A knight’s helmet is called a bascinet or basinet. The bascinet was the most common type of helmet worn by knights in Europe during the 14th and 15th centuries. It evolved from earlier helmet designs to become the most effective form of head protection for knights on horseback.
The Evolution of the Bascinet
Early medieval helmets like the Norman nasal helmet and the great helm provided good protection but impaired the knight’s vision and hearing. As knights began facing more skilled opponents on the battlefield, the need arose for a helmet design that combined protection with improved visibility and communication.
The bascinet solved these problems. It was a close-fitting helmet with a hinged visor that could be lifted up. This enabled the knight to see and breathe freely when the visor was up. When closed, the visor protected the face while retaining good outward vision through eye slits. A mail aventail (neck guard) was usually worn under the bascinet to protect the neck.
Bascinets first appeared in the early 14th century. They became more popular as the century progressed, evolving with improvements in metallurgy and manufacture. Earlier bascinets were made of iron while later models were made of steel. Some incorporated leather parts for a better fit.
Key Features of the Bascinet
Here are some of the key features and parts of a typical bascinet helmet:
- Skull – The domed main part covering the head.
- Visor – Face protection that could be lifted and lowered.
- Ventail – The adjustable mail neck guard attached to the bascinet.
- Ailette – A blade or rod on top to deflect downward sword blows.
- Bevor – A chin and neck protector of plate or mail, sometimes attached to the bascinet.
Advanced bascinets incorporated features like removable visors, helmets that opened entirely for better ventilation, and detachable face guards. High quality bascinets were custom made for individual knights.
Materials and Construction
Bascinets were primarily constructed from iron or steel. Some key materials and methods used in their construction:
- Iron or Steel: Earlier helmets used iron while later models used higher quality steel as it became more available. Steel provided increased strength with less weight.
- Forging and Shaping: The main metal parts of the bascinet were forged on an anvil and carefully shaped to form the domed skull and other pieces.
- Tempering: Heating and cooling the metal gave it flexibility and additional strength.
- Decoration: Etchings, engravings, and silver or gold gilt finishes were sometimes added for decoration.
Rivets, leather straps, woven linens, and other organic materials were used for things like the lining, fitting adjustments, and ventilation. The best bascinets were custom made by master armorers to fit the owner.
Visor Types and Vision
Bascinets had different visor configurations including the following:
- Hinged visor – The most common type, where the visor pivoted up on a hinge. Good vision when open.
- Detachable visor – The visor could be completely removed. Used for maximum vision and ventilation.
- Pinned visor – Pins on the side secured the visor. Fewer moving parts but vision more limited.
- Open-faced – Some designs omitted the visor for better vision but less protection.
When closed, the visor had eye slits or holes to see through. Small holes gave limited vision while larger openings compromised protection. High end bascinets balanced vision and protection.
Advantages of the Bascinet
Here are some of the advantages that made the bascinet a significant advancement over earlier helmets:
- Good protection – Effective at deflecting blows from swords, maces, etc. Better than previous helmets.
- Vision – Hinged or removable visor enabled good outward vision.
- Hearing – Ears less covered than great helm and nasal helmet designs.
- Movement – Close fit and light weight provided greater freedom of movement.
- Ventilation – Visor could be opened for air flow.
- Customization – Individual knights could have customized fits.
Together these advantages made the bascinet well-suited to the evolving tactics and needs of 14th century knights. Its design dramatically improved the knight’s combat experience and capabilities.
Disadvantages of the Bascinet
Despite its overall advantages, the bascinet also had some drawbacks and limitations including:
- Limited neck protection – The mail aventail didn’t provide full protection for the neck.
- Vulnerable face opening – An upward sword thrust could enter the vision slit when the visor was up.
- Less surface area – Provided less protection than great helms for blows to the side of the head.
- Not full head coverage – The back and some sides of the head were exposed.
- Restricted breathing – Breathing could be difficult with the visor down for prolonged periods.
Knights had to weigh protection against vision, breathing, mobility, and communication. Later bascinet variations attempted to address some of these weaknesses.
Bascinets in Jousting Tournaments
Jousting tournaments were a popular form of entertainment and training for medieval knights. Combatants wore specialized jousting armor including helmets designed for jousting.
Early jousting helmets were derived from war helmets like the great helm. But these offered poor visibility through the narrow eye slits, a major handicap in jousting. So helmets were developed specifically for jousting that incorporated larger eye openings and a more streamlined shape to glance off hits.
Bascinets were adapted into jousting helmets by adding reinforcing bars and larger vision slits. Though not as specialized as helmets solely made for jousting, the bascinet’s hinged visor and lightweight design leant itself well to being modified for tournaments.
The Bascinet’s Decline and Revival
By the early 1500s, the bascinet was starting to be superseded by new helmet designs utilizing more plate armor. The classical knightly bascinet and plate harness armor fell out of favor as gunpowder weapons made them obsolete on the battlefield.
But bascinets and medieval armor saw a revival starting in the 1800s. Modern historical reenactments, theaters, museums, TV shows, movies, and other medieval arts have brought renewed interest. Bascinets are prized as historic artifacts and art objects.
Specialized bascinets are still made today by custom armorers for collectors, reenactors, theaters, and museums seeking to authentically recreate medieval arms and armor.
Conclusion
The bascinet was one of the most important advancements in medieval helmet design. Its excellent vision, protection, comfort, and communication capabilities represented the pinnacle of functional armor for knights. This innovative helmet played a key role in the evolution of arms and warfare during the 14th and 15th centuries.
Though it became obsolete on the battlefield centuries ago, the medieval knight’s bascinet is still admired today as a symbol of chivalry. Its form and function embody the era of knights in shining armor that still lives on in our collective imagination.