Medieval Helmets

Nasal Helmet

As a main piece of defense, the continuous coif, named this way because it was continuing the hauberk, is seen constantly in the Bayeux tapestry. It occurs also in many seals of the 12th Century, and in vellum paintings of this time. The hood of mail made separately from the hauberk does not appear till the 13th Century.

The helmets not having nasals were chiefly conical, round and flat-topped.

The cylindrical or flat-topped Medieval Helmets appears to have came into fashion towards the close of the 12th Century.  In its earliest examples, the casque was of one piece, having two horizontal clefts for vision, and being strengthened by bands crossing each other over the face and on the top.

At the beginning of the 13th Century, the continuous coif is still part of the hauberk of chain-mail.  The shape was flattened at the top of the head. In the second half of the century, the round topped coif was more usual.

Helm With Movable Ventail-13th Century

The Medieval Helmets developed into the cylindrical casque, which is common in the 13h Century.  The term cylindrical must not always be understood literally. In some cases, the cylinder swells, taking the barrel form. It had a grated-ventail by which a better supply of air could always be obtained.  A still more abundant provision occasionally was acquired by opening the ventaglia, constructed with hinges at the sides.

An important change in the defensive equipment of the warrior is marked by the development of the helm, the great casque enclosing the whole head of the knight. The great casque came into use towards the end of the 12th Century. From now on, the Medieval Helmets can be classified in two categories: helms and helmets. The term helm will be used to designate the new type of headpiece, while the helmet will designate a piece of diminished completeness, the non-closed casque.

There were two leading kinds of helms: the helm was either one piece, or the front was provided with a moveable ventail. The flat-topped helm with movable ventail appears about the middle of the century. The successive changes of fashion supply a further division of the helms: the flat topped, the round topped, and the sugar-leaf form. Around 1270, the round-topped helm came into vogue. The helm was worn over the coif of chain-mail.

The helmets may be classed as the hemispherical, the cylindrical, the conical, and the nasal. The bascinet was in use at this time, but do not appear to have been anything more than the round-topped skull-cap.

Sugar Loaf Helm-14th Century

The head-defenses of the 14th Century may be considered under the same two classes of helms and helmets.  Helms provided freedom of breathing by means of perforations in the lower part. Some helms have holes made on the right side, in order that the lance of the antagonist, who, if in a tilt passed on that side, might glide off freely.

Helms were made mainly of iron or steel, and were occasionally guilt.  For war, the great helm was placed over the bascinet.

During this period, the Medieval Helmets became more sophisticated , and the movable visor was introduced. The helmets of the 14th Century are composed chiefly of a mixture of iron-plate and chain-mail.  Among them, the visored bascinet with camail was much in vogue. It was made of three parts: the skull-piece, the visor, and the camail.

The visor, which turned on side pivots, could be removed, so it allows the helm to be added to the knight defenses by placing it over the bascinet. However, this was not a rule, as the visored bascinet itself was sometimes used for war, instead of the helm. It is in this century that the beaked bascinet was also introduced.

Visored Bascinet-15th Century

The Medieval Helmets classification under the two categories of helms and helmets still applies in the 15th century.  The helms of this century exhibit crests of every variety of fanciful design. Thought a particular crest was no doubt generally worn by each knight, it was not unusual for a champion to appear with the crest of some remote ancestor. Sometimes, no more than a plume of feathers was worn in lieu of any definite cognizance.

The beaked bascinet was in use, as illustrated in the illuminations of the beginning of the century, and the Medieval Helmets were further diversified with the introduction of the bascinet with globose (rounded) visor.