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White armour, or ''alwyte armour'', was a form of 
Unlike its predecessors, white armour provided almost complete invulnerability to all sword strikes except a strong thrust from the tip. Additionally, since white armour was a later version of plate armour, it was fairly light and provided its wearer a comfortable range of motion.
These two approaches to armouring remained recognizable throughout the fifteenth century. Eventually each borrowed the other's innovations. By the early sixteenth century the distinction became obsolete.
Black and white armour is a different term, for late 16th and 17th century armour that uses a contrast between highly burnished "white" and unpolished "black" areas for decorative effect in large bold patterns over the armour.
http://jamesarlen.com/glossaryTZ.html
* B:TW - Encyclopedia of armour and weapons. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2018, from http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?323830-B-TW-Encyclopedia-of-armour-and-weapons
* Ewart Oakeshott. ''European Weapons and Armour from the Renaissance to the Industrial Revolution''. F.S.A. {{ISBN, 0-85115-789-0
* Wendelin Boeheim. ''Handbuch der Waffenkunde. Das Waffenwesen in seiner historischen Entwicklung vom Beginn des Mittelalters bis zum Ende des 18 Jahrhunders''. Leipzig 1890.
*
White armour, or ''alwyte armour'', was a form of plate armour
Plate armour is a historical type of personal body armour made from bronze, iron, or steel plates, culminating in the iconic suit of armour entirely encasing the wearer. Full plate steel armour developed in Europe during the Late Middle Ages, es ...
worn in the Late Middle Ages
The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the Periodization, period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Eur ...
characterized by full-body steel plate without a surcoat. Around 1420 the surcoat, or "coat of arms" as it was known in England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, began to disappear, in favour of uncovered plate. Areas not covered by plate were protected by mail
The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letter (message), letters, and parcel (package), parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid ...
sewn to the gambeson
A gambeson (also aketon, padded jack, pourpoint, or arming doublet) is a padded defensive jacket, worn as armour separately, or combined with mail or plate armour. Gambesons were produced with a sewing technique called quilting. They were usual ...
underneath.
During the fifteenth century national styles of armour emerged. 'White armour' was a term used synonymously with Italian design, which was innovative in expanding the use of plate armour to cover joints that had been previously protected by mail. The descriptive term ''white armour'' referred both to the absence of a surcoat and the absence of decorative trimmings: the rival German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
style was fluted, both for aesthetic reasons and for structural advantage in resisting crushing blows. Unlike its predecessors, white armour had a very plain and simple finish, as opposed to intricate patterns or symbols emblazoned on its plates. White armour was also exclusively worn by nobles, or those with money, as full plate armour was extremely expensive to create.
Suits of white armour were composed of a helmet, a gorget
A gorget , from the French ' meaning throat, was a band of linen wrapped around a woman's neck and head in the medieval period or the lower part of a simple chaperon hood. The term later described a steel or leather collar to protect the thro ...
(or bevor), pauldrons
A pauldron (sometimes spelled pouldron or powldron) is a component of plate armor that evolved from spaulders in the 15th century. As with spaulders, pauldrons cover the shoulder area. Pauldrons tend to be larger than spaulders, covering the ...
with gardbraces in Italian and French armour to cover the armpits, or besagews (also known as rondels) which were mostly used in Gothic Armour, couters, vambraces
Vambraces ( French: ''avant-bras'', sometimes known as ''lower cannons'' in the Middle Ages) or forearm guards are ''tubular'' or ''gutter'' defences for the forearm worn as part of a suit of plate armour that were often connected to gauntlets. ...
, gauntlets, a cuirass (back and breastplate) with a fauld, tassets
Tassets are a piece of plate armour designed to protect the upper thighs. They take the form of separate plates hanging from the breastplate or faulds. They may be made from a single piece or segmented. The segmented style of tassets connected b ...
and a culet, a mail
The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letter (message), letters, and parcel (package), parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid ...
skirt, cuisses
Cuisses (; ; ) are a form of medieval armour worn to protect the thigh. The word is the plural of the French word ''cuisse'' meaning 'thigh'. While the skirt of a maille shirt or tassets of a cuirass could protect the upper legs from above, a th ...
, poleyns
The poleyn or genouillere was a component of Medieval and Renaissance armor that protected the knee. During the transition from mail armor to plate armor, this was among the earliest plate components to develop. They first appeared around 1230 ...
, greaves, and sabatons
A sabaton or solleret is part of a knight's body armor that covers the foot.
History
Fourteenth and fifteenth century sabatons typically end in a tapered point well past the actual toes of the wearer's foot, following fashionable shoe shapes o ...
.Plate armour. (2018, October 20). Retrieved October 28, 2018, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plate_armour
Unlike its predecessors, white armour provided almost complete invulnerability to all sword strikes except a strong thrust from the tip. Additionally, since white armour was a later version of plate armour, it was fairly light and provided its wearer a comfortable range of motion.
These two approaches to armouring remained recognizable throughout the fifteenth century. Eventually each borrowed the other's innovations. By the early sixteenth century the distinction became obsolete.
Black and white armour is a different term, for late 16th and 17th century armour that uses a contrast between highly burnished "white" and unpolished "black" areas for decorative effect in large bold patterns over the armour.
See also
; Predecessors *Brigandine
A brigandine is a form of body armour from the Middle Ages. It is a garment typically made of heavy cloth, canvas, or leather, lined internally with small oblong steel plates riveted to the fabric, sometimes with a second layer of fabric on th ...
* Transitional armour
; Successors
* Milanese armour
* Kasten-brust armour
Kasten-brust armour (german: Kastenbrust — "box-shaped breast") — is a German form of plate armour from the first half of 15th century.
Kasten-brust armour was a style of early gothic armour widely used in the Holy Roman Empire. Typical harne ...
References
* Arlen, J. (n.d.). Glossary of Medieval Armour and Armour-Related Terms. Retrieved October 28, 2018, from