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

Windsor Park in 1278. In the 1322 inventory of Wigmore Castle five pairs of chamfrons
are recorded, along with five pairs of \eaXx\erflancherd and pey trait, which would cover
the horse 's withers and chest respectively. The Luttrell psalter image of about 20 years
later clearly shows Sir Geoffrey Luttrell's mount with a chamfron. This is almost
certainly of leather as it sports a fan-like crest identical to that on the banneret's helm,
which would itself have been almost certainly constructed of cuir bouiili.
The joust had a great impact on the development of armour. The danger of the
creatures running into each other or, after its introduction in the 1420s, into the tilt barrier
led to the development in the 14th century of padded buffers that sat beneath the
caparison and protected the horse's chest. But again it was the metallurgical developments
of the 14th century that brought about the clearest changes. The ability to create large iron
blooms meant that plate armour could be made for the horse as well as his rider. Starting
with the chamfron, by the mid-15th century the soft' armours had been replaced by
hinged and pinned plates. At about the same time cloth bardings become relegated to the
tournament and pageant field, in part because they were an unnecessary encumbrance but
also, perhaps, because of the contemporary fashion amongst men-at-arms for doing away
with heraldic surcoats to show off the 'white harness' underneath.
The knight in shining armour of popular image, encased in a carapace of steel, was
a late arrival onto the medieval scene. His wargear evolved almost continuously as
armourers and weapon-smiths responded to the changing tactical needs and fashions
of their clients and to the changing quality ot their metals. Developments in the power
and effectiveness of weapons were countered by changes in armour which in turn led
to further improvements in arms. Thus the knight of the 12th century, clad in mail and
a nasal helm, was as well protected from the weapons of his day as the plate-armoured
man-at-arms of the 15th century, but this by no means made him invulnerable.
The knight had a range of options to choose from, in terms of both the armour he
wore and the weapons he used and whilst the culture of personal prowess and the
expectations of fashions might direct those choices to a certain extent, a sophisticated
understanding of tactics and battlefield also played a role. The nature of that tactical
sophistication and how and where the warrior acquired it is the subject of our
next chapter.
ARMS AND ARMOUR •*}*•
Opposite: This armoured
barding for a horse, of
the late 15th century, is
designed to match and
complement that of his
rider. (© Board of Trustees
of the Armouries, II.3)
65