Armour

Development of Armour

The earliest evidence of our ancestors' armour is provided, alongside sparse archaeological finds, traditionally by written sources. References to armour can be found, for example, in Arabic sources — Ibn Rusta states of Prince Svatopluk that: „He has good, strong, precious armour“. The Annals of Fulda describe how in 849, during a German incursion, the Czechs stripped armour from defeated Germans: „…For the enemies, having gained the upper hand, slaughtered and pursued them to their camp, and stripping the armour from the slain before their eyes without care, filled them with such fear that they completely lost all hope of escape…“. In 936, Widukind describes how the Germans in turn stripped armour from fallen Czechs. This well documents one of the favourite methods of acquiring equipment and weapons. In the 10th-century Legend of Christian, armour is mentioned in connection with a planned revolt against Prince Bořivoj — his opponents came to the diet wearing „cuirasses under their garments“, but so did his own men. Armour is also mentioned by Cosmas in the 11th century and the Monk of Sázava in the 12th century. The Canon of Vyšehrad describes how at the Battle of Chlumec in 1126, the princely chaplain Vít, „clad in armour and helmet like Achilles…“, served as the standard-bearer for the Bohemian army. Armour is mentioned by Vincentius and other 12th-century authors. From the aforementioned sources and reports, the widespread use of quality arms and armour is quite evident, at least in the milieu of professional warriors of princely retinues.

These earliest armours were most commonly mail (Old Czech brň), but scale, lamellar and faleristic armour (rings sewn onto a backing) are also assumed. From the end of the 12th century, however, only mail armour was used exclusively. Its principle — mutually interlinked rings — was known already to the ancient Celts, from whom the Romans adopted it, and as spoils of war it often reached far beyond the borders of the empire (e.g. to Denmark, where a find of armour from Vimose is dated to the 2nd–3rd century AD). After the fall of Rome, the technology of producing these armours was practically forgotten in the West and survived only in Byzantium and the sphere of Byzantine influence, subsequently also in the Arab world. Through trade contacts or as spoils of war, it later reached Scandinavia, the Frankish Empire, Britain and our lands. The import of finished armours was gradually followed by the mail-making technology itself.

At that time, the only plate-armour work was helmets. The earliest conical helmets were riveted from four and later two pieces. In the 9th century, conical helmets forged from a single piece appeared, which was more technologically demanding because a larger intact piece of sheet metal was needed for such a helmet. In general, armourers throughout history were limited primarily by the size of the starting sheet metal material. The most famous such helmet is the so-called Helmet of St. Wenceslas.

During the 13th century, joints began to be covered with anatomically shaped metal plates.

During the 15th century, the covering of all body parts with anatomical plates on heavy cavalry definitively prevailed over mail (Old Czech brní), which continued to be used only as a supplement. Armour also gradually differentiated according to its intended use into field armour, preserving the wearer's mobility to the greatest possible extent, and tournament armour, where the emphasis was primarily on passive protection. During this century, the use of plate armour (often only partial) spread among urban and mercenary infantry, which played an increasingly important role in battles. Thanks to disciplined collective fighting methods, it managed over the years to defeat even heavy cavalry with increasing frequency.

As early as the beginning of the 15th century, the most important European centres of armour production emerged in northern Italy (Milan), southern Germany (Nuremberg, Augsburg and Landshut) and Tyrol (Innsbruck). In these centres of arms production, stylistically different forms arose which then dominated the entire century, called Italian/Milanese and German armour. In Milan, the Missaglia family became famous for armour production. This branching family, originally named Negroni, obtained its name from a small town in Lombardy, from which the founder of their armouring fame, Pietro, who died before 1429, apparently came. The greatest renown was achieved by his successors Tommaso and especially Antonio (c. 1416–1496), who ran the workshop from 1452 until his death. The Missaglias worked in the 15th century for leading Italian nobles such as the Visconti, Gonzaga and Sforza. Among the famous German armourer dynasties were the Helmschmieds of Augsburg and the Seusenhofers of Innsbruck. The former were active from the second half of the 15th century to the second half of the following century. The first recorded armourer from this family was Georg, active approximately between 1438 and 1490. The greatest renown was then achieved by his son Lorenz, born probably between 1445 and 1450, who worked between 1467 and 1515 and who was appointed Imperial Court Armourer by Maximilian I in 1491. Then Lorenz's son Kolman (1471–1532), known for example for armours for Charles V, and Lorenz's grandson Desiderius (1513–1578), who worked, among others, for the Spanish King Philip II.

In Prague, armourers formed an organisation in 1328. In 1329, an armourer named Klebel obtained Old Town citizenship, and after him 24 more masters registered by 1393. One of them, Henricus, came in 1354 from Italian Como, another from Týnec, Kolín, Beroun or Chrudim. In 1351, Rudl was recorded as the first armourer among the councillors in the Old Town. During the Hussite Wars, the armourer Vůz (1423) and the helmetmaker Jakub (1422) are documented among the Old Town councillors. By 1526, 26 more armour masters were added, of whom one (after 1477) came from Vlašim. In the town books, armourers are not rare and are always found among wealthy burghers, but only 4 from both Prague towns came to take the oath in 1524. We thus have the following armourers documented by name:

• From 1439: Henricus Hemrle, who had a house in Ostrožnická (Platnéřská) Street.
• From the mid-15th century: thorifex Kříž, whose property became an escheat in 1463.
• From 1454: Janek Legát.
• From 1463: armourer Vocásek.
• From 1464: armourer Smetana.
• From 1472: armourer Škoda.
• From 1473: armourer Duchek Popel.
• From 1477: Havel Kabela (Cabela), who jointly with Duchek had purchased an anvil.
• From 1479: armourer Pivce Václav and Jan Dúbek.
• From 1483: armourer Sladký.
• From 1516: armourer Jan Pivce, perhaps Václav's son.

Among armourers who were non-resident inhabitants of the city, Jan Biberka is documented in 1486, who ignominiously fled from the New Town. From 1454, a female armourer named Křížová is also known, probably the wife of Kříž.

Although armourers had their organisation in Prague perhaps as early as before 1328, they brought their statutes for confirmation at the town hall later, perhaps in 1336, and only the articles concerning apprentices and journeymen, which seems to have been a crucial issue for Prague armourers. The statutes state that an apprentice had to pay the master 2 schocks of groschen for training (which was very much compared to other crafts) and the brotherhood 15 groschen. Furthermore, he had to remain in the master's service for 4 years and had to be guaranteed with two schocks of groschen not to flee. If he fled and did not return within eight days, the guarantee was forfeited — half a schock to the magistrate and the guild and a schock to the councillors. According to the so-called Rights of Soběslav (around 1440), armourers marched in ceremonial occasions such as welcoming the sovereign or in processions in third place behind butchers and goldsmiths. They were to carry a green banner on which a warrior in full plate armour was depicted. Under this banner, representatives of other crafts, both independent and organised, marched with them. These were: mail-makers, needle-makers, helmetmakers, spur-makers, brass-workers, saddlers, pewterers, bridle-makers, strap-makers, belt-makers, blacksmiths, purse-makers, pouch-makers, swordsmiths, quiver-makers and locksmiths.

Like other crafts, armouring also differentiated, and so in Prague we find before 1419 also three helmetmakers (galeatores), two from the Old Town, one of whom came from Regensburg in 1343, and one maker of plate gauntlets, called plechowicze (in a charter from 1447).

Head and Neck Protection

The armed man typically wore a mail collar, called obojček or oboječek, on his neck.This was usually followed by a textile hood, by the end of the 15th century typically fitted with tassels, over which the helmet was placed. Among helmets, the iron hat, known in period Czech as kapalín, and the sallet derived from it, known in period Czech as leb or lebka, clearly predominated in the Czech lands. For helmets, the term peklhaub, peklhúbl or piklhaub was also used, which was a corruption of beckenhaube, the German name for the bascinet type of helmet; however, once Czechified, this term was used for any metal helmet. Because neither the iron hat nor the sallet protected the lower part of the face, they could be complemented with a plate bevor, known in period Czech as bart or barth.

Torso Protection

Torso protection was provided by a front and back plate, which together formed the cuirass. In Bohemia, the front plate was called prustplech or prusplech, from the German brustblech, literally „breast plate“.

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