THE MEDIEVAL KNIGHT AND HIS ARMOUR
One Knight on horseback was worth 80 men on foot. This made knights the military of the middle ages. They inspired our idea of chivalry courtesy and manners. Well armed they feuded, they went to war as vassals of their feudal lords, and risked their lives in tournaments to win fame and honor.

Every knight needed one set of armour for tournament and one for warfare. Each cost a fortune. Suits of armour had to be made to measure. There were over one hundred and fifty parts, such as gauntlets, breastplates, thigh plates, helmets, and from top to toe, each had to fit perfectly. Protecting oneself in battle has always been a concern for any soldier, and medieval knights were no exception. In fact, it was their protective armor that helped define them as a military unit and social class as armoring oneself during the Middle Ages was a great expense that only the wealthy could afford.

From Head Gear to Heraldry
To offer better protection from penetration and to lessen the bruising or breaking of bones by the blows of axes or maces, plate armour was employed either under or over the mail shirt. The head was protected with a helmet manufactured from specially hardened leather or metal. The employment of helmets made it impossible to recognize the wearer on the battlefield and led to the development of a system of devices to enable identification which became known as "arms", the province of "heraldry".

Originally, the "devices" were painted onto either the side of the helmet or on a fan attached to its top, directly replacing the obscured face as a means of identification. Soon the devices appeared on a gown worn over the body armour, on the knight's shield, on the cloth covertures of the knight's steed and sometimes on banners when encamped. The Arms became hereditary, passing to the son on death or, more rarely if the knight died with no direct heir, to his son-in-law. The arms also became widely used as a badge or emblem of the of the owner, often being employed in buildings and frequently found in churches.