Medieval battlefields were chaotic and hectic events for the common soldier. Even experienced and well-trained fighters ran a great risk of being struck by an opponent.
To limit the damage of injuries, soldiers used various forms of body protection. Most surviving examples of armour are made of steel, but steel protection was expensive.
One of the simplest forms of armour was a quilted garment made of fabric. This was made by quilting two or more layers of fabric together, often filled with padding, or by sewing multiple layers of fabric on top of each other. Such a garment offered good protection on its own, but was also often combined with chainmail shirts or later with plate armour.
Quilted clothing was necessary to absorb the impact of blows on the body. Chainmail shirts and plate armour offered protection against cuts and, chainmail shirts to a lesser extent than plate armour, against stabbing weapons.
Without a quilted underlay, the wearer of these types of body armour would be defenceless against percussion weapons that could cause trauma to the organs.
Historical background
Various medieval manuscripts and images show examples of quilted clothing, such as jacks, aketons, gambesons and jupons.
Although it is generally assumed that chainmail shirts and plate armour were always worn together with quilted clothing, it is often unknown how these were precisely made, because few genuine surviving examples exist.
Some images show, for example, a chainmail shirt that may have been worn directly over a simple tunic. It's possible the artists didn't intend to show the detail, but it's also possible that the quilted garment was often sewn directly to the chainmail shirt.
The earliest mention of quilted clothing comes from the 12th century. Since then there is evidence that it was worn both alone and in combination with other armour.
Early Medieval gambesons
Quilted armour was not a 12th-century invention. In classical antiquity, the Romans used the subarmalis, which remained in use into the early Middle Ages. It is estimated that later, the Vikings and Normans also wore a form of quilted armour, which could be as simple as a thick woollen caftan.
Construction of quilted clothing
Quilted armour could be made in two ways. By filling a garment with padding or by sewing many layers of fabric on top of each other, sometimes more than twenty, to make a thick protective garment.
The padding consisted of wool, linen, animal hair or old scraps. Wool was often used because it was breathable and didn't make the body too warm. In old texts, the word fustian is sometimes used for the padding, probably a fabric of mixed linen and cotton.
Types of quilted clothing
The most well-known names for quilted clothing are aketon and gambeson. Often these terms were used interchangeably and it is unclear whether both were a different type of body protection.
Both could also be worn without steel body armour. Some soldiers even wore two layers: one under the chainmail shirt and one over it.
Gambeson and Aketon
A gambeson was often worn tight around the body, so there was room for the metal armour over it. It was usually made of linen and simple in appearance, but sometimes decorated. Gambesons had long sleeves, which could be straight or scalloped, and a collar that was quite stiff.
The length of the gambeson adapted to the armour: in the 12th and 13th centuries, the chainmail shirt reached to the knees, which we call a hauberk. Around this time, the gambeson was also this length.
In the late 14th century, plate armour developed and there was less need for a long mail hauberk and gambeson. This type of chainmail shirt was replaced by the haubergeon.
Around this time, gambesons became shorter and acquired a tight-fitting waist. Often these models can be fastened at the front with buttons. These later variants are also called arming pourpoint, which further developed into the arming doublet.
Well-known examples of this type of gambeson are from Edward the Black Prince and that of Charles VI of France. These garments were form-fitting and made of multiple layers of linen with wool in between. Edward's gambeson was laced, while that of Charles VI was closed with wooden buttons. They could be worn both over and under metal armour.
Protective effect
Quilted clothing certainly offered protection: tests show that a garment of 16 layers of linen offered about the same protection as 5 mm boiled leather against sword or axe blows.
How do I wear a gambeson
During the High Middle Ages, the gambeson was probably worn directly over the tunic.
Over this sometimes went the chainmail shirt. In this outfit it is advisable to provide the gambeson with leather laces at the shoulders to which the chainmail coif, malien coif, can be attached.
An alternative option was to wear a gambeson over the chainmail shirt. In our experience, this is isolating but offers great protection.
From the 14th century onwards, plate armour developed. In the 1st half of the 14th century, the gambeson, chainmail shirt with a coat of plates, elbow armour, shin and knee pieces can therefore be combined.
From the 2nd half of the 14th century, you can choose to wear the gambeson under plate armour, since around this time the cuirass made its entrance.
Even common soldiers wore around this time sometimes a combination of steel and quilted armour, such as the Visby militia from 1361.
Despite the rise of plate armour, the gambeson retained a fixed place, especially among soldiers who couldn't afford metal.
Even in the 16th century, the quilted jacket remained popular with infantry, although it was then seen more as a simple, cheap form of protection for those who didn't wear plate armour. Armour parts were then mass-produced as munition armour.
Extra quilted protection
Gambeson cuisses
Gambeson cuisses were thick, quilted upper leg protectors, similar to steel cuisses. They are depicted, among other places, in the Maciejowski Bible from 1240 and could later probably also be worn under plate armour.
Gambeson cuisses can be used as an underlayer to secure knee pieces. They are highly recommended to ensure that knee pieces stay in place comfortably.
Gambeson collar
On the Maciejowski Bible, it is visible that in 1240 gambeson collars were worn separately. From the 14th century onwards, these gambeson parts were ideal for attaching the mail camail. This type of mail collar was attached directly to the bascinet, making the mail coif unnecessary.
Although camails can be worn separately. The use of a quilted collar is ideal for extra neck protection and also ensures that your beard doesn't get caught in your camail.
Arming cap
The arming cap was a soft, quilted cap worn directly on the head. This cap serves as an underlayer for helmets or mail coifs so that the steel doesn't press directly against the skull. These caps are ideal for anyone who wants to wear a historical helmet. They were even used into the 16th century.
Fully closed arming caps could be attached to the inside of the great helm, great bascinet, armet or closed helm.
Internal links
- Arming Doublet: quilted armour jacket from the 15th century
- Pourpoint: medieval jacket and armour underlay
- Chainmail coif: Medieval head and neck armour
- The cuirass: medieval chest and back armour
Sources:
- Visual Source: The Crusader Bible (Morgan Bible, ca. 1240), which shows knights putting on and taking off their gambesons (with or without mail).
- Academic Literature: The Armourer and his Craft by Charles ffoulkes.
