Osprey - General Military - Knight - The Warrior and ... - Brego-weard

OVER THE 500 YEARS THAT THIS BOOK COVERS, THE ARMS AND
armour of the knight were in a state of constant evolution.
The changes wrought were dramatic; if one compares the
knights on the Bayeux Tapestry with those in the 15th-century
Beauchamp Pageant it would be difficult to recognize them as the
same creature.
It is easy to assume that this development was a linear one and that
over time the knight's armour became increasingly complex and
resilient whilst his weapons — in particular his sword and lance — stayed
more or less the same. In fact the nature and evolution of the knight's
war-gear is a much more complex matter than might first appear.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF KNIGHTLY
ARMS AND ARMOUR
Whilst it is possible to chart the development of medieval arms and armour between
the 11th and 16th centuries chronologically, the task is by no means a straightforward
one. Unlike the modern sports car, with which armour is often compared, there are no
clear dates for the development of particular styles, at least until the late 15th century,
and no way of linking a particular style to a particular maker. Styles of armour tended
to continue for decades, stretching the chronology out and overlapping newer forms.
If cared for, the equipment could last a very long time, being captured and re-used,
passed down and sold on over many years. Although the higher nobility and monarchs
might have sufficient wealth to appear a la mode, for many knights and men-at-arms
this would simply not have been possible, and they would have taken to the field in
armour maybe 20 or 30 years behind the latest fashions. Individual pieces might be
altered to match with the latest fashions; mail in particular would lend itself to being
re-cut and re-tailored. A mail shirt, for example, might have its arms extended, mittens
added or an integral coif fitted. Equally a coif might easily be removed when the owner
decided that he would replace his old great helm for a bascinet which did not require,
indeed would not fit over, such protection.
Artistic depictions of arms and armour can offer some chronological framework
but dating can still be problematic. Even where we can establish a clear date for a
particular work (difficult in most cases before the late middle ages), there are
uncertainties; for whilst it was the norm for artists of the time to depict historical and