Long-sword

The long-sword a term made to distinguish the swords of the post-Roman era (esp. of medieval Europe) from the earlier shorter swords. Derivatives of the long-sword include the great sword and the hybrid bastard-sword.

Time Line

The Germanic tribes of the late Roman Iron Age were able to forge double edged blades used for hacking that were longer that the gladius of Rome. Surviving examples of these Germanic swords had blades measuring between 28" (71cm) and 32" (81cm) in length and 1.7" (4.5cm) to 2.4" (6cm) in width. These single handed weapons sported a tang only some 4-5" (11cm) long, and had very little taper in their blades ending in usually rounded tip.

This pattern continued through the Viking age where the swords grew slightly in length (average length of approx. 37" (93cm)) and a slightly more acute distal taper and point. These blades had deep fullers running their length, yet still had single handed hilts which often sported a 'brazil nut' shaped pommel. While the pattern of hilt and blade design of this time might readily be called 'The Viking sword' to do so would be to neglect the wide spread popularity it enjoyed. All over continental Europe between 700-100 AD this design and its small variations could be found.

During "Norman" times the blades increased some 4" (10cm) in over all length, and the hilt changed significantly. Instead of the brazil-nut pommel, a thick disc shaped pommel was attached 'edge-wise' to the bottom of the iron hilt. In addition the upper guard grew substantially from the almost unapparent design predating it. Also the blades tended to taper slightly less than those found during the times of the Vikings.

During the high middle ages a great variety of different types of swords were developed; the shape of these blades developed as the answer to increasing armour protection coming into use in Europe, after the mid 13th century. These included the bastard-sword and great-sword variations. While the cutting and slashing blade designs persisted, the plate armor in use required almost every type of sword to become pointed for thrusting at the tip. This lead to the off-shoot in the estoc. The average blade length of a long-sword during this time is around 110 centimetres (3 feet and 7 inches), and the weight is usually between 1.2 and 1.8 kilograms (2.6 to 4.0 pounds). The actual size and weight of a long-sword would depend on personal preference and build of the wielder and varied tremendously when compared to previous ages. In addition to this large sword, often a smaller sword called an arming sword was worn as a back up.

Late long-sword combat

The method of fighting with these long-swords differed from the one handed types in that a shield could not effectively be used. This meant an increased emphasis on blade parries and prioritizing defense of areas of the body with less armour protection. Yet a typical long-sword did not require two hands on the handle all the time, giving the possibility of using the off-hand (left hand for right-handers) for grabs, throws, and a even a few strikes.

While a living tradition of long-sword fighting has not survived to our day, manuscripts written by the masters of the art still exist. Among the most famous of these treatises are Fiore dei Liberi's "Flos Duellatorum" (1410) and Filippo Vadi's "De Arte Gladiatoria Dimicandi" (1485), of the italian school, and Hans Talhoffer's "Alte Armatur und Ringkunst" (1459) and Ms. 3227a (ca. 1389, containing the system of Johannes Liechtenauer), of the German school. In recent decades, efforts to revive the art by translating and analyzing these treatises have been made throughout Europe and North America, leading to a much deeper knowledge base about the nature of European swordsmanship.

Historically, there seems to have been some confusion as to the difference between what was considered a long-sword and what was considered a bastard-sword. Usually they are of a comparable size, and can be used in a similar fashion. As time wore on, bastard-swords came to replace long-swords, as their generally more sharply tapered blades and distinctly rhomboid cross sections were better suited for defeating the increasing armour protection worn on the battlefield. In practice, however, the words are at times used as synonyms.

Note that this kind of sword is not the contemporary great sword, or even less so the two-handed sword of the renaissance. That kind of sword has another purpose and method of use than the long-sword or the bastard-sword.

See historical fencing, Historical European Martial Arts, knight's sword, bastard-sword, side-sword.

External links

AEMMA (http://www.aemma.org/), an organization of teachers and students of European Swordsmanship

The Chicago Swordplay Guild (http://www.chicagoswordplayguild.com/), a modern school for the study of historical European martial arts

ARMA (http://www.thearma.org/)

ja:ロングソード sv:Långsvärd