Garter plates of Christian Duke of Brunswick (1625), Gustavus Adolphus King of Sweden (1628), and Charles Count Palatine of the Rhine (1633 and 1680), they are full fronted with seven barrs. "In Great Britain we have but four kinds of helmets, according to the four different degrees in the state--the king, the nobility, knights, and gentry. The sovereign helmet full fronted, having seven barrs or guards, visure without any bever; the nobilities the same, but half turned to the right, and usually showing four barrs; the knight's helmet full fronted, with the bever turned up; and the gentleman's in profile, the bever or visor close; using steel helmets for all as the only proper metal for a helmet common to all. Foreigners condemn us for attributing that helmet to a knight, which they give to a king; and more proper, says Mackensie, for a king without guard-visure than for a knight (_Science of Heraldry_, p. 87.), because knights are in danger, and have less need to command. But it must be observed, the knight's helmet has a visor, and no barrs; the sovereign's barrs, because no visor. And this kind of helmet, with barrs instead of a visor, seems to have been contrived for princes and great commanders, who would have been incommoded by the visor, and too much exposed without anything, therefore had barrs: whereas knights being, according to Mackensie, in more danger and having less need to command, had their helmet for action; and are represented with the bever up, ready to receive the king or general's command. As to the resemblance of the one to the other, both being in full front, the connexion was not anciently so remote as seems at this day. Knighthood is the first and most ancient military honour, and therefore at this day sovereign princes and knights are the only two honours universally acknowledged. Knighthood is the source of all honours, and of all military glory, and an honour esteemed by and conferred upon kings; without which they were heretofore thought incomplete, and could not confer that honour on others, no more than ordination could be conferred by one unordained: so that there was a very near connexion between sovereignty and knighthood. And besides, the propriety of the open helmet with a visor for a knight, and the helmet guard-visure for a king, the latter is more ornamental, especially if, according to the modern practice, the barrs are gold. As the king's helmet is without a visor, and barred, so is that of the nobility in imitation of it, but turned to the right as a proper distinction as, in like manner, that of the gentry differs from the knights. As there are in fact but two orders of men, nobility of which the king is the first degree, and gentry of which knights are the first, so they are by this means sufficiently distinguished