Coat of Arms Shield
January 31st, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed
The term of the coat of arms should only really be applied to the ‘coat of arms shield’, however the term now means all the components that make it up namely:
- The shield
- Crest
- Supporters
I will go into each element of the coat of arms within this series of reports. Within the first report we will cover the coat of arms shield.
The shield is the essential element of the coat of arms and together with the banner is the main symbol that people associate with medievel times.
In the 11th & beginning of the 12th Century, the ‘coat of arms shield’ were long, narror and kite shaped and covered most of the body, They had rounded tops and were made of wood and provided protection to most of the body. These were used at Hastings and during the first crusade.
During the 12th century the tops of the coat of arms shield became flatter and the decoration displayed were much more personal.
In the 13th Century, the shields became shorted and were similar to the shape of a base of an iron, called a heater shield. This style remained throughout most of the 14th Century. These however started to be phased out as a direct result of cross bows and arrows being developed. Plate armour then began to become introduced as a means of protection.
In the 15th Century, the coat of arms shields had been virtually abandoned by mounted knights and were retained for heraldic purposes - notably at tournaments.
In the 16th Century, the coat of arms shields were used predominently for heraldic display and its use as a protection armour was virtually abondoned.
From the 17th Century, the coat of arms shield began to become very ornate. This disply of colour could have never been used on the battlefield.
The design of the shields continued into the 18th century & 19th century and had adopted the ’spade’ shape. These are the designs that remain to this day.
