ARMENTIERES

armentieres, a town of northern france, in the department of nord, on the lys, 13 m. w.n.w. of lille on the northern railway from that city to dunkirk. pop. (1906) 25,408. the chief building is the hotel de ville with a 17th-century belfry. there are communal colleges for girls and boys, a board of trade-arbitrators, a chamber of commerce and a national technical school. the town is an important centre for the spinning and weaving of flax and cotton; bleaching, dyeing and the manufacture of machinery are among the other industries. its industrial prosperity dates from the middle ages, when, however, woollen, not cotton, goods were the staple product. armet (diminutive of fr. _arme_), a form of helmet, which was developed out of existing forms in the latter part of the 15th century. it was round in shape, and often had a narrow ridge or comb along the top. it had a pivoted or hinged vizor and nosepiece, and complete chin, neck and cheek protection, closely connected with the gorget. it is distinguished from the basinet by its roundness, and by the fact that it protects the neck and chin by strong plates, instead of a "camail" or loose collar of mail; from the salade and heaume by its close fit and skull-cap shape; and from the various forms of vizored burgonets by the absence of the projecting brim. it remained in use until the final abandonment of the complete closed head-piece.