(plate 95), German, late fifteenth century from Charles’s Armoury. Each
is composed of twenty-seven pieces of white steel-plated iron, incised
with aqua-fortis, festooned and openwork, and with the cuff ending in a
point. They are forged and joined together with great skill to defend
the hand without hindering the natural movements, and at the same time
armed against the enemy with sharp points on the knuckles like the _coup
de point américain_. They are more delicate and handsome than those of
the same kind in the Vienna Museum; and if, on account of the period to
which they belong, they do not agree with the armour of Charles V.,
though they are sketched in the Relacion de Valladolid, it is beyond
doubt that they were part of some magnificent armour, possibly of his
father; perhaps of his grandfather Maximilian. This is partly confirmed
by the style of ornamentation, which agrees absolutely with that of the
work of Colman Helmschmied.
Several swords, once the property of the Emperor, are included in the
collection, but they do not possess the same merit or interest as the
defensive armour. The battle-swords G33, G34, both the work of the
Negrolis, have broad hexagonal blades, the middle surfaces and ricasso
being inlaid with gold. The hilt of the first is of iron, similarly
inlaid, with the quillons and pommel terminating in graceful volutes; a
beautifully chased shell protects the hand. The guard of the second is
strengthened by two branches; the pommel is facetted; and the steel hilt
decorated with vertical lines in damascene work, alternating with
acanthus leaves (plate 170).
To Charles’s era belong three swords, which, on account of their
history, are of peculiar interest. G29 (plate 164) was the battle-sword
of Spain’s greatest general, Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordoba, the Great
Captain (1453-1515). The blade is flat, with bevelled edges, and a
groove along the upper third of its length in which the first words of
the Angelic Salutation in gilded Gothic character may be deciphered. The
guard is of gilded iron, the quillons flat and drooping, and with two
branches to the ricasso. The pommel is of gilt copper, circular, and
with two faces--the obverse representing a battle scene, with the
inscription, GONSALVI AGIDARI VICTORIA DE GALLIS AD CANNAS (referring to
the Great Captain’s victory over the French in 1503), the reverse
bearing the owner’s arms, with an inscription in Latin which,
translated, reads, “Gonzalo de Aguilar, vanquisher of the Turks and
French, restored peace to Italy, and closed the Temple of Janus.” It is
supposed that this sword was presented to the Great Captain by the
municipality of some Italian city. The hand-and-a-half sword, G30, of
Spanish make, also belonged to him.
Pizarro’s sword is marked G35 (plate 170). The blade is rigid and
diamond shaped, with strong ricasso, on which is stamped the name of the
Valencian swordsmith, Mateo Duarte. The hilt is of blued steel, richly
decorated with leaves and ornaments in inlaid gold; with straight arms,
_pas d’ane_ with branches to the ricasso, a hand-guard to the pommel,
and disc-like pommel. This sword in 1809 came into the possession of a
Scotch soldier of fortune, Sir John Downie, who used it against the
French, and died a Spanish Marshal and Governor of the Alcazar in 1826.
In August 1813, Sir John was wounded and taken prisoner; yet he
contrived to throw back to his followers this famous weapon, that its
honour might remain unsullied.
IV
THE DECADENCE OF ARMOUR
Charles V.’s son and successor, Philip II., was more a statesman than a
soldier. In his youth, however, remarks the learned compiler of the
Catalogue, he was accounted a clever tilter, and jousts were frequently
organised on the occasions of his visits to Italy, Germany, and
Flanders. The Conde de Valencia indignantly rebuts the allegation that
this Monarch was opposed to martial exercises and even physically
deformed. “The truth of the latter statement may be judged by examining
his armour, the lines of which are a model of proportion and
regularity.”
To Philip are ascribed six harnesses, arranged like those of his father,
each on two or more figures.
The first suit (A189-A216) is styled the _arnés de lacerías_, from the
tracery of its decorative lengths. It was made at Augsburg in 1545, by
Desiderius Colman, a year before that artificer turned out the Mühlberg
suit for Charles V. We extract the following particulars from the
Catalogue of 1898:
“It is the young prince’s first armour on becoming a man (18), as stated
in the Inventory of the Royal Armoury of 1594. From childhood the
Colmans had made his armour, as they had done for his august father, and
when it ceased to fit him he distributed it among the youths of the
Court. This armour, then, was ordered of Desiderius Colman; but the
decoration was doubtless by a Spanish artist in the service of the
Prince, named Diego de Arroyo; clear proof of this we find in a note in
the Chamberlain’s book, dated Feb. 3rd, 1544 (a date which also appears
on the left cuisse of the equestrian figure A190), reading thus:
‘Firstly, Diego de Arroyo designed all the pieces of a suit of armour to
be engraved, to send to Germany, so that by it a suit of armour might be
made for His Highness--three ducats are given him.’”
Arroyo’s design is composed of wide vertical bands, with Oriental
lacework in the centre, engraved on a white ground, and on both edges,
gilded foliations mingled with extremely beautiful decorations of the
Renaissance period.
Colman in person took his work to Valladolid, at that time the residence
of the Court. This appears from the following Imperial schedule, given
at Worms, July 29th, 1545. “The King: Don Francisco de los Cobos, &c.,
and our Chief Accountant of Castile: Colman, our armourer, we have sent
to your Court to take certain armour which he is conveying to the Prince
our son, and we have granted as salary for each day he may occupy, two
florins of fifteen _bacos_ each, and we have paid him here six weeks and
because on returning he will need more money, we charge you to provide
for paying him there a like amount in this respect.--I the King.”
The first figure (A189, plate 43) shows a suit of foot-armour for
jousting. It has an armet with high ridged comb, visor with two slits
for the occularium, and beavor freely perforated. The tastefully-decorated
breastplate has laminated gussets, and taces to which are attached the
conspicuous lamboys. The border of this kilt of steel is embossed,
gilded, and etched with the devices of the Golden Fleece, griffins, and
scrolls. Espaliers protect the shoulders, rondels the armpits, and small
coudes the elbows. The gauntlet of the right hand is notable (plate
106A): it extends in several articulations to the inside of the wrist,
where it is closed with a hinge to prevent its slipping off the hand.
The leg-armour is peculiar to this description of harness, and has high
laminated cuisses accommodated to the curves of the knee; genouillères
are, therefore, dispensed with. (Compare the suit A149, made in 1541.)
The second figure (A190) bears a fine mid-sixteenth century tilting helm
in three pieces. The beavor, perforated at the sides, is screwed on to
the upper part of the breast-plate, and is secured to the other parts of
the head-piece by side screws, on which the visor revolves; the back of
the helm, including skull-piece, comb, and tail-piece is fastened to the
backplate, and at the sides of the head to the beavor and visor. On the
arm is one of the pieces mentioned at A101, and “slashed” in imitation
of the civil dress of the time. With these pieces is shown a target,
beautifully etched with fantastic figures in the German style. The
superb barding of the horse does not belong to the suit or the period,
and will be described later.
To figure A191 are attached a notable morion, with roped comb, and arm
guards, waved or imbricated with gold and steel alternately, and
delicately etched. The tassets, cuisses, and gauntlets display the same
decoration as the rest of the armour. The shield A193 was designed by
Diego de Arroyo, like the other pieces.
The armour A217-A230, made in Germany about 1549 for Philip when he was
heir-apparent, is that in which he is represented by Titian (Prado
Gallery, No. 454) and Rubens (No. 1607). It was in this suit also, that
Velazquez represented the Conde de Benavente, who lived nearly a
hundred years after it was forged (No. 1090). The component pieces are
striped and bordered by wide bands of engraved and gilded arabesques,
designed in all probability by Diego de Arroyo. In the second figure
(A218, plate 49) the tassets are of unequal length. The fingers of the
right gauntlet are united, those of the left joined in couples. The
cuisses are laminated, and reach to about the middle of the thigh. This
armour appears to have consisted of more pieces than any other in the
collection.
Philip’s third suit (A231-A238) was made for him at Landshut in Bavaria,
in 1550, by Sigmund Wolf. Many of the pieces are now at Brussels. The
ornamentation is chaste, consisting of narrow bands, etched with
graceful scrolls and volutes on white burnished steel.
The parade armour (A239-A242) was made for Philip at Augsburg by
Desiderius Colman and Georg Sigman, in 1552. An order exists, issued by
Philip, directing his treasurer to pay 2,000 gold escudos, on account of
3,000 escudos, which it seems was the price of this splendid harness.
The history of this suit is not without interest. We borrow the
following details from Conde de Valencia:
“When Colman undertook this important work, all embossed and damascened,
he showed that he could produce very different work to that which
generally left his workshops; that is, tilting and war-armour, which
only required superficial ornamentation, like the engraving and low
relief on the parts least exposed to lance-thrusts. His recognised
superiority in this branch of his industry, and especially forging, is
attested by his almost exclusively supplying the Emperor and his son,
and by the many suits he made for the chief captains and officers of the
Imperial Army. Under such circumstances he was justified in wishing to
excel also in the making of armour for parade or _de luxe_, his rivals
the Negrolis of Milan, who a little while before had made various
magnificent pieces for Charles V.: among them, armour A139.
“However, it does not seem that Colman possessed the necessary skill to
undertake a work of this kind alone. So at least it would appear from
his co-operating with a person, whose artistic capacity he recognised to
such a degree, that he permitted him to place his signature beside his
own on the principal piece of the armour.
“This associate was a German silversmith, named Georg Sigman, who,
though resident in Augsburg, had not succeeded in getting the
municipality to register him as a master in the trade to which he
belonged. Colman saw doubtless in the skill of this artist a powerful
medium that would permit him to rival the Negrolis in the ornamentation
of armour _de luxe_, and accepted his assistance in return for his using
his influence at the Imperial Court on Sigman’s behalf.”
The scheme of the decoration is as creditable as the execution. On a
ground of blackened steel all the pieces are adorned with broad vertical
bands, embossed with grotesques, and bordered by narrow outer bands,
which are in their turn bordered by pretty trefoil work projecting over
the plain ground.
The crest of the burgonet is decorated with laurels and exquisite
traceries; the rest of its surface is covered with small figures, birds,
scrolls, and foliations charmingly relieved and intertwined. On either
side of the crest are medallions representing heroic combats, all
delicately chiselled, and with gilded profiles.
At the junction of the visor and helmet may be seen the marks and
initials of Colman and Sigman, with the date 1550. Sigman, not content
with stamping his initials beside those of his principal, has repeated
them with the date 1549 beneath the plume-holder, to commemorate the
two years he was employed upon the decoration of the work.
The cuirass is composed of overlapping plates placed horizontally. This
species of defence was called the lorica, from being originally made of
leather which was modelled, while wet, to the muscles of the human body,
and was imitated in the bronze cuirass in late Roman times. The four
upper plates which formed the gorget are missing. They were joined to
one on which is engraved and gilded the collar of the Golden Fleece.
Beneath it hangs the Fleece itself, supported by two nymphs, and
beginning the exquisite series of groups which run down the central
band. The remaining bands are equally well conceived and executed. The
cuisses are similarly composed of plates set horizontally and decorated
vertically. About half-way down the thigh the lower edge of the plate is
decorated, so that at this point the upper plates could be disconnected
from the lower, and used as simple tassets. The genouillères are
decorated with masks and satyrs. The arm-guards are similar to the rest
of the suit. The coudes are admirably embossed and gilded, the design
showing a woman wearing the Collar of the Golden Fleece and an Imperial
tiara; on each side of her are warriors armed in classic style; the
Imperial Eagle is shown on the inside of the piece, and a mask at the
elbow. Note the laminated gorget (A239 _bis_, plate 47B), beautifully
decorated in the same way as the rest of the armour, and suitable for
wearing over a coat of mail or leather doublet.
The shield A241 (plate 146), belonging to this harness, has a peculiar
interest as commemorating the rivalry that existed between the great
German and Italian armourers of the sixteenth century. It is in one
piece, blackened and richly decorated, embossed and inlaid with gold.
From the boss spread radiations enclosed by a laurel wreath, and outside
this by a narrow band with the following inscription in German:
DESIDERIO COLMAN CAYS MAY HARNASCHMACHER AVSGEMACHT IN AVGVSTA DEN 15
APRILIS IM 1552 JAR (Desiderius Colman, Armourer of His Cæsarean
Majesty, finished this on April 15th, 1552). At equal distances round
the shield are disposed circular medallions encircled by wreaths of
laurel and myrtle, and designed with the following subjects: Strength in
a triumphal car drawn by men, Victory in another car drawn by lions,
Minerva drawn by horses, and Peace borne on the shoulders of Kings.
Between the medallions are seen other Kings enthroned and surrounded by
other figures, masks, cartouches, and foliations in great profusion. In
the rim between two laurel wreaths, hunting scenes and bull-fights are
depicted. In one group Colman has symbolised his supposed triumph over
his Milanese competitor by a bull overthrowing a man whose shield bears
the word “Negrol.” As a matter of fact the shield is a far less
creditable performance than the rest of the armour, nor does the best of
Colman’s work deserve to be preferred to the Medusa shield executed by
Negroli. In justice to the German it should be added, however, that the
shield shows every sign of having been left unfinished. The war-saddle
(A242, plate 47B) is the finer work. The subject of the design of the
centre-band is Venus riding the waves in a shell drawn by dolphins, and
attended by cupids. The sword G47 (see _infra_) also belonged to this
harness.
The armour of Philip II., called the Burgundy-Cross-Armour, was made in
1551 by Sigmund Wolf. The order exists authorising the payment to the
armourer on account of the Prince of “two hundred gold escudos in token
and part payment of some gilded armour” made for him.
The suit is very richly decorated with bands of the natural colour of
the steel on which are etched alternately the Cross of Burgundy or of
St. Andrew, and the emblems of the Golden Fleece--all gilded. On the
breastplate of the first figure (A263, plate 50) is engraved the image
of the Madonna. The cuisses are high and laminated as in former
examples. The horse’s bard is very handsome, and seems to be a
reproduction in metal of the richly-embroidered caparison usually worn
by the Imperial chargers.
The suit A243-262 was made for Philip by Wolf, of Landshut, somewhere
about 1554, the date being fixed by the chanfron of the horse being
charged with the arms of England, which Philip could only have assumed
on his marriage with Mary Tudor. The panoply includes a greater number
of pieces for tilting than any other owned by this Prince, and
demonstrates his partiality for manly exercises. The decoration consists
of wide vertical bands on a ground of burnished steel, gilded and etched
with black waves or undulations, and bordered on either side by narrow
bands exhibiting a similar design. The armour appears to have comprised
about eighty-five pieces, of which seventy-four are in the Madrid
collection.
The first figure (A243, plate 48) is conspicuous by the enormous
reinforcing piece, or overguard, on the left elbow, and for the symmetry
and elegance of the leg-armour.
The gay barding for the horse does not belong to the armour: it comes
from the armour of Prince Charles, son of Philip II.: in his inventories
all the pieces are enumerated, although the general lines and character
of the ornamentation agree with the bards of the Emperor’s time. It was
made in Nuremberg by the German armourer, Conrad Lochner the younger,
whose mark, together with that of the city, is stamped on the
breastpiece and crupper. It includes saddle; reinguard; croupière;
fléchière; poitrel, with large linch-pins; collar; mainfaire, and
chanfron, the latter with two large twisted ram’s horns, and above the
hind part of the head the shield with the Royal arms. All these pieces
are decorated with graceful bands etched with alternating imbrications
of iron and gold, which border and cross them in various directions. In
the spaces where the steel preserves its natural colour, there are a
large number of volutes and palms in relief. The bridle is late
sixteenth century, of long strips well filed, like the perforated
_copas_, which are decorated with gold.
The third figure (A245, plate 49) shows various reinforcing pieces for
the tilt, to be worn on the preceding suit, A244, with the exception of
the helm and tassets--“the total weight being thirty-nine kilogrammes,
which could only be supported during the short time occupied by three or
four courses and in breaking as many lances.”
The various pieces are adjusted and shaped with marvellous precision.
The helm is a triumph of the armourer’s craft, with an occularium four
millimetres wide, ventail on the right hand side, and strong beavor
coming well down on to the left shoulder, where is screwed a manteau
d’armes or target, with raised trellis-work and floral devices etched on
the panels. The tassets are of unequal length. The leg-armour again
illustrates Wolf’s skill and eye for symmetry. The fifth figure (A247)
has preserved the colours of the decorative bands very well.
The same scheme of decoration is exhibited by the armour (A274-A276)
made in 1558 for the unfortunate Prince Charles, son of Philip II. It
was made for him by Sigmund Wolf when the Prince was thirteen or
fourteen years of age. The difference in size between the right and left
pauldrons goes to prove that the Prince was slightly deformed, as has,
indeed, been often asserted. The first figure (A274, plate 52) has a
morion with high comb, visor, and beavor secured by a hook on the left
and a button on the right side. The tassets are continued to the knee
after the lobster-tail style then becoming fashionable.
Of the arms and detached pieces of armour ascribed to Philip II., and
included in the Armoury, the most remarkable is the sword (G47)
belonging to the parade-armour A239.
The blade is of diamond section, with a short groove below the tang. The
first third of its length is adorned with engravings and small squares
of gold, enclosed in which we find these inscriptions, on one side--PRO
FIDE ET PATRIA. PRO CHRISTO ET PATRIA. INTER ARMA SILENT LEGES SOLI DEO
GLORIA; on the other--PVGNA PRO PATRIA. PRO ARIS ET FOCIS; NEC TEMERE,
NEC TIMIDE, FIDE SED CVI VIDE. On the ricasso is the mark of the maker,
Clement Horn, of Solingen. The hilt is the most remarkable in the
collection. It is blued and carved in gold relief in the Italian
renaissance style. The centre of the guard is decorated with numerous
figures in high relief on a gilded ground; one quillon curves downwards,
the other upwards, and both end in the heads and busts of men entwined
about with spirals. From a cartouche engraved with the Judgment of Paris
on the guard, springs an exquisite counter-guard composed of two
beautiful Caryatides united by volutes. The grip is of quadrangular
section, and formed with four pieces of rock-crystal engraved in gold.
The pommel, which is the most admirable part of the composition, is
formed by two volutes, which hold and press between them the head of an
old Satyr, whose expression reveals his vexation; in the curves of the
volutes are two little genii. They grasp and tread on festoons of fruit,
which are gathered up at the back of the pommel by the god Vertumnus,
beneath whom, on an oval cartouche, Hercules is seen in combat with the
Nemean lion.
The sword G48, believed to have been the work of the Toledo maker
Martinez Menchaca, and the property of Philip II., is flat, with three
pierced channels in its upper third. The hilt is German, and highly
ornate. The quillons and guards resemble the coils of a serpent, and are
elaborately chased and incrusted with silver. They are further adorned
with masks, torsos, and nude figures within medallions, the whole being
designed and executed with much taste. The hilt of the sword, G49,
attributed to the Conde de Coruña (Viceroy of Nueva España in 1580), is
another beautiful piece of work, the decoration being less elaborate,
but on the whole more tasteful than that of the sword G48. It is of
Spanish (Toledo) make, but the maker’s name remains unknown.
Perhaps the most magnificent suit in the whole Armoury is the Parade
Armour (A290, plates 53, 53D) made for King Sebastian of Portugal
(1554-1578) by Anton Pfeffenhauser of Augsburg.
“Examined from the artistic point of view,” says the Conde de Valencia,
“this is Pfeffenhauser’s masterpiece, and places him on a level with, if
not above, the best German armourers of his time. True, he falls into
the mistake of over-ornamentation, and his figures are incorrectly
designed; but the composition and embossing are bolder than Colman’s,
and, above all, his chiselling is of inimitable precision and clearness.
With regard to the style of the decoration, on comparing the capricious
combinations of figures, scrolls, and other features of the
ornamentation with the designs published by Hefner Altenech, we are led
to believe that it was the work of either Hans Mielich, of Munich, or
some other German artist of the same age and equal ability.”
The sixteen pieces of the armour are blackened, and gilded only at the
nails, clasps, and plume-holder. The burgonet is cast in one piece and
richly embossed. On the comb are seen Tritons, sea-horses, dolphins, and
Nereids; the major portion of the surface is occupied by battle scenes,
the warriors wearing classic garb, and fighting on the backs of
elephants--an allusion, like the coat-of-arms carried by one of the
warriors, to the Portuguese conquests in India; at the base of the skull
are represented Diana, Hercules, Neptune, and Amphitrite; and on the
cheek-pieces, each of three laminæ, are the images of Strength and
Justice.
The decoration of the other pieces consists in the customary wide
vertical bands, traversing the body from the gorget to the ankle. On the
widest and midmost band is the figure of Jupiter; beneath him is Diana;
and, lastly, the infant Hercules strangling the serpents. The other
bands, both on breast and backplates, likewise display mythological
subjects. The pauldrons are even more richly ornamented than the other
pieces: at the back and front they are embossed with designs
representing respectively Power, Victory, Peace, and Navigation.
The coudes display the four figures of the Cardinal Virtues. Beautiful
emblematic groups and figures adorn the genouillères and demi-jambs. The
tassets are detachable half-way up the thigh. The gauntlets correspond
in decoration and elegance with the rest of this magnificent suit.