ies made little practical change
in their dress, except to wear an excess of clothes against the lack
of draperies indulged in by the men.

It is possible to see three garments, or portions of them, in many
dresses. First, there was a stuff gown, with tight sleeves buttoned to
the elbow from the wrist; this sometimes showed one or two buttons
under the gorget in front, and was fitted, but not tightly, to the
figure. It fell in pleated folds to the feet, and had a long train;
this was worn alone, we may suppose, in summer. Second, there was a
gown to go over this other, which had short, wide sleeves, and was
full in the skirts. One or other of these gowns had a train, but if
the upper gown had a train the under one had not, and _vice versa_.
Third, there was a surcoat like to a man's, not over-long or full,
with the sleeve-holes cut out wide; this went over both or either of
the other gowns.

[Illustration: {Two women of the time of Edward II.; a wimple with
fillet and gorget}]

Upon the head they wore the wimple, the fillet, and about the throat
the gorget.

The arrangement of the wimple and fillet were new, for the hair was
now plaited in two tails, and these brought down straight on either
side of the face; the fillet was bound over the wimple in order to
show the plait, and the gorget met the wimple behind the plait instead
of over it.

The older fashion of hair-dressing remained, and the gorget was pinned
to the wads of hair over the ears, without the covering of the wimple.

Sometimes the fillet was very wide, and placed low on the head over a
wimple tied like a gorget; in this way the two side-plaits showed only
in front and appeared covered at side-face, while the wimple and broad
fillet hid all the top hair of the head.

Very rarely a tall, steeple head-dress was worn over the wimple, with
a hanging veil; but this was not common, and, indeed, it is not a mark
of the time, but belongs more properly to a later date. However, I
have seen such a head-dress drawn at or about this time, so must
include it.

The semicircular mantle was still in use, held over the breast by
means of a silk cord.

It may seem that I describe these garments in too simple a way, and
the rigid antiquarian would have made comment on courtepys, on
gamboised garments, on cloth of Gaunt, or cloth of Dunster.

I may tell you that a gambeson was the quilted tunic worn under
armour, and, for the sake of those whose tastes run