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Chris Dobson

Master Armourer

Reconstructions: Two early 16th Century tonlet armours for the Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds (1995-97).

The commission from the Royal Armouries for two tonlet armours was a common example of having to combine a series of surviving pieces to create an armour from a certain period: in this case the English Court in the early 16th Century, which would still have been using a lot of imported Italian armour, or armour produced in the Low Countries, either influenced by Italian fashions or made by Italian emigrè armourers. Tonlet armours were intended for a foot combat with pollaxes and swords. The helmet was rigidly bolted to the cuirasse to stop the wearer getting a broken neck, and the deep skirt, or tonlet, could be worn to protect the groin, since the wearer did not have to sit a horse.

The first helmet was based on the Wimbourne Minster Bascinet, the cuirasse and vambraces were based on an armour in Mantua (Museo Diocesano, B11), the tonlet skirt, legharness and the pauldrons on the Tonlet armour of Henry VIII (Royal Armouries) and those of Claude Vaudrey and the Emperor Maximilian I (Vienna). The gauntlets were based on pieces in the Royal Armouries.

Photos: Above right, the finished tonlet armour, which can now be seen in use in the Tournament Gallery of the Royal Armouries Museum. Below, a series of photos of the same armour. Click on the thumbnails to see the full-size photos. All photos Rod Ebden, armour modelled by Adam des Forges.

Next row from left to right (all photos from an arming sequence being filmed for TV): Adam des Forges in cuirasse and legharness (with Chris Dobson and David Edge of the Wallace Collection), Chris Dobson bolting the great bascinet onto the cuirasse, and finally Chris Dobson handing Adam his pollaxe.

The second armour was meant to compliment the first, but be recognizably different to the public. Therefore the helmet was based on one in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, which has a completely smooth visor, and the pauldrons were given a lighter look, being fitted with besagews. However, the gauntlets are extremely heavy, and based on a pair on the Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds. Otherwise, the armour is based on pieces in Mantua and Vienna as above. It was photographed under rather unflattering conditions when delivered to the Royal Armouries. Modelled again by Adam des Forges, although it wasn't made for him, so we had to leave the greaves open.