A culet (also spelled ''culette'') is a piece of

plate armour Plate armour is a historical type of personal body armour made from bronze, iron, or steel plates, culminating in the iconic suit of armour entirely encasing the wearer. Full plate steel armour developed in Europe during the Late Middle Ages, es ...

consisting of small, horizontal lames that protect the small of the back or the buttocks. Usually a skirt of

chain mail Mail (sometimes spelled maille and, since the 18th century, colloquially referred to as chain mail, chainmail or chain-mail) is a type of armour consisting of small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh. It was in common milita ...

or a mail brayette was worn underneath. This armour was also referred to as a ''garde de rein'' or ''garde rein'',Harold Leslie Peterson, ''Arms and Armor in Colonial America, 1526-1783'' (2000, Courier Corporation, , page 120 or ''hoguine''.Francis M. Kelly, Randolph Schwabe, ''A Short History of Costume & Armour: Two Volumes Bound as One'' (2013, Courier Corporation, : "that rmorguarding the loins as known asas the HOGUINE or CULET."

References

Western plate armour {{medieval-armour-stub