Men-at-Arms•99

MedievalHeraldry

TerenceWise•IllustratedbyRichardHookSerieseditorMartinWindrow

Contents

Introduction

OnHeraldryandHeralds

TheShield

Blazon

TheLiveryandMaintenanceSystem

Crests

HorseTrappers

ThePlates

MedievalHeraldry

Introduction

It isnot theaimof thisbookto describe in precise detail

the rules of heraldry, butrather to introduce the readerto the rôleofheraldryand toprovide examples of how itwasusedinthe14thand15thcenturies. Therefore, it isrecommendedthatanyreaderlacking knowledge of thebasicsshouldhaveathandanintroductory book on thesubject, suchas theObserverBook of Heraldry, publishedbyWarne.It is anticipated that most

readers of this book will bemilitary enthusiasts,modellers and wargamers,and therefore I haveconcentrated on the purelymilitary aspect of medievalheraldry. This is appropriate,asweareconcernedherewitha period of history duringwhich heraldry retained oneof its original functions—theidentification of individualsand their followers on thefield of battle. Matters such

as mottoes, supporters,achievements, the arms ofunmarriedladies,hatchments,and civil, ecclesiastical andcorporate coats of arms havebeen omitted. Readerswishing to learn about thesefacets of the subject arereferred to theObserver title,and to an interesting bookletentitled Civic Heraldry,published by ShirePublications.Inplaceofthesesubjects readers will find

more information onmilitarymatters, such as liveries,badges, crests, surcoats andhorse trappers, than isnormally found in books onheraldry.Most books written by

Englishauthorsalmosttotallyignore continental heraldry,and therefore an attempt hasbeenmade to includeat leastsome European examples.However, almost inevitablytheemphasiswillbefoundto

be on English heraldry,mainly because the varioussources are more readilyavailable to an Englishauthor, but also becausedrastic political changes inmany European countrieshave caused the abolition ofthe Colleges of Heralds andthe scattering or loss of theirrecords. (The records ofPolishmedieval heraldry, forexample, were destroyedduring the Second World

War.) It should also beremembered that mostpublications on Europeanheraldry have not beentranslated into English,rendering much informationinaccessible, for althoughmanypeoplecanreadFrenchorGerman,andperhapssomeItalian or Spanish, few canread Dutch, Polish, theScandinavian languages, ormedievalLatin.Englishwritersalsousually

overlook the fact that, oncecoats of arms had beenadopted by the nobility, thelower orders in someEuropean countries alsobegan to assume coats ofarms, andcontinued todo sountilheraldrynolongerhadapurely military rôle. Frenchsourcesquotemanyexamplesofbourgeois bearing arms inthe 13th century, and by theend of that century thispractice was widespread.

From the bourgeois of thetowns the bearing of armsspread to the peasants of thecountryside, and the earliestknownexampleofsucharmsinFranceoccursin1369(thearmsofJacquierleBrebiet—the shepherd: three sheepheldbyagirl).

TheeffigyofJohnEltham,EarlofCornwall,inWestminsterAbbey,circa1334.HewasthesonofEdwardIIandbearsthearmsofEnglanddifferencedbyabordureoffleurs-de-lys,hismotherbeingIsabelofFrance.Hisshieldisheatertype.

Anotherformofshieldwhichremainedincontinuoususethroughoutthemedievalperiodwasthepavise,whichcouldbeproppeduptoprovidecoverforanarcherorcrossbowman.Itwasnormaltopainttheseshields,andthisexamplebearsthearmsofthetownofZwickau:StGeorge

bearingashieldonwhicharepaintedthreeswans.Itisdatedcirca1480.

Unlike the class system ofEngland,inFranceUnliketheclass system of England, inFrance the nobility andbourgeoisie were not rigidlyseparated, but it should beremembered that the bearingof arms did not convert abourgeois intoanoble.Some‘nobles’ were indeed

bourgeoisie, but they had tobe sure to state their origins.One definite form ofdistinction was that neitherbourgeoisie nor peasantrywere entitled to wear helmetcrests.Portugal and Germany

were two other countries inwhich burghers and peasantswereallowedtobeararms:inthe lattereven the Jewswerepermitted coats of arms, anunusually liberal practice in

those days of rabid bigotry.Membersofthelowerclassesin Portugal were forbiddenthe use of silver or gold intheir arms, and in1512KingManuel I forbade the use ofarmsbyall thosenot classedasnobles.

OnHeraldryandHeralds

It is as well to begin bydefining precisely what ismeant by the word heraldry.Dictionariesusuallyrefertoitas the art of the herald or,more helpfully, the art orscience of armorial bearings,armoury being the medieval

termforheraldry(OldFrencharmoirie); but heraldry isperhaps best described as asystem for identifyingindividuals by means ofdistinctive hereditaryinsignia, this systemoriginatinginwesternEuropeduring the Middle Ages.From archaeological sourceswe know that insignia havebeen used on the shields ofwarriors to identifyindividuals in battle since

classical times—as early ascirca 800 B.C. the Phrygianswere using geometric andstylized floral designs ontheir shields—so what is itthatmakesmedievalheraldryunique? The phrase‘distinctive hereditaryinsignia’containsthekey,foralltrueheraldryishereditary,that is the insignia areinherited without alterationby the heirs of the formerbearers.

As far as can beascertained, heraldry firstappearedabout themiddleofthe 12th century andflourished during the 13thand 14th centuries. Theshapes of the shields usedduringthesecenturiesmadeitnecessary for theheraldsandpainters to adapt the naturalforms used as insignia to fitirregular spaces, and theinsignia therefore assumed asymbolic rather than natur-

alisticappearance.Anystudyof heraldry soon reveals aconsiderable differencebetween the simple formsusedintheearlydaysandthemore perfect and intricateforms of the later days. Thealmost ascetic style of theearlyyears identifies the truemedievalheraldry.

TheeffigyofamemberoftheBowesfamilyinthechurchofDalton-le-Dale,Co.Durham,showingthetight-waistedjupon.Thearmsareanotherexampleofcantingarms:Ermine,threebowsbentandstringed,palewaysinfessgules.

Asmoreandmoreknights,and their sons, were granted

the right tobeararms, so theinsignia became by necessitymore complex. However, bycirca 1500 the originalpurposes for which heraldryhad been introduced (onshields, surcoats, horsetrappers and banners, todistinguishcombatantsinwarand in tournaments, and onseals as marks of identityinstead of signatures) werebecoming obsolete.After theturn of the century the

insigniabegantobemoreandmore complex, assumingnaturalistic forms rather thanthetraditionalsymbolicones.Whenthisoccurred,byabout1550,theeraoftrueheraldryhad ended and thereafter thescience declined: seals wereno longer so importantbecause of the spread ofliteracy, and identificationwas now achieved on thebattlefieldbytheuseofflags,and in the tournamentby the

useofcrests.

***

Coats of arms were at firstused only by kings andprinces, then by their greatnobles. By the mid-13thcenturyarmswerebeingusedextensively by the lessernobility, knights and thosewho later came to be styledgentlemen,and,asmentionedabove, in some countries the

use of arms spread tomerchants and townspeople,and even to the peasantry.Anyonewhowishedtohaveacoat of arms just inventedone,thoughoftenitwouldbebased on the arms of hisoverlord.All these arms were

assumptive arms, i.e.assumedwithout reference toany higher authority by thebearer in order to distinguishhispersonandproperty.This

practice inevitably led to acertainamountofduplicationof armorial bearings, and asmoreandmoremenassumedarmssomattersbecamemoreconfused.Heralds had existed since

possiblyasearlyas1132,buttheir duties in the beginninghad consisted only ofextollingthedeedsofknightsat tournaments. They weresoon responsible forproclaiming and organizing

thesetournaments,sopopularin the 12th century, andconsequently becameheraldryexpertswhose job itwas to identify thecontestants by the insigniapainted on their shields andbanners. These heralds weremoreakintominstrelsat thisdate,wanderingfromcountryto country in pursuit of thetournaments,andsogettingtoknoweveryoneofimportancethroughoutEurope.Fromthis

familiaritywiththegreatmenof their time sprang theirusefulness to militarycommanders, and medievalmanuscripts mention heraldsbeingpresentatthebattlesofDrincourt (1173) and LasNavas de Tolosa (1212),thoughthereisnomentionofheralds in royal service untiltheendofthe13thcentury.Themilitary value ofmen

who could identify thecontingents of an opposing

army by the shields andbanners of their lords speaksfor itself, and almost everyknightwassoonemployingaherald, no matter how smalltheforcehecommanded.Theduty of these heralds was tobe near their lord constantly(on campaign they lodged intheir lord’s tent) so as to beon hand to answer at onceanyqueryontheidentityofaknight, and by the beginningof the 14th century this had

caused their elevation fromwandering minstrels toappointed officials andconfidants of the nobles’households;by themiddleofthecenturyheralds inFranceand England had acquired asettled status. However, inGermany heralds were slowto acquire any officialrecognition and as late as atleast 1338 no clear divisionexistedbetweenminstrelsandheralds; a wardrobe account

ofthatyearrecordspaymentsto the King of Heralds ofGermany and ten otherminstrels of Germany formakingminstrelsy before thekingatChristmas.By the mid-14th century

heralds were beingcontinuouslyemployedbythekings and princes of Europe,bothinpeacetimeandintimeofwar.Infact theirdualrôleas herald and envoy withdiplomatic immunity was to

become incompatible by theend of the century. A letterwritten circa 1400 by theAnjou King of Armshighlights the problem, for itdeplores the way in whichpursuivants (literally therankbelow herald) abused theirimmunity to spy out themilitary plans of theirmaster’senemies.To mark their office

heralds wore on their liverythe arms of the lord they

served. Later they were alsoto become responsible fororganizing themarriages andfunerals of the nobility, aswell asotherceremoniesandpageants. Nevertheless,despite their status andundoubted importance in allmatters related to heraldry,untilthelate14thcenturytheEnglish heralds at least hadnocontrolover thedesignofarmsorwhoborethem,beingresponsibleonlyforrecording

and identifyings the variouscoatsofarms.

Aninnsign(theTabardInnin

Gloucester)illustratingtheformanddecorationofthetabardofanEnglishherald.Suchexamplesofheraldrymaybefoundallarounduseventoday.

By the first quarter of the14th century two trains ofthought appear to haveemerged concerning the useof armorial bearings: firstly,that such arms might be

assumed by any man; andsecondly, that the bearing ofsuch arms must be theexclusiverightofthenobilityif heraldry was to function.Thefirstknownreferencetoachallenge over the right tobearparticulararmsoccursinaGermandocumentof1286.In England the first suchdisputewasin1348,beforeaCourt of Law. This disputewas between Nicholas, LordBurnell, and Robert, Lord

Morley, andwas triedby theLordHighConstableandEarlMarshal of England duringthesiegeofCalais.A more famous and

prolonged case occurredbetween the years 1385 and1390 when the Grosvenor,Scrope and Carminowfamilies all claimed theancientrighttobearAzure,abendor.Nomentionismadeof heralds being involved inthe allocation of these arms,

or being involved in thedispute over them; the casewas tried by the Court ofChivalry,apre-heraldiccourtpresided over by theConstable and Marshal,whoseoriginalroleshadbeento deal with military mattersanddisputesaffectingdignityand honour. Grosvenor wonand Carminow concededdefeat,butScropeappealedtothesovereign,RichardII.Although heraldswere not

involved in this case, weknow that from at least the14th century the EnglishKingsofHeralds(latercalledKings of Arms) and theirheraldsweremaking surveysor collections of the existingarms within their provinces,and the case of Scrope v.Grosvenor may well havearisen from such a survey,which would have revealedthe duplication of arms andcalled for a settlement. The

EnglishKingsofArmsatthistime were Clarenceux,responsible for all Englandsouth of the Trent, andNorrey, responsible for allEngland north of the Trent.The anonymous Rolls ofArms which have beenhanded down to us wereprobably compiled by theearly heralds and Kings ofArms when they wereattempting to regularizeEnglishheraldry.

By the 15th century theKingsofArmswererequiredto take an oath on assumingoffice to the effect that theywould do their utmost ‘tohave knowledge of all thenoble gentlemen within theirmarches and them with theirissue trulyregistersucharmsastheybear’.The disputes mentioned

above, and no doubt manyothers of shorter duration,made it necessary that some

authority should be set upwhich could relieve thesovereign of the task ofregulating the bearing ofarms, assigning arms whenapplications were consideredworthy, and preventing theunlawfulassumptionof thosearmsbyothers.

TheTudorbadgesofrose,portcullis,pomegranateandfleur-de-lysonthe

HousesofParliament.In France a College of

Heralds was created in Parisby Charles VI in 1407, thehead of this organizationbeing known as Montjoie,King of Arms, with tenheraldsandpursuivantsunderhim. We know Jacques deHeilly held the post ofMontjoie at Agincourt nineyearslater,andworethearmsof France on his herald’s

coat. A Maréchal d’Armesdes Français was appointedby Charles VIII in 1489.However, the French heraldswere always strictlycontrolled by the king, whowas the only person allowedtograntacoatofarms,whileParliament decided cases ofheraldic disputes, thusrelegating the heralds to therôleof technicaladvisers.Bythe beginning of the 17thcentury the College had

become totally ineffectiveand was abolished in 1792owing to the Revolution, aswas the science of heraldryitself. This has led to theanomaly of France, whoselanguage is the language ofheraldry,havingnoregulatedsystemofheraldrytoday.

Apaviseofcirca1490bearingthearmsofRavensburginWürttemberg:Argent,acastlesable.

TherisingsunbadgeofEdwardIII,stillin

usetodayasaninnsign.

In 1417 Henry V ofEnglandsentLettersPatenttosheriffs of three countiesdeclaring that ‘whereas inrecent expeditions abroadmany persons had taken tothemselves Arms and tunicsof Arms called“Cotearmures” which neitherthey nor their ancestors hadused in time past, noman ofwhatever rank should

henceforth take arms unlesshe possessed them byancestralrightorbythegrantof some person havingauthority sufficientthereunto’. That same yearHenrycreatedanewheraldicofficer,GarterPrincipalKingof Arms of Englishmen,whose province was thewhole ofEngland andWalesandwhowas responsible forissuing Patents of Arms forpeers.

Shortly after these steps,Thomas, Duke of Clarenceand brother to Henry V,appears to have issuedordinances which granted totheKingsofArmstherighttoassignarmstopersonswithintheir provinces. The oldestknown Patent issued by aKing of Arms is dated 10March 1439, and was issuedby Sir William Bruges, firstGarter King of Arms, to theDrapers’ Company of

London.In 1484 Richard III by

Royal Charter incorporatedthe College of Arms, orHeralds’ College, whichcontrols the use of armorialbearings in England (andWales officially) to this day.The College of Arms ispresided over by the EarlMarshal and apart from thethreeKingsofArmsithassixheralds—Somerset, Chester,Windsor, Richmond,

LancasterandYork;andfourpursuivants—Rouge Croix,RougeDragon,PortcullisandBluemantle. The Court ofLordLyon(KingofArms)inScotland is in fact pre-heraldic. It has three heralds—Albany, Marchmont andRothesay; and threepursuivants—Carrick,Unicorn and Kintyre. TheofficeofUlsterKingofArmswas instituted in 1553 andexisted until 1940, when it

was amalgamated withNorrey King of Arms. Theoffice of Ireland King ofArms existed for a shortperiodonlypriorto1553.In Portugal heralds were

introducedduringthereignofJames I (1385–1433). Acomplete record of the armsof thenobilitywasdrawnupin1509bytheKingofArms,and Portuguese heraldrycontinued to be regulated bythe heralds until 1910, when

the monarchy was replacedbyarepublic.German heralds were

active and effective in themedieval period but hadbecomeextinctby the1700s.Itissignificantthattherewasno word in the Germanlanguage for herald until theRenaissance, the termKnappen von der Wappen(esquiresofarms)beingusedinstead. The German‘Knappen’ only broke from

theirwanderinglifebytakingemployment with theTourney Societies, and inmany German states theheralds never attained aposition at court, theregulation of heraldry beinghandled by clerks under thecourtchancellor.

The Spanish heralds, likethe French, seem to havebeenrelegatedtoasecondaryrôle by the kings of thevariouskingdoms,armsbeing

granted by the kings andcases of duplication of armsbeingsettledbythekings,theheralds playing only aconsultantrôle.Thiswasalsothe case in Denmark, wheretherewasnoofficialbodyofheralds, and arms wereassumed or granted by thekingbyLettersofPatent.

TheShield

Because the shape andconstruction of the shield soclearly played an importantpart in the development ofheraldic designs, it isnecessarytotakeabrieflookatthetypesofshieldsusedinEurope during the period1150–1550. The kite-shapedshieldalwaysassociatedwith

theNormansremainedinusethroughout the 12th century,when heraldry was evolving,but soon after the middle ofthe century the curved topwas replaced by a straightone.Infantrycontinuedtousethis type of shield in Italyuntil as late as the 15thcentury. The kite shield wasnotflat,asitappearsinbookson heraldry, but semi-cylindrical,‘soastoembracethe person of the wearer’.

This meant that not muchmore than half the shieldcould be seen from any oneangle, and this greatlyinfluenced the way in whichinsigniawereplacedupontheshield, since a man mightneedtobeidentifiedinbattleoratthetourneybyonlyhalfofhiscoatofarms.At the beginning of the

13th century the kite shieldwasshortenedtoformwhatisnow called the heater shield,

sonamed in the19thcenturybecauseitresembledthebaseof theflat ironorheater thenin general use. This shield,Fig 1, 13th century, andFig2, 14th century, also curvedround the body for greatereffectiveness.Theheaterwasthecommonesttypeofshieldin most parts of Europeduring the 13th and 14thcenturies, but was unknownin Spain and Portugal. Inthese two countries shields

weremorerectangular,withacurved base, Fig 3, and thissoinfluencedthenumberandplacing of insignia inmedieval times that the armsused in these countries oftenhad their chargesarranged inacompletelydifferentmannertootherpartsofEurope.

Shields had begun todiminish in size in the 13thcentury, as plate armourwasintroduced to protect armsandlegs,andinthefollowingcentury they were employed

less frequently by mountedmen as the use of platearmour increased. Thus theall-enveloping plate armourof the 15th century madeshieldsobsoleteforknightsatleast, and in the 1360–1400period the shield graduallywentoutofusebyknightsinbattle. By the 15th centuryknightsrarelyusedtheshieldexceptfordisplaypurposesinparades and at tournaments.Asaconsequence theshields

of the15thcenturyhadmorefanciful shapes, as shown byFigs4 and5. Fig 4 shows atypical 15th-centurytournament shield, called àbouche,thenotchontherightsidebeingforthelance.Fig5shows a purely decorativeshield of the same century.Late 15th- and early 16th-century shields were of asimilardesignbutoftenhadacentral ridge or a number offlutings at top and bottom.

These more decorativeshields became popular forornamental purposes,particularly in architecture;but the simple lines of the13th- and 14th-centuryshields remained popular forthe display of heraldic art,and are still used in heraldrytothisday.In heraldry the face of the

shield,onwhichthearmsarepainted,isknownasthefieldor ground. In order to

determine exactlywhereabouts on the field thevarious colours and devicesshould be placed, and to beable toblazonacoatofarmscorrectly(thatistodescribeitverbally) the field is dividedintoanumberofpoints. It isnecessary here to know onlythatthetoppartofthefieldiscalled the chief, the centralareathefesse,andthebottomthe base. Because the shieldis always viewed as seen

from the position of thebearer, thedexter (right) sideof the shield is that whichcoincides with the right sideofthebearer,andthesinister(left) side is that whichcoincideswiththeleftsideofthebearer.Although I have already

stated that it is not theintention of this book todescribetherulesofheraldry,it is important that thereaderbe able to distinguish

between those rules andpractices which wereparticularly applicable inmedieval times, and thosewhichwerenot inuseat thisearly stage. The nextheadings therefore providebriefsummariesofthebasicsof heraldry as used in the14thand15thcenturies.

TincturesThefieldoftheshieldandalldevices painted upon it are

coloured, and the differentcolours employed inheraldryarereferredtoastinctures.Inthe medieval period thedesigns on shields weresimple and the coloursemployedwerebold, theaimbeing to create arms whichwere clearly visible andidentifiableatadistance.Theprincipal tinctures used aredivided into metals (silverand gold), colours (red, blueand black), and furs, ermine

(Fig6)andvair(Fig7).Boththefurswerebasedonfursinuseat the time,erminebeingthe white winter coat of thestoat, with the black tips ofthe tails sewn on, and vair(fromtheLatinvarus,variousor varied) being the namegiven to squirrels’ fur, muchused for the lining of cloaks,whichwasbluish-greyontheback andwhite on the belly.As the coats of westernEuropean stoats do not

normallyturnwhiteinwinter,these skins had to beimportedfromasfarawayasMuscovy, at great expense,and were consequently usedonlybythegreatnobles,suchas the Dukes of Brittany,whosecoatwasermine.The following table shows

the colours, their heraldicname, and the abbreviationnormally found on drawingsofarms:

Tincture Heraldicname

Abbreviation

Goldoryellow or O

Silverorwhite argent ArgorAr*

Blue azure AzRed gules GuorG*Black sable SaorS*Green† vert VtorV*Purple† purpure PurporP** These contractions are

normally used for tricking:seeunderBlazon.† There was an antipathytowards green until well intothe15thcenturyandalthoughit occurs in arms as early asthe13thcentury,itwasnotincommon use until the late15thcentury.Sofaraspurpleis concerned, there was nodistinction made between itand red in early medievaltimes and therefore we arenot really concerned with it

here.

As heraldry becameestablished, more coats ofarms were recorded and itbecamenecessary to increasethetincturesinordertoavoidduplication of arms.Thus bythe 15th century tenne(orange) and murrey (amulberry or reddishpurplecolour)hadbeenaddedtothecolours. These new colourswere mainly confined to

continental heraldry, thoughthey do occasionally appearon English flags or liveries;forexampletheliverycoloursof the House of York weremurrey and azure, while thepages of the Earl ofNottinghamworetennéedgedwithsableduringthereignofJames I. The colour russet isalso found on rare occasionsin continental heraldry fromthe 15th century on, andappears in English heraldry

on theflagsand liveryof thegreatPercyfamily.The number of furs was

alsoincreasedinthe15thand16th centuries by depictingermine and vair in differentcolours: ermines, white tailsonblack;erminois,blacktailson gold; pean, gold tails onblack.Vairwastermedvairiéif colours other than argentand azure were used: forexample, vairié of or andgules.

DivisionsoftheShieldIn addition to the tincturestherearealsoseveralmethodsof dividing the field by asinglelineinordertoincreasethe number of coats of armspossible without duplication.A field thus divided isdescribed as ‘parted’ or‘party’, although the wordparty is often omitted inblazon. There are eightmaindivisions of this nature: perpale, fess, bend (dexter and

sinister), chevron, saltire,quarterly,andgyronny.Thesedivisions have beenillustrated for clarity andappear in the order listed:Figs 8–15. In the early daysof heraldry ‘party’ meantsimply the division of thefield per pale, and otherdivision lines had to benamedinfull.

Anotherexampleofancientheraldrystillbeingused—thewhitehartbadgeofRichardIIasaninnsign.

Continental, and

particularly German heraldrycontains many other fielddivisions unknown inEngland.Oneofthedivisionsmost commonly used,especially in Italy andGermany, is a tripartitedivision of the field by twolines running horizontally,vertically, diagonally fromtop left, or diagonally fromtop right, across the shield.These are referred to astiercedinfess,pale,bendand

bendsinisterrespectively.Fig16 illustrates tierced in fess,the arms of the Venetianfamily of Franchi; and Fig17, tierced in bend, the armsof the Amici family, alsoItalian. Another variant ofthis style is tierced in pairle,best described by theillustrationof thearmsof theSaxonfamilyofvonBriesen,Fig 18. Another curiouspartition,uniquetoGermany,is that of tierced in gyron

gyronnant,knowninGermanheraldry as Schneckenweise.Thisisillustratedbythearmsof the vonMegenzer family,Fig19.The divisions known in

English heraldry are alsooccasionally employed in adifferent form on theContinent. Quarterly, forexample, sometimes appearsas a most curiousarrangement, best describedbyFigs 20 and21, the arms

of the Brunswick family ofvonTuleand theLöwensteinfamilyrespectively.Partyperfess in German heraldrysometimes has a left or right‘step’, known as mit linkerstufe.ThisisillustratedbythearmsoftheAurbergfamilyofBavaria, Fig 22. Othercontinental partition lines aredifficult toblazoninEnglish,nor can they really becategorized. Examples ofthese unusual divisions are

shown in Figs 23–27, thearms ofLang vonLangenau,Stauffeneck, Marshalck vonStuntsberg, Kirmreitter, andAltorf.Varied fields are made by

further divisions whichalways consist of an evennumber of pieces, forexample, barry, bendy, paly,per pale and barry, palywavy, chequey, lozengy, andfusily,illustratedinthatorderbyFigs28–35.

PartitionLinesSo far it has been assumedthat all the lines dividing thefield are straight, but in factirregular partition lines weresoon introduced to providescopeformorecoatsofarms.In the very earliest Rolls ofArms only three suchvariations are listed:Engrailed, Indented orDancetty,andUndyorWavy,andoftheseEngrailedwasbyfarthemostcommon.Fig36

illustrates the use of anengrailed line: Or, a crossengrailed sable, the arms ofJohn de Bohun, temp.Edward I. Fig 37 is Or, achiefindentedazure,thearmsof John Butler, Earl ofOrmond, killed atTewkesbury in 1471.Nebulyand Embattled (or Crenelle)were added later, within theperiod which concerns ushere:Fig38,Barrynebulyof8, or and sable, the arms of

SirHumphreyBlount, 1422–77; and Fig 39, per fessembattled or and azure, theBaronsvonPreysing.

ChargesCharges are the devices usedupon shields. In the 14thcenturybyfarthecommonesttypes of charges were thoselistedinallbooksonheraldryas Ordinaries andSubordinaries.TheOrdinariesareknownastheChief,Fess,

Pale, Chevron, Bend, Saltire,Cross, Pile, and Quarter orCanton. The Chief is rare inSpanishandPortuguesearms.Each of these Ordinaries isillustrated here by a coat ofarms:Fig40(Chief)thearmsbornebyWilliamdeFortzofVivonne in France. Fig 41(Fess) the arms ofWalter deColville. Fig 42 (Pale) thearms of Hugh deGrentmesnil, Lord ofHinckley, High Steward of

EnglandinthetimeofHenryI.Fig43 (Chevron) the armsof the French family ofGorrevod, Dues de Pont deVauxandprincesoftheHolyRoman Empire. Fig 44(Bend)thearmsbornebytheFrench knight Guillaume deTrie.Fig45(Saltire)thearmsofthegreathouseofNeville.Fig46(Cross)thearmsofthePortuguese family ofTeixeira, also the SpanishfamilyofOluja.Fig47 (Pile)

thearmsofSirJohnChandos,Knight of the Garter, died1370. Fig 48 (Canton) thearmsofBertramdeCrioll.Ofthese Ordinaries the mostpopular in the early periodwas the Fess and itsdiminutives, namely the Bar,Closet and Barrulet, whichwere almost always used inseries;i.e.Fig49Barryof6,argentandazure, thearmsofHenry de Grey of Codnor,who foughtatFalkirk (1298)

and at the siege ofCaerlaverock in 1300. ASeigneur de Grey also borethese arms at the siege ofRouenin1418.

(16)Franchi:chiefvert,fessargent,basegules.(17)Amici:sinisterchiefor,bendgules,dexterbaseazure.(18)VonBriesen:dexteror,sinistergules.(19)VonMegenzer:theupperpartoftheshieldisgules,thelowerisor.(20)VonTule:upperdexterandlowersinisterdivisionsaregules.(21)Lowenstein:

sableandor.(22)Aurberg:argentandsable.(23)LangvonLangenau:a‘chief’or,lozengyargentandgules.(24)Strauffeneck:a‘chief’argent,barryargentandgules.(25)MarshalckvonStuntsburg:gules,a‘chevron’argent.(26)Kirmreitter:sableandor.(27)Altorf:sableandargent.

In modern heraldry theChief, Fess, Pile, Chevron,BendandPilealloccupyone-third of the area of the field,but during the period withwhich we are dealing theywere somewhat smaller,unlesstheyboreacharge,andthe Fess of ancient heraldrywould now probably betermed a Bar. The Cantonoccupiesa thirdof theChief,always on the dexter side,except in Spanish heraldry,

whereitappearsoneitherthedexterorsinisterside.The Subordinaries include

the bordure, in-escutcheon,orle,tressure,flanches,gyron,lozenge, fusil,mascle, rustre,fret, billet, annulet androundels:thesemaybefoundillustrated in any book onheraldry.

ThereverseofthesixthGreatSealofEdwardIII,used

between1340and1372,showingshield,surcoatandtrapperbearingthequarteredarmsofEnglandandFrance,andthelioncrestofthekingsofEngland.

NextinpopularityaftertheOrdinaries and Subordinariescamewhat are known as theanimate charges, the variousanimals, with the lionrampant well ahead of all

others, followed at aconsiderable distance by thelion passant. Less popularstill in our period was theeagle, which was the mostcommon charge in the birdcategory, and was followedby a relatively few examplesofmartlets,popinjays,crows,swansandherons.The inanimate charges

weremostlyeverydayobjectsfrommedievallifeinEurope,suchasstaves,waterbuckets,

arrows, axes, horseshoes,spurs, hammers, variousflowers, stars and crescents,etc. It was not until around1500 that the human body,monstersandfabulousbeasts,birds and reptiles becamecommon in heraldry, and bythen the science had alreadybegun its decline intoostentatiousornamentation.

Blazon

When a knight entered thelists at a tournament, hewasannouncedbythesoundingofa trumpet and the callingoutofhiscoatofarms.Thiswasknownasblazoning.Thustheprincipal terms and order ofdescription employed inblazonhavebeeninexistencesince the early 13th century,

by which date heralds werefinding it necessary todescribe a coat of arms insuch a way that there couldbe no shadow of doubt as towhat and whose it was, andthey are readily understoodthroughout western Europe.The language of the earlyblazonswasFrenchorLatin,butthiswaslaterreplacedbythe language of each nation,and in English heraldry thelanguage of blazon has

becomeanglicizedexcept forafewtechnicalterms.Some attention to fine

detailhasbeenappliedinthefollowing description ofblazon, as it is essential thatthereaderbeabletointerpretblazon if he is to be able tostudymorecomplexbooksonheraldry, where the arms arefrequently described in thismanner. However, it shouldbe remembered that blazonwas invented in order to

describe arms precisely,clearly and briefly, and istherefore reasonably easy tounderstand.

Towriteorreadablazonitis necessary to know theorderinwhichthedescriptionis set out. This order isthereforelistedfullyhere.TheField(1) Describe the tincture ofthefield.(2)Ifthefieldisdividedintotwo or more tinctures,describe the line or lineswhich divide it, followed bythe tinctures: Quarterly, orand gules, the arms of Sir

GeoffreydeSay(baron1313)and his son Geoffrey at thesiegeofCalaisin1348.(3) If the partition lines arenot straight, describe them:Perpale indented, argentandgules,thebannerofSimondeMontfort.(4) If the field is semé withsmall charges this must alsobe mentioned: Azure billety,afessdancettyor,thearmsofSirJohnD’Eyncourt.ThePrincipalCharge

(1) Describe the principalcharge on the field and itstincture.(2) If the charge is anOrdinary and it has irregularlines, describe the lines—engrailed,nebuly,etc.(3) If the charge is placed inthe centre of the field andfaces the dexter, no furtherdescription is necessary,otherwise the position (inchief, in fess, in base) andwhether affronté (showing

fullface)orcontourné(facingsinister)mustbestated.OtherChargesIf there are any secondarycharges these must bementioned in order ofimportance, stating positionontheshieldandthetincturesused: Or, a cross gulesbetween sixteen eagletsazure,thearmsofthelordsofMontmorency.ChargesuponChargesDescribe any charges placed

upon an Ordinary, upon aprincipalcharge,orcharge.DifferencesDescribeanychargesusedfordifferencingorcadency,suchas the bordure, label, canton,crescent,mullet,etc.OverallChargesWhen an Ordinary is placedacross a coat of arms it isprecededbythewordsurtoutoroverall, i.e. overall abendazure.Quartering

If a shield is quartered thisfact is stated before all theabove categories, andmentionismadeattheendofthis list only becausequartering, except for royalalliances, was comparativelyrare in theperiodwithwhichwe are concerned. Quartersarenumbered1to4thus:topleft, top right, bottom left,bottomright,asviewed.Ifthe4th quarter is a repeat of the1st, and the 3rd a repeat of

the 2nd, as in the arms ofEngland circa 1400–1603,this is blazoned as Quarterly1st and 4th France modern;2ndand3rdEngland.The normal reading and

writingrulesofworkingfromlefttorightandtoptobottomapply inheraldry, so thatperpale gules and or means theleft side is red, and per fessargent and azure means thetop half is argent. Gyronnycommenceswith the top left-

handsegmentandthenumberof gyrons is stated: Gyronnyof8,orandsable,thearmsoftheCampbellfamily.If a tincture is used more

thanonceinacoatitisusualnot to repeat its name butrefer to it as ‘of the first’ or‘of the second’, dependingwhen it first occurred in theblazon. For example, in theLuterell arms the colour ofmartlets and bend is onlymentioned once: Azure, a

bend between 6 martlets or.This could equally beblazoned Azure, a bend orbetween 6 martlets of thesecond.When a charge is repeated

the number of such chargesmust be stated and theirarrangement on the shielddescribed. Thus nineroundels, 3, 3, 3. It is notnecessary to blazon sixroundels3,2,1,asthisisthestandard arrangement for

suchanumberofcharges.Correct punctuation is not

vital and many authoritiesdisagreeover thewayblazonshould be punctuated, but ithelps to remember that thereshould always be a commaafter each tincture exceptwhere alternate colours areused,as inBarryof6,argentandazure(deGrey).The natural colouring of

animals, birds, plants, etc., isalwaysreferredtoas‘proper’,

but if they vary from theirnatural colours then thetinctures must be named.Birds and beasts havingclaws, beaks and teeth in adifferent tincture to that oftheir bodies are blazonedArmed. If their tonguesprotrude they are Langued.Animals suchas thebullandunicorn, which also havehorns and hooves, areblazonedArmedandHoofed,butstagsanddeerareAttired,

not Armed. Birds withoutclaws are blazoned Beakedand membered. There aremany more suchcomplications, but themajority arose after theperiod with which we aredealing, when arms hadbecomecomplexandheraldrywasmainlydecorative.

TrickingThere is another method ofdescribing a coat of arms,

foundinRollsofArmsdatingback as far as the mid-13thcentury. In this method thecoatisdrawninoutlineininkand the various tincturesindicated by words orabbreviationsof thosewords.Such a coat, known astricked, is illustrated toindicate thesimplicityof thismethod:Fig 50, the arms ofSir John Fortescue, circa1394–1476. Neatness andaccuracy are, of course, vital

with this method to preventconfusion.

SurcoatsAt the beginning of the 14thcentury it was commonpracticeforknightstowearasurcoatovertheirarmour.Onthefrontandbackofthiscoatwould often be displayedtheir arms, though otherheraldic devices might alsobeused:forexample,EdwardIIofEngland(1307–27)wore

four lions on his surcoat,while at Poitiers Sir JohnChandos had the figure ofOur Lady, dressed in blue,within a golden mandorla,embroidered on his surcoat.Lord Jean de Clermont, oneof theFrenchmarshalsat thebattle, bore the same deviceonhissurcoat.Atthisdatethesurcoatwas

fulllength,reachingalmosttotheankles,butsleeveless,andwas split at front and back

almost to the waist to allowthe material to hang freelywhen the wearer was in thesaddle. These gowns, typicalexamples of which areillustratedbyFigs51and52,weregatheredatthewaistbyabeltorcord.This full-length surcoat

remained popular until about1320–30, when the frontskirts were cut off at mid-thighlevel,asinFig53.Thisedgewas sometimes straight,

sometimes scalloped orembattled. Prior to thischange, introduced forpractical reasons, the endsofthefrontskirtshadfrequentlybeen tucked through the belttoloopthemupandsoallowgreater freedom of move-ment when on foot. Someexamplesofsurcoatsataboutthis date appear to have hadtheskirtscutbackatanangle,as inFig 54. The rear skirtswere cut off in about 1340–

50, reducing the length hereto levelwith the back of theknees.Thisshortenedversionis referred to as the cyclascoat, and an example occursontheeffigyofHenry,Dukeof Lancaster, dated 1347, onthe Hastings brass at ElsynginNorfolk:Fig55.

Some time between 1350and 1360 the shortenedsurcoatorcyclasbegan tobereplaced by the jupon,another hip-length garmentbut much more close-fittingand often of leather, or ofpadded or quilted fabric, toprovide extra protection forthe wearer in battle ortournament. Its lower edgewas usually scalloped orfringed. The jupon was alsosleeveless, laced up at the

sides, and in England almostinvariably bore the arms oftheweareronfrontandback.In Europe the wearer’s armsdid not normally appear onthe jupon. A number ofjupons are illustrated in thecolourplates.That the long form of

surcoat had continued to bewornalongsidethecyclasandjuponisillustratedbythefactthat as late as 1370 the nowelderly Sir John Chandos,

whilstattemptingtodismountto fight on foot, caught hisspur in the skirts of hissurcoat and was slain whilstthus rendered helpless. Thisevent,andperhapsotherslikeit, did more to end thewearing of the long surcoatthanthefashionforthejupon.From this date no moreexamples of the surcoatappear in the sourcesconsulted.The jupon was in turn

discarded about 1425,although isolated examplescontinue to occur as late asthe end of that century, andfor some considerable timearmourwas as ageneral ruleuncovered.Someknightshadtheir heraldic devicesengraved and gilded on theirplate armour, but this was acomparatively rareoccurrence, governed by thecost of producing sucharmour.

The tabard, a short, loose-fitting garment, open at thesides and with broad, shortsleeves, had been worn inisolatedexamples fromabout1425, and coats of armscontinued to be embroideredon these and on cloaks, butboth these garments weremore for parades andtournaments than warfare.The tabard became morepopular at the end of thecentury and remained in

general use until the middleof the 16th century, when itwent out of fashion. Thetabard has survived in theform of the herald’s coat,embroidered with heraldicdevices on front, back andsleeves. Examples of thetabard occur in the colourplates.

AilettesAilettes (little wings) weresmall pieces of leather or

sometimes parchment,usually rectangular or squarebut occasionally round,diamond- or even cross-shaped, which were laced tothepointofeachshoulder soas to standupright above theshoulders.Somesourcesstatethat they were designed toprevent a sword cut to thesideoftheneck,butmanyofthe examples studied weremuchtooflimsyfor this,andthey are more likely to have

been purely heraldic orornamental, serving as extraidentification ‘panels’ toidentify the wearer from thesides. As such they weresuperfluous, since the curvedshield and the crest alreadyfulfilled this rôle, and theailette was probablymore ofan affected fashion thananythingelse.Ailettes first appear about

1270, and it is known thatleatherailetteswereusedata

tournament held in WindsorPark in 1278. This surelyindicates their true rôle.Duringthefirstquarterofthe14thcenturyailettesappeartohavereachedthepeakoftheirpopularity and manyexamplesofthembeingwornmay be seen on monumentsand in documents. However,by about 1340 they seem tohave declined in popularityand theydonotappearmuchafter1350.

(40)WilliamdeFortz:argent,achiefgules.(41)WalterdeColville:or,afessgules.(42)HughdeGrentmesnil:gules,apaleor.(43)Gorrevod:azure,achevronor.(44)GuillaumedeTrie:or,abendazure.(45)Neville,EarlsofWarwick,alsooftheVanEyck,VanJutphaas,Borgharts,OultreandotherLow

Countryfamilies:gules,asaltireargent.(46)TeixeiraandOluja:azure,acrossargent.(47)SirJohnChandos:argent,apilegules.(48)BertramdeCrioll:or,acantonandtwochevronsgules.(49)HenrydeGrey:barryofsix,argentandazure.

Ifaman’sshieldbore,say,six cinquefoils, then onecinquefoil might be painted

on each ailette, but this wasnotalwaysthecaseandintheLuterell Psalter (circa 1340)Sir Geoffrey Luterell isportrayedbearinghisfullcoatof arms on his ailettes: seephotograph elsewhere in thisbook.

TheLiveryand

MaintenanceSystem

At the end of the HundredYears War with France(1337–1453) large numbers

of professional soldiersreturnedtoEngland.Manyofthese men were organizedinto private armies by thegreat barons, and to thesearmies flocked many of theyeomen and lesser gentrywhoneeded theprotectionofthe barons against theinjustices common at thattimeofunrest.Theseyeomenand gentry entered into acontractknownasLiveryandMaintenance, whereby they

undertooktowearthebaron’slivery,i.e.atunicinhisliverycolours and bearing hisbadge, and fight for him intime of need,while in returnthey would receive hisprotection whenever theyneededit.

By1453theadministrationof justice had largelycollapsedandthebaronsweresettling their quarrels bydirectaction—privatewars—against each other, while therivalrybetweentheHousesofYorkandLancasterledtotheWarsoftheRoses(1455–85).The armies of these warswereformedmostlyfromtheprivate armies of the greatbarons, the Livery andMaintenance men, and

contract troops, that is troopsraised for the Crown bycontract with the king’snobles, usually a set numberof men for a year’s serviceandatanagreedwage.

BadgesThe fashion for badges roseto its zenith with these largeprivate armies of the 15thcentury,butbadgeshadbeenused toa lesserdegree in theprevious century, and by

royalty anda fewgreat lordssince the earliest days ofheraldry.However,thebadgemay be said to have comeinto general use in the reignof Edward III, risen to itsgreatest importance in the15thcentury,andgoneoutofuse in the reign of HenryVIII.

ThesealofthegreatBeauchampfamily,

EarlsofWarwick,showingshield,surcoatandtrapperallbearingthefamilyarms(Gules,afessbetweensixcrosscrossletsor)andthedistinctiveswan’sheadcrest.

These badges were neverof any fixed form, nor wasthere any fixed manner ofusage, aswith coatsof arms.Also, unlike arms, theywerenever worn by the owner;

rather theywere hismark ofownership, and weretherefore stamped on hisbelongingsandwornasasignof allegiancebyhis servants,dependants and retainers,whohadnoarmsoftheirownandnoright tobear thearmsof their lord. If a lord waspowerful enough to lead aparty in the State, thenadherents of his party mightalso wear his badge, andcolours.(Thisistheoriginof

modern political partycolours.) Such badges weregenerally but not alwaysdifferenttothechargesborneonthelord’scoatofarms.Badges were originally

grantedbythesovereignonlyto those heads of greatfamilies who could field alarge force of men. Suchgreat lords normally had theright to bear a standardgranted by the king at thesametime,forthebadgewas

used on the livery colours toformastandard.Atthebattleof Bannockburn in 1314, forexample, Thomas, LordBerkeley, had 200 retainersand was entitled to use abadge to distinguish them.Anthony Bek, Bishop ofDurham, raised 80 men forthe siege of Caerlaverockcastle in1300andhisbanneris blazoned on theCaerlaverock Roll. LordTalbotraised1,800menfrom

the Shropshire hills for theexpedition against Harfleurand the battle of Agincourt;and Edward, Duke of YorkandAumerle,cousintoHenryV, raised no less than 4,000men for the same expeditionfrom the great YorkistholdingsofthePlantagenets.However, by the 15th

centurythebadgehadrisentosuch popularity and was sonecessary for theidentification of troops in

battle, that all commanders,no matter how small theirfollowing, began to adoptbadges.Thus in the late15thcenturySirJohnFerrers,whohad a retinue of only twolances (one of whom washimself) and fifteen archers,hadhisownbadge.Becausethesebadgeswere

widelydisplayedonproperty,flags and liveries, they werefar more widely knownamongst the common people

than the coats of armsof thelords, which were onlydisplayed on a lord’s person,his lancepennonandbanner.Inbattlealord’sretainersandfollowers wore his badge ontheirclothesandralliedrounda standard bearing that samebadge, and consequently,unlike heraldry, the badgewas a method ofidentification which wasrecognizedandunderstoodbythemasses.

The badge is variouslydescribed as being worn onthesleeveorshoulder,butbythe time of the Wars of theRoses itwasmorefrequentlywornonthebreast.After the Wars of the

Roses a new class of noblesrose from the lower ranks toreplace the great number ofnobles killed in the wars. Atthe same time heraldryappears to have begun itsdecline,andalmostallbadges

were transformed into crests.BythetimeofHenryVIIIthecrestandthebadgehadcometo be regarded assynonymous. The decline inimportanceofthebadgeis,ofcourse, directly linked to thecreationofthestandingarmy,whichwasbeguninthereignof Henry VIII, for with thecreation of this army theprincipal use of the badge—ontheliveryofretainersasadistinguishing mark of

allegiance—cametoanend.Possiblytheoldestbadgeis

that of Geoffrey of Anjou,father ofHenry II,who usedthe broom-plant or plantagenista—the origin of thename Plantagenet. The rosecame to English royalheraldry via Eleanor ofProvence,queenofHenryIII,andwaschosenasabadgebytheir heir, Edward I, whoused a golden rose. HisbrotherEdmundCrouchback,

Earl of Lancaster, had a redrose and this became thebadgeoftheEarlsandDukesofLancaster,andofthethreekings of that house—HenryIV,HenryVandHenryVI.Itwas also the badge of theBeaufort family, descendantsoftheillegitimatesonofJohnofGaunt,DukeofLancaster.When Richard, Duke ofYork, claimed the throne in1460hechoseawhiteroseashis badge, and this became

thebadgeofhisson,EdwardIV,andoftheYorkistforces.Edward IV in factplaced thewhite rose on a sun, anotherYorkistbadge,anditwastheconfusionbetweenthisbadgeandthesilverstarofdeVere,Earl of Oxford, which costtheLancastrians the battle ofBarnet in 1471, an exampleof the importance ofdistinctive badges at thattime.Edward III hadas abadge

asunburstingthroughclouds,Fig 56, and Richard II usedboth the planta genista andthe sun burst, and added apersonal badge of a whitehart,Fig57. Edward III alsoused an ostrich feather as abadge, Fig 58, which wasprobably derived from thearms of hiswife, Philippa ofHainault.Oneormoreostrichfeatherswere used as badgesby all of Edward’s son, butnotably by the Black Prince,

whohadthreewhitefeathers;anditwasprobablytheuseofthis badge on a black shieldand of a black surcoat tomatchwhichgave rise to thenameBlackPrince.Fromthissprang the famous Prince ofWalesbadgeofthreefeathersencircled by a coronet, usedby the Heir Apparent sinceTudortimes.HenryVusedasbadges the antelope, Fig 59,and the swan,Fig 61, whichwere derived from his

mother’s family the Bohuns,and a cresset or beacon,Fig60.

AminiatureofSir

GeoffreyLuterelltakenfromtheLuterellPsalter,writtenaround1340,illustratingtheplacingofchargesontherightsideofthetrapper.Comparetrapper,ailette,horsecrest,helmetcrestandpennonwiththeshieldandsaddlearçons,wherethemartletsallfacethedexterandthebendisnotsinister.

Tudorbadgesonthe

gatesofHenryVII’schapelinWestminsterAbbey,includingthecrownedportcullisoftheBeauforts;entwinedwhiteandredrosesoftheHousesofYorkandLancaster;crownedmargueritesforHenry’smother(LadyMargaretBeaufort);andthefalconandfetterlockoftheHouseofYork;allinterspersedwiththe

fleurs-de-lysofFranceandlionsofEngland.

Royal badges becamenumerous under the Tudorsbut rarely occur after thatperiod (1485–1603). HenryTudor’s badges included theredroseofLancasterand theBeaufort portcullis, Fig 62.TheBeaufortswereexcludedfromtheroyalsuccessionbut,after his victory at BosworthField, Henry had the banliftedbyanActofParliament

and the portcullis crownedbecame one of his badges asHenryVII.Healsounitedthered and white roses into theTudor rose when he marriedElizabethofYork.TheTudorrose is found in two distinctforms; a rose dividedvertically or, morecommonly, a double rosewith the outer petals red andthe inner oneswhite, or viceversa.No official records of the

badges used by the king’ssubjects were kept until lateinthereignofHenryVIII,bywhich time their use wasrapidly declining, andtherefore it is notpossible tocompile a complete list. Ouronly sources for the earlierbadges are thereforestandards and guidons, ormonumental work in placessuch as Westminster Abbey.The bear and ragged staff oftheEarlsofWarwick,andthe

swanof theEarls andDukesof Buckingham, will befamiliar tomany readers, butitishopedtheillustrationsofbadges accompanying thissectionwillprovideexampleswhicharenew to some.Figs62–73 are taken from abroadsheetpublishedin1449,Figs 74–79 from amanuscript of the reign ofEdwardIV(1461–83).Badges occurred in

European countries, although

their use never became sowidespreadorsoimportantasin England, and therefore asmall selection of the morefamousbadgesofFranceandItaly has been included;Figs80–85.Because they were not

bound by the rules ofheraldry, badges were nottruly hereditary, althoughthere are a number of well-known cases of the samebadge being used by

generation after generation.In these cases it is believedthat marks of cadency wereused to distinguish betweenthebadgesoffatherandsons.For example, HumphreyTalbot, son of John Talbot,Earl of Shrewsbury (whosebadge is shown in Fig 69)had as a badge a talbot orhound with a mullet on itsshoulder. Differencing bytincture, as with the roses ofEdward I and his brother

Edmund, may have beenanother method of denotingcadency. Sons alsooccasionally adopted aslightlydifferentformoftheirfather’s badge. Otherexamples of differencing bycadency marks and othermeans may be found in thelist of liveries and badgesbelow.

LiveriesLiverieswere theforerunners

ofmilitary uniforms, and theterm livery means thosedistinguishing marks on thedress of individuals whichmarked themoutas servants,retainers or followers ofcertainknights.Inadditiontothis distinctive mark, thetunics of these men wereusually of a distinctive oruniform colour or colours.Sometimes these tunics wereof the principal tincture ortinctures of the arms of the

leader, but livery colourswere not necessarily derivedfrom coats of arms: retainersof the house of Percy, forexample,worethreestripesofrusset, or and tennéwith theblue lion rampant of thefamily arms on theirshoulders as a badge.However,wherethearmsdidprovide the colours, thetincture of the field normallydetermined the colour of thetunic,andthatoftheprincipal

charge on the fielddetermined the colour of theedgingandsometimes,onthemore elaborate tunics, thelining.

(56)EdwardIII:agoldensunburstingthroughwhite(shaded)cloud.(57)RichardII:whitehartwithgoldchainandcrown.(58)EdwardIII:whitefeatherwithgoldquillandrearfacesofscroll.(59)HenryV:whiteantelopewithgoldcrownandchain.(60)HenryV:beaconwithredflames.(61)HenryV:whiteswanwith

goldcrownandchain.(62)HenryVII:portcullis.(63)John,DukeofBedford:goldentreestump.(64)Humphrey,DukeofGloucester:whiteduckwithgoldcrownandchains.(65)delaPole,DukesofSuffolk:whitebollardwithgoldstrapandring.(66)Mowbray,DukesofNorfolk:alion.(67)Holland,DukesofExeter:abeaconona

mound.Some modern writers

believe that where twotinctures are listed as thecolours, then the livery wasdividedperpale,halfthecoatbeingineachcolour.Thereisno contemporaryconfirmationofthistheory:infact, in contemporarymanuscripts listing colours,the liveries are frequentlydescribed as being of one

colourandembroideredinthesecond, or divided into fourstripes. Presumably tunicswereonlyperpale,orindeedquartered, if the lord sowished it, and particularly ifthefieldofhisarmswasthusdivided.The liveriesof theEnglish

sovereigns during themedieval period were asfollows:ThePlanlagenetkings:HenryII,RichardI,John,HenryIII,

Edward I, and Edward II—white and red. Edward III—blue and red. Richard II—whiteandgreen.TheLancastriankings:HenryIV, V and VI—white andblue.TheYorkistkings:EdwardIVand Richard III—blue andmurrey.The Tudor kings: Henry VIIandVIII—whiteandgreen.Aselectlistofliveriesand

badges worn by retainers of

knightsduringthe1300–1550periodisgivenbelow.Namesare listed under title, notfamilyname;i.e.Shrewsbury,Earl of, not Talbot.Many ofthe knights listed had morethan one badge: for spacereasonsonly their firstbadgehasbeengiven:

Abergavenny, Lord of (Geo.Neville):Vt&Arg.Adoublestapleinterlaced,Arg&or.Arundel, Earl of (Thos.

FitzAlan):Az&G.Abranchofoakvert,fructedor.Audley,SirJohn:Or&gu.Amoor’sheadinprofileproper,filleted round the temples,charged with a crescent fordifference.Berners, Lord (Bourchier):Or&vt.TheBourchierknot.Brown, Sir Westyn: Gu. Alion’s gamb erect and erasedargent,wingedsable.Buckingham, Duke of(Edward Stafford): Gu & s.

Staffordknot.Carew, Sir William, ofDevon:Fourstripess&or.Afalcon collared and jessedgules, bells on neck and legsor.Cholmondeley, Sir Richard:Gu.Ahelmetperpaleorandargent, charged with fivetorteaux.Clifford, Sir Henry: Argent.A wyvern’s wings endorsedgules.Constable, Sir Marmaduke,

ofEveringham,Yorks:Gules.Ancient three-masted shipheadedwith a dragon’s headand sailed furled or, chargedwithacrescentsable.Conyers, Lord of, Co.Durham:Arg.A lionpassantazure.Cornewall,SirThos.:Arg.Alion passant gules, ducallycrownedandseméofbezants.Curzon,Lord (Robert):Or&gu. A wolf’s head erasedgules.

Darcy,Thomas,Lord:Vt.Anheraldictigerargent.Dorset, Marquess of (Thos.Grey): Arg. & pink. Aunicorn ermine, armed,unguled,manedandtuftedor.Ferrers, Lord:Arg.& gu.Agreyhound courant argent,ducallygorgedor.Ferrers, Sir Edward: Vt. Aunicorn courant ermine,chargedon the shoulderwithacrescentsable.FitzUryan, Sir Rees ap

Thomas: Arg. A raven sablestandingonaturfvert.FitzUryan, Sir Griffith apRees: Gu& az. A quatrefoilslipped argent, leaved vert,chargedwitharavensable.Foljambe, Sir Godfrey, ofWalton, Derby: Four stripesgu. & arg. A Chatloupepassant quarterly or andsable,armedor.Grey,Lord,ofCodnor:Az&arg. A badger and crownargentandor.

Gulford,SirHenry:Arg&s.A ragged staff inflamed,chargedwithamulletsable.Gulford,Master:Four stripeswavyaz&arg.Araggedstaffinflamed at top and sides allproper.Hastings,Lord:Purp&az.Abull’s head erased sable,ducallygorgedandarmed.Howth, Lord (The LordHowthofIrland):Fourstripesarg&gu.Awolfstatantofadark tawny, with fins along

backandbellyanduponhindlegs‘ofawatercolour’.Kent, Earl of (WilliamNeville, Lord Fauconberg):Arg&az.Afish-hook.Kent, Earl of (Geo. Grey):Gu. In 1475 a black raggedstaff.Kirkham, Sir John, ofBlakedon, Devon: Gu. Alion’sheaderasedargent.Lancaster, Duke of (Henry):Arg & az. A red rosecrowned.

Leicester, Earl of (RobertDudley): Or & az. A raggedstaffargent.Massyngberd, Sir Thos. ofGunby,Lines:Fourstripesgu& or. Two arrows in saltireargent.Norfolk, Duke of (JohnMowbray): Az & tawny. Awhitelion.Norfolk, Duke of (Thos.Howard):Arg&gu.Asilversallet.Northumberland, Earl of

(Henry Percy): Three stripesrusset, or and tawny. A bluelionpassant.Northumberland, Duke of(John Dudley): Sable withargent and gules embroidery.Abearargent,muzzledgules,collar and chain or,supporting a ragged staff ofthefirst.Norton, Sir John: Gu. Agreyhound’s head erased infront of two wings erect allor.

Paston, Sir William, ofPaston, Norfolk: Gu. Acircularchainor.Pierpoint, Sir William: Fourstripes purp. & arg. A lionpassant sable grasping indexterpawacinquefoilor.

Raynsforth, Sir John: Fourstripesor&gu.Agreyhoundcourant russet, plain collaredor.Richmond&Somerset, Dukeof(HenryFitzroy,naturalsonofHenryVIII):Three stripesarg, az & or. A lion passantguardant, ducally gorged andchained.Roos, Lord (Geo. Manners):Az&or.Abull’sheaderasedgules, armed, ducally gorged

andchainedor.Scrope, The Lord: Arg. ACornishchough.Seymour, Sir John: Gu. Aleopard’sheador.Shrewsbury, Earl of (JohnTalbot):Gu&s.Atalbotdogargent.Somerset, Duke of (JohnBeaufort): Bendy gu, vt &arg. An ostrich feather erectargent, the quill componéargentandazure.Somerset, Duke of (Edward

Seymour): Or & gu. Aphoenix.Stourton, Lord of, inWiltshire: Arg & s. A goldsledge.Suffolk,Dukeof (Williamdela Pole):Az& or.A bollardargentwithchainor.Tyler, Sir William: Fourstripes arg& az. A crescent,and issuant therefromacrosspatéefitchegules.Vaughan, Sir Hugh, ofLytylton: Four stripes or &

vt. A fish-head erased anderect or, ‘ingullant’ of aspear’sheadargent.Vernon,SirHenry:Arg&or.Afretsable.Warwick, Earl of Salisburyand (Richard Nevill): Gu(1458).Whiteraggedstaff.Willoughby,Lord:Arg&gu.Amoor’sheadfullfaced,thetonguehangingout.Wiltshire: Earl of (Henry): S& gu. A Stafford knot

chargedwithacrescentgulesfordifference.Zouche,John,sonandheirofLord Zouche: S & purp. Onthe branch of a tree or,sproutingvert,aneaglerisingargent,gorgedwithalabelofthreepoints.Zouche, John,ofCodnor:Gu&vt.On the stumpof a treeor, branching vert, a falcon,wings elevated argent,charged on the breast with acrescent gules. (Also the

badgerandcrownargentandorofLordGreyofCodnor.)The Wars of the Rosesvirtually extinguished theLivery and Maintenancesystem—the greater part ofthe baronage was dead andthewholecountrywassickofwar—and under the strongrule of Henry Tudor (1485–1509) such private armieswere at last made illegal.Nevertheless the system ofraising an army in time of

need by calling on nobles tosupplymenwasretained,andsothereforeweremanyoftheindividual liveries of theselords. Under this contractsystem, nobles were obligedto supply men by thehundred, depending on theirstatus: gentlemen or ordinaryknights had to supply twomen,andasquireoneman.As early as 1345

Parliament had enacted thattroops raised for the French

warswere to be dressed in auniform manner, and elevenyears later, at the battle ofPoitiers, the army of theBlackPrincedidinfactwearauniformofgreenandwhite—the livery colours adoptedby thenextking (Richard II)and subsequently used byHenry VII and Henry VIII.By the late 14th century thered cross of St George on awhite background, firstadoptedforthecrusades,was

the recognized badge of theEnglish soldier, worn eitheras a coat or as a distinctivepartofacoat,andbythetimeof Agincourt Henry V hadordained that ‘every man, ofwhat estate or condition, thatbe of our partie, beare abande of Seinte Georgesufficient large’ upon hisclothes (on the chest andback). Nobles, bannerets andknightsalsoworetheirjuponsbearing the family arms, and

there are many references tothem putting these on at theking’s or other leaders’command justbeforeabattlewas joined, and taking themoff immediately after thebattle. Some form of‘uniform’ was obviouslydesirable in the battles nowbeingfought.By 1501 the 300-strong

Yeomen of the Guard(archers of the King’sBodyguard, formed in 1485

by Henry Tudor) weredressed in the Tudor liverycoloursofwhiteandgreeninvertical stripes, embroideredonchest andbackwitha redrose within a vine wreath.This coat would have beenthe ordinary horseman’s coatof the period, probablysleeveless and close fittingbut with a wide skirt. UnderHenry VIII (1509–47) theseYeomen stillworewhite andgreen for the 1514 campaign

in France, but are shown tohavewornat theFieldof theCloth of Gold in 1520 a redtunic with black bars at theedges and on the arms, withthe rose surmounted by acrown in gold on chest andback.Hoseanddoubletswerewhite.(TheFieldoftheClothofGoldpaintingwasfinishedcirca 1538 and in fact theTudor rose remaineduncrowned until 1527 orpossiblylater.)Redgradually

replaced thewhite and greenas dress uniform forceremonialoccasions,butthewhite and green tunicspersisted for everyday useuntilabout1530.Similarly the various

companies of the Englisharmyof the16thcenturyandthe shire and city levies (ortrained bands) now woresome form of ‘uniform’,basically still their lord’s (orcaptain’s—often the same

thing) livery colours andbadge.Thusin1554themenoftheEarlofPembrokeworeblue coats with a greendragon badge; the men-at-arms of the Marquess ofWinchester had embroideredcoats of red and white inabout 1570; while those ofthe Earl of Suffolk in 1597had. blue coats faced withsea-green taffeta, withfeathers of the same coloursand ‘many chains of gold’.

Evenintheearly17thcenturysuch livery uniformspersisted: in1603themenofthe Earl of Norwich woreblue livery coats with whitedoublets, hats and feathers,and those of the Earl ofNottingham in 1605 hadcloaks of orange-tawny,edged with silver and bluelace. This earl’s trumpetersworeorangedamaskclothing,with cloaks of the samecolour.

(68)deVere,EarlsofOxford.(69)Talbot,EarlsofShrewsbury.(70)Neville,EarlsofWarwick.(71)FitzAlan,EarlsofArundel.(72)Courtenay,EarlsofDevon.(73)Richard,DukeofYork:agoldenfetterlock.(74)Scales,EarlRivers.(75)EarlsofDouglas.(76)LordScropeofBolton.(77)LordGrey

ofCodnor.(78)SirRalphHastings.(79)SirJohnAstley.

In the trained bands someattempt was also made towearadistinguishingdressinbattle. In 1513 the men ofCanterburywore the chough,from the city’s coat of arms,on their chest and back. In1522 themenofShrewsburywere issued with coatsbearing leopards’ heads. Thesoldiers raisedby theCityof

London in 1539 had whitecoatsbearing thearmsof thecityonfrontandback,andin1542 the cavalry raised byCoventry had an elephantbadgeontheircoats.Themenof Norwich in 1543 wore ablue coat edged anddecorated with red and, forthe first timeon record, theirhose was also regulated: allredfortherightleg,bluewithabroad redstripe for the leftleg.

In 1544 Henry VIII isportrayed landing in Francewearing over his armour atunicofwhiteandgoldwithared cross in the centre, andapparently the traditional redcrossofStGeorgeonawhitebackgroundwas now usuallyworn together with thecompany’sbadge,eitherwiththebadgesetsomewhereonawhite tunic bearing the redcross, or the red cross on awhitebackgroundsetonpart

of the company’s coat.However,in1556themenofReading were still wearingblue coats with red crosses,their hose being in variouscolours, so true ‘national’uniform does not appear tohave been adopted at thisdate.Infact,althoughallmenofeachcountynowworeonedistinctive livery, the variouscountieswere still dressed indifferent ‘uniforms’, andsome of the counties even

went so far as to vary that‘uniform’fromyeartoyear.Red and blue were the

predominant colours of thesecountyliveries—redwasalsoa usual colour for Englishmilitary headgear in the 16thcentury—and these twocolours remained the mostpopular in the latter half ofthecentury.All these examples

illustrate early attempts toidentify troops in battle by

means of uniform dress.However, at this stage onlythe tunic or livery wasnormally affected; hats andhose of various hues werewornbymenwithinthesamecompanies,andtherewasnotyet any such thing as auniversal uniform or anationalcolourforcoats.

Crests

Some forms of helmet crestseem to have come into usetowards the end of the 12thcentury and beginning of the13th century, but it is notuntil the beginning of the14th century that heraldiccrests began to come intogeneral use and take on athree-dimensionalform.From

this date on crests are oftenreferred toas ‘true’crests, inthat they are free-standing,three-dimensionalconstructions.These ‘true’ crests were

rather splendid, oftenfantastic objects, made of afairly lightweight materialsuch as moulded leather,parchment, whalebone,beaten copper sheet, plumesandfeathers,canvasstretchedover a wicker frame, thin

wood, or papier mâché.Leather was probably themostprevalent,intheformofcuir bouilli, that is leathersoakedinhotwaxandbenttoshapewhilestillhot.Thishadthe advantages of being lightyet strong, and could beshaped easily. (Cuir bouilliwas also used to covershields,withheraldicchargesembossed upon it, and formaking a form of body andhorsearmour.)

The feathers of cockerels,swans and peacocks werealso used extensively. Theywere usually arranged as apanache, particularly in theearliercrests, that is rising intiers to a point, as in thecrests of Edmund Mortimer(1372), Fig 86, Sir EdwardThorpe (1418), Fig 87, andJohn,LordScrope,Fig88;orasaplume,inwhichonlyoneor two tiers were employed,as in the crest of the Earl of

Herefordin1301,Fig89.Thepanache sometimes spreadoutwardsinsteadofrisingtoapoint, as in the crest of SirSimon de Felbrigge, Fig 90,and that of John, King ofBohemia, Fig 91. Onoccasions feathers were alsodisplayed in a cluster, as inthebrasstoSirThomasdeStQuintin (1420), Fig 92. Thefeathers were occasionallycoloured in the principaltincturesofthearms,asinthe

crestoftheComtedeNamur,Fig 93, circa 1295, whosearmswereOr,alionrampantsable, armed, crowned andlanguedgules,overallabendgules.

(80)TheermineoftheDukesofBrittany.(81)TheporcupineoftheHouseofOrleans.(82)Thewingedhartofthe

HouseofBourbon.(83)ThesalamanderoftheHouseofAngoulême.(84)TheserpentandchildoftheDukesofMilan.(85)TheknotoftheHouseofSavoy.

Horns were anotherpopular form of crest inGermany and to a lesserextent in England: Figs 94and 95 show two Germanexamples,Fig96 thecrestofSir John Plessis (13th

century). In the earlier creststhese horns were simplycurved and pointed—in theirnaturalform—butinthelater,moreelaboratecreststheyaresometimes recurved (as Fig95)andhaveanopeningintowhicharesometimesinsertedtufts or plumes of feathers.These horns are usuallypaintedinthetincturesoftheshield.The human figure is

another favourite crest in

German heraldry, usuallyshown half-length andsometimes with the armsreplaced by horns, as in Fig97, the crest of theCount ofMontbeliard. The hat isanother common crest inGermanheraldry,Fig98, thecrest of the 14th-centuryknight,Casteln.The heads of heraldic

beasts such as lions, boars,hounds, andofheraldicbirdssuch as eagles, swans and

cockerels, accounted formany of the other crests. Insomecasestheseconsistedofarepetitionofachargeinthewearer’s arms, but often thecharges in arms did not lendthemselves to use in crests,and consequently it becamecommon practice for manyknights to use a crest whichwas in no way linked withtheirarms.

ThebronzeeffigyofGeorgTruchsessvonWaldburg(died1467)inStPeter’sChurch,BadWaldseeinWürttemberg,showingacrestofgreenpeacock’sfeathersinapanacheandasecondcrestofafirtree,aswellashisbannerandshield,bearinghisarms,Or,threelionssable.ThearmsoftheprinceszuWaldburg

hadoriginallybeenAzure,threepineconesor,andthisisprobablytheoriginofthesecondcrest.

Apart fromRichardI,whois shown wearing a fan-shapedcrestonhisGreatSealof1194,noEnglishmonarchworeacrestuntilEdwardIII,who wore a lion on achapeau,Fig99.Healsohada‘personal’crestofaneagle.The crest of Henry V in

Westminster Abbey is anuncrownedliononachapeau,Fig 100, the lion beingpassant: that of Richard II isan uncrowned lion, passantguardant, Fig 101. All otherEnglish kings have used acrowned lion, passantguardant, as in Fig 99. InTudor times a crown wassubstituted for the chapeau,andthishasbeentheEnglishroyal crest ever since. Allother members of the royal

familyinEnglandalsoborealion crest, with the singleexceptionofThomas,EarlofLancaster, who wore awyvern,Fig102,circa1347.This, combinedwith EdwardIII’s personal crest, isinteresting in that amongstEnglish chivalry in particularitisknownthatthecrestwasconsidered a personal ratherthan a hereditary device, andwas therefore subject tochange,differentmembersof

the same family normallyusingdifferentcrests.Crestswerewornprimarily

at the tournament, or otherpageantsandparades,andbythe 14th century were notdesignedforthebattlefield.Itis believed that by this datethe‘true’crestmayhavebeena mark of special dignity,possibly only awarded topersons of rank and entitlingthem to take part intournaments.Certainly in the

15thcenturytheuseofcrestswas almost entirely linked totournaments, and as thearmourandequipmenthadbythisdatebecomesoelaborateand costly, only the wealthycould afford to participate.The jousting score-sheetskeptbytheEnglishheraldsofthe time confirm this, thenames of the same menrecurringtimeaftertime.Thissituationhadprobablyexistedsince the late 14th century.

Theelaborateandflamboyantcrestswornbyknightsforthetournament were thereforeheraldicstatussymbolswhichindicatedboththatthewearerwas of tournament rank andthat he could afford toparticipate! This explainswhy so few of the lessergentry in England had crestsbefore1530, and it ismainlyas crests that the morefabulous and chimericalcreaturesofheraldryappear.

In Germany and the LowCountries crests wereregarded by the heralds asbeing of great importancefrom an early date (certainlybytheearly13thcentury)andthe crests used in thesecountriesinthe14thand15thcenturies were also directlylinked to the tournament andwereoftenextremelytallandfanciful as a result. SeeFigs95, 103 and 104; 103 beingthecrestofthelordofBaden-

weiler in Baden, and 104 oftheknightAeschach.Crestswereseldomusedin

France, Italy, Spain andPortugal, and in Spainespecially examples of crestsare almost unknown evenamongstthegreatestfamilies.A rare example of an ItaliancrestisgiveninFig105, thatofMastino II (died 1351) ofthe della Scala family, fromthe tomb in Verona.ExamplesofFrenchcrestsare

alsorare,andthosewhichdosurvive usually belong to thehighest in the land, forexampleFig106,crestoftheKing of France in the 14thcentury;Fig 107, that of theDue de Bourgogne circa1295;Fig 108, that of PhilipIV, King of France 1285–1314; andFig 109, the crestofBertrandduGuesclin.(SeealsoFig 93, the crest of theComtedeNamurcirca1295.)In Poland all nobles wore

the same type of crest, threeostrich feathers, irrespectiveoffamilyarms.

TheScarfThe scarf or contoise was apiece of cloth, possiblyoriginating from a lady’sfavour or in imitation of theturban, which presumablyhad some practical purpose,such as protection from theweather,althoughitishardtosee exactly what its value

wouldhavebeen.Illustrationsof the scarf show it to havebeen of various lengths (seeFigs94 and102), sometimesreaching only to the neck,other times capable ofreaching halfway down theback. In some examples it isfastened to the top of thehelmet, in others it emergesfrom beneath the edge at therearofthehelmet.Although the scarf is

believed to have originated

during thecrusadesperiod, itdoesnotappear frequently inillustrations until the early14th century, and it wasreplaced soon after this dateby the wreath and mantlingdescribedover.

Seebodyoftextforidentifications;notedetails:(86)Bluefeathers.(87)Peacock’sfeathers.(93)Aseméofgoldheartsonthemantling.(96)Peacock’sfeathers.(97)Goldhair,crownand‘horns’,withredgownasmantling.

Ahorsearmour,knownastheBurgundianbard,probablyFlemish,circa1510.Thisbardis

heavilyembossedwiththeemblemsoftheOrderoftheGoldenFleeceandreflectstheextravagantfashionofhavingcoatsofarmsengravedandgildedonarmourafterjuponshadgoneoutoffashion.

TheWreathThe wreath developed fromthescarfandappearedbythemid-14th century.Unlike the

scarf, which had served auseful purpose, the wreathwaspurelyornamental.Itwasmadeoftwoskeinsofsilkorothermaterial,inthetincturesof the field and principalcharge of the wearer’s arms,twisted together to form aring. The crest was laced orbolted to the helmet and thewreath was attached to thebase of the crest to concealthis joint. Examples of thewreath appear in Figs 107

and109.A cap or chapeau, an

ancient cap of dignity wornbydukesandmadeofscarletfurwith a turn-up of ermine,wasworninsteadofawreathbythehighrankingnobles.Itis illustrated in the crests ofthekingsofEngland,Figs99,100 and 101. After the reignof Edward III a coronet wasworn by dukes, princes andtheking.Inafewexamplesawreath

is used as a ‘crest’, or crest-wreath, as Fig 110, that ofLord Willoughby d’Eresby,1409. Sec also the cluster offeathers held by a brooch onthe helmet of Sir Thomas deStQuintin,Fig92.

MantlingThe mantling was merely alarger version of the scarf,originallydesigned toprotectthe helmet and its wearerfrom the elements. It was

mainly a form of decoration,however, and was probablyonlyusedforthetournament.The mantling was in theprincipal colour of thewearer’s arms, its undersidethe colour of the principalmetal or fur. It wassometimes decorated withchargesfromthearms,orthewearer’sbadge.Forexample,JohnD’Aubynge,circa1345,hada seméofmulletsonhismantling (Fig 111); George,

Duke ofClarence, a semé ofthe white roses of York;Henry Bourchier, Earl ofEssex (died 1485), billety,withthelininghavingaseméof water budgets. In somecasesthematerialofthecrest,especiallyifthatmaterialwasa textile or feathers, wascontinueddownwardstoformthemantling, as in the crestsof the German knightsBadenweiler (Fig 103), Chur(Fig112),Hevtler (Fig113),

and in Sir Simon deFelbrigge’s ermine panache(Fig 90). The black boar’sheadcrestofSirRalphBasset(Fig114) also continues intoasablemantling.

HorseTrappers

While all horse trappers, orcaparisons, are divided intotwohalveswhichmeetat thesaddle, they differ in theforward half, somecompletely covering thehorse’s head, others endingbehind its ears, and still

othersendingattheshouldersto leave neck and head free.In the early examples thetrappersareofcloth,fullandloose, and reach to thefetlocks:someofthesehaveadagged edge, though this isnotcommon.By the mid-15th century

the trapper had begun to beinfluenced by the generalincrease in the use of platearmour, but because the costand weight of such armour

was prohibitive, leatherarmour was commonly usedfor horses. This was paintedwith the rider’s arms in thesameway as the now purelyornamentalclothtrapper.Thegreat lordswhodiduseplateon their horses for thetournament covered thesebardswithrichlyembroideredcloth trappers, secured inplacebylaces.The basic colour of a

caparison was normally the

principal tincture of therider’s arms, with theprincipal charge or chargesrepeatedoneachsideofeachhalf of the trapper. Liverycolourswere sometimesusedinsteadof thetincturesof thearms and green velvet,embroidered with goldenswans had no connection atall with the rider’s arms—particularly inGermany. It isinteresting to note in thiscontextthatwhentheDukeof

Hereford (later Henry IV),rode to fight a duel (a duelstopped by Richard II) withthe Duke of Norfolk nearCoventry, his horse wore atrapper of blue and greenvelvet, embroidered withgolden swans and antelopes,and that when Henry V’sbodywasreturnedtoEnglandafter his death in France, thehorses conveying the bodywore trappers of blue andgreen velvet, embroidered

withantelopes.The actual designs on

trappers needs a littleclarification. A knightbearing, for example, Gules,three water budgets argent(the arms of William, LordRos, temp. Edward I) wouldprobably have a red trapperwith three white waterbudgets on each side of therear half, and three morewaterbudgetsoneachsideofthe front half. However, he

mightchoosetouseonlyonewaterbudgeton each sideofeach half, or to employ hisentirecoatofarmsonashieldas adevice, that shieldbeingperhaps repeated three timeson each side of each half ofthe trapper, or as a singledevice on each side of eachhalf.There is also the problem

ofwhichsideisdexter,whichsinister, when applied to thetwosidesofahorse.Fromthe

examples studied it wouldseem that the horse’s headwasregardedasbeingon thedexter side; and therefore ontheleft-handside,orshieldedsideasweviewit,thetrapperborethearmsexactlyas theyappeared on the shield. Onthe other side of the trapper,the charges of the coat ofarms were reversed, so thatthey still faced towards thehorse’s head. A study of thephotograph of Sir Geoffrey

Luterellmounted,onpage21,shouldmake this point clear,for in this example the right-hand side of the horse isshown and Sir Geoffrey’strapper, crest and ailettes allbear the charges of his armsreversed.

ThePlates

A: German knight(minnesanger), early 14thcenturyThis figure is taken from thefamous Manesse Codex atHeidelberg, compiled at thebeginningofthe14thcentury.The minnesanger was theapproximateequivalentoftheFrench troubadour and

usually came from the lowernobility. In this example heand his horse are decked inthefullpanoplyofamedievalknight:horsetrapper,surcoat,crest,lancebanner,andshieldbearinghis coat of arms. Itwas normal practice for thesurcoat, crest and trapper tobeeitherinthecoloursofthearms or to bear the chargesshownon thosearms,but, asmay be seen from thisillustration, this was by no

means a hard and fast rule.Thesymbolon the surcoat isbelievedtobeastylizedletter‘A’, for Amor, and in theoriginal manuscript thisminnesanger is shownreceiving his helm from theladyheiswooing.

Seebodyoftextforidentifications;notedetails:(103)Goldhairandchevron,redgownandmantling.(104)Whitefishwithredgills.(106)Goldfleur-de-lysandcrown,bluemantling.(107)Goldfleur-de-lys,bluemantlingedgedred,upperwreathblueandyellow,lowerwreathredandwhite.(109)Whiteeagle,yellow

beak,redtongue,wreathofblackandwhite.

B1: Ulrich von Lichenstein,died1275Asintheprecedingplate,thisfigure is taken from theManesse Codex. Ulrich vonLichenstein was a Styrianpoetwhodiedcirca1275,butthearmourandcresthewearsare typical of those worn bythe lesser German knights in

the first half of the 14thcentury. His surcoat isunrelated to his arms, butdoesbearhiscoatofarmsona shield. His horse trapperwas of the same greenmaterial and bore threeshieldswithhisarmsoneachside of the front and rearhalves.Both this and the figure in

PlateA are dressed as if forthe tourney, and vonLichenstein is in fact armed

with a tourney lance withthree-pointed(coronel)head.

B2:Bohemianknight,secondhalfof14thcenturyBy this date the close-fittingjupon had replaced thesurcoat. Unlike the surcoat,the jupon rarely bore thewearer’s arms (except inEngland)andinthisexamplethe knight is portrayed withonlyashieldbearingarms(oftheHolyRomanEmpire)and

holdingalancewithapennonbearing the Hungariancolours. The figure is basedon an illustration in aBohemian chess book of1350—1400.

B3: Count Frederick vonCilli,1415Based on a contemporaryillustration which shows thecount outside the walls ofCoutanceson20March1415,waiting to joust with Duke

Frederick of Austria. Hisjoustingshieldbearsthearmsof the von Cilli family andthecrestistheoneusedbyallmembers of that family. Histrapper was of the samecolourashishelmetmantling,and each half bore on eachside a shield displaying hisarms.

C1: Mathieu deMontmorency,1360This illustration of the

Chevalier Mathieu deMontmorencyisbasedontheeffigy on his tomb atTavergny inFrance.There isnoheraldryon the juponandhewouldhavebeenidentifiedin battle solely by his shieldand lancepennon.Nohelmetis shownon the tomb effigy,but it would probably havebeen of the general typeshownonPlateD3.Note thedifference of a three-pointedlabel over the arms,

indicating this particularwarrior was a cadet of thegreatMontmorencyfamily.

C2: Bertrand du Guesclin,died1380One of France’s greatestmilitary leaders during theHundred Years War, duGuesclinwasmadeConstableof France in October 1370,thus placing even the royalprinces under his command.In the contemporary print

uponwhichthisillustrationisbased, du Guesclin carries ashieldbearingalionandwiththe arms of France (modern)in chief, but we have shownhispersonalarms.It isworthpointingoutthathisarmsarenotrepeatedonhisjupon,nordoes he wear an elaboratecrest. (His tourney crest isshown inFig 109.) Like thefigures shown inB2 andC1,du Guesclin is dressed forbattle: it was only at the

tournament that elaboratejupons, crests and trapperswereused.

C3: Jean de Créquy, circa1440Jean, Seigneur de Créquy,wasambassadortoSpainandFrance for the Duke ofBurgundy and is shown heredressed for the tourney withelaborate crest and tabard.The charge on his arms is astylized wild cherry tree, in

Frenchcréquier,andhisarmsare therefore of the typeknown as canting arms. JeandeCréquywasaknightoftheOrder of the Golden Fleece(instituted in 1429 by PhiliptheGood,DukeofBurgundy)and this illustration is basedon an original in the 15th-century Armorial of theKnightsoftheGoldenFleece.HisfatherJacquesdeCréquywastakenprisonerandputtodeath at the battle of

Agincourt.

D1: John Plantagenet, EarlofCornwall,1316–36John Plantagenet bears thearms of England differencedwith a bordure of France—acombination of the arms ofhis father, Edward II, andmother, Queen Isabel ofFrance. He was created Earlof Cornwall in 1328, wasregent for Edward III whilethat king was in France

(1329–31) and commandedtheEnglisharmyinScotland.His arms are repeated on hiscyclas. This figure is basedon the effigy inWestminsterAbbey.

Ahorsearmourmade

forOttoHeinrich,CountPalatineoftheRhine,between1532–36.ThearmsofthePalatinateandBavariaappearontherearhalfofthebardandarerepeatedonasmallshieldonthefrontofthechanfron.Thelionappearsagainatthesideofthehead,whilethetincturesofthearmsofthePalatinateareemployedontheborderofthebard.

D2: Sir Oliver D’Ingham,died1344SirOliverhadadistinguishedcareerinthereignsofEdwardII and Edward III, and wasSeneschal of Aquitaine in1325–26 and 1333–43. Hegainedadecisivevictoryoverthe French at Bordeaux in1340. The early arms of theInghamfamilyappeartohavehad a white field and theparty field shown here wasprobably derived from the

arms of Bigod, Earls ofNorfolk, where the Inghamlands lay. The illustration isbasedontheeffigyinInghamChurch, though the arms onthe cyclas are after Stothard(1811).Thehelmetwithcrestat the head of themonumentis now mutilated beyondrecognition,butJohnWeever,writing in 1613, stated thatthe crest was an owl on athornbush.

D3: Sir Hugh Calveley, died1393SirHughwasoneofthemostfamous captains of the freecompanies in the HundredYears War. He served inSpain with Henry ofTrastamarein1366,andlaterjoined the armyof theBlackPrince. He was appointeddeputyofCalaisin1377,andin 1380 took part in theunsuccessful expedition toFrance led by the Duke of

Gloucester.Hewas governorof the Channel Isles, 1376–88.He is shown in a jupon

bearing his canting arms andwearing his tourney helmwith crest of a calf’s head.The arms are an earlyexample in English heraldryof the use of two differentlycolouredchargesononefield.This illustration is based ontheeffigyinBunburyChurch,Cheshire.

E1: Thomas Beauchamp,EarlofWarwick,1345–1401Thomas Beauchamp was awarriorandmilitarygovernorthroughout the reign ofEdward III, but in thefollowing reign he joinedvariousplotsagainst thekingand was imprisoned in theTower. He was released andhad his honours restored onthe accession of Henry IV.His jupon bears the arms ofthe Beauchamps, while the

plates at his elbows, on thesword-belt and scabbard aredecorated with the raggedstaff badge of Warwick.Other branches of the familyused the same colours butreplaced the crosses crossletwith different charges. ThefigureisbasedonthebrassatStMary’sChurch,Warwick.

E2:SirJohnSay,1420–78Sir John was probably a sonof John Say of Podington in

Bedfordshire, and possibly akinsman of Lord Sayc andSele. Although brought up aLancastrian, he became aYorkist in 1460 and on histomb brass wears round hisneck a Yorkist collar ofalternate suns and roses. Hewas a prominent figure inParliament and was knightedin 1465.His tabard bears hisarms, which are repeated oneach sleeve. The figure isbasedonabrassmadeduring

his lifetime (in 1473) andwhich is in BroxbourneChurch,Hertfordshire.

E3: Sir Edmund de Thorpe,died1418(?)SirEdmundwasaprominentsoldier in the wars of HenryV, and is believed to havebeen killed at the siege ofLouviers in 1418. His juponbears the arms of Thorpe(Azure, three crescentsargent) quartered with those

of his mother, daughter andheiress of Robert Baynard(Sable, a fess between twochevrons or). He is shownwearing his tourney helmetwith crest, this and otherinformationshownherebeingtaken from his effigy inAshwellthorpe Church,Norfolk.

F1:RobertdeMamines,died1431Robert de Mamines was a

leading Flemish soldier whofollowed Jean ‘Sans Peur’,father of Philip III. He waskilled at Liège in 1431. Heappears here attired for thetourney, in blazoned tabardandhighlydecorativecrestedhelmet, as illustrated in theArmorialoftheKnightsoftheGolden Fleece. He wascreatedaknightofthisOrderin1430atthesiegeofMelun.

F2: Jacopo dei Cavalli, died

1384Based on an effigy in SSGiovanni e Paolo, Venice,this is another example ofcanting arms. Note theknight’s arms do not appearonhisjupon.

F3: Lord of Gruthnyse, firsthalfof15thcenturyThis Flemish knight is thusportrayedinthefamous15th-century Livre des Tournois.The same manuscript shows

this lord’s herald, wearing atabard bearing his lord’sarms, and his trumpeter,whose trumpet has a bannerbearing the same arms. Thefamily name is also speltGroothuys and Gruthuse incontemporarysources,and intheArmorialoftheKnightsoftheGolden Fleece (compiledbetween 1430 and 1440) islisted a Monsieur deGrutusse, who bears thesesame arms but with the

quartersreversed.AGruthuseserved in the army of theDukeofBurgundyin1417.

G1:Englishherald, firsthalfof16thcenturyThis figure is taken from aparade of English officers ofarms, illustrated in a tourneybook of the time of HenryVIII. The pursuivants had asimilar tabard but wore itaskew, that is with the shortarm panels over chest and

back, and the longer panelsovertheirarms.

G2: Spanish herald, circa1420The Sicily herald illustratedhere served the king ofAragon, towhomSicily thenbelonged, around 1420. Hewears the arms of Sicily andAragon. This particularherald, Jean Courteois, wasresponsible for the mostauthoritativewrittenrecordof

the rights and duties of aherald.

AGermansalletforalighthorseman,circa1490,paintedwithheraldiccharges.Intheearlydaysof

heraldry‘crests’wereoftenpaintedonhelmetsbeforethetruecrestdeveloped:thisexamplesuggests‘crests’forthelowernobilitymayhavecomefullcirclebythelate15thcentury.

G3:Brandenburgpursuivant,15thcenturyGerman pursuivants woretheir tabards in the samefashion as the heralds. The

one illustrated here waspursuivant of the ElectorFrederick II of Brandenburg(1413–71). His official titlewas Burggraf’, because hismaster, as a Hohenzollern,was also the burgrave ofNuremburg.

H:JeandeDillon,died1481or1482Jean de Dillon was the kingof France’s representative inArras,andthisportraitofhim

is based on a mille-fleurtapestrymadethere,probablyin1477.Notethatbythislatedatetheknightdoesnotwearany heraldic devices on hisperson and, as shields werenolongercarriedinbattle,hecould only be identified byhis lance pennon or banner.Thus from circa 1450 at thelatesttheflagbecamethesolemeans of identifyingindividual lords on the fieldofbattle,andthemilitaryrôle

of heraldry had come to anend, to be superseded by theage of the military flag, atleas: until the reintroductionof heraldic symbols in theformofformationsignsintheFirstWorldWar.

(110)LordWilloughbyD’Eresby.(111)JohnD’Aubynge.(112)14th-centuryGermanknightnamedChur:redjester’scapwithgoldedgeandwhiteballs.(113)14-centuryGermanknightnamedHevtler:rededgingtomantling,redbeakandembattledupperhalftospinalcrest.(114)SirRalphBasset,KnightoftheGarter

1368–90:goldtusksandcoronet.(115)deMontacute,EarlsofSalisbury,1337–44,1337–1400:goldgriffinandcoronet.(116)Humphrey,EarlofStafford,KnightoftheGarter,1429:whiteswan,redbeak,goldcoronet.(117)TheBurgraveofNuremburg:themantlingwasprobablyblack.(118)14th-centuryknightfrom

BaslenamedSchaler:whitelozengyonred.(119)NicholasdeBorssele,15th-centuryFrenchknight.(120)Charles,ComtedeValois,circa1295.(121)14th-centuryGermanknightnamedBretsla:greenpeacock’sfeatherswithredeyesonyellow,yellowbackgroundtoeagle,whitecrescent,redmantlingedgedyellow.

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