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5C - Medieval

Lonnie Colson.com - Way more than you ever wanted to know about me

Fall 2008 Edition

Living the history

Busting Hollywood myths

Everything you have heard is probably wrong

At some time or another, you have probably heard some of these popular misconceptions about knights in shining armour. Some have been around for centuries, the result of simple ignorance by collectors who tried to assemble mismatched pieces of armour adding rivets and straps where they thought they should go. Others have been more recent fantasies, dreamt up by Hollywood writers and self-proclaimed historical novelists. The reality is much more interesting. The Medieval knight in armour was the pinnacle of warfare for several centuries during a chaotic, often dangerous era. He was the M1 Abrams tank of his day. Every piece of armour that he wore and every weapon that he wielded was specially designed for rigorous combat. If it did not protect him on the battlefield, he did not wear it. If it did not give him an edge over the common foot soldier, he would not employ it. To think otherwise is rather presumptuous. Let us take a look at some of the more popular misconceptions and expose them to the light of truth.

Armoured knights were lumbering oafs
Movie after movie has depicted the Medieval knight as a slow, lumbering ox carrying around a studded round shield and swinging a double-bladed battle axe. He was so over-encumbered that he could not get back up again if someone ever knocked him over. The idea that a suit of armour was too heavy for a man to effectively fight in is perhaps the most outlandish myth of all. The combat load of the modern infantryman is approximately 125 pounds and it is virtually all supported by the torso. The average suit of armour weighed half that, and the load was distributed all over the body. Armourers were experts of their craft. Unlike most modern reproductions that are made from sheet metal, the plates on period harnesses were thinner on areas such as the sides where less protection was needed. That reduced the overeall weight considerably.

I once read from a reliable source that the master armourer who was employed for the production of the historical movie Henry V reportedly walked off the set in disgust when the director insisted upon having the French knights hoisted into their saddles by a crane. While the director supposedly argued that it was an artistic statement to show how haughty they were, such depictions have only helped feed the fanciful flames of myth. So where did the idea originate? There was an account of a peer of England who died on the battlefield of Agincourt but no wound could be found when his corpse was recovered from the piles of dead bodies. Centuries later, some scholar(s) decided that such occurences must taken place because a man so encumbered by armour must have fallen and suffocated in the mud because he could not get up unassisted.		A reenactor doing a cartwheel while wearing full plate armour. Source: Barbara Cooper, Order of the Rose.
The truth is entirely the opposite. The Medieval knight spent his entire life training to be prepared for war. He was as accustomed to wearing plate armour as an NFL linebacker is to wearing football pads. Here is a period account of the feats that a well known French knight was able to perform: He made a somersault, fully armed except for his bascinet. He leapt onto a horse without placing foot in stirrup, fully armed. With a strong man mounted on a war horse, he leapt from the ground onto his shoulders by gripping his sleeve in one hand, without any other hold. Then, placing one hand on the saddle pommel of a war horse and the other near the horse's ears, seizing the mane, he leapt from the ground through his arms and over the horse. Next, between two high walls an arm's length apart, he would climb to the top and down again, simply using the strength of his legs and arms -fully armed. Again, wearing a mail hauberk, he climbed up the underside of a long ladder, without using his feet, just using his hands on the rungs. -- The Book of Deeds of Marshal Boucicaut (1368-1421) I have my doubts whether or not I could perform all of those feats without wearing armour, let alone while wearing my harness. I know for a fact that I could do a cartwheel without some practice and a very good reason, so I have never even considered attempting one while wearing armour. One only has to consider the fact that the average knight had been undergoing physical training since he was a boy for the sole purpose of being able to perform the rigorous tasks that would be required of him on the battlefield.

The longbow killed the knight
Countless American history texts have made the statement that the longbow led to the demise of the armoured knight on the battlefield. Epic movies like Braveheart and The Messenger give viewers the idea that swords could cut through armour like Jedi lightsabers. That could not be any farther from the truth. As Charles Ffoulkes so eloquently noted in his The Armourer and His Craft From the XIth to the XVIth Century (1912), "As soon as the armed man realized that iron and steel were the best defences for his body, he would naturally insist that some sort of a guarantee for his body be given him of the efficacy of the goods supplied by his armourer." At the height of armouring, a single harness could cost more than many workers would make in a lifetime. Who in their right mind would spend such a vast sum of money on something that was so utterly worthless on the battlefield as it would appear in virtually every Hollywood epic ever made? As is often the case, reality is so much more fascinating than anything ever penned by even the most imaginative screenwriter.
It appears that from a very early period in plate armour-making there was a system in place of proving armour using the weapons most commonly in use at the time. Even mail seems to have been proof against arrows at a very early period. While my understanding of Latin and French is derisible, I have been able to find translations of period documents that show that armour was proof against a wide range of attacks. According to Ffoulkes, in the Chronicon Comariense, under the year 1398, there is a statement that the men-at-arms wore armour that negating the wounds of the bow. There are other documents that have definite entries of arrows used for proof, which would naturally have had exceptionally well-tempered points (Reg. de la Cloison d'Angers, No. 6 (1378)). There are entries for such projectiles in 1419 costing 8 shillings per dozen, while ordinary arrows cost only 4 shillings per dozen. Ffoulkes goes on to explain the regulations of setting proof marks on armour. The bottom line was that the wearer would pay handsomely for the very best protection only if it worked, and so the armourer put his reputation on the line.

1347. Regulations of the Heaumers of London (original in Norman-French), City of London Letter Book, F, Fol. cxlii.
Also that helmetry and other arms forged by the hammer...shall not from henceforth in any way be offered for sale privily or openly until they have been properly assayed by the aforesaid Wardens and marked with their marks.

Cuirassier Italian armour 1610-1620 with bullet proof mark on breast.
Source: Mary Harrsch, Flickr

The notation "de toute botte" suggests that the armour was proof against all blows (sword, axe, etc.) and also to the bow and crossbow. During later centuries, the terms "high proof" and "caliver proof" and "musket proof" referred to protection against period firearms and appeared often in writings up to the time that armour was eventually discarded. In the case of brigandines, coats of armour that consisted of a series of overlapping metal plates riveted together between two layers of cloth, each of the small plates were often individually stamped with the maker's mark as evidence of proof.

So what did kill the Medieval knight at the end of the 15th century? The cost of putting him in the field. It cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in today's currency to field one knight along with the necessary supplies and retainers he would need. Even more importantly, he had to be extensively trained from the age of 5 to deftly wield sword and lance while wearing armour. That is in stark contrast to the small sum that it cost to put an arbequs–early firearm–in the hands of a common soldier with very little training. Thus it was that with the dawn of the age of gunpowder we saw the sun set on the age of chivalry.

Source: The Armourer and His Craft From the XIth to the XVIth Century, Charles Ffoulkes, 1912.

A more knightly weapon

     Though the sword has long been seen as the very symbol of knighthood, during the height of armour the pollaxe appears to have become the weapon of choice on the battlefield. The sword has remained the romanticized symbol of chivalry to this day, but the fact is that it was not very effective against a heavily armoured foe. In a one on one duel or small melée, a skilled man-at-arms could parry and thrust until he was able to maneuver his opponent to expose an opening in his armour. On a battlefield such a feat would be immensely more difficult. Mounted or against common foot soldiers, the sword would be very effective, but something more powerful would be needed to puncture through the steel plate of his knightly counterpart.
    Although there are countless examples of these weapons in museums and private collections, it seems that very little attention has been given to the pollaxe. It is likely due to a combination of two factors: (1) the sword was the primary weapon on the battlefield for thousands of years, and (2) the polearms such as the halberd and bill were the weapons of the common foot soldier. The resurgence in popularity as a source of study can be directly attributed to the recent translations and publication of extant treatises on Medieval combat by masters such as Fiori de Liberi (Flos Duellatorum or "Flower of Battle"). Even the name is often misspelled. In many current documents and reproductionists' inventories it is described as a pole-axe as many incorrectly assumethe term refers the shaft of the weapon. It in fact refers to the head, or poll, as in a poll tax, or head tax. The name actually comes from the fact that it has an axe head on top.
     There are more than one variety of pollaxe but they all share a long, rigid, diamond-shaped spike on top. There is usually a blunt hammer-like side and sharp axe blade or hook on the other. One popular style is the bec de corbin, or "raven's beak", which gets its name from the beak-like hook on the back.

Member of Lord Grey's Retinue at Marching Through Time, 2003.

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Myths: Knights just hacked and slashed

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Swordplay

Custom Medieval long sword

I wanted an authentic, reproduction long sword to accompany my Warwick harness. I decided to commission a period sword and scabbard from one of the leading names in custom arms, Christian Fletcher. I chose the Albion “Baron” sword as a base with a faceted grip, Type 6 guard and etched pommel and decorative insets.
To make it appear more like an heirloom, I also requested antiquing of the metal and leather dyes. It was accompanied by a historical scabbard featuring a poplar wooden core carved to fit the blade, a straight, raised ridge down the center as well as a decorative steel band at the throat and forged metal chape at the tip.

Sword Specifications

Blade manufacturer: Albion "Baron" Limited Ed.
Blade designer: Peter Johnson, Swedish swordsmith
Sword customization: Christian Fletcher
Historical basis: Oakeshott Type XIIa
Overall length: 47.375 inches (120 cm)
Blade length: 37.25 inches (95 cm)
Blade width at base: 2.3125 inches (5.8 cm)
Center of gravity: 5.25 inches (13.2 cm)
Center of percussion: 22.125 inches (56 cm)
Weight: 3 pounds, 11 ounces (1.67 kilos)
Grip: Faceted with fine cord and bands
Guard: Type 6 (straight) with antiquing
Pommel: Type J with decorative copper insets
Scabbard: Carved poplar core, oak tanned leather
Center ridge: Throat locket and steel chape
Sword belt: Three-point longsword suspension
Leather dye: Oxblood

Specifications provided by Christian Fletcher.

Arming doublet and woolen hose by Historic Enterprises.

Beneath the metal plates

The arming doublet is the foundation of any 15th century man-at-arms' plate armour. The design that I am wearing was developed over eight months of testing by Gwen Norich of Black Swan Designs culminating in a final test at the Sword of Honour Jousts at the Royal Armouries in Leeds. It is based on the explanatory text of the Hastings Manuscript and the portrait of Don Inigo de Mendoza by Jorge Ingles (c. 1450) where he is depicted wearing an arming doublet that closes in the front and at the wrist with points and has spiral lacing in back for a secure fit. Wrinkles can make it very uncomfortable after only a short time from chaffing.
As there are several sections of the armor that are laced directly onto the doublet using points, it must be "strongeli boude" (strongly built) of stout fabrics lined in linen. Arming points, as described in a 15th century document, were made of "fine twine such as that used to make strings for crossbows tied small and pointed like points." The points were also said to be waxed with shoe-maker's wax so that they would not bend or break. Vulnerable areas of the body not covered by plates--such as the armpits and inner arms--are further protected by voiders, or gussets of chain mail, attached directly to the doublet. These can either be sewn or tied onto the doublet.

Take a lesson from the master

When I first moved to the Chicago area in the summer of 2002, I knew that there would have to be more people interested in Medieval history that there were in South Texas. I immediately started looking on the Internet for a group to join. I happened across the official site of the Chicago Swordplay Guild and new I had discovered something unique.
I attended their next meeting on the grounds of Pulaski Park. I was delighted to meet a couple dozen like minded souls who had a fascination for the Middle Ages and, more importantly, swordfighting. The students were scholars first and atheletes second.

Students rehearse the basic steps at a CSG Medieval seminar, 2007.

     The members of the guild were students of the actual 15th century Italian and German masters. Through translations of the original surviving mansuscripts, guild members would make every effort to fully understand the intricate but deliberate motions of the guards and thrusts that would have been learned by young Italian noblemen over 500 years ago.
    In fact, many of the techniques are still in use today by various law enforcement academies and modern ground fighting schools, although I would dare say that most modern day police officers would probably not believe you if you told them that their classroom material was centuries old.
     If only my employer had been as understanding. Not long after joining the guild, my office adopted more sporadic hours and I was no longer able to continue taking regular courses with the guild. I began missing more classes that I attended and the quarterly dues no longer were justifiable. Anyone with a Medieval flare should check them out.