surcoat

Noun

surcoat (plural surcoats)

1. (historical) A loose sleeveless garment worn over a suit of armor, sometimes colored or embroidered with the wearer's coat of arms.
   • The ordered system of symbols which we know as heraldry came into being in the twelfth century to meet a military need. These symbols were emblazoned on shields, surcoats and fighting flags, and served as an invaluable means of identification when the features were obscured by the great helm.1956 July, Col. H. C. B. Rogers, “Railway Heraldry”, in Railway Magazine, page 476
   • The Lord mayor and sheriff ride in their armour with surcoats of crimson.2020, Hilary Mantel, The Mirror and the Light, Fourth Estate, page 165
2. (historical) An overgarment worn over a woman's gown; a kind of short robe worn over the tunic at the close of the 11th century.
   • She wore a short surcoat of scarlet, cut low around the shoulders, sleeveless, reaching just below her hips, like the tabards worn by medieval heralds. Over it she wore a laced-edged cotta.1965, Attila Zohar, Kings Cross Black Magic, Sydney: Horwitz Publications, page 25