Many of our members own armour. The correct term for a suit of armour is a harness.
A harness consists of multiple parts that work together to protect the wearer, and each harness is a compromise between mobility and protection. As a rule, the more protection, the less mobility. Some harnesses are optimised to worn for foot combat, others are best suited for combat on horseback. It was also common to wear part armour, or have pieces that could be swapped out for other ones (for example lighter shoulder defenses for foot combat vs heavier ones for jousting),
Early forms of armour were padded cloth, leather, and maille. In Europe, from the early 14th Century onwards, plate harness was increasingly used by armed fighters. There are distinct styles that developed from those early days through the 15th Century and onwards, as well as regional differences.
Within the King’s Horses we currently focus on the late 15th Century, but within the group, some members also have earlier armour styles. Our 15th Century harnesses are replicas based on originals, art-work or manuscripts in Austria, Germany, Italy and England. As each harness is quite different from the others, you may wish to explore the pages linked below for more pictures and descriptions.
