[Stephen Curtin]

Well after doing some more research into adargas, I dont think that they were the basis for Irish or Scotish leather shields, if they even existed at all. First according to the OED, the the words targe and target came from targa, so the fact that adarga sounds similar is probably just coincidence. Second, even though on Wikipedia's (not a great source, I know) adarga page says that adargas could be round, heart shaped, or a double ovoid shape, I've never seen a round one, and by the 16th century the heart shaped style seems to have developed into the double ovoid (which I think a better description would be apple shaped). So if there were round adargas I doubt that they were common, whereas the description from Spenser states that Irish leather shields were definately round, so they were just painted in Spanish fashion, nothing more. Third, again Wikipedia says that adargas could have a central grip or be strapped to the arm, but I've only been able to find evidence for a central grip, so they don't seen to bare any resemblance to the targe/target.

As Spenser also describes the men of Ulster as carrying wicker shields, something that has been in use in Ireland since the bronze age, it's possible that they leather shields were also similar to bronze age leather shields found in Ireland, like the Clonbrin shield, a hardened leather buckler. Perhaps both these type were in continued use from the bronze age right through the medieval period.

BTW does anyone here know of any referrences to bucklers being used among the Gaels from say 1200 - 1600 AD?

[Stephen Curtin]

[Stephen Curtin]

Lately I've been looking into the idea of Scottish lowland pikemen using a targe, and I've come up with some thoughts.

15th century Scottish parliament legislation describes the equipment expected to be brought to muster, and while men able to use a bow are expected to bring a bow, arrows, a sword and buckler, men unable to use a bow are expected to bring an axe and a targe. What I'm thinking is that these men unable to use bows were the army's pikemen, the pikes not mentioned because they were probably provided for them. These targes are not mentioned in 16th century legislation, but this can be explained by King James IV using French captains to train his men in continental tactics.

Other than the Scots, I've read that pikemen in the army of Charles the bold used targes.

[Stephen Curtin]

Here http://www.mugellorinascimento.it/eng/exhibitions/arms/arms.html is one more italian shield which prooves that highly tooled leather faces were not solely a Scottish phenomenon. Now all I have to investigate its whether or not the hundreds of brass nails used to decorate targes were also used elsewhere.

[Stephen Curtin]

So yesterday I went and re-read two Osprey titles (not always reliable, I know), Scottish Renaissance Armies 1513 - 1550 by Jonathan Cooper, and Gallowglass 1250 - 1600, and they've given me a couple of ideas.

First of all, I think that the thought of highlanders adopting targes from lowland pikemen is incorrect. In Scottish Renaissance Armies, Mr. Cooper quotes a description by William Patten (an eyewitness to the battle of pinkie cleugh) of the Scots pikemen. When describing their shields he says "they were new boards' ends cut off being about a foot in breadth and half a yard in length; having on the inside handles made very cunningly of two cord lengths". Patten also is quoted as saying that the pikemen wore these targets/bucklers (he seems to use the terms interchangibly) on the left arm, while grasping the pike with both hands. These targets seem to be fairly crude affairs, simply made of wooden planks, with cord handles. They also seem to match the 15th century legislation stating targes should be made of leather OR of wooden boards with two hands on the back. To me these seem far too crude to be the forerunner to the later highland targe.

The book also describes highlanders fighting at the siege of haddington, which happened the year after pinkie. They are described (taken from another eyewitness, Jean de Beaugué) as fighting with bows, broadswords and targets. In the link at the bottom of the post, the quote is expanded and it states that highlanders used the same type of shield as the lowlanders. Now it is possible that this crude type of shield was used in the highlands, as the only ones using shield there at this time were the poor caterans.

Now from reading Osprey's book on Gallowglass, my understanding of highland warfare before say 1600 is that the wealthy fought in formations as heavy infantry, armed with helmets mail and two handed axes and swords, while the poorer classes fought as skermishers mainly with bows and other projectile weapons. So as bowmen, these cateran were probably mostly using bucklers instead of targets, because one, it seems more, practical, two its what archers in other countries used, and three the 15th century legislation state that men who can shoot a bow should carry a buckler. Although some text like Patten's seem to use the two terms interchangibly, this legislation make a clear distinction between the two.

Now after 1600, the wealthy clansmen dropped the armour (although a small proportion continued to use armour and axes, as seen by the 1638 roll of Atholl), and started using baskethilts and targes, but where did these come from. Well we know that the Scottish baskethilt originated in England, so perhaps so did the targe. We know that in wooden targets were used in tudor England, I recently read an inventory of Henry VIII which mentions 8 wooden targets, painted and adorned with velvet.

Some historians like James Drummond (highland targaid and other shields) think that the targe evolved from a long line of small round shields used by the Irish and Scots, in the bronze and iron ages, but I doubt that this is the case. I think that it would be too much of a coincidence if highlanders, without outside influence, switched from buckler type shields, to round shields strapped to the arm, at roughly the same time as other European countries. That being said the highlanders obviously decorated their targes in a very distinc native style, which might have been used on earlier shield types.

This article has lots of interesting quotes and descriptions of Scottish clothing, arms and armour http://www.electricscotland.com/history/articles/armour.htm

[Stephen Curtin]

So after alot of reading and contemplation on this matter, I think that I'm finally satisfied.

I believe that targets/targes came into use in Ireland and the highlands at some stage of the 16th century, about the same time that they became popular in the rest of Europe. I also think that earlier referrences of targets (which literally means little shield) were actually what we would today call bucklers. This is difficult to prove because the two terms were often used interchangibly by authors. The one place I have found that makes a distinction between bucklers and targes, is the 15th century acts of parliamant, but these targes seem to be some kind of make-shift shield for pikemen. I now think that the reason that I had such a hard time doing this research was that shields probably weren't all that common in this period of Irish and Scottish history, and this is because of the dominance of two handed weapons i.e. axes and bows.

As for the decorative elements, some late 14th / early 15th century grave slabs from Keills chapel, Knapdale, Scotland, show two bucklers one of which seems to have it's leather surface embossed with celtic designs. This not only proves the usage of bucklers (albeit, not too common) in the highlands, but possibly also points to a tradition of decorated shields dating back to the Picts. The patterns of brass nails and plates, probably started out as structural feature, like on some continental examples, and these became more decorative and elaborate as time went on.

I realise that none of this is ground breaking, and many of you might have reached the same conclusions years ago, but I felt as though this is something that I needed to look into myself instead of just taking someone elses words at face value. I think that I have probably considered every possible angle about where the targe might have come from, and I'm back to my original theory again, but at least now I don't have those pesky what-ifs to bug me. Thanks everyone for your help, and thanks for reading.

[Stephen Curtin]

Since all of these threads either branched off of this one, or helped to expand it, I figured that I'd group the links here to make it easier for people to find them all.

Wicker targes
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=14267

Irish Adarga
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=23186

Iron clad wooden bucklers
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=23273

Rondel dagger and buckler
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=23431

Did Scots pikemen use shields?
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=23240

Tudor Period Shields
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=22235

Scottish shields from 1100-1600?
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=7317

Medieval Highland Shields and Warfare
http://www.swordforum.com/forums/showthread.p...nd-Warfare

[Stephen Curtin]

Here are two more thread which relate to this one.

16th - 17th Century Targes
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t...90c562a9f3

One last Irish shield question
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?p=225201#225201

I feel as though I should clear something up here. Recently on another forum, somebody questioned my intensions on starting all of these threads on Irish and Scottish shields, and I think it only fair that I answer it here aswell, in case anybody here thinks the same. This person questioned whether I was writing a thesis or a book about these shields, due to the amount of questions I have asked lately, and he also wanted to know if I would credit my sources if this was the case. So first off let me just say that, no I will not be writing anything about what we have been discussing here, and if I was I would certainly be giving credit where it is due. I sincerly hope that nobody thinks that I'm trying to steal anybody elses research, or withholding any of my own. I think that if anybody wants to, they could read this thread, and follow all the links that I've provided, then they would have a good idea of my thought process and where I've been getting my info from. I realise that I've been stuck on this topic for quite some time and that I've approached it from many different angles, on different forums, so if my constant questions have become tiring or annoying then I apologise. I merely have an insatiable curiotsety for arms and armour, and I hate leaving questions unanswered. I would also like to thank everyone again, for all of their help in answering my questions.