
History of the Sword
Preeminent hand weapon through a long period of history,
consisting of a metal blade varying in length, breadth, and configuration, but
longer than a dagger, and fitted with a handle or
hilt usually equipped with a guard. The sword became differentiated from the
dagger during the Bronze Age (c. 3000 BC), when copper and bronze weapons were
produced with long, leaf-shaped blades and with hilts consisting of an
extension of the blade in handle form. By Roman times the hilt was distinct
from the short, flat blade, and by the European Middle Ages the weapon had
acquired its main basic forms. The heavy sword of medieval chivalry had a
large hilt, often designed to be gripped in both hands, with a large
protective guard or pommel at the top. The blade was straight, double-edged,
and pointed; it was fabricated by repeated firing and hammering, a process
that converted the iron into mild steel by the addition of a small amount of
carbon. Blades were also made of laminated strips of iron, which were hammered
together. Damascus was a renowned center of the craft.
Toledan steel and particularly swords have long been famous, being mentioned
as early as the 1st century BC in the Cynegetica of Grattius "Faliscus."
There is an important National Factory of Arms and workshops for damask and
engraving, which produce metalwork decorated in the Mudéjar tradition.
The changes in warfare associated with the introduction of
firearms did not eliminate the sword but rather proliferated its types. The
discarding of body armour made it necessary for the swordsman to be able to
parry with his weapon, and the thrust-and-parry rapier came into use.
The advantage of a curved blade for cutting was early appreciated in Asia,
where it was long used by the Indians, Persians, and others before its
introduction to Europe by the Turks. The Turkish scimitar was modified in the
West to the cavalry saber. At the other extreme of Asia, the Japanese
developed a long-bladed, slightly curved version with a two-handed grip, with
which an elaborate dueling cult, as well as ancestor worship, became
associated.
The introduction of repeating firearms virtually ended the
value of the sword as a military weapon, though isolated instances of its use
continued in 20th-century wars. As it declined in its military usefulness, the
sword gained a new role in the duel, especially in Europe, out of which
practice emerged the modern sport of fencing.
Basic Sword Parts
Blade - The length of steel
that forms the sword.
Back - The part of the blade opposite the edge.
Double-edged sword has no back.
Cross - The typically straight bar or
"guard" of a Medieval sword, also called a "cross-guard".
A Renaissance term for the straight or curved cross-guard was the quillons
(possibly from an old French or Latin term for a type of reed).
Edge - This is the sharpened portion of the
blade. A sword may be single or double-edged. For example, a Japanese katana
has a single edge but a Scottish claymore is sharpened on both sides.
Hilt - The lower portion of a sword consisting of
the cross-guard, handle/grip, and pommel (most Medieval swords have a straight
cross or cruciform-hilt).
Quillions - A Renaissance term for the two
cross-guards (forward and back) whether straight or curved. It is likely from
an old French or Latin term for a reed. On Medieval swords the cross guard may
be called simply the "cross", or just the "guard".
Forte' - A Renaissance term for the lower portion
on a sword blade which has more control and strength and which does most of
the parrying. Also called prime or fort.
Foible - A Renaissance term for the upper portion
on a sword blade which is weaker (or "feeble") but has more agility
and speed and which does most of the attacking.
Fuller - A shallow central-groove or channel on a
blade which lightens it as well as improves strength and flex. Sometimes
mistakenly called a "blood-run" or "blood-groove", it has
nothing to do with blood flow, cutting power, or a blade sticking. A sword
might have one, none, or several fullers running a portion of its length, on
either one or both sides. Narrow deep fullers are also sometimes referred to
as flukes. The opposite of a fuller is a riser, which improves rigidity. The
fullers function is analogous to the spine of the human body. When a fuller is
forged onto a blade it repacks the crystalline structure and forms it into a
flexible spine that reduces weight and gives the sword both strength and
flexibility.
Grip - The handle of a sword, usually made of
leather, wire, wood, bone, horn, or ivory (also, a term for the method of
holding the sword).
Lower end - the tip portion of a Medieval sword
Pommel - Latin for "little apple", the
counter-weight which secures the hilt to the blade and allows the hand to
either rest on it or grip it. Sometimes it includes a small rivet (capstan
rivet) called a pommel nut, pommel bolt, or tang nut. On some Medieval swords
the pommel may be partially or fully gripped and handled.
Ricasso - The dull portion of a blade just above
the hilt. It is intended for wrapping the index finger around to give greater
tip control (called "fingering"). Not all sword forms had ricasso.
They can be found on many Bastard-swords, most cut & thrust swords and
later rapiers. Those on Two-Handed swords are sometimes called a
"false-grip", and usually allow the entire second hand to grip and
hold on. The origin of the term is obscure.
Shoulder - The corner portion of a sword
separating the blade from the tang.
Tang - The un-edged hidden portion or
("tongue") of a blade running through the handle and to which the
pommel is attached. The place where the tang connects to the blade is called
the "shoulder". A sword's tang is sometimes of a different temper
than the blade itself. A full tang is preferred in European swords, while a
partial tang is best for Japanese swords.
Upper end - The hilt portion of a Medieval sword
Waisted-grip - A specially shaped handle on some
bastard or hand-and-a-half swords, consisting of a slightly wider middle and
tapering towards the pommel.
Tip - The end of the sword furthest away from the
hilt. Most swords taper to a point at the tip, but some blade lines are
straight until the very tip. A few swords, such as a U.S. Civil War saber, are
curved along their length.
Annellet / Finger-Ring - The small loops
extending toward the blade from the quillions intended to protect a finger
wrapped over the guard. They developed in the middle-ages and can be found on
many styles of Late-Medieval swords. They are common on Renaissance cut &
thrust swords and rapiers they and also small-swords. For some time they have
been incorrectly called the "pas d`ane".
Compound-Hilt / Complex-Guard - A term used for
the various forms of hilt found on Renaissance and some late-Medieval swords.
They consist typically of finger-rings, side-rings or ports, a knuckle-bar,
and counter-guard or back-guard. Swept-hilts, ring-hilts, cage-hilts, and some
basket-hilts are forms of complex-guard.