A gauntlet is a special type of protective glove that shields a warrior's hand and wrist. Gauntlets were especially used in Europe from the early 14th century until the early modern period. They were often made of hardened leather or steel plates, and sometimes they also covered the forearm area.
Origins and Early Protection
From the 11th century onwards, European soldiers and knights primarily relied on chainmail shirts for body protection. For the hands, they used chain mail mittens, also called muffs.
These muffs were often attached to the hauberk with leather laces. They had an opening at the bottom, so the wearer could quickly remove them for better grip or freedom of movement when needed.
Development of Plate Gauntlets
At the beginning of the 14th century, armourers began experimenting with full plate armour for the hands. This led to the first true gauntlets, made up of overlapping steel plates. Two important types emerged from this.
Hourglass Gauntlets
The earliest form of full gauntlets are the so-called hourglass gauntlets. They owe their name to the characteristic shape at wrist, which provided extra protection.
In this type, each finger was individually protected by small, movable plates. This provided a good combination of protection and flexibility.
Demi-gauntlets
In the same period, the demi-gauntlet also appeared. This protected only the back of the hand and the wrist, while the fingers remained covered by chainmail or a padded leather glove.
The main advantage of the demi-gauntlet was its lower weight and greater freedom of movement. However, the downside was that the fingers remained more vulnerable.
Mittens (Plate Mittens)
At the beginning of the 15th century, the so-called plate mittens appeared, also known as mittens. In this type, all fingers were jointly protected under one wide plate.
This meant fewer loose parts were needed and the plates could be made thicker and stronger. This made the mittens particularly robust, but it came at the cost of fine motor control.
An interesting variant from this period combined both systems: on the outside, wide plates like mittens, but underneath still small, individual plates for extra flexibility.
Return of Gauntlets
From the middle of the 15th century onwards, gauntlets with individual fingers largely returned to favour. These offered a better grip on weapons and more control during combat.
Yet there was always a trade-off between protection and mobility. Gauntlets remained in use well into the 17th century. During the English Civil War, for example, cavalrymen sometimes wore just one gauntlet. With it they held the reins, while the other hand was protected by the basket-shaped hilt of swords like the mortuary hilt backsword.
Archaeological Evidence
A well-preserved, almost intact 14th-century gauntlet was discovered during an excavation at Kyburg Castle in Switzerland in 2021–2022. This shows how advanced hand protection was at that time.
