European swords European swords The arming sword (also sometimes called a knight's or knightly sword) is the single handed cruciform sword of the High Middle Ages, in common use between ca. 1000 and 1350, and possibly even down to the 16th century. ...more on Wikipedia about "Arming sword"
The term broadsword is used to refer to different types of swords, depending on when the term is used, and on what period is being talked about. ...more on Wikipedia about "Broadsword"
The Cinquedea is a civilian short sword (or long dagger). It was developed in northern Italy and enjoyed a period of popularity during the Italian renaissance of the 15th and early 16th centuries. ...more on Wikipedia about "Cinquedea"
The term claymore has been used to describe two distinct types of swords used by Scottish warriors and soldiers. The name claymore is thought to be an anglicisation of claidheamh mòr a Gaelic term meaning "big sword", though another theory claims it comes from "claidheamh da lamh", literally two-hand sword. Claidheamh is ultimately cognate with Latin gladius. ...more on Wikipedia about "Claymore"
A cutlass is a short thick sword with a curved blade sharpened on the convex side, or a gross sabre. Best known as the sailor's weapon of choice, likely because it was also robust enough to hack through heavy ropes, canvas and wood. It is also short enough to use in relatively close quarters, such as in the rigging or below decks. Another advantage to the cutlass was its simplicity of use. The cutlass required less training than the rapier or court sword, and was more effective as an infantry weapon than the sabre. The cutlass is the sword most usually portrayed in films about pirates. ...more on Wikipedia about "Cutlass"
A dussack (also dusack, dysack, tesak, tuseckn, thuseckn, disackn, or dusägge) is a type of antiquated German practice weapon that originated around the 16th century. The dussack was intended to represent various short, single-edged weapons in a training environment. Using a dussack one could train for a hiebmesser or grosses messer, which translates to English as "big knife," falchion, or cutlass. As usage of the dussack became more wide-spread, various schools turned the dussack into a sport as opposed to training for a real weapon. ...more on Wikipedia about "Dussack"
An épée is a modern version of the duelling sword. It is similar to a foil, but has a stiffer V-shaped blade, has a larger bell guard, and is heavier. The blade is a concave triangle in cross-section. ...more on Wikipedia about "Épée" Are you ready for www.shortopedia.com?
The espada ropera (sword of the robe) was a sword developed in the mid- 15th century in Spain. The name referred to swords worn by civilians, as opposed for those meant for battlefield use. Compared to earlier swords, the espada ropera was lighter, thinner, and more ornate. It was first mentioned in an inventory of Don Álvaro de Zúñiga in 1468. ...more on Wikipedia about "Espada ropera"
An estoc is a type of sword common in the 16th century. It was long, straight and stiff, with a diamond or triangular cross-section. An estoc had no cutting edge, just a point. Examples from Poland are more than 1.57 m (62 inches) long, with a blade of 1.32 m (52 in.); however, others showed a more manageable 1.17 m (46 in.), with a 0.91 m blade (36 in.). The size seems to have been made-to-order. ...more on Wikipedia about "Estoc"
The duel has its origins in judicial combat, a particular subset of trial by ordeal that formed in the so-called Dark Ages through such traditions as the Scandinavian Holmganga and continued though the Middle Ages as a highly codified and legal form of personal violence. It became largely the prerogative of the knightly class and a formal part of the legal process. As the middle classes gained power they took this as one of their prerogatives and added to it the right to redress slights, not by legal combat but by the personal (and most usually illegal, though seldom punished) duel. Since these duels were generally 'on the spot' affairs, those who would claim the privilege of the duel must always be armed; and since these were civilians dwelling in cities they had no need for heavy armor and preferred lighter weaponry. The drive to be armed with lighter weaponry than required by a professional soldier gave rise to specialized weaponry, the European dueling sword. ...more on Wikipedia about "European dueling sword"
A falchion (pronounced fal-shun) is a medieval single handed, one edged sword of European origin. Falchions are found in different forms from around the 11th century up to and including the 16th century. In some versions the falchion looks rather like the scramasax and later the sabre, and in some versions the form is irregular or machete like. While some propose that encounters with the Islamic shamshir inspired its creation, these " scimitars" of Persia were not developed until long after the falchion. More likely, it was developed from farmer's and butcher's knives in the manner of the larger messer. ...more on Wikipedia about "Falchion"
The Federschwert (feather sword, plural Federschwerter), or Fechtfeder (fighting feather, plural Fechtfedern), is a type of training sword used in Renaissance Fechtschulen (martial arts schools) to train safely at full speed and power. They are used extensively in the fighting manuals of the 16th century, particularly those of Paulus Hector Mair and Joachim Meyer. ...more on Wikipedia about "Federschwert"
A flamberge is a sword (typically a rapier though there were longswords as well) which had a "wavy" blade meant to aid in parrying. ...more on Wikipedia about "Flamberge"
A foil is a type of sword used in fencing. ...more on Wikipedia about "Foil (sword)"
:This is about the gladius weapon. For the 2003 video game Gladius, see Gladius (video game). ...more on Wikipedia about "Gladius"
The term great sword refers to any of a number of large swords used in medieval Europe, including: ...more on Wikipedia about "Great sword"
A großes Messer (meaning great knife, also called Langmesser or Hiebmesser) was a type of German single-edged weapon, similar to a falchion, that was used between the 15th and 16th centuries. großes Messer, or simply Messer was the term used in the 15th century, and the weapon's 16th century continuant was called Dussack. Much less expensive than an actual sword, it was the weapon of the common man. Used for menial work in addition to battle, the hiebmesser sported a short, deep blade with a single curved edge that lead to a clipped-back tip (like a kilij). The tip is pointed, though its use for thrusting in combat is questionable. Its hilt looked very much like that of a bastard-sword with a cross lower-guard. Quite notable in its construction was the attachment of blade to hilt via a slab tang sandwiched between two wooden grips and pegged into place. Also of note is that many pommels were 'drawn out' or leaned to one side of the hilt (edge side); this is called a hat shaped pommel. Extant examples seem to be 40-46 inches in length (31 of which is in blade) and between 2.5 and 3 pounds. The corresponding Swiss weapon was the baselard. ...more on Wikipedia about "Grosses messer"
A hunting sword is a type of single handed short sword which was used during hunting parties among Europeans from the 17th to the 19th centuries. Possibly being developed from the German Hiebmesser, a hunting sword sports a small, straight, single edged, pointed blade usually no more than 25 inches long. This sword was used for finishing game in lieu of using wasting further shot. Adopted by many Europeans from French to Swiss, hunting swords sport an amazing variety in design. Some hilts featured a thin knuckle guard to cover the fingers. Others sported a serrated edge on the reverse of the blade. Others still had small matchlock pistols build into the hilt, with deep firing grooves cut into the fuller of the blade. ...more on Wikipedia about "Hunting sword"
A Katzbalger is a short renaissance arming sword, notable for its sturdy build and a distinctive s-shaped or figure-8 shaped guard. Measuring from 75-85 cm long and weighing 1-2 kg, it the was the signature blade of the landsknecht. ...more on Wikipedia about "Katzbalger"
A lantern shield is a very unusual weapon/ shield design that was used in Italy between the 16th and 17th centuries. Both for attack and defense, there were enough tools imbedded in the design that some might call it an Italian "Swiss-army-shield". Born of the need to protect one's self from the increasingly frequent night time muggings, it was based around a small metal buckler some 30 cm in diameter. The buckler was affixed to the wearer by a small strap to the forearm; in addition, a metal gauntlet was built into the far end of the shield, and affixed with some long serrated spikes to help catch and break enemy blades. Beneath this odd complex of shield and spiked glove, was a long sword blade, which paralleled the wearer's arm. It extended in front of the shield by some 30 cm and behind the shield to the wearer's elbow, and was pointed for thrusting. On the face of the shield a short spike was affixed to be used for short thrusts. And lastly occasionally lanterns were built into the top portion of the shield, with a flap that could be used to hide the light. The idea was upon being attacked to flip the lantern open and blind the opponent in the dark of night. The effectiveness of such an elaborate setup is questionable. ...more on Wikipedia about "Lantern shield"
(Long-sword) The term long sword is a historic in the sense that it refers to a different kind of sword depending on historical context. ...more on Wikipedia about "Long-sword"
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The late medieval longsword, also referred to by the modern terms bastard-sword or hand-and-a-half sword, is a type of straight-bladed European sword. The contemporary term was langes schwert ("long sword") in German, spadone ("large sword") in Italian and montante in Portuguese. ...more on Wikipedia about "Longsword"
A mortuary sword is a kind of backsword which was used after 1625 by the dragoons during the English civil wars. This kind of backsword sported a half-basket hilt with a straight blade some 90-105 cm long. These hilts were often of very intricate sculpting and design. In the 19th century it was conjectured that the ornate markings were meant to commemorate King Charles I, the executed English martyr. However this style of hilt predates the execution of Charles ( 1649). ...more on Wikipedia about "Mortuary sword"
Ewart Oakeshott's typology of the medieval sword is based on blade morphology. It categorizes swords into 13 main types labelled X to XXII. Ewart Oakeshott introduced it in his The Sword in The Age of Chivalry 1964, which was revised in 1981. ...more on Wikipedia about "Oakeshott typology"
A rapier is a relatively slender, sharply pointed sword, used mainly for thrusting attacks, developed in Europe around 16th century. ...more on Wikipedia about "Rapier"
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