A hauberk or byrnie is a mail shirt. The term is usually used to describe a shirt reaching at least to mid-thigh and including sleeves.[1] A haubergeon ("little hauberk") refers to a smaller mail shirt,[2] that was sometimes sleeveless,[3] but the terms are occasionally used interchangeably.[3] Mail armor, likely invented by the Celts, became widely adopted for its flexibility and spread throughout Europe and Asia, becoming a staple in Roman legions and medieval warfare. By the 11th century, the hauberk evolved into a knee-length, sleeved mail shirt, as depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry and it remained in use in Europe until the Renaissance despite the rise of plate armor.
- ^ DeVries, Kelly (2012). Medieval Military Technology. Kay Douglas Smith (2nd ed.). North York, Ontario: University of Toronto Press. p. 64. ISBN 978-1-4426-0497-1. OCLC 782101074.
- ^ Hewitt, John (1855). Ancient Armour and Weapons in Europe from the Iron Period of the Northern Nations to the End of the Thirteenth Century. John Henry and James Parker. p. 239.
- ^ a b Strutt, Joseph (1842). A Complete View of the Dress and Habits of the People of England: From the Establishment of the Saxons in Britain to the Present Time. Henry G. Bohn, York Street, Covent Garden. p. 56.