Glossary of Armour Terms
Ailette
A flat plate of leather or parchment which tied to the point of the
shoulder. Worn between 1250-1350 to display the owner's coat of arms.
Aketon
A padded and quilted garment, usually of linen, worn under or instead
of plate or mail.
Armet
Fifteenth century helmet of Italian origin consisting a skull, two
hinged cheek pieces which lock at the front, and a visor.
Arming doublet
Quilted garment worn under armour from the early fifteenth century,
equipped with points to attach mail gussets and pieces of armour.
Arming points
Ties(usually of flax or twine) by which armour was secured in place.
Aventail
A curtain of mail attached by means of staples(vervelles) around the
base of a helmet(especially the basinet), and coverin the shoulders.
Also called camail(a French term).
Back Plate
Piece of plate armour protecting the back half of the
torso.
Barbote
A high bevor with a falling lame containing eyeslits; used in Spain.
Barbut
Also called barbute, barbuta. An open-faced shoulder-length Itallian
helmet, made in one piece, with a T-shaped face opening. Barbuta is the
Itallian term.
Bard
A full horse armour, which could include a shaffron, crinet, peytral,
crupper and flanchards.
Basinet
Also called bascinet, basinet. An open-faced helmet with a globular
or conical skull enclosing the sides of the face and neck. Usually worn
with and aventail, and occasionally a visor.
Bellows Visor
A modern term for a visor with horizontal ridges, such as on
'Maximilian' German fluted armours of the early sixteenth century.
Besagew
Defensive circular plate suspended over the wearer's armpit.
Bevor
Also called bavier or buffe. A chin-shaped defense for the lower face,
incorporating a gorget plate. The buffe was an early sixteenth century
variant, worn strapped to an open-faced helmet such as the burgonet.
Birnie
Also called byrnie. A mail shirt. See also hauberk.
Bishop's Mantle
Modern term for the cape of mail worn(largely in Germany) in the
early sixteenth century.
Blueing
An oxidized blue surface on plate armour, produced through heat treatment.
Bouche
The notch cut in the top(dexter) corner of a shield, to rest the lance
when jousting.
Bracer
Early fourteenth century form of defence for the lower arm; also a term
for an archer's arm guard to protect the forearm from the bowstring.
Breast Plate
Piece of armour that protects the front of the torso.
Breaths
Holes or slits in the visor of a helmet or the lames of a falling buff
or bevor, for ventilation; also usually permitting a degree of etra vision.
Brigandine
A flexible body defence consisting of a large number of metal plates
riveted inside a cloth covering.
Buckler
Small round shield carried by infantry.
Buffe
see bevor and falling buffe.
Burgonet
A light, open-faced helmet popular in the sixteenth century as an
alternative to the close-helmet for light cavalry. It was usually furnished
with a peak over the brow, a combed skull, and hinged ear pieces. The
face opening could be closed with the addition of a falling buffe.
Byrnie
see birnie.
Cabacete
A type of Spanish war hat(popular thoughout fifteenth century Europe)
with a turned-down brim and an almond-shaped skull ending in a stalk. See
also morion.
Cabasset
see also morion.
Camail
see aventail
Cannon
Individual plate armour defence, of tubular form, for the upper and
lower arm. See also vambrace and rerebrace.
Case-hardening
A method(described in the twelth century treatise 'De Diversis Atibus'
by Theophilus the Monk) for surface hardening wrought iron(or low carbon
steel) by packing it in charcoal or other organic material and heating
it for hours above 900 degrees Celsius.
Casque, casquetal
A light open helmet; usually late fifteeth to mid-sixteenth century helmets of 'antique' form, such as Italian parade 'casques' of the mid-sixteenth century, embossed with grotesques or fashioned in the classical style. These were often similiar in shape to the burgonet.
Celata
Open-faced Italian sallet, common in the fifteenth century.
Cervelliere
Steel skull cap.
Chanfron
see shaffron
Chapel de Fer
Also called a kettle hat. A simple open-faced helmet with a wide brim.
Charnel
The hinged staple or bolt that secured the fourteenth century helm or great basinet to the breast and backplate.
Chausses
Mail protection for the legs, either in the form of mail hose or strips of mail laced round the front of the leg.
Close-helmet
Helmet which, with a full visor and bevor, completely encloses the head and face; modern use of the term tends to refer not to helmets with hinged cheek-pieces opening at the front(the armet) but visored helmets pivoting
open on bolts or rivets each side of the skull. Contemporary usage, however, makes no such distinction.
Coat armour
A quilted garment worn over armour in the fourteenth century.
Coat of fence
Also called fence, jack, or brigandine. A doublet or tunic lined with small metal plates or, more rarely, just padded with stuffing of tow. See also brigandine and jack.
Coat of plates
Also called a pair of plates or simply plates. A cloth garment with a number of large plates riveted inside, worn in the fourteenth century.
Cod-piece
Fabirc covering for the groin, latterly padded. Its counter part in armour could be either mail or, more usually, plate.
Coif
A hood, usually of mail; by the twelfth century it often incorporated a Ventail.
Collar
see gorget
Comb
The keel-shaped ridge, often very pronounced, that passes from front to back of a helmet over the skull, conferrig extra strength and rigidity and contributing to its glancing surfaces.
In the mid-sixteenth century, the combs of morio helmets were raised and enloarged to an excessive height for 'fashionable' reasons.
Corslet
Also spelt corselet. A light half-armour popular in the sixteennth century for general military use(for example, town guards). It consisted of a gorget, breast, back and tassets, full arms and guantlets; the term can also be applied to the
cuirass only.
Couter
Also spelt cowter. Plate defence for the elbow.
Crinet
Defence for a horse's neck.
Crupper
Defence for a horse's rump.
Crest
A heraldric recognitive device fixed to the top of the great helm, introduced in the second half of the thirteenth and in wide use by the fourteenth century.
Cuirass
Also called pair of curates. A backplate and breastplate designed to be worn together.
Elbow Cop
Piece of armour covering the elbow.
Fan Plate
Projection from an elbow or knee cop designed to prevent a blow from
wrapping around and landing in the joint.
Gorget
Piece of armour protecting the throat. May be a simple collar or a
more elaborate design composed of several pieces.
Haurberk
Mail protection for the abdamen. Usually in the shape of a shirt extending down a little below the waist. It may or may not cover the arms.
Knee Cop
Piece of armour covering the knee.
Pauldron
Piece of armour covering the shoulder. Usually large, covering the
upper 1/3 of the torso.
Rerebrace
Piece of armour covering the upper arm from the elbow to the shoulder.
Sabaton
Piece of armour covering the foot.
Spaulder
Piece of armour covering the shoulder joint. Not as large as a
pauldron.
Vambrace
Piece of armour covering the lower arm from the wrist to the elbow.
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