The Collaborative International Dictionary
Espauliere
Espauliere \Es`pau`liere"\, n. [OF. & F. ['e]pauli[`e]re. See
Espalier.]
A defense for the shoulder, composed of flexible overlapping
plates of metal, used in the 15th century; -- the origin of
the modern epaulette.
--Fairholt.
Wiktionary
espauliere
n. A defence for the shoulder, composed of flexible overlapping plates of metal, used in the fifteenth century; the origin of the modern epaulette.