Page:A record of European armour and arms through seven centuries (Volume 1).djvu/295

 that can actually claim to belong to the XVth century in which this classical influence is manifest; but if we are allowed to step over the borderland into the XVIth century we can furnish many convincing examples. The entire disappearance of XVth century armour made in this style is due probably to the fact that the suits in question were built up of mail, brigandine, and quilted defences—materials all of which are easily disintegrated by the influence of wear and time—and also to the circumstance that after their initial use by some great personage their component parts were of little subsequent value to the ordinary soldier, and so were cast aside as useless.

Perhaps after looking at some of those late XVth century panels of tapestry to which armour students are indebted for much of their knowledge of this particular style of military equipment, readers may feel inclined to remark: "We find no reference in this work to such and such a defence." We make our apologies in advance, begging such readers to appreciate the fact that though we have referred to many of the vagaries of fashion adopted by these neo- or pseudo-classical suits it is impossible within the limits of our space to record all the circumstances that helped to complicate man's defence at a time in which the whole art of the Renaissance was laid under contribution for the purpose of adorning a fighting harness.

Mr. Charles Ashdown in his book, "British and Foreign Arms and Armour," has, with a view to simplifying the subject, divided the chapters on European body defence under the headings of the Jupon Period, the Surcoat Period, the Tabard Period, and so on. And an excellent idea it is, except that once we set out to deal with the textile portion of the knight's apparel we incur the responsibility of dealing with other garments of a semi-*military nature. Our account of war cloaks must be brief. The XIIIth century shows us the mail-clad knight occasionally in composite armour, which is covered by the long flowing cyclas. As the century progressed, heraldic significance was added to this garment. The XIVth century sees the continuance of this custom. But after the first quarter of this century this outer garment shortens, until in what we have termed the Black Prince era it disappears, and in its place comes in the short, comparatively tight-fitting garment called by various names, though we refer to it as the gipon, such as is nearly always represented on the effigies and brasses of the second part of the XIVth century. The arms of the wearer were almost invariably depicted on the gipon. With the advent of the XVth century can be noted the gradual disuse of the tight gipon, which is once more replaced by an outer garment