1. The Das Deutsche Stechen. This is generally known as the German Course, and was in use in the early mediæval period. The chief object of the knight was to splinter his lance, or unhorse his opponent, and with that end in view the saddles were unprovided with the usual high plate at the back. The lance possessed a sharp point, and the small shield upon the left side of the rider, which simply depended from straps and was not borne by the left arm, was the part aimed at by the opponents. The shield in the Wallace suit (Fig. 418) is 14 inches wide, and made of oak over an inch in thickness. This form of tilting was run with lances having a rebated coronal head in the later mediæval period. The suit mentioned has no leg armour except the tuilles, and the right hand no gauntlet, according to custom. About the middle of the fifteenth century a salade was used instead of the heaume, but a special kind of heaume like a truncated cone was used in the sixteenth century. [Illustration: FIG. 418.--Suit for the Das Deutsche Stechen Course, _c._ 1485. (Wallace Collection.)] 2. Sharfrennen. The main idea in running this course was to unhorse the opponent, and with this end in view the armour and appurtenances were different in many essentials to those used in other courses. The saddle, for example, was unfurnished with any support either in front or behind, and no armour was worn upon the lower limbs, which could thus maintain the maximum “grip” of the horse without any encumbrance. To protect the thighs and knees of the riders large steel pieces called _cuishes_ were attached to the saddle; these were necessary because the horses often collided in running this course, no central barrier being used. A pair of cuishes are preserved in the Tower which date from _c._ 1480; the edges are decorated with a roped border. The lance used was thick and heavy and provided with a steel point; upon impact it was customary to drop it in order to avoid the risk of injury to the right arm by splinters in the event of the lance shivering. The vamplate used in this course was of unusual proportions, covering the whole of the right side of the body; an example may be seen in the Rotunda at Woolwich, No. XVI. 102, which is of much larger size than the one illustrated from the Tower Collection (Fig. 312). The body armour was of a ponderous nature, nearly every piece being duplicated. In this course, if one of the combatants was not unhorsed immediately upon impact, it was customary for his attendants to rush forward and aid him in recovering his seat. [Illustration: FIG. 419. Tilting armour for the Über die Pallia Course, _c._ 1580. (Wallace Collection.)]