Longsword
Also known as: bastard sword, hand-and-a-half sword, langes Schwert
A European two-handed sword with a cross-guard and double-edged blade, used roughly 1350–1550; taught by the oldest known German fencing manual.
Quick Facts
About the weapon
The longsword is a European sword of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance, wielded with both hands. It can be recognised as a distinct type roughly between 1350 and 1550. In the 16th century its military use mostly ended; in Switzerland the sabre began to displace it around 1520, and it fell out of use there by 1550. Overall length usually runs between 100 and 140 cm, of which the blade is 80 to 110 cm and the grip 20 to 30 cm. Weight is given as 1.8 to 3 kg. The sword has a straight double-edged blade, a cross-guard and a pommel. It was used by knights in full plate armour, on foot and on horseback; from the late 15th century it is also attested among unarmoured soldiers and mercenaries. In the half-sword grip (Halbschwert), the fencer held the grip with one hand and the blade with the other for better control of the thrust. In the strike called the Mordstreich, he gripped the sword by the blade and struck with the pommel or guard like a hammer. The oldest known manual of the German school devoted to the longsword, manuscript 3227a, is dated to around 1389, though this dating is disputed. It records the teachings of Johannes Liechtenauer, whose verses were later rendered into clearer prose by Sigmund Ringeck. The very term longsword only came back into use in the 2000s, in connection with the reconstruction of the German fencing school.
Related weapons
Care and maintenance
Historical sources
- Nuremberg Hausbuch (MS 3227a) — Pseudo-Döbringer, 1390 (nejstarší příručka k dlouhému meči, kol. 1389 (sporná datace))
- Codex Ringeck (Mscr.Dresd.C.487) — Johannes Liechtenauer, 1504–1519 (Ringeckova glosa Liechtenauera)