The Chivalric Warrior | Manufacture & Design | Tournaments | Hunting | Ceremony & Spectacle
The Chivalric Warrior
Armor was designed to protect the knight on the battlefield. Contrary to the popular myth, the armored knight was neither lumbering nor clumsy. A full suit of armor weighed only about 60 pounds, and was fully articulated to allow almost total freedom of movement. Nonetheless, the added weight, increased heat insulation, and restricted oxygen flow placed strains on the armored knight, who needed to be in top physical condition to fight in armor.
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Statue of St. George and the Dragon, 1480-1490 |
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Broadsword of the "Castillon" group, 1400-1500 |
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Shaffron (head armor for the horse), 1525-1530 |
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"Maximilian" field armor of the "Fico" group, with associated helmet, about 1525-30, with decoration, about 1805 |
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Field armor for a small garniture, perhaps for Siegmund Friedrich, Freiherr von Herberstein, about 1580 |
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Edmund Blair Leighton (1853-1922) |
Manufacture & Design
Armor was manufactured by highly skilled specialists who ntrained for years to master the delicate art of shaping steel to match the complex contours and motions of the human body. Their clients demanded work that was not only functional but beautiful: armor like clothing was a statement of fashion and status, and the aristocratic knight needed to dress the part.
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Anvil, 1400s or 1500s |
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Backplate of an anime (laminated torso armor), adapted for use in the "Gioco del Ponte" games, 1550-1560 |
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"Peascod" breastplate for foot service, 1575-1600 |
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Possibly by Caremolo (di) Modrone (1498-1543) |
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Cabasset, about 1590 |
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Workshop of Jan Brueghel the Elder (1568-1625) |
Tournaments
Fighting on horseback in a full suit of armor was a demanding martial art. Tournaments emerged around the time of the First Crusade (c. 1100) as a way for knights to practice their skills. As chivalric culture became more refined in the late Middle Ages, the tournament placed increasing emphasis on safety and spectacle. These festive events remained popular after 1500, and were used by Renaissance monarchs as a way to display their wealth, importance, and medieval lineage.
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Helmet for the "Welschgestech" (Italian joust), late 1500s |
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Attributed to Kolman Helmschmid (1471-1532), with etching perhaps by Hanns Burgkmair the Elder (1473-1531) after Daniel Hopfer the Elder (1470-1536) |
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Valentin Siebenbürger (1510-1564) and others |
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Armor for the Plankengestech ("joust over the tilt"), 1550-75 |
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Lance-tip of coronel form for the"Gestech" (German joust), early 1500s |
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Tilting target (shoulder guard for the joust), about 1560 |
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Close helmet for the foot-tourney, about 1590 |
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Close helmet modified for the "Gioco del Ponte", 1580-1650 |
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Targone for "Gioco del Ponte", 1776 |
Hunting
Hunting is among the oldest of human occupations. Once used for sustenance, by the Middle Ages and Renaissance it was mostly a pastime of the nobility. Elaborate rituals of the hunt were matched by equally elaborate equipment, as aristocrats sought to impress their fellow hunters with their wealth and taste.
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Tschinke (wheel-lock hunting rifle), about 1650-1675 |
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Workshop of Hans Sumersperger of Hall |
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Possibly Melchior Diefstetter (recorded 1497-no later than 1556) |
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Sporting crossbow, about 1630 |
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Dog collar, 1500s-1600s |
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Weyersberg & Stamm Company, for the Austrian market |
Ceremony & Spectacle
Pageantry was central to the cultural life of the medieval and Renaissance court. Elaborate matched sets of armor and weapons were carried by personal bodyguards to emphasize the importance of their lord, and ingenious curiosity weapons were sought out by aristocratic collectors to decorate their castles and impress their visitors.
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Ceremonial saber, probably 1700s |
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Head of a partisan for the guard of Henri III of France (r. 1574-89), 1588 |
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Wheel-lock carbine for the personal guard (Trabanten) of Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau, Prince-Bishop of Salzburg (r. 1587-1611), about 1590 |
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Puffer (wheel-lock holster pistol) for the mounted guards of Elector Christian I of Saxony, 1588 |
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Comb morion for the guard of Christian I or II, Electors of Saxony, about 1590 |
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Folding Spetum, about 1550 |
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Frontplate of a ceremonial gorget, 1620-1630 |
