camail

Camail is a piece of chain mail armor designed to hang from a helmet and protect the neck and shoulders. It is a form of aventail, the mail curtain attached at the helmet’s edge, and is typically made from interlinked iron or steel rings. The camail is connected to the helmet—often at the rim or alongside leather lacing—and can drape down to cover the neck, throat, and sometimes the upper chest and shoulders. It may be formed as a coif-like curtain or as a broader mail sheet, with padding worn underneath to absorb impact and improve comfort.

Construction and design features vary, but camails generally use riveted or welded rings and are sized to balance protection with mobility and visibility. The mail is sometimes reinforced at the edge to resist tearing, and the interior may include cloth or leather linings. Camails could be paired with various helmet types, such as bascinets or sallets, and were common in late medieval European armor.

History and usage follow the development of plate and mail integrated armor. Camails emerged in the later Middle Ages and remained in use through the 14th to 16th centuries, when plate armor began to supplant mail-based defenses in many regions. They offered flexible protection for vulnerable neck regions while preserving ventilation and range of motion. In some contexts, the terms camail and aventail are used interchangeably, though some sources distinguish camail as the mail curtain around the neck and shoulders and aventail as the broader attachment to the helm.

Legacy and terminology vary by museum and regional tradition, but camail remains a recognized component of traditional European armor, illustrating the blending of mobility and protection in medieval warfare.