This thick quilted 15th Century gambeson with padded shoulders is crafted from thick cotton and is fastened in the front with leather lacings. The interior of the gambeson is lined with cotton felt. As this gambeson is crafted from organic material, it will breathe better than other poly-fill gambesons on the market.
This gambeson is handcrafted, sizes will vary slightly – so these measurements should be taken as approximations.
A thick, padded jacket common to Medieval and Renaissance warriors, the Gambeson was a protective layer beneath chain or plate armor – it served both as a shock absorbing layer and chafe protection for its wearer. Poorer combatants and lightly-armored archers and skirmishers might wear only the gambeson as their major piece of body armor.
Gambesons first began to be common in the 10th century and were largely intended to be a layer beneath chainmail. By the later years of the Medieval era, it became common for soldiers to wear a substantially thicker gambeson, sometimes called a padded jack, as their main armor. Quilted with many layers of fabric, typically linen, a padded jack could act like a sort of kevlar and give its wearer excellent protection from cuts and slashes. It could even stop arrows in some circumstances. Additional protection could be added to such gambesons with jack-chains, a sort of partial-plate protection which could stop a strong slash from cutting into the shoulders and arms.
SIZING
SMALL
Chest Size: 37 1/4 (94.6 cm)
Length from Neck to Bottom of Coat: 33 3/8 (84.7 cm)
Weight: 6 lb 7.8 oz
MEDIUM
Chest Size: 40.5 (102.8 cm)
Length from Neck to Bottom of Coat: 35 3/8 (89.8 cm)
Weight: 6 lb 9 oz
LARGE
Chest Size: 43 1/2 ( 110 cm)
Length from Neck to Bottom of Coat: 35 3/8 (89.8 cm)
Weight: 7 lb 2 oz
X-LARGE
Chest Size: 46 3/4 ( 118.7 cm)
Length from Neck to Bottom of Coat: 35 3/8 (89.8 cm)
Weight: 7 lb 5 oz
XX-LARGE
Chest Size: 49 7/8 (126.6 cm)
Length from Neck to Bottom of Coat: 35 3/8 (89.8 cm)
Weight: 7 lb 7 oz
Glaucos Osborne –
Tough, heavy and very much a piece of armour in its own right. It’s also stiff when new, so it will take some breaking in before it gets supple around the elbows. This also, like other padded jacks, gets hot. Ideally, use with Jack-Chains to improve the arm defence. The puffed shoulders prevent a chain hauberk going over the top, though a breastplate could sit nicely on the front to provide hard cover for the vital areas. I found I needed a good leather belt around the midriff to keep the front opening from flaring open when I did any upper body movement, but I am overweight, if you are average or slim, the leather ties provided should be enough. I like it, though the heat generation is problematic for me, so it will be in use much more when I get to a colder climate. A high quality, one piece armour solution.