Gauntlet English pronunciation: /ˈɡɔːntlit/[1] is a name for several different styles of glove, particularly those with an extended cuff covering part of the forearm. Gauntlets exist in many forms, ranging from flexible fabric and leather gloves, to mail and fully articulated plate armour.
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Historically, gauntlets were used by soldiers and knights. It was considered an important piece of armour, since the hands and arms were particularly vulnerable in hand-to-hand combat. With the rise of easily reloadable and effective firearms, hand-to-hand combat fell into decline along with personal armor, including gauntlets.
Some medieval gauntlets had a built-in knuckle duster. When the hand was bunched into a fist the backhand protection becomes pronounced from the fist just above the knuckles, this allowed the user to utilize the gauntlet as a melee weapon while still protecting the hand from damage when punching. However, against an armed combatant the use of this feature would have been risky so it was very unlikely that a gauntlet would have been used in this way when a more suitable weapon was within reach. But if the user had no other means to defend themselves the tactics they would have employed would be to attempt to surprise the opponent with this inconspicuous attack, possibly by dodging and countering, aiming for exposed areas of flesh such as the face or weak areas of armour, such as under the arm or the groin.
Today, gauntlets are mostly used as armour in contact sports, such as fencing and falconry. In industry, gauntlets are commonly used to protect workers from sparks when welding or grinding metal or when handling potentially harmful substances. Protective gauntlets are also sometimes worn when defusing a bomb and by butchers. Furthermore, they are an integral part of pressure suits and spacesuits, usually made of kevlar or other materials that combine toughness, environmental protection and flexibility. Gauntlets are also provided on some motorcyclist's leather gloves and on snowmobile driver's nylon mittens.
Marching band and drum corp uniforms often include an item called a "gauntlet" which includes no glove for the hand, but is just a flared cuff. Some versions are closer to bracers or vambraces in style.
In the clothing industry gauntlet can refer to a fashion accessory which is just an extended cuff with little or no hand covering.[2]
In the Roman Catholic Church the gloves traditionally worn by the Pope or other bishops are also known as gauntlets,[3] or Episcopal gloves, though their use had largely been relaxed since Paul VI.
To "throw down the gauntlet" is to issue a challenge. A gauntlet-wearing knight would challenge a fellow knight or enemy to a duel by throwing one of his gauntlets on the ground. The opponent would pick up the gauntlet to accept the challenge.
"Running the gauntlet" was a military punishment where a soldier or sailor had to pass between a double row of comrades armed with cudgels. The expression is now generally used metaphorically. Gauntlet in this context is unrelated to the "protective glove" meaning, but is instead derived from the Swedish gatlopp ("street run").[4] Because of this difference in the derivation of the word, the expression is sometimes written "running the gantlet".
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