delicate and beautiful outline.
It originally had a camail hanging to a leather strap. The wooden
Saracen's head may date from the funeral of this Lord Cobham in 1558,
"but was certainly never worn on any helmet." Its owner served under
Norfolk in Ireland, in 1520, and was subsequently Governor of Calais.
[Illustration: FIG. 26.--_Armet of Sir George Brooke, K.G., 8th Lord
Cobham. From his tomb in Cobham Church, Kent. 1480-1500._]
[Illustration: FIG. 27.--_English armet from the collection of Seymour
Lucas, A.R.A. Date about 1500. From a photograph by Baron de Cosson._]
English armets dating from about 1500 are not uncommon, but, as
frequently observed, "they want that perfection and delicacy to be
found in fine Italian or German work." The earlier open down the
front, and the later at the side. They are generally combed, the ridge
or comb running from the forehead to the back of the neck, and
being beaten or raised out of the metal in the most able way. There
is generally, but not always, a reinforcing piece over the forehead.
The visor is of one piece, and works on a pivot, but in a few of the
early specimens the pin and hinge arrangement of the older Italian
examples is preserved, rendering it removable. The slit for vision is
generally made in the body of the visor, but is sometimes obtained by
cutting out a piece of its upper edge. It is beaked, thrown into few or
several ridges, with the slits or holes for breathing principally on
the right side. The English armet was rarely furnished with a bavier
or movable chin-piece, and the fixed one, called a mentonière, was
small. Baron de Cosson obtained one from Rayne Church in Essex, when
it was pulled down, and Meyrick procured a similar one from Fulham
Church, and Mr. Seymour Lucas, A.R.A., has two very fine specimens, now
exhibited at South Kensington, while specimens are to be met with in
most great collections. The not inelegant fluted Maximilian armets of
the same date are, however, far more frequent. Like the later English
armets, they have no baviers. Between 1510 and 1525, a hollow rim
was introduced round the base of the helmet, fitting closely into a
corresponding ridge round the upper edge of the gorget. This manifest
improvement was considered by Meyrick to constitute the Burgonet.
Between 1520 and 1540 the visor was formed of two parts, the upper of
which closed inside the lower, and was capable of being raised without
unfixing the latter. It remained in this form until the closed helmet
fell into disuse in the seventeenth century. The armet frequently
comprised, especially in the later examples, a fixed gorget, generally
of two or more articulated plates. A number of these are included
in the sixteenth and seventeenth century suits illustrated in the
succeeding pages, one of the most singular being the helmet of the
mounted suit of Henry VIII., made for the king by Conrad Seusenhofer
of Innsbrück in 1511-14. It consists of six pieces fitting one within
another without hinge or rivet, and seems originally to have had one of
the curious discs at the back seen in Italian fifteenth-century armets
and contemporary illustrations.
[Illustration: FIG. 28.--_Complete suit for fighting on foot, made for
Henry VIII. In the Tower of London._]
Towards the beginning of the sixteenth century knightly armour
underwent some profound modifications. The exaggerated elbow-guards
and shoulder-pieces were reduced, the tuilles, the laminated corselets
with their handsome flutings and indented margins, and the pointed
sollerets were either modified or seen no more; and with them disappear
much of the angulated, defensive mannerism, and the grace peculiar to
the armour of the third quarter of the fifteenth century. That which
followed appears smoother, rounder, and heavier, less mobile, and less
apt for real campaigning. The modifications tending to this result may
have been in a large degree due to the personal tastes of the three
great monarchs of Europe. Maximilian and Henry VIII. preferred at heart
the pomp and pageantry to the realities of war; while the classic
bias of Francis I. banished all Gothic feeling so far as his personal
influence extended. The short-waisted, podgy, globular breastplate,
the stolid limb-pieces, rounded knee-caps and strikingly splay-footed
sollerets, appear as if invented to altogether banish the very idea
of agility, if not of movement; and contrast in the strongest manner
with the lithe and supple-looking armour of the Beauchamp effigy. The
Tower collection, so relatively poor in Gothic armour, is fortunately
extremely rich in that of the period of Henry VIII., containing four
or five suits actually made for his personal use. One of the finest
of these, and an admirably perfect suit, is shown in our illustration
(Fig. 28). Though without any decoration or marks, it was undoubtedly
made expressly for the king, and is a chef-d'oeuvre of the armourer's
craft, being formed, according to Lord Dillon, of no less than 235
separate pieces, which are used about one half below and the rest above
the waist. The principal pieces are fitted with a hollow groove along
the inferior margin, and overlap others provided with a corresponding
ridge: so that the whole suit thus interlocks, and the plates cannot
be separated or the armour taken apart except by removing the helmet
and beginning at the neck-pieces. To the left shoulder-piece or
pauldron one of the upright neck-guards is still fixed by rivets. The
breastplate is globose, and has a central ridge called the tapul. The
arms are sheathed in rigid plates, separated by a series of narrow
laminar plates, by which power of movement is obtained. The elbows are
guarded by not inelegant caps, and the gauntlets are miton-fashioned,
of eleven small plates, and very flexible. The leg-armour is in large
pieces ridged down the centre, similarly to the breastplate, except
above and below the knee-cap, and at the ankle, where laminar plates
give the necessary play. The sollerets being made, like the gauntlets,
each of thirteen pieces, are also extremely flexible, and reproduce
in an exaggerated way the great broad toes of the civil dress. Like
the helm, already noticed, the suit is intended for combats on foot
and in the lists, which were greatly in fashion. No mail gussets were
needed, for there were no crevices between the plates, and the wearer
inside his armour was as well defended as a lobster in its shell; but
this security, as with all armour-plate, was purchased, notwithstanding
the perfection of manufacture, at the expense of unwieldiness and
fatigue, for the suit weighs over 92 lbs. There are three other suits
which belonged to Henry VIII., besides the magnificent equestrian one
next figured. The second dismounted one was also intended for combats
on foot, and is known as a tonlet suit from the long, laminated skirt
of horizontal plates reaching to the knee, and sliding over each
other. It is decorated with some engraved bands or borders, while the
fine headpiece to it is Italian, bearing the marks of the celebrated
Missaglias of Milan. We meet at this time with the sliding rivets,
a new mode of attachment for the plates, which enabled them to play
freely over each other without parting company. The overlapping tassets
of most of the close-fitting skirts are made in this fashion, to
which the term Almayne rivets, so frequently met with in inventories,
is believed to apply. Some of the suits are provided with a locking
gauntlet, to prevent the sword from being struck out of the wearer's
hand, the so-called forbidden gauntlet, though its prevalence in
collections negatives the idea that its use was disallowed. In one
mounted suit the insteps are protected by the great ungainly stirrups
necessitated by the broad-toed sollerets, and therefore only covered
with mail. This suit is enriched with a picturesque banded ornament,
partly gilt.
[Illustration: FIG. 29.--_Suit made for Henry VIII. by Conrad
Seusenhofer of Innsbrück, 1511-1514. A present from the Emperor
Maximilian I. In the Tower._]