PLATE 19.The figures illustrate the following scenes:(Fig. 1):Duke William came to Pevensey. A very clear idea is obtained of the general character of a Norman ship and the manner in which it is steered by an oar on the starboard (steer-board) side, etc. This ship, theMora, bearing William, was given him by Matilda, his wife, and bears on the stern an effigy of his little son Rufus, blowing a bugle and holding a banner. (Fig. 2):Harold made an oath to Duke William. William is shown seated on a throne while Harold, one hand on an altar and the other on a reliquary containing the sacred relics, is taking the oath. (Fig. 3):A scene in the Battle of Hastings. The English Army withstanding the charge of the Norman horsemen after receiving a flight of Norman arrows. Most of the English are armed with javelins and shields, few with axes and swords. One figure is shown using the bow, and he is the only one thus armed onthe English side. It has consequently been asserted by some authorities that bows were not used by the English in the battle, but, as Mr. Fowke says, “this seems to be hardly correct literally ... though ... the use of the bow as a weapon of war in our country was then probably rare.” This scene shows the whole width of the Tapestry with the two borders, the upper containing allegorical figures, and the latter displaying the fallen warriors. It may be noted that throughout the picture of the battle the arms and accoutrements of both Normans and English are similar, probably accounted for by the close intimacy that existed between the two countries. (Fig. 4):Here is seated Harold, King of the English; Archbishop Stigand. Harold was crowned in Westminster Abbey on the same day that Edward was buried in the same building. He is represented seated on the throne, wearing the crown on his head and holding the sceptre in his right hand and the orb in the left. Stigand, who, the Normans allege, crowned Harold, is shown standing at his left side.
PLATE 19.
The figures illustrate the following scenes:
(Fig. 1):Duke William came to Pevensey. A very clear idea is obtained of the general character of a Norman ship and the manner in which it is steered by an oar on the starboard (steer-board) side, etc. This ship, theMora, bearing William, was given him by Matilda, his wife, and bears on the stern an effigy of his little son Rufus, blowing a bugle and holding a banner. (Fig. 2):Harold made an oath to Duke William. William is shown seated on a throne while Harold, one hand on an altar and the other on a reliquary containing the sacred relics, is taking the oath. (Fig. 3):A scene in the Battle of Hastings. The English Army withstanding the charge of the Norman horsemen after receiving a flight of Norman arrows. Most of the English are armed with javelins and shields, few with axes and swords. One figure is shown using the bow, and he is the only one thus armed onthe English side. It has consequently been asserted by some authorities that bows were not used by the English in the battle, but, as Mr. Fowke says, “this seems to be hardly correct literally ... though ... the use of the bow as a weapon of war in our country was then probably rare.” This scene shows the whole width of the Tapestry with the two borders, the upper containing allegorical figures, and the latter displaying the fallen warriors. It may be noted that throughout the picture of the battle the arms and accoutrements of both Normans and English are similar, probably accounted for by the close intimacy that existed between the two countries. (Fig. 4):Here is seated Harold, King of the English; Archbishop Stigand. Harold was crowned in Westminster Abbey on the same day that Edward was buried in the same building. He is represented seated on the throne, wearing the crown on his head and holding the sceptre in his right hand and the orb in the left. Stigand, who, the Normans allege, crowned Harold, is shown standing at his left side.
Norman, Anglo-Norman, or Romanesque architecture was called by the former name because it followed the Norman style. It is found in Normandy itself, in England, in Italy, and Sicily—in fact, wherever the Northern conquerors established themselves.
Its chief characteristics are solidity and strength—walls of enormous thickness, huge masses of masonry for piers, windows comparatively small, and a profusion of peculiar ornaments.
The earliest Norman work in England—as the transepts of Winchester Cathedral—is almost as plain as Anglo-Saxon; but the Norman churches are larger and higher than those of the Anglo-Saxon period. They are generally cruciform in shape, with a square tower over the intersection of the nave and transepts. The towers are not lofty, but are very solid, and usually contain windows with two lights. In a number of instances the choir ends in a semi-circular apse after the Roman style.
Early Norman work was much plainer than that of the later period; the arch is not recessed, or only once recessed, the edges are square, or have a plain round moulding cut in them, and the zigzag ornament (Pl.20, Fig. 14) is used, though not so abundantly as at a later period. Windows are generally plain, small, and round-headed, and consist of single lights except in belfry windows. Doors are square-headed under a round arch. The simplest form is a narrow, round-headed opening with a plain dripstone. But Norman windows are not met with as frequently as doors, since they have, in many cases, been destroyed to make room for those of later styles.In England the Norman style is usually assigned to the eleventh century, and in the latter half of it the transition to the Early English style took place. It was introduced into England in the reign of Edward the Confessor, who was more Norman than English, and who himself founded the Abbey of Westminster. Some buildings were of a mixed character (Anglo-Saxon and Norman), some in the old style, others altogether in the new.
Soon after the Norman Conquest, the Norman Bishops who supplanted Englishmen in English sees and abbacies in very many instances commenced to rebuild the cathedrals and churches from their foundations.
The entire English fabric was usually pulled down, and a new building was erected on a much larger plan and in a better manner. It is chiefly in remote places, where the inhabitants were too few and too poor to rebuild and enlarge their churches, that we find remains of the original Anglo-Saxon work.
Early Norman masonry is very rude, the joints between the stones being filled with a great thickness of mortar, from one to three inches thick (this is called “wide-jointed” masonry), and the stonework was usually rubble. In the later work the joints are comparatively fine (“fine-jointed” masonry). The Normans were very active builders. William I. and his son, William II., built one hundred and ninety-five religious houses during their reigns, and all the cathedrals and great churches in the eleventh century were rebuilt, while many new ones were founded; though it is said that of the many churches commenced in the reigns of these two kings but few were completed until after 1100A.D.
Gundulph built the Cathedral of Rochester, while certainly St. Albans and Ely were also commenced in the reign of the Conqueror. In the earliest work the ornament was not characterised by the same profusion so common in later work. It was shallow, and cut with the axe, as the chisel was little used at that time.
PLATE 20.(Fig. 1): Pillar with spiral fluting in Waltham Abbey (founded by Harold II.) The spiral grooves were originally filled with chased and gilt metal. Of the twelve pillars in the Abbey two are indented spirally and two with chevrons. The others are plain. (Other instances of this work on the pillars may be found at Durham, Lindisfarne, and Kirkby Lonsdale). The arches are decorated with the indented zigzag ornament. (Fig. 2): Flat Norman buttress (Iffley, Oxfordshire). The buttresses at first were merely flat, pilaster-like projections, wholly devoid of ornament. (Figs. 3 to 8): Norman capitals. These were either plain, cubical masses with the lower angles rounded off, forming a rude cushion shape (Fig. 3), or they have a53-54rude kind of volute cut upon the edges of the angles (Fig. 8, from St. John’s Chapel in the White Tower). The scalloped capitals (Figs. 6 and 7) belong to a later period. This form of capital is most common in all the first half of the twelfth century. The capital is the member by which the styles are more easily distinguished than by any other. The abacus (A, Fig. 4) is square in section. (Figs. 9 to 14): Norman mouldings, which were almost endless in variety. They were most abundantly used in doorways and other arches and in horizontal strips. The most general is the zigzag (Fig. 14). (Fig. 9): The star. (Fig. 10): The round billet (a square billet is also used). (Fig. 11): The billet and lozenge. (Fig. 12): The beak-head. (Fig. 13): The bead course. (Fig. 14): The zigzag or chevron. (Fig. 15): Early Norman pier, recessed at the angles, and square edges, in St. Alban’s Abbey, 1080A.D.(Fig. 16): Norman doorway with recessed pillars and decorated head, at St. Mary’s, Shrewsbury. (Fig. 17): Norman chamfer.
PLATE 20.
(Fig. 1): Pillar with spiral fluting in Waltham Abbey (founded by Harold II.) The spiral grooves were originally filled with chased and gilt metal. Of the twelve pillars in the Abbey two are indented spirally and two with chevrons. The others are plain. (Other instances of this work on the pillars may be found at Durham, Lindisfarne, and Kirkby Lonsdale). The arches are decorated with the indented zigzag ornament. (Fig. 2): Flat Norman buttress (Iffley, Oxfordshire). The buttresses at first were merely flat, pilaster-like projections, wholly devoid of ornament. (Figs. 3 to 8): Norman capitals. These were either plain, cubical masses with the lower angles rounded off, forming a rude cushion shape (Fig. 3), or they have a53-54rude kind of volute cut upon the edges of the angles (Fig. 8, from St. John’s Chapel in the White Tower). The scalloped capitals (Figs. 6 and 7) belong to a later period. This form of capital is most common in all the first half of the twelfth century. The capital is the member by which the styles are more easily distinguished than by any other. The abacus (A, Fig. 4) is square in section. (Figs. 9 to 14): Norman mouldings, which were almost endless in variety. They were most abundantly used in doorways and other arches and in horizontal strips. The most general is the zigzag (Fig. 14). (Fig. 9): The star. (Fig. 10): The round billet (a square billet is also used). (Fig. 11): The billet and lozenge. (Fig. 12): The beak-head. (Fig. 13): The bead course. (Fig. 14): The zigzag or chevron. (Fig. 15): Early Norman pier, recessed at the angles, and square edges, in St. Alban’s Abbey, 1080A.D.(Fig. 16): Norman doorway with recessed pillars and decorated head, at St. Mary’s, Shrewsbury. (Fig. 17): Norman chamfer.
The Earlier period of Norman architecture may be approximately closed in 1120A.D.(fifty-four years after the Battle of Hastings).
In the Later period the chisel took the place of the axe in the cutting of the ornament. Consequently there is a fineness and a more finished style of work, which could not be executed with the latter tool.
The Later or rich Norman style is chiefly characterised by the abundance of the ornament and the deep cutting. Sculpture, which was sparingly used in the earlier work, was frequently added to it at a later period, and as the style advanced, greater lightness and enrichment were introduced.
It is said that through the Crusades men saw the architecture of many cities, and their return from the wars was marked by a striking change not only in the masonry, but in the character and feeling of Norman work. It is said, also, that the ornaments in Later Norman work and in the Transition period which followed often partook very much of a Greek, Byzantine, or Oriental character.
St. Bartholomew’s Church, Smithfield, is a good specimen of Norman work. It was the church of the Augustinian Priory, founded 1123A.D.by Rahere, the King’s minstrel.
The rich doorways of this period form one of the most important features of Later Norman work. They are considered to be the most beautiful and characteristic specimens which remain to us, and the most elaborate workmanship was bestowed upon them by the Normans. They are generally round-headed and very deeply recessed, and frequently have several smallshafts at the sides of the doorway. The tympanum or semi-circular space above the door within the arch is frequently filled with rich sculpture (Pl.21, Fig. 2). The mouldings are richly overlaid with ornament, which, though of a peculiar and rude character, produces great richness of effect.
The west door of Rochester Cathedral is a very striking instance of this.
The windows are, in general, long and rather narrow, round-headed openings. Many of them were ornamented very richly in the same manner as the doors with zigzag and other mouldings.
PLATE 21.(Fig. 1): Very rich Norman sculpture from Shobdon Church, Herefordshire, about 1180A.D.(Fig. 2): South door, Kilpeck Church, Herefordshire, showing the richly ornamented arch, the decorated tympanum, and richly sculptured pillars at the sides. (Figs. 3 and 4): Ornamented capitals from York Minster. (Fig. 5): Ornamented capitals from St. John’s Abbey, Chester. (Fig. 6): Capital preserved in the Chapter House of Westminster Abbey, carved with the story of the Judgment of Solomon. (Fig. 7): Pointed arch with pure Norman mouldings and scalloped capitals from Malmesbury Abbey, Wiltshire, 1135-1139A.D.It is generally assumed thatallNorman arches are round, but the pointed arch, taken by itself, is no proof of change of style. The semi-circular arch is the characteristic form of the Norman arch, but there are a few Early examples in which the pointed arch is used, supported by massive piers. (Figs. 8 and 9): Bases of Norman columns.
PLATE 21.
(Fig. 1): Very rich Norman sculpture from Shobdon Church, Herefordshire, about 1180A.D.(Fig. 2): South door, Kilpeck Church, Herefordshire, showing the richly ornamented arch, the decorated tympanum, and richly sculptured pillars at the sides. (Figs. 3 and 4): Ornamented capitals from York Minster. (Fig. 5): Ornamented capitals from St. John’s Abbey, Chester. (Fig. 6): Capital preserved in the Chapter House of Westminster Abbey, carved with the story of the Judgment of Solomon. (Fig. 7): Pointed arch with pure Norman mouldings and scalloped capitals from Malmesbury Abbey, Wiltshire, 1135-1139A.D.It is generally assumed thatallNorman arches are round, but the pointed arch, taken by itself, is no proof of change of style. The semi-circular arch is the characteristic form of the Norman arch, but there are a few Early examples in which the pointed arch is used, supported by massive piers. (Figs. 8 and 9): Bases of Norman columns.
When Duke William of Normandy invaded England in 1066, the existing type of fortification called aburhwas a moated hillock, either wholly or partly artificial, surmounted by a timber stockade enclosing a wooden house or tower. He repaired and enlarged many of the existing strongholds, and also built many new wooden castles. But in order to overawe the conquered English he erected in the larger towns square stone keeps or castles, like the White Tower in the Tower of London. Gundulph, Bishop of Rochester, the great architect in the reign of William I., built the latter in 1081A.D.It is one of the best examples that we have of Early Norman work, and is a huge quadrangular structure more than 100 ft. square, built of rudely coursed rubble, with a vast amount of mortar.
Many of the existing Norman keeps were founded in the reigns of William I. and William II., but were rebuilt at a later period. These keepswere usually square or rectangular towers of stone (not having much height in proportion to the breadth), with small, slightly projecting square turrets at each angle, and one or more flat buttresses up the centre of each face, with a dividing wall passing up through the centre of the building from the ground. (Pl.22, Fig. 3, B C.)
Comparatively speaking, the windows were generally small, and the walls exceedingly thick. Those of the White Tower are 15 ft., and of Carlisle Castle 16 ft. thick. The connecting passages and staircases were constructed in the thickness of the masonry.
Norwich Castle, for its size, is a perfect type of the square Norman keep, and Castle Hedingham is another. Many magnificent stone keeps were built or rebuilt in the reign of Henry I., such as Rochester, Newark, Corfe, and Chepstow. Henry II. was also a great builder of keeps, and those of Dover, Canterbury, Scarborough, and Newcastle are shown by the Pipe Rolls to have been his work.
The solidarity of the keep made it impregnable against the siege operations of the day. Such a building could not be battered down, and at best it could only be injured by undermining. This was done by removing the earth from an angle of the building and gradually introducing wooden props. A fire was then kindled about them, and as the props burnt through, the wall fell.
The square keep was followed by the polygonal and the round ones. Coningsburgh is circular, Berkeley is circular flanked by four towers, and Oxford is polygonal. The base of the keep was generally “battered”—i.e., sloped outwards (see Fig. 1)—to give a firmer foundation and also that it might better withstand the operations of the sapper. Very few of the existing keeps have openings in the lower storeys, which were used either asdungeonsorstore rooms, and were only accessible by a trap-door from above. Generally there were two floors, occasionally three floors above the basement. One of these floors is assumed to have been thehall, and in the larger keeps the floor above it may have been reserved for the use of the ladies of the household. In the latter half of the twelfth century small mural chambers, probably for use as bedrooms, became more frequent.
In many keeps there werechapels, but every one contained awell, so that when besieged the occupants would not have to depend on outside sources for the supply of water. Dover Castle still has a well which is capable of supplying fresh water, although the keep is on the summit of a high cliff.
There were nokitchensin Norman keeps, as the cooking was either done on the roof or in a special building in the yard. Fire-places were not invariable. In the White Tower, where for a long time it was supposed that there were no fireplaces, holes in the wall have been found which probablyanswered the purpose of chimneys. There was onlyoneentrance, perhaps some 20 feet above the ground, sometimes approached by a removable wooden staircase, sometimes by a fore-building with elaborate precautions for defence. The only ornamentation to be found is at the entrance doorway, on the staircase, or in the chapel. The keep soon hadouter defencesadded to it—ditches, palisades, and outer walls of masonry.
Into the outer defences the cattle and stores from the surrounding country would be brought, and the dwellings of the soldiers of the garrison, together with the domestic offices and stables, were erected within these.
It is more usual to find the keep at one end than in the centre of the system of walls, and the whole was surrounded by amoat.
PLATE 22.(Fig. 1): Newcastle Keep, founded in 1080A.D.The battlements are of later date. In this keep there is a large room in the thickness of the wall, known as the King’s Chamber, and another which is assigned to the Queen. (Fig. 2): Rochester Castle, which was probably entirely rebuilt in the twelfth century on another site. The parapet or battlements are considered to be the original ones. (Fig. 3): Plan of the middle floor of the White Tower (Tower of London). A is St. John’s Chapel, and the circular stairs are shown in the corner towers, D D D. B C is the parting wall running through the building. (Fig. 4): A Norman castle. (From Grose’s “Military Antiquities.”) Showing the general arrangements of the buildings, etc.
PLATE 22.
(Fig. 1): Newcastle Keep, founded in 1080A.D.The battlements are of later date. In this keep there is a large room in the thickness of the wall, known as the King’s Chamber, and another which is assigned to the Queen. (Fig. 2): Rochester Castle, which was probably entirely rebuilt in the twelfth century on another site. The parapet or battlements are considered to be the original ones. (Fig. 3): Plan of the middle floor of the White Tower (Tower of London). A is St. John’s Chapel, and the circular stairs are shown in the corner towers, D D D. B C is the parting wall running through the building. (Fig. 4): A Norman castle. (From Grose’s “Military Antiquities.”) Showing the general arrangements of the buildings, etc.
Seals are held in the highest estimation as reliablecontemporaryauthorities in English heraldry, costume, armour, etc.
The matrix or die was usually of latten or bronze, and in the case of large seals two dies were used—one for the front, orobverse, the other for the back, or reverse—so that when complete the seal was similar to a coin or medal.
In the earlier seals pure white beeswax was used as the medium on which to impress the seal, and at other times this was coloured—green, red, brown, and nearly black.
There were two types of seals—Plaquéseals, those impressed in wax direct on the document, andPendantseals, in which the wax impression was suspended by cords, or a ribbon, or strip of parchment from the document. (Figs. 1, 2, 3). Great precautions were taken with regard to the Royal Seals, or the Great Seals, as they were called. Seals may be classed as: (a)Lay Seals—(1) Royal Seal, (2) Personal Seals, (3) Official Seals, (4) CommonSeals of Corporate bodies. (b)Ecclesiastical Seals—(1) Official Seals (Bishops, Abbots, etc.), (2) Corporate Seals (chapters, religious houses, etc.), (3) Personal Seals.
Many of the Royal Seals are very beautiful. TheGreat Seal, or the chief Royal Seal, was, and is still, in the keeping of the Chancellor, who has to keep it in his personal custody wherever he goes.
PLATE 23.(Figs. 1, 2, 3): Pendant Seals. (Figs. 4, 5): Obverse and reverse of silver penny of Stephen. (Fig. 6): Seal of Anselm. (Fig. 7): Reverse of Seal of Henry I. The obverse of Royal Seals bears a picture of the King seated on the throne in robes of peace, and the reverse the King on horseback armed for war. (Figs. 8 and 9): Obverse and reverse of a silver penny of William I. At the Conquest there was no change in the monetary system of England, and a coinage of silver pennies only, continued to be issued of the same character as under the Saxon Kings, and the silver penny continued to be the only coin until the end of the reign of Henry III. The weight was about 21 grains. (Fig. 10): Reverse of the Royal Seal of William I. He is represented on horseback, armed in a hauberk of leather on which metal rings are sewn. A conical helmet is on his head. He carries a typical kite-shaped Norman shield on his left arm, and bears a long lance with pennon in his right hand. The motto or “legend,” when translated, reads: “Know ye this William, Patron of the Normans, and by this seal recognise him King of the Angles.”
PLATE 23.
(Figs. 1, 2, 3): Pendant Seals. (Figs. 4, 5): Obverse and reverse of silver penny of Stephen. (Fig. 6): Seal of Anselm. (Fig. 7): Reverse of Seal of Henry I. The obverse of Royal Seals bears a picture of the King seated on the throne in robes of peace, and the reverse the King on horseback armed for war. (Figs. 8 and 9): Obverse and reverse of a silver penny of William I. At the Conquest there was no change in the monetary system of England, and a coinage of silver pennies only, continued to be issued of the same character as under the Saxon Kings, and the silver penny continued to be the only coin until the end of the reign of Henry III. The weight was about 21 grains. (Fig. 10): Reverse of the Royal Seal of William I. He is represented on horseback, armed in a hauberk of leather on which metal rings are sewn. A conical helmet is on his head. He carries a typical kite-shaped Norman shield on his left arm, and bears a long lance with pennon in his right hand. The motto or “legend,” when translated, reads: “Know ye this William, Patron of the Normans, and by this seal recognise him King of the Angles.”
It was natural that men whose profession it was to bear arms should engage in friendly contests with one another, and in this way acquire skill in arms as well as indulge in a manly pastime. When only two combatants fought, it was calledjousting. If a friendly trial of skill only were intended, the lances were blunt, and if swords were used it was only with the edge which could not inflict a wound on a well-armed man. This was thejoute à plaisance.
If the combatants fought with sharp weapons and put forth all their skill and force, it was thejoute à l’outrance.
When a number of knights were engaged on each side, it was called atournament.
Sometimes this was played with weapons of lath, the players being arrayed in gorgeous costumes. Sometimes the tournament was a mimic battle, and was then usually fought between hostile factions. In a contemporary MS. in the British Museum we have a detailed account of all the preparations for a contest of arms.
The heralds of the King, noble, or lady who designed to give a joust travelled to towns, castles, and sometimes from court to court of foreign countries, clothed in the insignia of their office, and made public announcements of the event in each place, inviting knights to come and try their skill against the home champions.
In the MS. there is an account of all the equipment that is required by a knight for such an occasion: a suit of armour and horse with trappings, an armourer, with hammer and pincers to fasten the armour, two servants on horseback in suitable costume, who are his squires, and six servants on foot, dressed alike.
As the fixed day approaches, the visitors flock from all parts, and find lodgings in the castle or in the town, or else pitch their tents in a meadow near the Castle. A suitable piece of ground is selected, barriers are put around it, and “grand stands” are erected for the ladies and gentry. On the day, the knights rise up at sunrise and bathe, and then are carefully armed, by their squires and armourers.
Then they come into the field, with their helms borne before them, and with servants (squires) carrying their lances. They are announced by the heralds to the assembled company of “ladyes and gentilwomen.” Each of the strangers who comes to the field has to satisfy the officer-at-arms that he is a “gentilman of names and armes,” and to take oath that he has no secret weapons or unfair advantage.
When this is satisfactorily completed, they put on their helms, and each of the home champions in turn runs two or more courses with a stranger knight. A course is successfully run if each breaks his lance full on the breastplate or helmet of his adversary, but neither is unhorsed; and they retire amidst the plaudits of the spectators.
If a knight is unhorsed, or lose his stirrup, he is vanquished, and retires from the game. Following that, there is probably a miniature tournament between the home champions and the strangers.
At length, when all have run their courses, the knights remove their helmets before the ladies, make their obeisance, and retire to their lodgings to change. Then they return, and a lady presents a prize to the one who is considered the best “juster,” and prizes of less value to those who have taken the second and third places in the contest, making a little speech suitable to the occasion. The herald comes forward and announces: “John hath justed well, Richard hath justed better, and Thomas hath justed bestof all.” A dance completes the function, in which the champion knight leads off with the lady of the tournament.
There were two distinct ways in which the jousting took place: (1) On an open course; (2) with a barrier. In the former, the combatants usually started from the ends of the lists, and met about the centre. In the latter, a wooden barrier was erected down the centre of the lists lengthwise, and, when the signal was given, the combatants charged, each of them having the barrier on his left. (Fig. 1.) For these two methods of jousting, different arrangements of armour were worn; for some, the upper part of the body was armed more than the lower limbs, and sometimes it wasvice versa.
PLATE 24.(Fig. 1): A joust between Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, and an opponent, each charging on the left of the barrier. The Earl of Warwick has his arms displayed upon his tabard, and there is also a display of arms on the trappings, or bardings, of his horse. This was not the first of the charges, for a broken lance lies on the ground. (From the Life of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, written in MS. by a Chantry priest of Guy’s Cliff, named Rouse, about 1485.) (Fig. 2): The combat on foot after the charge. The Earl of Warwick is armed with a lance, and the other knight with a pole-axe. Several splintered lances on the ground show that the combat has been going on for some time. The Earl of Warwick’s crest, “a bear with a ragged staff,” appears on his helmet, while his adversary has a single large feather as crest.
PLATE 24.
(Fig. 1): A joust between Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, and an opponent, each charging on the left of the barrier. The Earl of Warwick has his arms displayed upon his tabard, and there is also a display of arms on the trappings, or bardings, of his horse. This was not the first of the charges, for a broken lance lies on the ground. (From the Life of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, written in MS. by a Chantry priest of Guy’s Cliff, named Rouse, about 1485.) (Fig. 2): The combat on foot after the charge. The Earl of Warwick is armed with a lance, and the other knight with a pole-axe. Several splintered lances on the ground show that the combat has been going on for some time. The Earl of Warwick’s crest, “a bear with a ragged staff,” appears on his helmet, while his adversary has a single large feather as crest.
In Saxon times, little value was placed upon the bow as a weapon, but, after the decisive part it played at Hastings, its use was practised generally.
From early times, archers carried long stakes, sharpened at both ends, and when they took up their position on the battlefield, they stuck them into the ground before them, with the points sloping outward, to break up a cavalry charge which might be made against them. In the 12th century, English archers became renowned for their skill, and Richard I. himself used the long-bow on more than one occasion. By the end of the 13th century, it had come into great prominence. Each archer—in later times, at least—carried two dozen arrows under his belt, and archers sometimes carried great movable shields, which they fixed upright by means of rests, and so sheltered themselves from the enemy’s bowmen. They also carried swords, so that they could defend themselves, if attacked, hand to hand.
The great bow, or long-bow, was five feet long, and was formed of yew, which, at a range of 240yards, discharged a strong arrow, sharp and barbed. The arrows were usually “a yard or an ell long,” but one, now in the United Service Museum, recovered from the “Mary Rose,” which sank in 1545, is six feet long.
The archers always began the battle at a distance, as the artillery do in modern warfare, to disorganise the enemy before the main bodies came to actual hand-to-hand fighting. The cross-bow, or arbalest, had been used in sport for many years, but in the 12th century it came to be employed in warfare, though its use was forbidden by the Pope as “being unfit for Christian warfare.” It was driven out of use by the long-bow in England at the end of the 13th century. In the Continental armies, it continued to grow in use in preference to the long-bow, so that in time the long-bow became essentially an English arm. There were several kinds of cross-bows, which may be classified accordingly as the string was drawn back (1) by hand, (2) by means of a lever, and (3) by means of a wheel and ratchet.
The missiles shot from the cross-bow were short and stout, and had heads of different forms, and were called quarrels or bolts.
There were several reasons why the cross-bow was superseded by the long-bow: (1) A good bowman could shoot about six arrows while a cross-bowman was winding up his bow and making one shot. (2) The penetrative power of the arrow, and the distance which it could travel, were quite equal to those of the quarrel from the cross-bow. (3) Long-bowmen, using their bows when held in a vertical plane, could stand more closely together than cross-bowmen, who had to discharge their weapons while holding them in a horizontal plane. (4) Greater skill and strength were required in handling the long-bow with precision than was the case with the cross-bow; consequently, more practice was necessary, and more enthusiasm and confidence developed with the use of the former than with the latter.
Of the archers who took part in the Hundred Years’ War, Boutell says: “In those days, the archers of England were the best infantry in the world; but then their famous long-bow acquired its reputation, in no slight degree, from the fact that, in peace, archery was the favourite pastime of the English yeomanry.” Crecy, Poitiers, Agincourt—indeed, most of the great victories gained over the French—mainly resulted from the unrivalled skill of the English long-bowmen. All our old writers are agreed upon the vast superiority of our English bowmen over those of other nations. The Scotch depended on their pikemen and the French on their men-at-arms.
The English archers were held in high esteem and trust by the English nobles, and it was the custom for some English barons and distinguished knights always to join the archers in battle, fighting side by side with themin their own ranks. On the other hand, the French nobles were very arrogant, and despised the common people, who were, consequently, made unfit to become good soldiers.
But the reputation of English archers rose so high that several foreign princes, in the 15th century, deemed their armies materially reinforced if they could retain 200 or 300 English archers in their service.
In 1363, and again in 1388, statutes were passed in England calling upon people to leave their popular amusements of “ball and coits” on their festivals and Sundays, and to practise archery instead. “Servants and labourers shall have bows and arrows, and use the same on Sundays and holidays.” By an ordinance made in the reign of Edward IV., every Englishman or Irishman dwelling in England was required to have a “bow of his own height, either of yew, witch-hazel, ash or auburne, or any other reasonable tree, according to their power.”
Butts were encouraged in every parish, and traces of them still remain in the names of places, as “Newington Butts.” Henry V., who was very proud of his English archers, ordered the sheriffs of several counties to obtain geese feathers for his archers, plucking six from each goose.
The arrows were carried in a quiver, or bound together into a sheaf, suspended from the waist-belt. When the battle was about to commence, the archer placed his arrows under his left foot, point outwards, or stuck them, point downwards, into the ground, or into his girdle. He was able to discharge his bow twelve times in a single minute, at a range of 240 yards, and “he, who in these twelve shots once missed his man, was very lightly esteemed.” In the reign of Edward III., a painted bow sold for 1s. 6d., a white bow for 1s., and sharp-pointed arrows at 1s. 2d. per sheaf of twenty-four.
As is well-known, at Crecy, and in many other battles, the English archers shot down or wounded the horses of the French knights so considerably that, in their pain and terror, the maddened horses upset the ranks of the cavalry and quite destroyed its efficiency.
At first, archers were not protected by body armour, but in later times they worejazerinejackets, consisting of overlapping pieces of steel, fastened by one edge to a garment of canvas, and then covered over with velvet or cloth.
A similar defensive garment of the 15th and 16th centuries was thebrigandine, a specimen of which may be seen in the Tower of London. Archers often woresalades, or shell helmets, which covered the head and eyes, and sometimes had movable visors.
PLATE 25.(Fig. 1): An English archer of the 15th century, wearing a salade with movable visor to protect the head. It will be noticed that he has stuck67-68some arrows into his girdle, so that they may be “handy” for shooting. See Fig. 8 also, and compare with Fig. 7. (From Royal MS., 14 E. iv.) (Fig. 2): An English salade. This was worn by archers, and it also formed the usual head-piece for soldiers about the time of Henry VI. (Wars of the Roses.) (Fig. 3): A Brigandine, from a specimen in Warwick Castle. (Figs. 4 and 5): Quarrels, quarells, or bolts, for shooting from the cross-bow or arbalest. Fig. 4 is feathered; Fig. 5 is from the Tower of London. (Fig. 5a): A bird-bolt, used for shooting birds from a “sporting” cross-bow. (Fig. 6): An English arrow of the ordinary form during the Middle Ages, showing the sharp projection of the barb, which rendered the extraction a difficult and painful matter. (Fig. 7): An English archer using the long-bow, and cross-bowman winding up his cross-bow. It will be noticed that the former is left-handed, as the arrow was usually drawn back with the right hand and shot from the right shoulder. He has arranged his arrows for shooting by sticking them, point downwards, into the ground at his side. Both he and the cross-bowman are wearingjazerinejackets, but the former has a camail and a chain mail jacket beneath it. The cross-bowman has, hanging from his girdle, a leathern bag, to contain the quarrels for his cross-bow. (Fig. 8): A sea-fight, showing four archers using the long-bow, one cross-bowman, and one soldier using the military flail. One of the archers has placed his arrows in his belt, as in Fig. 1. (From the Cambridge MS. of the “Greater Chronicles,” by Matthew Paris, who died 1259A.D.)
PLATE 25.
(Fig. 1): An English archer of the 15th century, wearing a salade with movable visor to protect the head. It will be noticed that he has stuck67-68some arrows into his girdle, so that they may be “handy” for shooting. See Fig. 8 also, and compare with Fig. 7. (From Royal MS., 14 E. iv.) (Fig. 2): An English salade. This was worn by archers, and it also formed the usual head-piece for soldiers about the time of Henry VI. (Wars of the Roses.) (Fig. 3): A Brigandine, from a specimen in Warwick Castle. (Figs. 4 and 5): Quarrels, quarells, or bolts, for shooting from the cross-bow or arbalest. Fig. 4 is feathered; Fig. 5 is from the Tower of London. (Fig. 5a): A bird-bolt, used for shooting birds from a “sporting” cross-bow. (Fig. 6): An English arrow of the ordinary form during the Middle Ages, showing the sharp projection of the barb, which rendered the extraction a difficult and painful matter. (Fig. 7): An English archer using the long-bow, and cross-bowman winding up his cross-bow. It will be noticed that the former is left-handed, as the arrow was usually drawn back with the right hand and shot from the right shoulder. He has arranged his arrows for shooting by sticking them, point downwards, into the ground at his side. Both he and the cross-bowman are wearingjazerinejackets, but the former has a camail and a chain mail jacket beneath it. The cross-bowman has, hanging from his girdle, a leathern bag, to contain the quarrels for his cross-bow. (Fig. 8): A sea-fight, showing four archers using the long-bow, one cross-bowman, and one soldier using the military flail. One of the archers has placed his arrows in his belt, as in Fig. 1. (From the Cambridge MS. of the “Greater Chronicles,” by Matthew Paris, who died 1259A.D.)
The discovery of gunpowder, which, by degrees, totally changed military tactics and the constitution of armies, was the event that most powerfully influenced warfare in the Middle Ages. Very little is known about its actual invention. It is supposed that Greek fire, which was used with such terrifying and destructive effect in warfare, particularly in sieges, consisted of the three ingredients of gunpowder, with resin and naphtha in addition.
Roger Bacon, an English friar, discovered the secret of the composition of gunpowder in the latter half of the 13th century; but Schwartz, a Franciscan, at Cologne, perfected it about a century later.
The use of cannon for siege purposes commenced in England in the armies of Edward III. Froissart says that the English army used them against Calais, when besieging it in 1347. But there were very few made at first; an important fortress like the Tower of London, in 1360, only mounting four guns, while Dover Castle, in 1372, had six.
When first introduced, cannon were small and vase-shaped; they were slow in fire, and very liable to accidents.
They were called “bombards,” and were mounted upon a wooden cradle or frame. Towards the end of the 14th century, they had become of large dimensions, firing heavystoneshot of from 200 to 450 lbs. weight. All the shot were stone until, because they did not do sufficient damage in battering down a wall, it became the practice to bind and otherwise strengthen them with iron.
The earliest cannon were of the rudest possible description. They were made of bars or thin sheets of iron, arranged longitudinally over a wooden core, in the form of a tube, around which were welded iron hoops to hold them together.
In 1338 there existed breech-loading guns, with one or more movable chambers, to facilitate loading, but, even then, the fire was very slow; “three shots an hour was fair practice for a big bombard.” It is not certain when wheeled carriages were introduced, though mention is made of two-wheeled bombard carriages in 1376; but it must be remembered that the gun at first was looked upon as a substitute for the balista and other war machines employed in the siege of a fortified place. Its value as an effective and movable weapon on the battlefield was not realised for some time.
The powder was fired at first by the insertion of a red-hot wire, but this was often very dangerous to the gunners, because the gun was so liable to burst. James II. of Scotland was killed by the bursting of a gun at the siege of Roxburgh in 1460. It became the custom, in the case of large bombards, for a small train of powder to be laid from the ground leading to the touchhole. The gunners fired the train, and then hastily betook themselves to a place of safety.
The earliest known representation of a gun in England is contained in a MS., “De Officiis Regum,” at Christ Church, Oxford, of the time of Edward II. (1326). It shows a knight in armour, firing a short, primitive weapon, shaped something like a vase, and loaded with an incendiary arrow—that is, one charged with an inflammable substance. Firearms of this type were evidently very small, as only 2 lb. of gunpowder was provided for firing forty-eight arrows.
From the beginning, contrivances had been made to resist the recoil of the gun when it was fired; heavy timbers, etc., were packed up against the breach to prevent the gun from flying backwards, but this plan often brought about the bursting of the gun. About the middle of the 15th century, trunnions (small cylinders of solid metal projecting from the sides, at right angles to the axis of the gun) were formed with the gun, and by means of these the recoil of the gun could be transferred to the carriage, and the pivoting of the gun up and down on the trunnions made the laying and sighting an easier task.
Stone cannon shot were employed until 1520, and, when it was considered necessary to use very heavy projectiles, correspondingly enormousguns had to be built. Mons Meg, a well-known gun in Edinburgh Castle, of this large type, is a wrought-iron gun of the 15th century. It is built of iron bars and external rings, with a calibre of 20 inches, and it fired a shot weighing 350 lbs.
Bronze guns, of a great size, were cast in 1468 at Constantinople, and one of them is now in the Rotunda at Woolwich. It was actually used in warfare against the English at the Dardanelles, in 1807. To show the destructive power of such a large piece of ordnance, even though a crude and ancient construction, it may be mentioned that the stone shot, weighing 700 lbs., which was fired from it against the English fleet, cut the mainmast of the British flagship in two, and another killed and wounded sixty men. These old 15th century guns in the battle altogether accounted for six of our men-of-war damaged and 126 men killed and wounded. The gun at Woolwich is in two pieces screwed together. The front part has a calibre of 25 inches for the reception of the shot, and a rear portion, forming a powder chamber, 10 inches in diameter. The whole gun weighs nearly 18¾ tons, and was presented to Queen Victoria by the Sultan of Turkey.
Late in the 15th century, guns began to be more regularly employed on the battlefield. In the 16th century, the extremely large guns were discarded, and small, wrought-iron guns were made, this change being due to the use of cast-iron shot, which was as destructive as the more bulky stone shot formerly used.
In 1521 the first bronze gun was cast in England, cast-iron cannon being made also in 1540, by foreign workmen, introduced into this country by Henry VIII. to teach the English the art. The first foundry was at Uckfield, in Sussex, and Sussex iron was used, smelted with charcoal.
The small gun of this period was made very long, and a specimen is to be found in Dover Castle. It is known as Queen Elizabeth’s Pocket Pistol, and is 24½ feet long, with a bore of 4¾ inches. It was cast in 1544, and was presented to Henry VIII. by Charles V.
Generally speaking, the English were much behind other nations in the use of artillery until the end of the 18th century. The quality of the gunpowder used in the early days of the cannon was very poor. The ingredients were often mixed on the spot at the time of loading, and the powder burnt slowly, with but little strength, and naturally varied from round to round. When the more fiercely-burning granulated powder was introduced into England, in the middle of the 15th century, it was often too strong for the larger pieces of that date, and could only be used for small firearms for more than a century afterwards.
In the 17th century, bronze and cast-iron guns were strengthened, and were more adapted to the use of grained powder, and, at the same time, more energy and greater range were obtained.
PLATE 26.(Fig. 1): Bombard or mortar of a very early date. (From a MS.) (Fig. 2): Vase-shaped bombard of a date posterior to the reign of Henry IV. It is fastened to a wooden bed or trough, which rests on a movable pivot in a stout square timber frame. (From a MS.) (Fig. 3): A soldier with a hand-gun fitted to a stock. (From a treatise, “De Re Militari,” printed 1472.) (Fig. 4): An early gun, in a primitive gun-mounting. It is supported on a massive timber framing at each side, while the flat breech is resting against a strong wooden support, driven into the ground, to prevent recoil. (From Mallet’s “Construction of Artillery.”) (Fig. 5): A gun as used during the chief part of the 15th century. It is fixed on the swivel principle, being suspended between the branches of an immense fork of iron. The elevation or depression of the gun was effected by means of a large iron bar, in the form of a scythe, standing in a vertical position. The whole thing is fixed on an iron plate fastened on a massive bed of oak. (Fig. 6): A hand-gun of the reign of Edward IV., fired by means of a match. (From Roy. MS., 15 E. iv.) (Fig. 7): A gun called a Peterara, of the time of Edward IV., in the Rotunda at Woolwich, made of bars of iron laid longitudinally, and bound together with iron hoops. The powder chamber is seen, with the handle to raise it, and there is a locking arrangement, so that it cannot be blown out when the gun is discharged. It has trunnions, and is fastened into the metal frame, which supports it on the wooden carriage. (Fig. 8): A cannon of the 15th century, more of the form of the mortar, supported in a wooden framework. (From Roy. MS., 14 E. iv.)
PLATE 26.
(Fig. 1): Bombard or mortar of a very early date. (From a MS.) (Fig. 2): Vase-shaped bombard of a date posterior to the reign of Henry IV. It is fastened to a wooden bed or trough, which rests on a movable pivot in a stout square timber frame. (From a MS.) (Fig. 3): A soldier with a hand-gun fitted to a stock. (From a treatise, “De Re Militari,” printed 1472.) (Fig. 4): An early gun, in a primitive gun-mounting. It is supported on a massive timber framing at each side, while the flat breech is resting against a strong wooden support, driven into the ground, to prevent recoil. (From Mallet’s “Construction of Artillery.”) (Fig. 5): A gun as used during the chief part of the 15th century. It is fixed on the swivel principle, being suspended between the branches of an immense fork of iron. The elevation or depression of the gun was effected by means of a large iron bar, in the form of a scythe, standing in a vertical position. The whole thing is fixed on an iron plate fastened on a massive bed of oak. (Fig. 6): A hand-gun of the reign of Edward IV., fired by means of a match. (From Roy. MS., 15 E. iv.) (Fig. 7): A gun called a Peterara, of the time of Edward IV., in the Rotunda at Woolwich, made of bars of iron laid longitudinally, and bound together with iron hoops. The powder chamber is seen, with the handle to raise it, and there is a locking arrangement, so that it cannot be blown out when the gun is discharged. It has trunnions, and is fastened into the metal frame, which supports it on the wooden carriage. (Fig. 8): A cannon of the 15th century, more of the form of the mortar, supported in a wooden framework. (From Roy. MS., 14 E. iv.)
PLATE 27.This engraving, taken from Rouse’s MS. ‘Life of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick’ (British Museum, Julius E. iv.), of the latter part of the 15th century (1485) gives a very clear representation of a ship and its boat. The Earl is setting out on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. In the foreground, we see him, with his pilgrim’s staff in hand, stepping into the boat which is to carry him to his ship, lying at anchor in the harbour. The costume of the sailors is illustrated by the men in the boat. The vessel is a ship of burden, but such a one as kings and great personages had equipped for their own use, resembling an ordinary merchant ship in all essentials, but fitted and furnished with more than usual convenience and sumptuousness. In Earl Richard’s ship, the sail is emblazoned with his arms, and the pennon, besides the red cross of England, has his badges of the bear and ragged staff. The ragged staff also appears on the castle at the masthead.
PLATE 27.
This engraving, taken from Rouse’s MS. ‘Life of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick’ (British Museum, Julius E. iv.), of the latter part of the 15th century (1485) gives a very clear representation of a ship and its boat. The Earl is setting out on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. In the foreground, we see him, with his pilgrim’s staff in hand, stepping into the boat which is to carry him to his ship, lying at anchor in the harbour. The costume of the sailors is illustrated by the men in the boat. The vessel is a ship of burden, but such a one as kings and great personages had equipped for their own use, resembling an ordinary merchant ship in all essentials, but fitted and furnished with more than usual convenience and sumptuousness. In Earl Richard’s ship, the sail is emblazoned with his arms, and the pennon, besides the red cross of England, has his badges of the bear and ragged staff. The ragged staff also appears on the castle at the masthead.
The castle, which all ships of this age had at the stern, is, in this case,roofed in and handsomely ornamented, and, no doubt, formed the state apartment of the Earl.
There is also a castle at the head of the ship, known as the forecastle, though it is not very plainly shown in the drawing.
It consists of a raised platform; the round-headed entrance to the cabin beneath it is seen in the picture; the two bulwarks also, which protect it at the sides, are visible, though their meaning is not at first sight obvious.
Incidentally, also, are shown the costumes of the men-at-arms, with the small, round, close-fitting cap, and the various forms of shafted weapons. No one is in armour.
Mr. W. Laird Clowes, in “Social England,” describing this picture, says: “The ship is clincher-built (i.e., the planks overlap one another), with a rudder and roofed stern-cabin or round-house. In the bulwarks of the waist are apertures (not portholes), through which cannon are pointed. The mainmast has shrouds, a top and one large square sail. The mizen is much smaller, and has one sail, which is reefed. The top is ornamented with the Earl’s device, a ragged staff. From above it floats what in the bill (still preserved) of Seburg (painter)” and Ray (tailor) is described as “a grete stremour of forty yards length, and seven yardes in brede, with a grete Bear and Gryfon holding a ragged staff, poudrid full of ragged staves and a grete Crosse of St. George.”
As many references have been made in this work to “Brasses,” and a number of the illustrations of armour and costumes are taken from them, it is fitting that a section should be devoted to so important a series of national records.
Monumental Brasses are plates of brass, embedded in stone slabs, which have been placed over graves in the floors of our churches and cathedrals.
Their use began early in the thirteenth century, and took the place of the carved stone slabs, which had, up to this time, served as sepulchral monuments. Their value is as great as their interest, for they represent very accurately, and with the weight of contemporary authority, the costumes and armour of our ancestors.
They are found from the reign of Edward I. down to the time of Cromwell, and may be seen in many churches throughout the length and breadth of the land. There are between three and four thousand that are known to exist at the present time, these forming, however, only a small proportion of the number originally existing. At the Reformation, particularly in the reigns of Henry VIII. and Edward VI., and during the time ofCromwell, when the fanatical Puritans ravaged our churches and cathedrals, many thousands were torn up and sold as old metal; while during the misguided “restorations” of many of our churches very large numbers have disappeared or have been destroyed. In most cases where the brasses remain they are in excellent condition, notwithstanding the fact that they have been trodden over by generations of worshippers. On account of the great hardness of the metal of which they are composed, they are almost as fresh and “sharp” now as when they left the hands of the engravers.
There is an additional advantage which the brass possesses over the stone monument, and that is that the brass is found as a memorial of members ofeveryclass of society—the knight, the noble, the bishop, the abbot, the priest, the nun, the lord of the manor, the judge, the lawyer, the University don, the merchant, the wool-stapler, the yeoman, women of every rank, and even the schoolboy, have their brasses.
In speaking of their value as historical records, Mr. Macklin says: “Brasses give a complete pictorial history of the use and development of armour, dress, and ecclesiastical vestments from the thirteenth to the end of the seventeenth century.... All these (members of every class of society) we see, not in fancy sketches, but in actual contemporary portraits.” Perhaps one of the greatest values of the brass is that it is a great and authentic record ofmiddle-class costumeduring the Middle Ages.
Light, too, is thrown by them upon the social conditions and customs of the people, for example, when, during the Wars of the Roses, practically every noble was ranged under one or other of the rival banners, we find there was a greatincreasein the number of brasses of the middle classes, showing that in the midst of civil strife not only were they unaffected to any appreciable degree, but that the property and wealth of the middle and trading classes were actually on the increase.
Thematerialof which the brasses were made consisted of 60 parts of copper, 30 of zinc, and 10 of lead and tin. This gave a very hard alloy, which would stand very hard usage. It was calledlattenorlaton, and until the reign of Elizabeth was manufactured exclusively in Flanders and Germany—particularly at Cologne, whence they were often termedCullenplates.
They were imported into England in rectangular plates of the required thickness. When the plates were manufactured in England, they were very much thinner, and consequently more liable to injury; so that though they are not nearly so old as the earlier brasses, they are yet in a much worse condition.
In the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth centuries brasses were manufactured in great quantities, and the work gave employment to many people. It is probable that the engravers worked in guilds established in London, Norwich, Ipswich, and Bristol.
The figure was drawn (generally in a recumbent position, with the hands in the attitude of prayer) upon the flat brass plate, and then the lines of the armour, the folds of the drapery, and the features, etc., were deeply cut into the metal.
After these lines had been engraved, the whole figure was cut out of the plate just as a child cuts out a figure from a picture.
A brass consisted of the following parts:
(1) The figure or figures; (2) heraldic devices and armorial bearings on shields; (3) mottoes or epitaphs; (4) other subsidiary figures or ornaments (angels, canopies, etc.).
In the English brass each of these elements was cut out separately and placed in position upon a stone slab. The outline was then marked round each, the brasses were lifted off, and the stone cut away in the portions thus marked out, to a depth equal to the thickness of the brass. The plates were then placed in position in this stone matrix, the surfaces of the brass being level with the surface of the stone, and each piece was fastened down by means of metal screws.
In a number of cases, part or even the whole of the brasses on a slab have disappeared, but the empty matrix clearly shows the general form of the missing parts. (Fig. 1.)
We have in England a few magnificent brasses of a different kind that were manufactured and engraved entirely in Flanders or North Germany, and they are known as Flemish brasses. The great difference between the English and Flemish brasses is that in the former the figures were cut out of the rectangular sheets of metal, and the lines of the drawing were bold and few in number as was compatible with clearness; whereas in the latter the brass was kept in a rectangular form, and the whole plate was engraved as the plate of a picture might be. The figures were incised upon a background which was entirely filled in with diapered ornaments and suitable heraldic devices and patterns, while the inscription was engraved around the edge of the plate.
In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the inscriptions on all brasses were in Norman French; in the fifteenth century they were in Latin; and in the sixteenth century in English.
In the reigns of Edward I., II., III., and Richard II., the brasses rose to their highest quality and magnificence. The figures were usually life-sized; the lines were deeply and boldly cut, and there was an absence of “shading,” the brass being usually a pure, outline, incised drawing.
In the reign of Edward II., architectural canopies were often introduced (Fig. 1), and then the figures were consequently made less than life-size. At first only knights and ladies were represented, but in the reigns of Edward III. and Richard II., members of the great middle classes, which were increasing in power, wealth, and public influence, were included.
From the time of Henry IV. to Richard III. the brasses were not of so high an order, and at the latter part of the period they began to deteriorate in quality and size.
The Tudor period may be called the decadent period of brasses, for the drawings were often disproportionate and lightly cut, the figures crude, and the plates thin. There is often an excess of “shading” in them which detracts from the beautiful simplicity of the drawing. The practice of laying down these brasses, probably through these very causes, began to decay, the last known being laid in 1773A.D.
Copies of brasses, orrubbings, are made in a very simple and interesting manner by taking a sheet of white lining paper (plain wallpaper), laying it upon the brass, and carefully rubbing over it with a piece of shoemaker’s heel-ball. The flat portions of the brass “catch” the heel-ball during the process, while the incised lines are left white, and if care be taken that the paper does not shift, a very faithful copy of the brass can be made. The rubbing should be continued until a deep black tone is obtained, for the heel-ball does not smear on the paper.
Most clergymen are proud of the brasses in their churches, and readily give permission for rubbings to be taken from them if a courteous application be made.
Brasses are not scattered at random throughout the country. They are met with most frequently in the eastern and home counties. Probably this is because these parts are nearest to Flanders, and the cost of transporting the sheets of brass far inland would be a considerable addition to their cost.
(For those who wish to pursue this subject, Macklin’sBrasses of England(Methuen) and Suffling’sEnglish Church Brasses(Upcott Gill) will be found most useful, as in addition to other matter they contain a register of all brasses known in the British Isles.)