Under or Over (or Both)? Textile Armour and the Warrior in the High Middle Ages

Abstract

To compliment significant research into knightly arms and armour, such as the mail hauberk and iron helmet, to shield design and types of swords, this article considers textile clothing worn in conjunction with metal armour in the High Middle Ages (1050–1250). It analyses potential nuances in the use of terminology to improve our understanding of the degrees of protection available to elite warriors, as well as their approach to balancing agility with protection, i.e. the management of the risks of injury in close combat. It demonstrates that various terms to describe textile armour – aketon, pourpoint, gambeson, and jupon – are not all names for a single, broad category of textile armour. This article also investigates the use of fabric armour when the threat of combat was reduced or to gain a tactical advantage, such as mentioned as being worn by John Marshal in the opening sequences of L’Histoire de Guillaume le Maréchal or that required of burghers and freemen in Henry II’s Assize of Arms of 1181.