A halberd at the Wallace Collection with Dr Tobias Capwell

/ historicalfencing
/ scholagladiatoria

[@WozWozEre]

Imagine being at the front of your unit, trying to fight the people directly in front of you, tired, sweating, scared half to death, and all the time some bastard in the enemies second row is constantly trying to hook your shield away, or your helmet off your head, or poke you in the face. Both very frustrating and very, very dangerous.

[@elgostine]

no, the worst part isnt the dude in front of you, the dude in front is a danger but an easy to see one no. the worst part is worrying whether you're gonna cop a spear etc in to armpit/side/throat the second you try and mak an attack. by the third dude on his right , that guy you have barely in your peripheral vision but you KNOW that hes just waiting for anyone in HIS periphery to open themselves up and present a target and he's gonna, quick as lightning turn his halberd and stab you in your blind side while you're distracted with the guy in front of you

[@JTWilliams74]

I want to make a comic of Matt Easton and Tobias Capwell going around Hollywood movies and losing their minds over the inaccurate set pieces likeTobias: "Wait... what is that?"Matt: "No... you've got to be kidding me. THAT sword in the 13th century?"Tobias: "And look at those shields! What?!"

[@YouTubalcaine]

+Jake Williams Von Starcher I caught an older video yesterday, a fellow comparing samurai and knights, and he made a point about how the period we chose for comparison made a difference, explaining how the armor and weapons varied through time, along with a side-by-side pictorial, and . . . wait a minute, 11th century knights didn't have greatswords! I was just enjoying the exhibition, I didn't realize how much I was learning here. Thanks, folks. Great work! :)

[@defaultytuser]

Prophetic comment , haha! They were both featured doing *exactly* that in videos that have several million views now , 6 years later. Any stock advice mate?

[@seankaz5130]

Well that's helpful. I was just looking yesterday for a good definition of what's a halberd and what's a pollax. Didn't find any better than this one.

[@scholagladiatoria]

+sean kaz Great :-)

[@leung9401]

For all of you, who wonder about the cutout cross on the halberd: this is definitely the cross of the old swiss confederacy. As Dr. Capwell mentioned, it is an anachronistic weapon manufactured between 1660 and 1681 by a farrier named Lambert Koller in Würenlos, canton Argovia, Switzerland. This design is referred to as a "Sempacher Halparte", which was typical for 15th century halberds from central Switzerland, i. e. the old swiss confederacy. Between 1663 and 1681 Koller delivered 1000 halberds of this type to the armory of the canton of Zurich and 200 in 1667 to the armory of the canton of Schwyz. The halberd wasn't a widely used weapon anymore in the 17th century, but after the first Battle of Villmergen in 1656 between argovian catholics and bernese protestants, which was ultimately won by the severly outnumbered (9800 vs. 5000) and underarmed catholics in bloody close-quarter combat in the alleys of the village, where the firearms of the bernese musketeers were not really of much use, the halberd was suddenly seen as a very useful weapon again. So farriers like Lambert Koller, who usually didn't have a lot of experience in weapon making, were suddenly commissioned to manufacture weapons. This explains why Koller used a 15th century design as a template. The halberds of the time were mainly parade weapons with intricate and filigrane designs and much longer than their sturdy 15th century precursors, so not of much use in brutal guerilla style close quarter combat in the alleys of a 17th century village. So the design was not only more efficient for the intended use of the weapons, but certainly much easier to manufacture for a mere farrier. "Funny" sidenote: Since the canton of Zurich was protestant and supported the bernese troops, and the canton of Schwyz was catholic and supported the argovian troops, Koller basically manufactured weapons for both sides of the conflict.

[@thiagodunadan]

You should make a video with Tobias showing his AWESOME armour.

[@KorKhan89]

Sadly, he sold off his "English" armour to a collector.

[@elgostine]

+KorKhan89 *spits tea* WHAT

[@Roderik95]

Man, these videos are just the best. This series is/was so good. Great to see museum pieces and also some insight from Tobias.

[@MrStrigori]

I gotta say these videos grow to be my favorites. They are very informative, maybe not that well structured by I enjoy two scholars of the subject just giving us their thoughts and nerding out

[@baranbaschka]

After watching your videos for a long time, it just kind of struck me. This is my favourite KZbin channel of all time. Just wanted to thank you for all the great videos.

[@Quicksilver_Cookie]

Interesting wide-bladed pole weapon hanging in there, on the right. Suddenly indie game named Shovel Knight makes whole lot of sense :D

[@S.C-B]

+MrCorvusC It could be a boar spear, I have no idea though really

[@Duke_of_Lorraine]

+Kim Wu boar spears had a kind of crossguard, so that the boar doesn't get impaled in the spear (just to keep it away from the user). It's more like a spike here, this halberd allows "spear thrusting", "pickaxe thrusting" (as well as some hooking techniques) and cutting. And about the one in the left (from the video's view), that looks like a showel, perhabs a glaive, made to deliver some cuts.

[@pumbar]

+MrCorvusC Pre Roman British and Irish spears looked very similar to that one.

[@sirsteam181]

Maybe an ox tongue spear

[@elgostine]

i wanna know the story on that MASSIIVE spear

[@FullMetalMudcrab]

+elgostine That is a shovel.

[@elgostine]

***** without the wings apparently....

[@sirsteam181]

Maybe an ox tongue spear

[@elgostine]

@@sirsteam181 thats an idea

[@lordmonty9421]

I love seeing actual examples of the period and hearing insightful discussion about them! Great stuff. But Matt...the camera angle / framing?

[@MetalKingStudio]

Awesome. I've been looking forward to a video about the halberd. I figured it was coming since we got that great video about Pollaxes (which i've watched several times).

[@jpowys1662]

Capwell is the man; loved hid BBC documentary (I think it was) on armour a few years back.

[@sarcastichamsandwich5413]

Oh thank goodness! I haven't found a halberd video in so long! I've been trying to do some extensive research for halberds, but there's just so little information about them it's difficult to go in depth.

[@Umbreona]

Thank you for finally giving some sort of definition for Halberd vs. Poleaxe.

[@AntiBunnyStudio]

You have to love the multitool aspect of the halberd. A spear, an axe, and a billhook all in one weapon.

[@riproar11]

Back in 2018 I went to the Worcester Art Museum in Massachusetts and saw that they acquired some of the armor of the former Higgins Museum. In their collection of halberds and pole axes was a massive sword maybe eight feet in length! Later I learned it that such massive swords were not used in combat or tournaments.

[@bernerbar7886]

this is a swiss halbert, probably produced in Zurich around 1670-1680 by a blacksmith named Lamprecht Koller. We have alot of these halberts in our Museum in Zurich.

[@shogunlewis8901]

That massive spear was clealry used to slay dragons. That's honsetly the only explanation which makes sense.

[@louirudy670]

+Barbarella dragons!

[@bskorupk]

+Barbarella "I dub thee Sir Thomas Atkins for slaying the Dragoon!"

[@theknightofbadassness301]

+Barbarella Dragon-horses!

[@godwrote01]

+The knight of bad assness Horse-dragons !! I bet its used against Horse-dragons !

[@theknightofbadassness301]

Dragon-horse! No such thing as a horse-dragon.... stupid!

[@blueband8114]

I'm a bit late to all these, but really enjoy watching these collaborations.

[@mrazana6408]

Nice to see Dupont & Dupont back in business!

[@joearnold6881]

I cook food and make sandwiches for a living. Wth I want that guy's job. Knowing details about cool stuff and caring for them.

[@neuralkernel]

Never underestimate a primate with a pointy stick!!

[@bakters]

I *agree* with this guy! 2 or 3 trained infantrymen with pole weapons are more or less a match for a horseman with a lance. With a caveat, though a small one. As he said himself, this advantage allowed them to kill the horse, not necessarily a horseman, so it's not the battle won yet. But yes, it can go both ways, depending on training of participating parties, people and horses.

[@Thorkan7]

A detailed video about horses and fighting a cavalry would be really good!

[@crayonoir]

By the way, how did the inward curve of the later halberds affect cutting? Was it done at all or did it become essentially an impact weapon?

[@althesmith]

Some I've seen have a separate piece of steel welded in at the edge, like many old axes and hatchets.

[@JohnRaptor]

Cool weapon, interesting discussion. I'd also be interested in hearing about that fat spear on the left.

[@galbinati]

Hi Matt. Big fan here. I'm studying 3D modelling and I'm looking for good references for weapons and armor used in 16th century England. Do you know of any? There's a lot of stuff scattered around over the internet but I'm looking for stuff I could reference in a scientific article. The libraries that I have access to are rather poor in historical England stuff.

[@SanityVideo]

What's that bar hanging from some kind of hinge or loop on the spear?

[@djren-wo5hd]

Do you know anything about El Cids sword? Just watched Charlton Heston's movie El Cid.

[@PJDAltamirus0425]

I wouldn't be surprised if the holes in the halberd where some sort of town or company insignia, a halberd, being a long polearm,can serve as a great marker. A device something to visually distinguish a unit when maneuvering to keep good order would be very useful, especially since when are discussing a time when cannons and guns are starting to be widely used and battlefield audiotry communication hadn't evolved beyond instruments and shouting. Having a visually when the booms of matchlocks and cannon would certainly help keep your ranks in order.

[@sirsteam181]

Though they are relatively short compared to other pole arms with other more prominent pole arms being longer

[@TheMasturCheef]

Are the cutout crosses a representation of the swiss flag?

[@leung9401]

Yes. It's one of the 1200 halberds manufactured between 1660 and 1681 by Lambert Koller in Würenlos, canton of argovia, Switzerland.

[@hillkiran]

@scholagladiatoria I don't understand how pike formations, as in what the Swiss Mercenaries of fame used, how come they weren't easily cut to pieces by arrows? I have been reading about some of their squares, and how unarmored but disciplined men with pikes and halberds were able to crush knights in armor. That sort of makes sense. I don't get how arrows didn't decimate them without armor or shields though?

[@NamelessBody]

Matt, if you read this: Can you give me some hints on where to find insight on the dating of halberds? I very very rarely find anything on actual examples of halberds that look like this before the 1500s, although it's commonly said they've been in use since the 1400s. They often appear in paintings, but those are usually not from the same period as the depicted scene. On the other hand, fencing treatises show pollaxes which are vastly more complex and seem quite clearly inspired by halberd aspects in the early 1400s. However, halberds only appear around Meyer and Mair's time, despite having probably been the earlier weapon to have developed. Some dated finds of 14XX halberds I've seen are more like voulges. How certain is it that this style of halberd in the video (with distinct halberd-like look) was used before 1500? I'll dig in my university, but we don't have much on this topic. In fact, few people have ever researched this. I might do it myself when I get the chance, I'll need to convince the only docent in my institute who remoootely does something medieval-related that this would be worth looking more closely into. But if you already know of someone who did this, please tell me. Same request goes out to all readers, of course, but I'm looking for archeological evidence (or related fields in the historical / cultural sciences) at a scientific level.

[@RabidMortal1]

What is the hollow cross/quatrefoil that I see on so many halberds? Decorative or did it serve a purpose?

[@leung9401]

If the hollow cross is a straight greek cross, it represents the old swiss confederacy.

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

What was that face Dr. Toboggan made in the first instance of the video? It was like he just noticed there was a camera. Took me by surprise, I made a face more dramatic than his.

[@Robert399]

What makes a pollaxe better suited to fighting in armour than a halberd? Would there be any disadvantage to using a halberd in full plate (with a sword or whatever at your waist obviously)?

[@markmurphy6197]

+Robert R Poleaxe tends to have a hammer which is more useful as well as it being shorter makes it more useful for levering a person to the ground. Actual knightly battles tended to look like armored grappling with weapons and you would want something a little more wieldy than a very long shafted weapon.

[@Regolith86]

Was the notch in the chopping bit placed there on purpose or is it damaged?

[@TheBaconWizard]

+Regolith I zoomed in a bit and it looks untidy to me, like a chip rather than deliberate scallop.

[@NamelessBody]

+Regolith Clearly damage

[@nickabeta]

What do you mean by "chopping?" The blade looks long/ big for effective chopping. Is more cutting, push or pull more likely?

[@Feldscher1039]

+nickabeta It is more like a cleaver, which is made for chopping as well.

[@nickabeta]

In an earlier video talking about battle axes Matt talked about how much smaller battle axe blades were than wood felling axe blades. I believe reasons of weight and penetration were given. Matt has previously explained why cuts are usually more effective than chops. While the halberd blade does resemble a cleaver if it was designed for chopping it would go against the logic of his previous videos (as i understand it). Sword blades are also long. I have never done HEMA so this is just from my head but a halberd is a type 3 lever. I imagine using it to chop being awkward- reduced control of strike zone and slow recovery after striking. I also imagine it being very difficult to perform effectively in formation. You still could use it to chop and being on the receiving end wouldn't be pleasant but from previous videos and that it is a weapon supposedly used in tight formation (unlike pole-ax) I find it hard to believe that chopping is the axe-head's primary function by design.

[@Feldscher1039]

Cuts are more effective, unless your opponent happens to be wearing any kind of armor, at which point thrusts, chops and blunt force become more effective. Also this weapon wasn't used only in tight formations, you heard Tobias talking about small teams being very efficient at dealing with mounted men at arms once the initial attack is broken. There were many designs for halberds and many different ways of using it, but it is always a multi-tool with 2,3 or eve 4 means of dealing damage. If it was just about a tight formation holding the pointy end towards the enemy, pikes would be the more cost effective choice.

[@TheRealJman87]

halberd video! yay :)

[@reneschaap8091]

Als je weet wat je doen moet heb je het paart zo liggen ,je mikt niet op het lichaam maar op de knieën van het paart ,je hoeft het paart niet de doden maar tot stilstand te brengen !

[@asdfkhieee]

Hey guys what camera setting do you want? MAXIMUM ZOOM!!!!!!

[@masterdisaster7013]

Since when Halberd are in use? I think i saw some examples of early halberds which date around 1320.

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Master Disaster Early examples appear in the 13th century (though we could equally call them early pollaxes). However the classic type of halberd that is different to the pollaxe was basically a 14th century thing - difficult to pin down exact dates. They didn't become common until the end of the 14th century I think.

[@SwordFighterPKN]

What is the length of the Pole?

[@davidbradley6040]

In 18th century armies there was still a drill position called "Hat on Halberd".

[@aglo145]

The cross in the blade symbolises the swiss cross!

[@elgostine]

+Anders Andersson never thought of that.. however does this trend also show up in other kingdoms at the same time? or maybe they copied the swiss fashion? we'd have to analyse a lot of halberds

[@aglo145]

+elgostine the swiss were famous for their mercenaries. They fought on french and spanish sides, even on some italian city states. (still today in the papal forces). So their weapons show up in all over europe. It could very well have been fashionable, but I dont know if there is any evidence of that.

[@bobmilaplace3816]

What is that giant arrowhead spear on the far left? Looks like a Yajiri nari yari

[@sirsteam181]

It is most likely in my opinion a Ox-tongue Spear

[@iatebambismom]

Must.. stop.. staring.. at.. blinking.. light..

[@rasnac]

I'd like to see videos about non-European arms and armour in Wallace collection. I know they have a wide selection of Western Asian and Indian weaponry.

[@tungstenkraken2929]

Is there any information about how a unit of men might wield halberds?

[@NamelessBody]

+Tungsten Kraken There is information on the formations used in the 16-17th century-ish, where halberds were employed alongside pikes. The exact movements of fighting with the halberd are explained in fencing manuals in the late 16th century. Before that, very little info. We have a lot on pollaxes from around 1400 onwards, but a sophisticated style of fighting with halberds has, to the best of my knowledge, not been described properly until almost 150-200 years later. Presumably, one can use them similarly to a long polaxe (as shown in the early pollax sources). Or as a spear or regular long axe in battle (not very sophisticated style).

[@NamelessBody]

***** Well, there are some sources on tactics and individual combat with the halberd, they're just rare and not always appropriate for each context. Though yes, in warfare, the individual handling of the weapon was done by people who had more training in tactics than individual combat, and with the limited space there's not that much more one can do.

[@TheOhgodineedaname]

You say "rear hook" but wouldn't rear spike be a more adequate description? I don't dispute that you can hook with it but striking with it is often depicted in period and the on a modern replica I saw the spike was shaped in a 'armor penetrating' square section rather than just being a plate piece of metal.

[@scholagladiatoria]

+DushinSC I don't mind whether you call it a hook or a spike.

[@siddharthm285]

that's a beautiful partisan next to it. could you make a video on partisans and their technique?

[@siddharthm285]

Please?

[@sirsteam181]

Are you sure its a partisan for it could be an ox-tounge spear

[@Afreon]

So is the only real difference between a halberd like that and a billhook, is that the blade on the billhook curves forward and the halberd blade was straight?

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Afreon Basically, yes.

[@CarnalKid]

+scholagladiatoria And the polearm pedants heads explode.

[@nickabeta]

+scholagladiatoria. Clarification: does halberd by definition have a straight blade? I have seen many 'halberds' with curved - convex but also sometimes concave - axe heads. Are these not halberds?

[@NamelessBody]

+nickabeta They are halberds. The blade never curves into a hook, though. Or if it almost does, it does so on both ends, symmetrically (which would not be very useful, often found on late decorative halberds). Obviously some weapons are in between and can be classed as either. I think the main difference is in the origin. Bills seem to originate from the agricultural tool of the same name, while halberds are derived from voulges (which are basically derived from axes) and spears. The pollaxe is another weapon that influences the design of the halberd and vice vera, I'm not sure how well understood this is as of yet. Late halberds look very much like pollaxes, and early pollaxes look a bit like halberds. Maybe they evolved at the same time, or they influenced eachother occasionally. The bill, too, influenced the halberd, and again, you can turn that around. Hard to split them into classes, but generally, the halberd has the hook (or spike) only on the opposite side of the axe blade and ALWAYS has an axe, a hook OR spike and a point, while a voulge sometimes lacks the hook and the axe and point are merged into one object, and a regular axe has no point at all. A bill or guisarme has a hook on one side and a spike (or hook or combination thereof) on the other. The 'axe' in the billhook is the same as the hook (or one of the hooks), while this is never the case with halberds. Also, a bill does not always have a point at the top. A pollaxe can look exactly like a late, decorated halberd, except a bit shorter and more balanced towards the middle.

[@macharim]

Regarding that cross in the blade, I've seen that in many depictions or surviving halberds. Is it just religious decoration or does it serve a purpose? Do any surviving texts talk about it?

[@scholagladiatoria]

+macharim Nobody knows. The strange thing is that it is only really found on halberds. Not partisans, glaives or bills.

[@Duke_of_Lorraine]

+macharim from a structural view, it is too small to have a real impact on weight (nowhere near as massive as a fuller for example), while making it a weak spot (though it doesn't matter much, it is not placed in a place you expect to break anyway)... I'd say it's just a decoration.

[@macharim]

+scholagladiatoria Do halberds made in non christian parts of the world have it as well? Or is the halberd a european only weapon?

[@nickabeta]

+macharim probably depends on how strict your definition of 'halberd' is

[@gobb1955]

+scholagladiatoria I don't think that using a halberd must be so closely related to the amount of armour that the halberdier wore. I understand what you say, that a men at arms in full armour can use a shorter weapon, like the poleaxe, but that not means that halberdiers must have less armour necessarily. From contemporary sources, concerning landsknechts, you can see that from the beginning of the 16th century they start to carry less armour, but not all soldiers carried the same amount, you can see front rank soldiers carrying full sets of it. And it was necessary, because men at arms on foot not relied only in poleaxes, they also used longer weapons like spears. Also, the halberd itself, because of that great axe head, must have been designed to be used against armour, that carried by men at arms or other soldiers, like halberdiers or pikemen.

[@steffenbrand1788]

Maybe the cutout cross was there to discourage enemies of another faith of using weapons like this when they get their hands on it. Especially in Swiss / Austria this could be true in 15th century to 1690 (the high-time of halberds) against the many attacks by the ottoman empire. =)

[@steffenbrand1788]

+Steffen Brand Of cause in addition to just be a sign of protection on the own weapon I mean.

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Steffen Brand The strange thing is that it is only really found on halberds. Not partisans, glaives or bills.

[@Xandros999]

+scholagladiatoria What about poleaxes? I imagine in the transition from longsword to poleaxe as the knightly weapon of choice it might have been thought "needs more Jesus".

[@sandmanhh67]

+scholagladiatoria I wonder if it was just sort of a brand copy thing like they suspect with the Ulfbhert norse swords (Ulfbhert becomes a brand copied by other smiths). Maybe a smith or set of smiths got a name for quality weapons carrying the cross incut and so others copied it, eventually becoming a 'tradition' brand mark.

[@NamelessBody]

+scholagladiatoria Thought the halberd was just something the swiss were proud of particularly? I think that's a swiss cross. The swiss kind of claim to have invented the weapon and still carry it in Rome to date. Maybe the crosses eventually were copied.

[@Pyllymysli]

Matt I love your videos, and your channel. But as a "media professional" i would so much love to shoot your videos so the sound recording and your shot size would be right. Nevermind, it's just propably my "professional elitism." Still love your channel, long time subscriber. :---)

[@Pyllymysli]

If you want any tips about the echo and shot sizes feel free to contact, since I can't realisicly be shooting your vids. With very little work you could make your vids seem much more professional. ;)

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Pyllymysli Thanks - I'm only using a Sony camcorder, so I cannot change the mike. I intend to get a DSLR with a clip-on mike at some point. What you advise regarding the shot sizes? In the museum we are limited by space, angle, window light and various other factors unfortunately.

[@Pyllymysli]

+scholagladiatoria I was aware about that I can't see behind the camera, and afraid that your space is very limited. The most important thing in a shot like this is get your both in the picture whole. In this vid there's quite much clipping. If your shooting space is pushed to the limits already, there's very little that you can do, expect standing very close together which might feel uncomfortable, but will look much better on camera. Your usual videos are quite correct on shot size, and their only real problem is the echo. You can dampen this by putting texture on walls and floor. Meaning of a thick carpet is often underestimated. You can put texture on ceiling too, but it's much more complicated. And ofcourse if these are your living space, I don't know if you really want to. If you want to dampen the walls, but maintain your background you can always put texture on the wall behind the camera so it wont show on the shot. Since you are clearly aware of the echo and planning on getting a new mic I won't say much more on this, expect to put a lot of thought and do product comparsion on what you are buying. If you can test the product forehand it's always better. Maybe someone you know has something very similiar? It goes without saying that one spot on purchase is way better than 3 failed ones.

[@Pyllymysli]

+scholagladiatoria It turns out I was a lot less helpful than I was hoping to. Still, all in good intention. :)

[@Pyllymysli]

+Pyllymysli Oh! And there is some add-on lens to even very basic cameras that widen your angle and can be very helpful on limited inside spaces. I was shooting a videos series with a very basic HD cam just a while ago and those "clip-on" (I don't know what to call em really) lens gave me like 6-8 degrees more angle on my shot and it was very helpful in confined spaces. Since I do this for a job and I pay nothing on my equipment atm, I can't really say what they cost but I'd imagine they are priced reasonably, since they are not actual optics but just kind of extra part.

[@ingni123456]

why are langets only on the sides, and not on all four sides? at least a back langet would directly oppose the deceleration the weapon would face, which could or would wear the side langets

[@beegum1]

It seems to me that a square of pikemen, or halberdiers, then, having just a small amount of armor, enough to demand a significant blow to wound, is truly a daunting opponent even to a large group of knights. They must necessarily hit them very hard or straight on, and they are packed tight, more tightly than horses can hope to pack themselves, so theoretically, in a disciplines square, the knights are more or less no longer important in a direct military conflict, saving ranged unit, especially legit longbows and crossbows. How did I do?

[@HaNsWiDjAjA]

Not too bad, although it seems that you didnt put enough emphasis on the implications of morale on the result of a battle. Its not about killing the other guy's men, rather it was about convincing them to stop fighting. One of the greatest asset of a heavy cavalry charge was its great morale effect on the foe - even just fifty horsemen in a line coming at a gallop towards you would literally shake the very ground - an extremely terrifying experience for unexperienced soldiers and a daunting one even for seasoned veterans. Which was why pikes deployed in deep blocks - not so much for pushing power but to maximize the morale advantage of large numbers of men being huddled together. If two formation of pikes were locked in combat and fifty mounted men-at-arms crashed into the flank of one of them, then the one without the aid of the horse were pretty much toast. The sudden morale shock of having an enemy force with tremendous immediate destructive power attacking them from unexpected direction would completely disrupt their formation and shatter their morale, and they would most likely rout and be massacred in the pursuit. Also, if a formation of pikemen were leisurely traipsing up a hill in march columns, minding their own business and suddenly out of nowhere a squadron of cavalry suddenly charged down on them, it's quite likely that those poor foot soldiers would be toast. Which was why the invention of pike and shot infantry did not in any way diminish the importance of cavalry in European warfare. If anything the proportion of cavalry in Western European armies INCREASED during the 17th and 18th century (!), and they remained as decisive as ever. Cavalry's inherent advantage of tremendous mobility and superior morale position truly gave it the advantage until the advent of breech-loading rifles and machine guns.

[@beegum1]

John Huang Are you sure? I mean, the pike was really the dominant defensive force as horses won't willingly impale themselves and... wasn't that how India was initially beaten... an ancient technique for dealing with cavalry and chariots. Anyway... the calvalry, however were needed to protect the supply lines from other cavalry, as I understand it, so they generally came to a great clash at the opening of battles and routed the troops and then sacked the supplies of the opposing army, resulting in the "decisive use" on the battlefield, lol. This was much harder if the supplies were stored inside a castle as I understand it.

[@kurtbogle2973]

Halberd , Were these used in place of a spear?

[@Taurevanime]

I have always been told that the English had a preference for the bill as a weapon of war, though as shown other polearms were not at all uncommon. My question is whether or not you have found in your own research if this is actually true, or yet another myth started in the romanticist period of the Victorian era?I am sure you will eventually get to making a video about the bill and it's evolution and I look forward to it.Also thank you and Dr Tobias for the video.

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Taurevanime The bill certainly was favoured in England, yes. It's proven by written records from the 15th century, treatises (George Silver) and medieval art.

[@Taurevanime]

Good to know it isn't a romanticist myth.

[@book3100]

I wonder what sort of training halberdiers might have done.

[@HaNsWiDjAjA]

I imagine it must be extremely terrifying for a formation of halberdiers wielding their 7-8 feet long polearms to face a conroy of charging mounted men-at-arms, bristling with 12-14 feet long lance - basically you were almost guaranteed to get skewered before being able to return the favor. I dont imagine that a lot of halberdiers would not simply rout when faced with that kind of situation. They definitely needed the help of pikes to stand up to heavy horse in the open. About the only way the horsemen could get into trouble against the halberdiers was if they could be tempted to charge into some bad terrain that would bog them down and made their lances ineffective, which would allow the halberdiers to counterattack in relative safety and pick off individual men-at-arms before they could drew back and rally.

[@NamelessBody]

+John Huang You don't want to fight a horse head-on with anything but a ranged weapon or a pike. And even that'll not go very well for you even if you kill it, with all the weight and momentum. The halberdier would avoid that situation at all costs. Once stopped or scattered, horsemen would be easier targets and halberds would be the best way to actively engage them. They're no good in defense against a charging horse.

[@Murdo2112]

+Spec I recall reading, many years ago, in one of Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe novels, that an experienced man, finding himself being charged by a horseman, would stand his ground until the last moment and then step across the horse's path (to put himself on the opposite side to the rider's weapon), and then strike at the horses nose, aiming to, essentially, cut off the front of the horse's face. I've often wondered if this is in any way corroborated by contemporary sources, or if it's just dramatic license on the part of the author (bullshit, if you prefer). Anyone got any real info?

[@NamelessBody]

Murdo2112 That seems physically possible in theory, but would demand bravery, a horse that will not react by trampling him (the cut is very unlikely to kill it), and a rider who cannot deal with the new situation. The essence rings reasonable: If you have to, you'll need to dodge, yeah. And then you're off to the side, the vulnerable area of the horse. But the chances of getting there unharmed... I wouldn't expect to live.

[@HaNsWiDjAjA]

Spec​​​​ Murdo2112​​​ In his famous work the 'Fior di Battaglia' the late 14th century Italian martial arts instructor Fiore dei Liberi wrote the following: "Even if Roland or Publicano came at me with a lance, I will await them this way with a chiavarina (boar spear) or a club. I will deflect his lance and strike his head. And I will began from this position.' Basically, Fiore recommended that a man on foot with a fairly short polearm, when faced with a charging mounted lancer, should use a low guard ("the boar's tooth"), Like this: encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSX2sOD2NYGp-sS7ZAxCBYkH47jSGsjffbJkRcqDDT4K5UoUOVy , to deflect the oncoming lance by an upward parry, then very rapidly bring down his weapon on the horsemen's head. Like this: encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR-wWHIoIHtOlUmrravQ4q7eAamfqkSbMPWx6D7N8Ez_-tgTKr_ Made a lot of sense to me, although it would require a ton of nerve and excellent timing to deflect a lance propelled by a charging horse! But given that Fiore was no armchair or even gym floor martial artist, but have actually fought in many duels and several battles, I think his idea must have some merit. This technique would also not work if the men on foot were in tight formation (although then again we could argue that halberdiers probably shouldnt be deployed in a tight formation); its made for individual combat. This manuscript explained it better than I could: www.aemma.org/onlineResources/liberi/wildRose/section7.html

[@VT-mw2zb]

+John Huang At least in the Swiss Pike formation, the halberd were weapons of the dudes in the center of the square, to fight off people who came too close. the ones with the longer weapon, the "pikemen" are the ones who will hold off the charge.

[@reaperwithnoname]

Wouldn't the simpler construction of the halberd make it a stronger? Why would poleaxes be intentionally designed with a weaker construction?

[@wartstein8814]

Having almost no experience in swordfighting I still think it must be very hard to fight against a halberd with a sword. To eliminate the reach advantage of the first you´d have to close in i guess but than the halberd-guy would just have to pull back his weapon an hook you for example in the leg from behind with that hook... Matt, how would you try to fight a halberd guy if you´d only have a sword?!

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Wartstein 1 Yes a halberd has a big advantage against a sword, unless the swordsman has a decent level of armour, or a large shield. If you have to use a sword against the halberd then you need to close distance as quickly as possible, defending with halfsword when necessary on the way in.

[@wartstein8814]

+scholagladiatoria Thanks for the reply, Matt. And on this occasion: Also thanks for the very many really interesting vids you make and the valid informations you give. I watch them a lot but usually don´t comment cause beeing not an englich native speaker I fear not beeing able to formulate more complex contents.

[@NamelessBody]

+scholagladiatoria Another one for ya: Would you rather have a large shield against a halberd, or a free hand to grab the shaft with, assuming you're using a good sword that is not very short but can be used comfortably in one hand - say, a long arming sword or bastard sword, whichever you find more useful?

[@03outdoorschannel64]

Best of the day to you Sir! Just wanted to give a tiny bit of constructive criticism that may assist you in further endeavors incorporating other experts like yourself. It's a little bit painful to see a professional who has agreed to do a video with you, for us, and have the first several minutes be of him standing there silently while you describe everything. In order to turn the tables, and honor them to the max, you could try letting them do the describing and talking mostly, and maybe you could just kind of take the back seat for those types of videos. That way, the professional you are working with will feel highly valued and in possession of expertise that is being honored. Just a thought! And thank you for your videos and excellent educational materials that you produce! Subscribing

[@03outdoorschannel64]

We all know that YOU are an expert ;)

[@captainkirk400]

Why is there a spade behind you, Matt?

[@MikeDaner2630]

would billmen and halberdiers grouped together on the battlefield? If no: why?

[@hjorturerlend]

+Mike Daner They were, also with soldiers armed with spear and shield and later pikes. Bills, guisarmes, voulges and halberds fullfill the the exact same role on the battlefield, they just emphasize different attributes - all have good points for stabbing, but the Bill and Guisarme are better at hooking and binding than the Voulge or Halberd, which in turn are better at chopping than the other two etc. etc... English "Billmen" didn´t just use bills, though the bill was very popular in England. Don´t take my word as ultimate truth, but I hypothesize that during the late 14th-latter 15th centuries, the soldiers who could afford decent armour - let´s say a helmet, gambeson, brigandine/mail shirt and thigh armour (cuisses), thus protecting the areas with the most mass/organs from stabs/projectiles - would opt for an offensive two handed polearm like a halberd or a guisarme. Meanwhile those that could only afford a helmet and a gambeson, leaving them painfully vulnerable to polearms and crossbow bolts, would opt for a more defensive weapon set in order to compensate for their lack of armour - good ol' spear and shield. :)

[@MikeDaner2630]

hjorturerlend Thanks :)

[@crazylegoman]

I would say that's more of a guisarme than a bill.

[@LegendaryGelder]

Did people ever use bucklers with halberds?

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Afroswine Hoggintons A halberd is a two-handed weapon, so no.

[@LegendaryGelder]

Ok, I thought I saw some instance where a knight held the halberd with both hands with a buckler on his left hand as well

[@sparrowhawk81]

+Afroswine Hoggintons I don't know of any documentation of such things, but I believe I've heard of people having done this with longswords too. I've tried it with smallish bucklers. Putting your hand through the grip on the inside of the buckler, farther than usual (down into the palm), assuming the bar isn't very thick, you can easily grab a longsword. If the grip on the longsword is long enough, you can even do it with both hands. It isn't hard to imagine someone being able to pull it off with a pole-arm. But again...I'm unaware of any documentation.

[@Gloin79]

+Afroswine Hoggintons In "techniques of medieval armour reproduction the 14th century" Brian price I read about finger shields, basically very small round shields worn over fingered gauntlets for extra protection. Rondelles I believe they are called, they are also used to protect the armpit. armstreet.com/catalogue/full/rondelle-plate-for-medieval-finger-gauntlets.jpg

[@maarhoefe]

say matt, forgive me if i missed a video but it seems you never realy adressed the bill in depth yet, wile i believe it was quite an important weapon in english history especially

[@MurphaLurph13]

What's the deal with that ridiculously broad headed spear on the left? Anti-cavalry purposes? An overcompensation for something? I've never seen something quite like it.

[@dizzt19]

Cool! Next time probably zoom out a bit if you can :)

[@scholagladiatoria]

+dizzt19 I couldn't move the camera any further back in that location.

[@klyanadkmorr]

+scholagladiatoria You couldn't rotated the camera to your right some atleast to center the weapons between your heads? for the last 2min lift the camera UP over your head to show them closer? Couldn't be any worse than this.

[@corvanphoenix]

Come now, that beautiful Guisarme doesn't deserve to be called just a bill!

[@sirsteam181]

It isn't a Guisarme though it is a Bill or a Billhook

[@williampanagopoulos656]

'you could miss the armpit andhit the breastp[late, causing the tip to break or bend. and which point thrusting becomes quite a pointless excercise

[@sarcastichamsandwich5413]

+William Panagopoulos The pun. THE PUN

[@cowboycarpenter8713]

It can take a lot to kill a horse, point the only Calvary survivor Of Custer's last stand was a horse with something like 26 arrow and bullet wounds. As a horseman I know it takes very little to cripple a horse, one or 2 slashes to the lower leg with anyone of those weapons and a horse is crippled, make me wonder if it was bad manners to take out the horse.

[@Feldscher1039]

It seems there is really no specific reason for the crosses or other holes in halberds. Some have a cross, some have many, some have holes, some have nothing. As can be seen here www.pinterest.com/ludota/poleaxe-hammer-maces-halberd/

[@Pizzagulper]

lol I have a hard time believing that a halberd could cleave a shield in half. :P

[@sirsteam181]

I find it hard for anything to cleave a decent shield in half

[@michaelblake3320]

How would a bardiche compare to a halberd ?

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Michael Blake Compare in what way?

[@michaelblake3320]

+scholagladiatoria well it's more of a pole axe than a halberd, but in terms of its functionality in battle ? Since both have their striking power like an axe would .

[@scholagladiatoria]

+Michael Blake A bardiche is just a two-handed axe, like a big Dane axe. It's not really a pollaxe (which is more balanced and has more parts) or a halberd (which is a long polearm based on a spear point).

[@michaelblake3320]

+scholagladiatoria yes it seems it was . Actually it was popular among musketeers as they would use it as a resting point for their barrels to fire from . Like a bipod yet dual use. It can be seen in popular films as well as the executioners weapon of choice . I agree that it only has the use of an axe in that sense

[@bwcmakro]

+Michael Blake you're mixing up musketeers and the Russian Streltsy.

[@skorr7909]

#scholagladiatoria what's with that battle shovel, next to that billhook ?

[@robertsroberts1688]

Skorr hewing spear

[@sirsteam181]

Ox Tongue Spear

[@sky4eyes]

the pole axe looks better

[@scholagladiatoria]

+sky4eyes Not if you don't have armour. Then the weapon which is 2 or 3 feet longer looks better (to someone who has to use one).

[@dragatus]

+scholagladiatoria Maybe the commenter meant that from a purely aesthetic point of view.

[@ObatongoSensei]

+dragatus The wrong aesthetics could get you killed at that times... :)

[@danielwalker8142]

a swiss army pike