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[Discott]

It occurred to me after I had posted this on the Explanatory illustrations of life in the Middle Ages in England that is post might better be served by having it own thread.  I am sure there are a number of people out there who are not very interested in how things are crafted or scenes of daily life in the Middle Ages (which is what the other thread mostly details) but who might just have an interest in what people wore.     If I can find sources for attire from other parts of the world over the same time period I will add them.  Or, even better, if you have material along those lines [no pun intended] then feel free to share it on this thread.

Without further elaboration below are the different styles and types of amour worn from 43AD to 1500AD in Britain.

1400s

British fashion and armour from King Richard III reign (1480s AD)


British fashion and armour during the War of the Roses (1455 to 1485 AD).


British fashion and armour from King Henry V's reign (1410s AD)


British fashion and armour worn during Henry IV's reign (early 1400s AD)

1300s



British fashion and armour worn during Edward II's and Edward III's reign (1300s AD)

1200s

British fashion and armour worn during Edward I's reign (1272–1307 AD)


British fashion and armour worn during Henry III's reign (1216–1272 AD)


British fashion and armour worn during King John's reign (1199–1216)



1066-1200AD

British fashion and armour worn during Richard I's reign (1189–1199)



British fashion and armour worn in Norman times (early 1066 to 1200s AD)

Pre-1066AD

British fashion and armour worn in Anglo-Saxon times (655 to 1066 AD)


British fashion and armour worn in Anglo-Saxon and during the Danish invasions (655 to 1066 AD).  Amour for the Danish Warrior is mostly like that of a low ranking solder who could not afford his own armour other wise he would have likely warn a chain or ring mail tunic.


British fashion and armour worn during the time of the Roman invasion (43 AD).


Source: The Romance of the Nation (1935), London, England. Volume 1 & 2

[wierd]

Do you also have rear and side views of these costumes?

Some things, like capes especially, have intricate work in the reverse side.

[Discott]

I am afraid not.  It would be awesome if I did but that is unfortunately all that I have from that source.  However if I find anything from other sources then I will put them up.

[OddTheTall]

The pictures are nice - though it is obvious that the book was printed a while ago as the research is rather outdated.

<authenticity-rant>
Hilted daggers don't really exist in northern Europe till around 1250. Pre-Conquest knives are almost exclusively single-edged seaxes with bone/wood/antler handles - double-bladed daggers appear around the 12th century but still have organic handles.
I'm pretty sure some of the knight's helms are 50-100 years too late for rest of the armor, and NO HORNS ON HELMETS!! All that is is a nice grip for removing the helm or breaking your neck.
Metal vambraces *might* have existed for a short period of time in the late 13/early 14th century but they were certainly not in use before then. Also, plate gauntlets start appearing in the 14th century so vambraces become somewhat redundant.
I'm also uncomfortable with the way the fabric is patterned. Twills are fine but the patterns in the pre-1066 fabrics are wrong. Post-Conquest there is some patterned fabric, but as far as I am aware, it's in the same color as the rest of the cloth.
Lamellar and scale was vanishingly rare in Western Europe - any early (Post-Roman) armour would be chain-mail and/or padding (ring-mail is primarily a Victorian construction - I can find one reference to it in 1591).
I could keep going in this vein for quite a while. What it boils down to is these are pretty pictures - not accurate reconstructions.
</authenticity-rant>

@wierd Viking/Saxon cloaks tended to be fairly plain - no real decoration on the back though there could be some edging. They would be a large square or rectangle pinned at the shoulder sometimes with tasseled ends. There is some evidence for rare semi-circular cloaks for the higher ranks. Not so sure about later - my knowledge is primarily Dark Age with some forays into early Medieval.

[Discott]

You're absolutely right, the book was published in 1934/1935 so the research and writing is very dated.  The upside is that because it was printed 80 years ago the copyright has expired in the UK where it was printed and registered.  The other advantage is that I have yet to find such a detailed collection of costumes and illustrations of Medieval life.

[mainiac]

cool information

I was kinda surprised to read what you said about chainmail being rare because I remember seeing some roman re-enactors a decade back and they told me that chainmail was used by Roman auxiliaries.  They re-enacted early imperial era british legions.  Has new information come to light in the past decade or something?

[Tiruin]

PTW

[Kofthefens]

PTW

[Vattic]

PTW