Spenserian Armor

Abstract

In the first edition of the Faerie Queene appeared a woodcut of the Red Cross Knight in combat with the Dragon. The Knight is clad in armor of the sixteenth-century type. In particular the iron skirt, or tonnlets, of the rider are like those in a suit of armor given by the Emperor Maximilian to Henry VIII in 1515. The artist, however, may not have been very familiar with armor, for the plates over the knees and elbows are not accurate. The plumes of knight and horse are suitable for pageantry rather than for serious combat. The knight's shield, with its red cross, is wholly unfitting, since shields were not worn with such armor in service, and shields such as were used in some types of jousting were of different shape. The horse wears armor on the head and neck, but not on the body, though the body is covered with cloth housing.