Medieval Weaponry
In modern times, we have the kind of weaponry that would frighten even the bravest of medieval men. That is not to say that we are not afraid of such weapons for I am often terrified and equally fascinated by the many ways that we humans have developed for causing pain in our ever hurting world. It is only to say that we have become to be in a world where our weapons have greatly developed with the continued progression of technology, resources and our levels of information sharing. While some modern weapons are easy to understand the spread of, some more old fashioned medieval weapons that were popular may seem harder to comprehend the popularity of.
One popular weapon of the medieval times was the long sword. Long swords are, even to the eye, the one of the largest of the swords of the sword name, primarily being wielded with two hands. There are different types of swords that fall under the name of long sword. Long swords were often between thirty-three and forty-three inches long of blade, with a hilt of six to eleven inches. They were the favoured weapon of European knights and was a double edged weapon often used in warfare by those wearing full plate armour in the 14th century. By the 15th century it was not only those who wore heavy plate armour that were wielding longswords but those without the dutiful protection as well. While in the 16th century, the use of the longsword had become less practical than it once was, there was still a great number of individuals who wielded these two handed blades when faced with an upcoming battle.
Another popular weapon of the medieval times was the mace. This is not the same as the pray based weapon that we have in the modern day. Rather, it was a long staff with a metal sphere on one end, with the sphere being used to attack enemies. While they could not cut enemies, they were often wielded with a great amount of force and therefore dealt a fierce and different kind of damage than that of a bladed weapon. Though maces could be long, those of foot soldiers would be considerably shorter than those used by others, being only two or three feet, while those that were primarily used by cavalrymen were longer to be better suited to be used from the backs of horses. While there are still maces around today, modern maces are not used for the same purpose. They are no longer weapons but used in modern ceremonies and celebrations in places such as universities. Still, these blunt and weighted weapons once packed quiet a force on the field of battle.
It is strange to think it has been likely hundreds of generations since the invention of these traditional weapons. I think it is important to appreciate the way that things used to be and the ideas that have lead us to where we are today. Developments from the past inspire development in the future and so on and so forth. And so to continue to develop, we must continue to learn.
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