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→8.3 Leather, Cloth and Padded Armour
==8.3 Leather, Cloth and Padded Armour==
Gambesons only ever worn under chain mail
These may be made from cloth or leather and may be padded or not. Any design is acceptable
as long as it is not seen protruding from under the mail shirt. Gambesons may however
be sewn to the mail shirt being attached by a leather strip around the mail shirts edge.
Unlike on visible jacks metal buckles may be used but they must never be shown to the
public. Only gambesons that match the criteria for those worn as visible armour are allowed
to be displayed in armouries or as items for ‘dressing the knight’.
Gambesons or jacks worn as visible armour
Padded cloth gambesons can be worn for a limited time only on the understanding that the
member is in the process of procuring a mail shirt within 12 months. Leather jacks, padded
or not may be worn as visible body armour. They may be made in the style of either a waistcoat
or as a short sleeved, skirted tunic. Metal buckles and fittings must not be used,
Leather toggles or ties may be used to close the garment instead. Only authentic styles of
leather may be used for leather jacks, no chrome or suede. Either diamond or tubed padding
styles are permissible.
Leather gambesons and jacks must not be dyed
black.
Ethnic Specific Cloth Armour
793 - 979 Viking warriors with Viking style weapons
and jewellery may wear a ‘Warrior Style’ wrap
around jacket. These must be made of wool and
lined. Ideally it should have a faced or tablet woven
edge. They should fold over and be pinned on the
wearer’s right hip.
1180 - 1215 Angevin knights may wear an optional
surcoat. Ideally they should be of one plain colour
and must not have a design that matches the
shield. Note that ‘quartered’ designs should not be
used and ‘half’ designs are rare although both are
considered Acceptable.
==8.4. Limb Armour==
Arms and Legs
Mail arm and leg protection may be worn subject to a show’s dateline and
context. This will be detailed in the kit specs. for each show. Leather arm or
leg protection, for example greaves or vambraces, should not be seen but
may be worn under tunics and trousers.
Leather Gloves
It is recommended that combatants wear sturdy gloves or mittens, which
may be reinforced with leather. Modern welding or gardening gloves must
be thoroughly disguised to hide their origins. Leather gloves must not extend
more than 5cm (2”) up the arm from the wrist and must be in natural
shades of brown or grey. No modern piping or elastic should be visible.
They should not be made of suede and must be in natural shades of brown
or grey. Do not use green, red or black welding gloves.
Less over engineered leather combat gloves
We have no pictorial or archaeological evidence for leather gloves from our
period. This said it is generally accepted that protective gloves may have
been worn. As always, where evidence is lacking, Regia always insists on
encouraging the simplest and least obvious of designs. Gloves should be of
a simple construction and those consisting of complicated overlapping
leather panels should be avoided.
Mail Gloves
Less integral mailed mittens before 1180AD
Although the use of integral mailed mittens is allowable after
1080AD they did not really become popular until Regia’s Angevin period,
after 1180AD.
No separate mail covered gloves
Gloves with attached mail are considered unacceptable for all periods
from 1st January 2015. Mailed gauntlets do not appear until the C12th.
These items are wrong on two counts. First we have no clear evidence
of gloves and hence must strive to keep them simple in design. Secondly
they are often worn by Regia members portraying poor characters who could never have afforded such an
item, even if they had existed, as mail was expensive.
==8.5 Head Protection==
There are many types of helmet available through Regia’s stated period of interest
and many of these types are dateline and/or ethnic specific.
NOTES
1. Spun helmet domes are strongly discouraged and must be disguised or treated to
hide all evidence of spinning.
2. All edges of metal helmet fittings must be rounded off, with particular care being paid
to any attached nasal or face guards.
3. Helmets may be made of ferrous metal or a ferrous frame with panels made from a
suitable organic material, such as hardened leather or horn. If organic materials are
used, the helmet should be constructed so as to afford real protection to the user.
4. Mail hoods (coifs) should be worn only in conjunction with a helmet.
5. Mail coifs and aventails applied to helmets may be decorated with no more than two
rows of bronze rings at the edges.
6. Padded head protection should be worn only in conjunction with a mail coif and/or helmet.
7. Helmets are often closely inspected by members of the public. Therefore any modern
or synthetic padding added to the inside of a helmet must be
suitably disguised.
8. Angevin - Knights may wear a full faced Helm, This must only be
worn when accompanied by a full sleeved hooded mail shirt (or
coif & surcoat), kite shield & the correct period sword.
9. Great Polish Helm [V] (Mid & Late) - This style of helmet is
eastern (Russian) in origin and unlikely to have been found in
England. Only warriors portraying Swedish Vikings can use one.
You must also be wearing at least 2 other items of eastern Viking
provenance.
==8.6 Shield Guidelines==
General Notes
1. All shield boards must be constructed
from exterior grade plywood
of a minimum of 9mm
(3/8”) thickness. Other methods
of construction (planking, etc.)
will be examined on an individual
basis. Shield boards of 8mm
may be used if the shield is
faced with stout hide of at least
2mm in thickness.
2. All exposed plywood edges
must be disguised. Please pay
attention to the cut-out behind
the boss of a centre-grip shield.
3. All shields must be edged with leather or rawhide. Nails used to attach the edging
must be flush with the surface. Stitching edging to shields is highly recommended.
The edging must always be in a good overall state of repair. Metal edging must not be
used on combat shields.
Make the MaA happy - More shields with sewn on shield rims
Although we cannot categorically say that shield rims were not nailed on it is
more likely that they were sewn on with stitches about 3-4cm apart. The thread
used can be leather thong, string (or linen thread), or sinew.
4. All shield board fronts must be covered in cloth, leather or rawhide. This prevents
splinters from impacts to the front of shields causing a hazard to other combatants.
Shield backs may be similarly covered.
5. All uncovered plywood surfaces must be scored in the direction of the grain so as to
give the impression of planking.
6. All shield boards must be in good general condition, and free of holes and splinters.
7. Washers used in the construction of a shield should be distressed, or otherwise disguised,
so as to hide any evidence of modern manufacture. Washerless clench nails
can be used only after the approval of the MAA or one of his deputies. Clenching
seems to be the most common
way of securing a boss to a shield,
but can be tricky and cause safety
concerns.
8. All bosses must be made
from steel or forged iron and must
be free of rust and burrs. If they
are of spun construction, they
must be disguised to hide any evidence
of spinning marks. They
must be attached to the shield
board with a minimum of four rivets,
with the use of five being encouraged.
9. Shield bosses must have a diameter between 76mm (3”) and 178mm (7”), excluding
the flange. They should be of hemispherical, conical or mammoform
section, and may be “shouldered”.
10. Any shield may have metal strapping or re-enforcement
added to the back of its board. Such bracing should show
no evidence of modern manufacture and should be perpendicular
to the planking of the shield. Additional metal
strapping or metal plate decoration on the front face of the
board must be avoided.
11. As a general note, shield types other than those detailed
above (such as oval, Slavic, Pictish, Byzantine, etc.), may
be given consideration for certain datelines and contexts.
However, since the vast majority of our events are set within the British Isles
and within a given period, there would be very few, if any occasions when such
items may be needed. If you have an interest in equipment from another period
or geographical area, the MaA will be happy to discuss with you the possible
uses of your equipment in a Regia context.
==8.6.1 Round Shields==
A Note on Size.
As noted earlier all wargear should be in proportion to the user.
This is particularly true of round shields. It is therefore highly
unlikely that any member would need a round shield of the
maximum size allowed. A combatant of average size
(5’10”/1.8m) and build is well served by a shield of 31” (0.8m)
diameter.
More large sized shields
The meagre archaeological evidence would imply that shields
were usually quite large in Regia’s core period with shields of
80-100cm (32-39”) being common. To this end it is encouraged
for any new shields to reach at least 5cm (2”) past the users elbow
when gripped. This will hopefully encourage more 79cm to
89cm (31” - 35”) shields.
Round shields may be smaller than 20” (0.5m) in diameter subject
to dateline and the user’s ethnic background (See 8.6 note
12)
NOTES
i) A boss must be placed at the centre of the board covering the
hand-grip.
ii) The hand-grip must have the appearance of having been attached,
as a separate component, to the shield board.
iii) A round shield’s board may be flat or lenticular in shape. A lenticular
shield must be constructed in such a way as to be structurally
sound and capable of withstanding heavy blows.
Round shields curved in a single plane are considered completely
unacceptable from January 1st 2006.
iv) ii.) Lenticular shields should have a maximum diameter to depth ratio of 1:6. Thus, if
you put a 36” (90cm) diameter lenticular shield flat on the ground, with the boss facing
upwards, the hand-grip should be no more than 6” (15cm) off the ground. A
30” (75cm) shield’s hand-grip should be no more than 5” (13cm) off the ground etc.
==8.6.2 Shield Designs==
A selection of basic shield designs which can be provenanced by manuscript pictures or
archaeological finds are illustrated overleaf as a guide for members to base their own shield
designs on. Shields may be painted in up to four colours using these patterns, although one
or two colours seem to be the most common. Remember all black shields are reserved for
under 18’s on the battlefield.
Authentic period paint colours include red, orange, yellow, brown, black, white and grey.
More rarely grey-blues, pale greens and other colours were also used, it is best to avoid rich
blues or greens as these are rare or very rich colours.
Leather fronted shields are not allowed to be tanned black
Less blue paint
In Regia’s period the only viable way of achieving quantities of blue paint was by using
woad. Even so the process of refining it to make the paint would have been expensive.
Where blue paint is used for shield designs it is recommended that it be applied in moderation
and that shades should be no darker or bluer than that of ‘Pebble Drift 1’ from Dulux.
More freshly painted shields
Shields of the time would not have been covered in ball bearing marks. They would have
been new and then hacked to pieces. To this end all active combat shields should be repainted
at least once a year to remove combat marks.
Shields painted in artistic styles (All Periods)
Any design that is not a simple geometric one must follow a recognisable period art style.
Only full warriors with 3 hits may use an artistic shield design. As large obvious items
shields painted in an artistic style can only be used at events where the art style is in period.
Shields painted in 4 or more colours (All Periods)
Most shields seem to be painted in only one or two colours. The use of 3 painted colours is
acceptable but only warriors with 3 hits and of aristocratic appearance can use 4 or more
colours. Even so the use of more than 3 colours is not encouraged.
Shields painted with heraldry [RICH][K] (Angevin Period)
This period is the start of simple Heraldic designs. Only warriors portraying RICH Knights
may have a simple period correct heraldic design on their shield.
==8.6.3 Long (Kite) Shields==
NOTES
i) A boss must be placed at between 1/4 and 1/3 of
the total length from the top of the shield.
ii) A long shield must be curved in the vertical
plane. No flat kite shields.
iii) A long shield may be equipped with a variety of strapping arrangements for
use and may have a rigid hand-grip attached. The board may have sections of
padding attached to the rear face.
iv) Kite shields can be made to reach between the user’s knee and ankle depending
on preference.
v) Larger long shields will be allowed subject to the user’s physical build and proportions
only after consultation with the MaA Please be aware that these
shields must only be used by the approved user and must not be lent to an
unapproved user.
vi) Kite shields must be bossed if used prior to 1180AD. After this bosses on kite
shields are optional. Although some bossless kite shields are depicted prior to
this date, the AO and MAA decided that all kite shields must have a boss. This
was necessary as no workable or fair solution could be found to limit the number
of bossless kite shields in the society.
vii) Poached egg style shields are not allowed.
==8.6.4 Long Shield Designs==
==9. Warriors==
'''The Warrior System'''
To advance through the warrior system combatants
must gain and improve their kit. At each
level of advancement the member is expected
to have:
Level 1 – Levy – 1 Hit
A battle field safe in spear (preferably single
handed but 2 handed is acceptable) and shield,
these items may be borrowed.
Level 2 - Militia – 2 Hits
A full pass pass in spear (single or 2 handed).
They must own their own spear and shield.
They must have at least one authentic name.
Level 3 - Warrior – 3 Hits
A full pass in a short arm and a battle field safe
in another short arm. A helmet and mail shirt,
which must be worn on the battlefield to have
the 3rd hit point. Ideally they should take to the
battlefield with a spear
as their primary
weapon. They must own
their own war gear and
it must be in a good
state of repair and of
good craftsmanship. It must
also be of matching ethnicity and time period. They must have an
authentic name for each ethnic character they represent.
Becoming a Warrior
Members seeking to advance to Warrior level must ask the Master
at Arms and an MaA Deputy, who at the same time will examine
their kit. Opportunities for this will normally be after the battle practice
and after the afternoon battle. Advice will be given and if both
deputies agree then the members book will be stamped.
Warriors and Authenticity Checks
Just like warriors only have two hits when they remove their armour,
they also forfeit their third hit if they take the field wearing any item
of kit that is currently being phased out and is therefore classed as
unacceptable. Hopefully this will be pointed out during the day at
one of the authenticity checks or Master at Arms checks and the
member given time to either remove the item or modify it, but the
Event Kit Guides usually make this clear and can be consulted before
attending an event.
For more information regarding the Warrior System refer to ‘The Warrior System’, Spring
2005, document from the Regia website.
==10. Battlefield Authentic==
This section explains the thoughts behind and the aim of two new terms being introduced,
Battlefield Authentic and Armoury Authentic. The end goal being a more authentic and educational
Armoury display, without limiting what weapons and armour members can use during training
and battle displays.
===Battlefield Authentic===
Battlefield Authentic refers to the level of authenticity
expected to be achieved by members
while taking part in Regia military displays at
events. This is an attempt to allow as many
people as possible on the field, especially in the
extended periods, without them having to buy
new expensive equipment for each dateline. By
keeping the rules for Battlefield Authentic
equipment more relaxed it is hoped this will increase
the number of combatants on the field
and make sure everybody can enjoy their
hobby.
Armour and weapons are considered battlefield
authentic if they are:
Look reasonably authentic to the given dateline,
while in use on the battlefield, at a
range of about 10m.
They are generally in the ‘Allowable’ column
in the ‘Authenticity Kit Guide’, for the show
dateline, and comply with the current MaA
regulations.
Items that are Battlefield Authentic but not Armoury
Authentic should:
Not be displayed on the armoury
Be known by the wearer to be 'wrong' so it
can be explained by them in case they are
asked by a member of the public.
Some examples of battlefield authentic items:
Swords suspended from sword belts in early
period shows, and swords on baldrics at
later datelines.
Gloves.
This is no excuse to mix kit from various periods.
All of a warrior’s kit should be consistent
within itself. The higher ranking a person you
are displaying, the more correct your equipment
should be.
===Armoury Authentic===
Armoury Authentic refers to the standard of authenticity
expected to be found on an LHE armoury
display during a Regia event. The primary
goal of an armoury display is to educate
about the correct appearance, nature and use
of the arms and armour of the dateline portrayed.
This level is higher than that of Battlefield
Authentic, mostly because the weapons
used for combat have to be denatured to be
safe. We have got the correct equipment within
the society which should be highlighted and
used to educate away from the battlefield. We
realise that it is early days, but it would be nice
to see good quality, authentic equipment being
made and purchased specifically for its use on
a quality armoury display.
Armoury Authentic arms and armour are:
In the Encouraged or Optional columns of
the AO kit guides.
Period specific weapons and armour including
helmets.
Correct scabbard styles and suspension
method for swords and knives.
Riveted mail, of the correct period style.
Can be Semi-sharp or sharp, but good examples
of blunt weapons should also be
available to allow the public to handle them.
Blunt weapons should still be of a more authentic
shape, weight and size than those
used on the battlefield.
Correctly sized, and if possible correctly
constructed equipment (i.e. large, planked,
leather covered shields).
Run by a person knowledgeable in the
equipment and its use in the period, as well
as being able to highlight the difference between
what would have been used then and
what we use today in our military displays.
==Appendix 1: Some Notes on Spring Steel==
Without a large and expensive laboratory, it is almost impossible to determine or
categorise the exact grades of steel that have been used in the construction of a
weapon.
We allow some weapons to be made from mild steel. This is fairly easy to spot as,
generally, it dents and burrs readily and will bend and stay set to that bend. Other
weapons we insist are made from “spring steel”. EN42, EN45, case hardening and
other terms abound, and very few people have any idea what they are or what
they mean. It is easy to accept the reply “oh it’s spring”, when we ask a manufacturer
what he has made a weapon from.
Addition for 2015: Many European sword smiths use 51 CrV4 steel, this is an acceptable
equivalent to EN45 spring steel.
What is needed is a test of whether a weapon is suitable for re-enactment purposes,
and the approved method for testing a suspect item will be as follows:
Bending Test
When a bending load is applied, a blade should take up the load progressively
without yield or set. The deflection of the blade should be proportional to the varying
load applied to it (a slight variation on Hooke’s Law). When the load is released,
the blade should spring quickly back to its original state, exhibiting no evidence
of deformation.
Notch Hardness (Strike) Test
When the edge of a blade is struck with reasonable force by the edge of another
blade of known and approved properties, the edge of the struck blade should not
show excessive burring or chipping. On inspection of any notch produced in the
struck blade, the depth of the notch should not exceed more than half of the width
of the notch (see fig below).
These tests will not normally be carried out at regular kit checks but are provided
merely as a guide. Obviously, they may be carried out by the MaA or one of his
appointed deputies on any weapon believed to be of suspicious construction.
NOTE
Pattern welded or leaf
welded blades may be
considered to be a
“composite spring” steel
and although these
blades will all be judged
on their own merit, the
above tests may be applied
to determine their
suitability for reenactment
use.
==Appendix 2: How To Fit a Spear Head==
I have put this guide together in order to show one way of fitting a spear head
to a spear shaft. In Regia we talk about fitting spear heads as though it is a
simple enough task, however if someone has never done it before it may be
quite a daunting prospect. Hopefully this step by step guide will help to
instruct and reassure people as they fit their own spear heads.
It is not a compulsory method enforced by Regia Anglorum nor is it the only
acceptable way to fit a spear head, it is merely the way I choose to do so. I
have tried to replicate the process using tools most people will have easy
access to. I have also tried to make the process as simple as possible
however I have had to make the assumption that anyone embarking on fitting
their own spear head will have some grasp of how to use the tools involved.
Tools Required:
Spoke shave or draw knife
Ball peen hammer
Lump hammer
Vice
Hacksaw
Drill
Drill bit (0.5mm bigger than
rivet)
2 part epoxy glue
Marker pen
Materials Required:
Spear head
Spear shaft
Rivet (100mm long nail)
1. Mark the length of the spear socket on
one end of the spear shaft (Fig 1). Also
mark the centre of the end of the shaft
with a cross (Fig 2).
2. Fix the shaft in the vice. Take the draw
knife and cut from the marked ring to
the end of the shaft using the
cross as a centre guide (Fig 3).
3. Repeat on the three remaining sides
(Fig 4).
4. Shave the corners off the spike until it
is completely round. Try the spear
head to see if it fits well, if it does not,
twist the head and any high points that
need to be shaved off will be scuffed
by the inside of the socket.
5. You may find that your spear
socket is too wide to fit onto
your spear shaft (Fig 5).
6. Fix the lump hammer in the
vice, we will use this as an anvil
(Fig 6).
7. Using light blows with the ball
peen hammer squash the
socket until it fits the spear
shaft snugly NOTE: if your
spear is made from spring steel
you will probably not be able to
do this.
When hammering like this
always make sure that you
hammer straight down to stop
the spear head from skipping
off. If you need to hammer a
different side turn the spear
head (Fig 7).
8. Fix the shaft into the vice.
9. Drill through the rivet hole in
the spear socket. If the drill bit
does not pass perfectly
through the hole on the other
side turn the spear over in the
vice and drill through the other
side, this usually causes the
holes to line up (Fig 8).
Your rivet should fit snugly in
the rivet hole in the spear
socket. The hole in this spear is
5mm diameter and the rivet is a
100mm nail which has a
diameter of 4.5mm. The hole
you drill should be 0.5mm
bigger than the rivet you are
using to ensure it fits as tightly
as possible.
10. Put the rivet through the rivet
hole and mark the bit sticking
out with the marker pen (Fig 9
& 10).
11. Place the rivet in the vice and,
using the hacksaw, cut it down
along the outside of the pen
mark (Fig 10 & 11).
There are formulas for working
out the proper length of
metal needed for a rivet h e a d ,
however I have always f o u n d
that the width of a marker pen
tip is sufficient metal for
riveting a spear (Fig 12).
12. Take the spear head off the
shaft. Remember which way it
went on to make sure your
holes all line up.
13. Mix some of your favourite 2
part epoxy resin and paste it all
over the shaved part of the
shaft (Fig 13). The epoxy
strengthens the join and helps
prevent the spear head from
rattling as the wood dries out.
14. Replace the spear head and
put the rivet through the rivet
hole (Fig 14).
15. Put the lump hammer in the vice.
16. Place the rivet head onto the lump hammer. Using light blows with
the ball peen hammer squash the rivet down until it mushrooms over
and covers the rivet hole (Fig 15 & 16).
Here ends the lesson
Written by Stuart Makin
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