https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGl_UXc9HIE

This week they posted a very interesting video on Onsrud's Facebook. As the name suggests, they reconstituted a late 14th century based in some sources, which includes the Black Prince's effigy. I found the video very interesting and would like to discuss a few things with you:

There is some reference point out the use of this type of "white breast plate" in the period in which the Black Prince lived (or died)? Why wore mail chausses under the plate leggings in the fourteenth century, but not in the fifteenth one?

I'm deeply dubious about full mail chausses under greaves. Have they read Dr. Capwell's book? I'm thinking at the very most mail knickers (instead of voiders at the knee) and the little patches of mail at the base of the greave that they wore for so long into the 15th century. Keep in mind when the effigy was made, which was some years after the death of the Black Prince. I'm also seeing a backplate of some sort in that effigy, with a very interesting shape.

I don't claim to have that much expertise with this timeframe as far as armor goes, but does anyone else think the mail shirt and bishop's mantle and helm with aventail seems a bit much? Wouldn't a laced close-necked shirt and some sort of semi-rigid neck defense or early gorget and them helm with aventail make more sense, and save weight?

The bishop's mantle is totally over the top, at least as far as the Black Prince effigy is concerned. Mail 'standards' and 'pisans' show up pretty early, though.

Pedro,

I am not sure. We clearly do have some who opt for the full shirt all the way into the 15th as Monstrelet states in his chronicle. Full mail chausses I can see to a degree but there is less clearance in many ways with the legs. It could be as Mart is saying or perhaps something akin to what Chris Gilman came up with for his splendid harness. Unless the back of the greaves are open and we can see mail though I think it is hard to say with clarity but even then it might just be the rear being mail.

That said for many years I usually supposed the bits of mail were not very common in the 14th. I had come across a few hear and there but nothing to make me think the full mail was not largely still present. That is until Thom's PhD research started coming out. Even when he told me about some of his finds I did not really grasp how common until it done.

I still wonder what likely is the combination. It is not hard to find inventories of knights with the full plate harness and mail shirt. That said I have not seen any with what I know to be full mail chausses.

There does seem to be a great deal of use of full mail chausses with the padded cuisses and poleyns for the first half of the 14th.

I am pretty sure the nech mail could use some revision, there is a backplate of some nature needed and who knows on the legs but over all it is neat.

RPM