After the fourteenth century the great helm was but seldom used for war,
but for jousting it was still retained, and, as this form of military
sport was practised more scientifically, so the weight and shape of the
helm were made to suit the necessary conditions. The Brocas helm (Plate V)
is the finest example of English helm of this period; it weighs 22 lb. The
other known examples of home manufacture are the Westminster helm, which
was discovered in the Triforium of Westminster Abbey in 1869, and weighs
17 lb. 12 oz.; the Dawtray helm at Petworth (21 lb. 8 oz.); the Barendyne
helm at Haseley, near Thame (13-1/2 lb.); the Fogge helm at Ashford,
Sussex (24 lb.); the Wallace helm, in the collection at Hertford House (17
lb.); and the great headpiece in the possession of Captain Lindsay of
Sutton Courtenay, Abingdon, which turns the scale at 25 lb. 14 oz. It will
be seen from the weight of these helms that they could only be used for
the jousting course and were put off on the first opportunity. The details
of their construction have been noticed in Chapter III.
On referring to Plate V it will be seen that the bascinet was the
precursor of the Salade, which may be considered the typical headpiece of
the fifteenth century. The rear peak of the bascinet is prolonged over the
neck, and in a later form of German origin the peak is hinged to allow the
wearer to throw back his head with ease. The ocularium, or vision slit, is
sometimes cut in the front of the salade, but more often it is found in a
pivoted visor which could be thrown back. The Beavor is generally a
separate piece strapped round the neck or, in tilting, bolted to the
breastplate. Some writers call this the Mentonière, but this name should
rather be applied to the tilting breastplate which also protected the
lower portion of the face. Shakespeare uses the term beavor very loosely,
and frequently means by it the whole helmet.
The German 'Schallern', or salade, so called from its shell-like form,
seems to have been evolved from the chapel-de-fer or war-hat by
contracting the brim at the sides and prolonging it at the back. In fact,
in Chastelain's account of the fight between Jacques de Lalain and Gérard
de Roussillon the salade worn by Messire Jacques is described as 'un
chapeau de fer d'ancienne façon'.[23] The salade was often richly
decorated. Baron de Cosson, in the preface to the Catalogue of Helmets
exhibited at the Archaeological Institute in June, 1880[24], instances a
salade made for the Duke of Burgundy in 1443, which was valued at 10,000
crowns of gold. More modest decoration was obtained by covering the salade
with velvet and fixing ornaments over this of gilded iron or brass. There
are several of these covered salades in the various collections in England
and on the Continent. Sometimes the salade was painted, as we see in an
example in the Tower.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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