Torse - medieval heraldry headband

Torse - medieval heraldry headband

Starting its way as entirely practical elements, after a while, torse and mantling became a symbol or true knighthood and must-have of knight emblem.

In the beginning was a torse… No, not like this…

Firstly, in time of the first Crusade, crusaders were boiling in their mails and crusader helmets alive and saw agal on the heads of Bedouins. This thick fabric roller, stuffed with crude wool, twisted and tied in a ring, was pressing keffiyeh to bedouin’s head, preventing sunstrokes and cushioning an impact of sabers. By admiring the smarts of the Saracens, knights shamelessly borrowed design of agal, slightly changed it and called a torse. After returning in Europe, crusaders were not in hurry to throw heretical accessories out, so the torse became a high-status medieval headband, a symbol that knight was really taking participation in Crusades, killing heretics under glaring sun, but not relaxing in the north chill.

During the second Crusade, noble men with a faith on the tips of swords realized a core of main purpose of torse – to keep a keffiyeh, which guarded against the sun. And again, borrowing Saracens’ invention unashamedly, cream of knighthood renamed keffiyeh into mantling or lambrequin and decorated their helmets with this accessory. In the battles and challenging campaigns, lambrequin was becoming a weirdly torn piece of fabric, which became fancy edges of expensive knight accessory in time.

Torse and lambrequin were sewn in colors of knight’s coat of arms with interlacing colors, which were specifying metal and ground. In time, they moved on the coat of arms and became an integral part of heraldry.

Album of Tournaments and Parades in Nuremberg, late XVI – XVII century, Nuremberg, Germany

Le Livre des tournois, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris, France

Hans Heinrich von Taufkirchen und Ehefrau Katharina, Steffan Ebersberger

Getting ready for a campaign or tournament, modern knight can’t go without torse with with mantling (or "lambrequin" – its name in French – it will be improperly! So, Steel Mastery took care of you and ready to sew not a simple adornment, but a real knight torse with mantling, which is not only amortize enemy’s impact and protect against the sun rays, but will also highlight knight status of wearer. The torse look like a real crown; it is made of two thick fabric rollers, which are interwoven together. Gorgeous four-layered mantling has square cut festoons on the edges. Combination of dark-red enamel and gold is the most noble and rich of all in heraldry. Base fabric is cotton, however you may choose not only colors of your emblem, but also choose another fabric and we will sew it for you.

As the basic fabric we used cotton, and basic complectation is two-colored, however you may choose not only colors of your emblem, but four-colored version and also choose another fabric. Make your choice and we will sew it for you.