The ailette (French language for little wing) was a component of late thirteenth and early to mid fourteenth century knightly armour. Usually made of cuir bouilli (sometimes of plate or parchment), ailettes were thick, quadrangular pieces of leather or wood that attached to the shoulders by means of silk or leather cord. Ailettes were usually flat and nearly rectangular in shape, and usually decorated with heraldic designs.
Ailettes made brief appearances in the late 13th and early 14th century before giving way to more protective joint plates that covered the joint gap in the shoulders.
38 pairs of ailettes of leather were purchased from a currier for 8 d. for each pair for the Windsor Park Tournament in 1278, implying they were a common piece of equipment at that date in England.[1]
The purpose of ailettes is a matter of disagreement amongst scholars. Some, such as Charles ffoulkes, claim that they enhanced protection to the neck, while others, like Ewart Oakeshott, argue that they were used primarily for decorative and heraldic reasons.[2]