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 CHAPTER XIII

Up to the first years of the XVth century the helm continued to be the principal head defence of the knight both on the battle-field and in the joust; but from this point onwards it lost popularity in its double capacity, and was discarded as a war defence. It was found that the visored bascinet, armet, and salade possessed many more qualities fitting them for use in warfare, chief amongst them being the fact that they were less cumbersome and equally protective. The helm being now retained for the joust only, the weight was not of so much consequence, and the opportunity was therefore taken of adding generally to the thickness of the plates, especially in that part of the head-piece most likely to receive the lance shock. Doubtless the most interesting tilting helm in England, characteristic of the early years of the XVth century, is that credited to the ownership of King Henry V, which hangs, with his saddle and shield, upon a beam over his tomb in the Confessor's Chapel of the Abbey Church of Westminster (Fig. 449, a, b). We have to admit, however, that this is no battle-helm; it was constructed especially for jousting and not for field wear, and could not have been worn by the King on the field of Agincourt, as tradition would have us believe. That it was worn by him at all has of late years been denied, but solely on account of an error made by Rymer in his printed record of it contained in the entry of the Issue Roll of the funeral expenses of the King in 1422. The Rymer printed record reads translated: "Also to the same Thomas [Daunt] for making of a crest and helm for the King 33^s 4^d." We have, however, to thank Sir St. John Hope, who contributed an article to Archaeologia (vol. lxv) on the subject, for discovering an error in Rymer that puts a different complexion on the record. Sir St. John Hope with his usual care turned to the original Latin account only to find that the word printed by Rymer as factura is plainly pictura. "Item eidem Thome [Daunt] pro pictura unius creste et unius helme pro Rege xxxiijs iiijd." Thus it is a question of the painting and not of the making of a helm; and, as Sir St. John Hope says, "since no other helm is mentioned in the