Hauberk - History

History

The word hauberk is derived from the Old Frankish word halsberg, which originally described a small piece of mail that protects ("bergen", lit. "to give protection, to save, to rescue") the throat and the neck (the "Hals"). The Roman author Varro attributes the invention of mail to the Celts. The earliest extant example was found in Ciumeşti in modern Romania and is dated to the 4th–5th centuries BC. Roman armies adopted similar technology after encountering it. Mail armour spread throughout the Mediterranean Basin with the expansion of the Romans. It was quickly adopted by virtually every iron-using culture in the world, with the exception of the Chinese. The Chinese used it rarely, despite being heavily exposed to it from other cultures.

The short-hemmed, short-sleeved hauberk may have originated from the medieval Islamic world. The Bayeux Tapestry illustrates Norman soldiers wearing a knee-length version of the hauberk, with three-quarter length sleeves and a split from hem to crotch. Such armor was quite expensive—both in materials (iron wire) and time/skill required to manufacture it—so common foot soldiers rarely were so equipped.

The hauberk stored in the Prague Cathedral, dating from the 12th century, is one of the earliest surviving examples from Central Europe and was supposedly owned by Saint Wenceslaus. In Europe, use of mail hauberks continued up through the 14th century, when plate armor began to supplant it. In parts of Central Asia, it continued to be used longer.

In Japan, a form of hauberk called kusari katabira (chain jacket) was commonly worn by the samurai class and their retainers.