One of my avatars has a "character level" of 6. On his Skills panel for One Hand & Shield, underneath the title at the upper right, there is a horizontal progress bar which has a number in front of it that, I suppose, is the "skill level" for using a one-handed weapon and a shield. It currently reads "9".
What significance does the "skill level" have?? In my experience so far, attempting to equip a weapon that has a level higher than the avatar's current character level has always failed. That happens with armor, too.
Thank-you for your time and attention to this inquiry.
--- Shadowshire .......... ESO Plus on PC NA with Windows 7 Pro SP1
nil carborundum illegitimi