CHAP. III.]

ST. JOHN OF JERUSALEM.

195

secondary as well as its principal meaning; andbesides being a general Christian sign, the crusaders’cross was made a little different to denote that par-ticular body of Christians; and that for the samepurpose Gerard modified still more that of thecrusaders, to apply it as a distinctive mark for thoseof the permanent crusade—his own order. 1 Thetunic, birro, and mantle had, all three, the sign.Under them, what you pleased, shirt, flannel, oreven cuirass, but those three were the crusader’sdress. The tunic might be either over or underthe cuirass, and was girt round tight, and reachedto just below the knee. 2 The birro was a shortnarrow stripe of cloth, with a hole to receive thehead, and then falling on the breast and half waydown the back, having the cross both behind andbefore; nor worn under, but over everything; andat all times this was the most essential article andnever laid by; leaving the elbows quite free andanswering for a coat of arms. 3 The mantle mightbe worn on the shoulder, or drawn round or not atall, according to the weather. This mantle isrepresented still by that worn by the knights attheir profession, and is black with the white cross. 4As to the purse and broad girdle, they were worn

o 2

3

P. A. Paoli: 228.Id. : 225.

2 Id.: 223.

* Id.: 229.