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A halberd (or Swiss voulge) is a two-handed polearm that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries but has continued in use as a ceremonial weapon to the present day. [30] First recorded as "hellembart" in 1279, the word halberd possibly comes from the German words Halm (staff) or Helm (helmet), and Barte (axe). The halberd ...
A halberd (also called halbard, halbert or Swiss voulge) is a two-handed polearm that came to prominent use from the 13th to 16th centuries. The halberd consists of an axe blade topped with a spike mounted on a long shaft.
George Silver, writing in 1599, stated that the black bill should be 5 or 6 feet (1.5 or 1.8 m) long, while the forest bill should be 8 or 9 feet (2.4 or 2.7 m). [ 2 ] During the early 16th century when most European states were adopting the pike and arquebus , the English preferred to stick with the combination of bill and English longbow .
There is a popular erroneous definition of the word voulge in modern times, which refers to a pointy cleaver-like weapon blade attached to the shaft with two hoops like a bardiche. This definition is incorrect and started in the 19th century with Viollet le Duc , and the weapon in question is an early form of halberd .
The two-handed falx was a polearm. It consisted of a 3-foot-long (0.91 m) wooden shaft with a long curved iron blade of nearly-equal length attached to the end. Archaeological evidence indicates that the one-handed falx was also used two-handed. [3] The blade was sharpened only on the inside and was reputed to be devastatingly effective.
Two-handed cruciform, with pommel The Zweihänder ( German pronunciation: [t͡svaɪhɛndɐ] ⓘ , literally "two-hander"), also Doppelhänder ("double-hander"), Beidhänder ("both-hander"), [ 1 ] Bihänder , or Bidenhänder , is a large two-handed sword that was used primarily during the 16th century.
A bardiche / b ɑːr ˈ d iː ʃ /, berdiche, bardische, bardeche, or berdish is a type of polearm used from the 14th to 17th centuries in Europe. Ultimately a descendant of the medieval sparth axe or Dane axe , the bardiche proper appears around 1400, but there are numerous medieval manuscripts that depict very similar weapons beginning c. 1250.
The polearm on the right is a Lochaber axe; the other two are halberds. The Lochaber axe is first recorded in 1501, as an "old Scottish batale ax of Lochaber fasoun". [2] The weapon is very similar to the Jedburgh axe, although the crescent blade of the former is larger and heavier than that of the latter. [2]