Heraldry was the designs found on shields that told the knights who was friend and who was foe. There were many different designs, such as chief, fesse, pale, bend, cross, and barry. These are just a few of the main designs used in heraldry. Heraldry could get very complicated. For instance, when one family married another, the heraldry would change into a mix of the two designs. That was called impaling.

The different parts of the shield had different names. The top of the shield was called the in chief, the right side was called the dexter, the left side was called the sinister, the background color was called the field, the main design was called the charge, and the bottom was called the in base. The main colors that were used in heraldry were argent ( silver ) and/or gold. There were also five main tinctures. The main tinctures were blue, red, black, green and purple.

One of the most frustrating job in Medieval Times was being a herald. Heralds were men who designed the coats of arms. The heralds had to make sure no two coats of arms were the same. They recorded the information in books called armorials. The heralds also announced knights at tournaments. In less peaceful times the heralds made lists of who was fighting.

In the eleventh century only the important people got coats of arms. Some of those people were Kings, Queens, and Lords. Their coats of arms appeared on armor, flags, seals, and gatehouses of castles. The coat of arms was passed down from one generation to the next to show the person were of some importance. Some time after that knights, towns, guilds, and even important citizens had coats of arms. All family members had different symbols.

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