Elizabethan Menswear

In the Elizabethan times it was imperative for a man to carry weapons where ever he went. If a man were to walk out in public unarmed he was more likely to catch the eyes of robbers. The weapon of first choice in this period was the rapier. One way to determine the class or wealth of a man was by determining the quality of the sword. The lower classes, were least likely to own a rapier, but it was imperative to carry some kind of weapon, so low class men would often carry cutting knives, daggers, or other forms of defense. Middle class civilians commonly had rapiers with iron-swept hilts. The weapons of greatest quality; however, were owned by the upper class, especially men of nobility, and their weapons were embellished with gilt, ivory or bone handles, and many other more elaborately decorated pieces of weaponry.

Furthermore, all nobility and upperclassmen were expected to be fully trained in fencing, then known as defencing.