Most commonly used by bowmen, the pavise was a large, convex shield that was used as a full body protection. The last type of medieval shield that we will cover was called the pavise. Some 16 th century bucklers also had raised metal rings, hooks, or bands that allowed for the catching or knocking of opposing blades. 1607 was even found at the Jamestown settlement fort in Virginia. An English Royal proclamation in 1562 even complained of “bucklers with long pykes in them.” (Norman, p. John Stow wrote in 1631 how using the buckler’s long “pyke” (a spikes 8- 12 inches long) it was the habit of the old fighters “either to breake the swords of their enemies, or suddenly to runne into them and stab”. These points could be used offensively to great effect as well as aided in binding and deflecting an opponent’s weapon. Many bucklers were pointed with a central tip or several smaller “teeth”. Often a pointed spike protruded from the central boss or umbo. Bucklers were typically round and frequently between 8 to 16 inches in diameter, but octagonal, square, and trapezoidal versions were also known.Ĭonsiderable varieties of bucklers were developed. It was usually round and made of metal but occasionally of hardened leather or layers of wood. The buckler was a small, maneuverable, hand-held shield for deflecting and punching blows. It is difficult to trace the history of the weapon as many times any type of round shield or small targe would be called buckler, regardless of whether it was held in the fist or worn on the arm. The BucklerĪ buckler differs from a shield in that the latter is carried by straps and worn on the arm whereas the former is held in single-hand in a “fist” grip. The front of the targe was embossed with an intricate celtic pattern, part of the reason that the Scottish targe has remained so widely recognized. They were commonly constructed of wood and covered in black cowhide leather. A targe was intricate in its construction and decoration and many of the exampled of Scottish targe’s that we have today are beautiful. Normally, the targe was a slightly larger shield than the buckler, but it was used in the same manner. The targe was a variation of the medieval round shield that has become closely associated with the Scottish warrior. Some shields, such as that of Edward, the Black Prince from his tomb in Canterbury Cathedral, incorporated additional layers of gesso, canvas, and/or parchment. Heater shields were typically made from thin wood overlaid with leather. As plate armor began to cover more and more of the body, the shield grew correspondingly smaller, until by the mid 14th century, it was hardly seen at all outside of the tournament. Smaller than the kite shield it was more manageable and could be used either mounted or on foot. From the 15th century, it evolved into highly specialized jousting shields, often a bouche containing a notch or “mouth” for the lance to pass through. Or heater-shaped shield is a form of European medieval shield, developing from the early medieval kite sheld in the mid 13th century. Thus, the kite shield bears a heavy association to the medieval Norman style of armor and warfare, a style heavily reliant on cavalry. The kite shield is the type of shield featured on the Bayeux Tapestry, a medieval tapestry chronicling the Norman invasion of England in 1066. Functionally, the enarmes greatly increased the likelihood that the soldier could hold on to his shield, an important consideration when in the heat of battle. The enarmes were leather straps that allowed the knight or soldier to attach the shield to his forearm, rather than try and hold one strap with his wrist. Many kite shields possessed a gradual curvature, so that it would better fit the contour of the soldiers body.Īn innovation that was added to the kite shield at a later point was the attachment of enarmes to the back of the shield. The shield itself was wide at the top, and tapered toward the bottom. The kite shield was adapted so that the soldier could protect his foreleg while in combat. Where early medieval shields were lightly constructed and tended to be small, the kite shield was a larger shield that first came into use around the 10th century.
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