I'm not here today for fun, no!
Pictures of past years and terrible troubles, Where groans and betrayals are next to the throne, Majesty thrilling scenes
Let's introduce you now. Kind other
In sorrowful meditation and sometimes cry -
There is something over here. Who pays for the tickets
Hoping to comprehend the truth somewhere, He will find her. And who expects from the play
Only two or three bright scenes will not reproach
Us for mistakes, and it is understandable:
In total for a shilling he will spend notably
It's two hours here. And is it only the one
Who will come here for the sake of grease, Or fighting with swords and shields, Or funny scenes with colorful jesters, Will be deceived. Believe me gentlemen
We can't escape the shame
When we mixed the heights of truth
With jesters and shields in this room
(William Shakespeare "Henry VIII")
Museum collections of knightly armor and weapons. When in 1511 Henry VIII founded a small workshop in Greenwich, not far from the royal palace, and put Italian craftsmen from Milan there, and then added Flemings to their team, no one suspected that in this way a completely unique “Greenwich style of knightly armor. He felt like a great sovereign, but when in 1514 Emperor Maximilian I sent him as a gift magnificent armor with a "tonlet", the work of Konrad Seusenhofer from Innsbruck, he could not answer him in the same way.
And it was a terrible blow to his pride and, of course, to the prestige of his kingdom. Therefore, the next year, he sent bronniks to London from Germany itself, who were called "Alemans". In 1516 the workshop was relocated to Southwark, in 1521-1525. again returned to Greenwich, where she already remained until 1637.
Although the armor was supposed to reproduce the Germanic ones, according to Henry VIII, they nevertheless carried both Germanic and Italian features, in connection with which the Greenwich armor, although it was made by German craftsmen (with the participation of English apprentices), is highlighted by researchers in a separate style.
Well, and the goal of this workshop from the very beginning was only one: to challenge the gunsmiths and monarchs of all neighboring countries by making armor so luxurious that Henry would cause them the darkest envy in them. And the workshop did not disappoint his hopes. Several sets of knightly armor were made for him. And today we are very lucky that many of them have survived to this day, even if only some fragments have remained from some. Well, during the reign of Mary and Elizabeth, the armor that was made in the royal workshop was also able to be ordered by their courtiers.
Actually, the "Greenwich style" was developed by the masters of this workshop not immediately, but only in the second half of the century. So, the model of the helmet "Arme", which appeared in Germany, after 1525 received its development here due to the fastening of the cheek pads on the hinges, and they were produced until 1615. Greenwich visors were distinguished by the characteristic "breakwater" or "bow of the ship" shape. And, of course, decorativeness striking everyone's eyes.
Acquaintance with the armor of Henry VIII, created in the Greenwich workshop, I think, should begin with the armor of 1540. It was probably made for the Westminster tournament, which was to take place in the same year. It is decorated with etching and gilding in the Holbein style. Moreover, we note that it was again a headset.
Initially, heavy field armor had a set of parts for converting them into tournament ones, both for equestrian combat and for foot. The set for foot combat did not have sabatons and a spear hook, which the infantryman did not need. The hips are also protected only by tapes, which in general reduces the weight of the armor, the weight of which the person wearing them wears only on his shoulders.
Such headsets appeared around 1500 and turned out to be a godsend for both gunsmiths and their customers. The former could now have more customers, changing only individual parts in the already made armor, but the knights … saved a lot of money on equipment.
But the decoration of armor has become mandatory, so … all the savings turned into just new expenses!
So, at the beginning of the 16th century, patterns on armor were applied using a grabster (a sharp cutter with beveled edges), which was a very laborious and expensive task. But at the same time, acid etching began to be widely used. And it was it that came out on top among the technologies for decorating armor. Although in the last Thursday of the century, some of them even began to be covered with stamped drawings and patterns.
The first method consisted of pouring the acid onto a surface that had been scratched into a wax pattern with a needle. The second method, which came into practice around 1510 in Germany and a dozen years later in Italy, was that the protective layer was now applied with a brush, and the needle was used only to draw the smallest details. The perfectly smooth surface has gone out of fashion, but the grainy surface has become fashionable. And to get it, a way was devised to spray tiny droplets of wax on the surface of the metal. Then the metal was treated with acid, and the wax was removed or reapplied.
Germany turned out to be the first country where gunsmiths used this technology and began to decorate the smooth plates of Italian armor in this way. Since acid treatment made it possible to decorate armor very quickly, this technique became the most important in transforming armor into works of art. Moreover, in Greenwich, at first the Italian technology was used. But after 1570, the local craftsmen adopted the German practice, adding, however, their English flavor.
The deeply etched patterns were filled with niello. But the surface, grainy etching was covered with gilding. Moreover, a blacksmith, mercury method was used, when gold was dissolved in mercury, the resulting gold-mercury amalgam was applied to the metal, and then the part was heated. The mercury evaporated - so this method required very good ventilation, and the gold was tightly combined with the metal of the armor. Foiling was also used. But it was more expensive. And, in addition, very small corrugations had to be applied to the metal so that the foil would bond well with it.
Silver foil was sometimes used in this manner. Given that the most famous example of such a technique is the armor and horse armor of Henry VIII, made in 1515.
Gilding was used on the edges of plates and details, or on decorative stripes. Sometimes, if the finances of the customer allowed, they gilded the background, leaving the color of steel on the figure protruding from it. Or they did it like this: the background and lines of the drawing were inked (typical German work) and then white polished metal stood out from the black background. The surface could be painted by controlled heating, which gave a dark blue or reddish brown color to the surface. In economical Germany, armor was also painted, but such "cheap armor" was not found among high-ranking people in England. To put them on to the courtier of a king or queen meant not only to cover oneself with indelible shame, but also … to offend their discerning gaze!
Under Henry VIII, embossed armor from the inside came into fashion. Such armor, horse, was presented to Henry by the emperor Maximilian. Coinage was also used to make grotesque tournament helmets, which, however, was more typical for Germany, although helmets with "faces" are known both in the collections of Sweden and England.
The Damascus technique of decorating metal with the smallest notches, which were filled with gold or silver, was also used. However, in England it is rare. Armor was decorated with both gold and silver chased plates, and even precious stones, even at the beginning of the 16th century.
By 1540, that is, by the date engraved on this armor, 49-year-old and fat Henry VIII was no longer the handsome and stately man who competed in the Field of Golden Brocade in 1520. Nevertheless, the king still longed for universal admiration and, most importantly, clearly wanted to impress his new queen, Anne of Cleves. It is believed that this armor of Henry VIII was made for the May Day tournament held at Westminster Palace in 1540.
It was Henry VIII who introduced the fashion for gulfs at his court. And it is not surprising that this detail was also on the armor made for him - well, how could it be without him …
The armor was cleverly "designed" to fit Henry's considerable size, while tapering to the waist and hips so that it was less obvious how fat he was. The armor was made by Erasmus Kirkenar, master of the Royal Armories in Greenwich. The armor is adorned with narrow, engraved and gilded borders, mostly filled with wavy foliage. However, the two sets of reinforcing plates for the knightly tournament used drawings of mermaids from the English Sketchbook (English Sketchbook) (1534-1548) by Hans Holbein the Younger. The identity of the engraver remains unknown. Perhaps it was the Florentine painter Giovanni da Maiano (circa 1486–1542) or Francis Kellblaunche, the engraver of the royal armor of 1539.
The story about the armor of Charles I is yet to come …
