View source for Surcoat

===Men's surcoat===
Starting around the late 12th century, [[knight]]s wore long, flowing surcoats. From the early to mid-13th century, these were frequently emblazoned with their personal [[Coat of arms|arms]], shown over their [[armour]]. These usually extended to about mid-calf, were either sleeved or sleeveless, and had slits in the bottom, both front and back, allowing the wearer to ride their horses comfortably. Some historians believe that the practice of wearing white surcoats was adopted during the [[Crusade]]s, their main purpose being to reflect the direct sun, which overheated the armour and the soldier inside – although it may be argued that here its color would have been of little help, while in poor weather they helped keep rain and the muck of battle away from the easily corroded mail links. The surcoat displayed the device of the [[knight]] (origin of the term "[[coat of arms]]"), thereby identifying him, which in turn, combined with the increased use of the [[great helm]] (late 12th century, early 13th century), became an essential means of recognition. Indeed, some historians cite this as one of the reasons behind the spread of [[heraldry]] across [[medieval Europe]]. In the early fourteenth century, the front of the knight's surcoat was shortened so that it was longer at the back and knee-length at the front, allowing greater freedom of movement and eliminating the danger of a rider getting his spurs caught in the garment. By the mid-fourteenth century, it was replaced with the "jupon" (or "gipon"), which was a much shorter item and was often padded for supplementary protection.<ref>{{cite book|last=Farr|first=E.|year=1873|title=The National History of England|volume=1|publisher=William Collins, Sons & Company|location=London & Glasgow|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L0oBAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA386|access-date=2011-04-06 |display-authors=etal}}</ref>

In the 15th century, once suits of plate armour became common, the surcoat was phased out of use. This period in the history of armour development, in which surcoats became increasingly rare, is referred to as the "surcoatless period" and lasted from 1420 to 1485.