Polearms! Knightly Poleaxe & Halberd: Differences & Use

Polearms are great and still somewhat underrated (although that has gotten a lot better in recent years). The poleaxe (or pollaxe) and halberd are particularly iconic for the Middle Ages and Renaissance. But what even are they? How do you distinguish them from each other and from various battle axes? Let's take a look at the practical use, background, definition, and how they're made.
Also the polehammer / Lucerne hammer... which is an "axe" according to people back in the day. ;)
** Sources **
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_...
French pollaxes from 15th century
www.metmuseum.org/art/collect...
www.metmuseum.org/art/collect...
Italian pollaxe, ca. 1475
www.metmuseum.org/art/collect...
Halberds
www.metmuseum.org/art/collect...
www.metmuseum.org/art/collect...
www.metmuseum.org/art/collect...
Medieval imagery
manuscriptminiatures.com/search
myarmoury.com/feature_higgins_...
www.artic.edu/artworks/116324...
Jeu de la Hache
• Le Noble Jeu de la Hac...
077 - VXT 2018 Hache de Pas - Combat 16
• 077 - VXT 2018 Hache...
** Time Stamps **
00:00 - 00:48 Introduction
00:48 - 01:30 Length difference
01:30 - 03:46 Poleaxe grip & techniques
03:46 - 04:48 Halberd usage & reach
04:48 - 07:09 Development / purpose / armor
07:09 - 11:53 Terminology & definition
11:53 - 13:00 Earliest halberds / What's a Voulge?
13:00 - 13:34 Time span
13:34 - 14:20 Construction
14:20 - 15:29 Final thoughts / rating / outro
** Music **
Intro song:
"Illuminate" by Vindsvept
vindsvept.bandcamp.com/track/...
Used with artist's permission
Outtakes:
"Little People At Work" by Horrorpen
opengameart.org/content/littl...
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license (CC BY 3.0)
Outro:
"Highland Storm" by The Slanted Room Records
theslantedroom.github.io/stev...
Used with artist's permission
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#history #weapon #polearm

[@necroseus]

You get a pollaxe when you breed a female spear with a male battleaxe, and you get a halberd when you breed a female battleaxe with a male spear. Hope this helps! :D

[@marcogenovesi8570]

not sure the flower and bee story prepared me to this, but here we are

[@johndododoe1411]

So a bit like mule versus hinny?

[@tylerphuoc2653]

@@johndododoe1411 Or Tigon vs Liger :P

[@rikospostmodernlife]

@@johndododoe1411 more liger vs tigon

[@nea0496]

Am I the only one who didn't get this. Please explain.

[@KnightLincoln]

Modern archeologists: Nooo! It's called pollax, you can't call it poleaxe! Medieval swordmasters: That thing? Yeah that's an axe.

[@bloodwynn]

Just like all those fancy shield names that we use... For medieval folks all of those heater shields, kite shields etc. are just SHIELDS. :D

[@AGrumpyPanda]

@@bloodwynn Don't forget that part of the cause of this is the fact that you often didn't have multiple kinds of shields, swords et cetera coexisting. Hence why we get so many weapons called a long sword in their own time.

[@bloodwynn]

@@AGrumpyPanda True!

[@HanSolo__]

ax

[@VukaGhost]

"Sin thing? yeah sin'ſ ain axæ."

[@rockyblacksmith]

Funny thing about the names: "Halberd" comes from "Hellebarde" or "Helmbarte". A composition of the old words for staff/pole ("helm") and axe ("barte"). So "halberd" quiet literally translates to "poleaxe", despire them being different weapons.

[@ionlycomment5187]

Which language does this come from?

[@sl-qx5dk]

@@ionlycomment5187 west korean

[@Halo_Legend]

@@sl-qx5dk funny

[@rockyblacksmith]

@@ionlycomment5187 Old German.

[@psychopath682]

@@rockyblacksmith I do understand "barte" because of "axebeard", but what the frick happened to "helm". Neither the transition to the word Stab/Stange nor the reuse of helm for "helmet" makes sense. And don't start with "Helle". XD

[@windhelmguard5295]

the question of "which is better" does, as usually, boil down to the situation you're in. if you're a foot soldier on a battlefield then you probably want to have a halberd, you would also want the guys standing left, right and behind you to have halberds because then you can fight in proper formation, form a stiff line of pointy bits and repel cavalry charges. if you're a knight fighting a knight in a duel or on a battlefield after order has collapsed to the point where you can safely swing the thing without needing to worry about slaying your own men by accident, then the pole axe seems like the better choice.

[@necroseus]

Yes! The weapon which is best specialized for its task is indeed the best tool for the job. :D

[@Masra94]

The medieval battlefield was a pretty diverse place and I don't think it was as heavy on formations and having similar weapons. You'd probably have guys with maces, flails, axes, hammers, poleaxes alongside guys with halberds, billhooks, etc. Or you might use a halberd until a certain point and then drop it for something else. Especially considering how damn hard it was to kill someone in full armour. If you didn't at some point get in there with hammers and daggers it would be pretty difficult to finish a fight. Even English longbowmen used polearms, hammers, falchions and other weapons once they shot their arrows and stormed down to help finish off French infantry and dismounted cavalry.

[@Psiberzerker]

Generally, when picking weapons for a fantasy adventurer (Because honestly, none of these are practical fighting weapons any more) I always consider which is better to Carry first. I kinda hate the magnet back in video games, but the bag of holding in Dice & Dossiers is just as bad. How small can you write in the Equipment field on your character sheet? Okay, that's how much you can carry.

[@Psiberzerker]

Basically, it's like the Tiger Tank. On paper, it was the best tank of the war. In reality, it never made it to the battlefield in enough numbers to make a difference. The weapon you have on you is much better than the one you had to leave behind in the arming cart, because you wanted a shield, because they're shooting arrows at us. I can carry a pole-ax with a shield, and a sword on my belt. I can't use the shield, and the poleax, but I can drop (Or throw) the shield when I get to the melee. I'm not even going to try that with a Halberd.

[@Muritaipet]

A battle line would never just be a single or double line of men. It's too easy to break. With depth in any formation, weapon mixes would reflect this. Full plate armour / pollaxes might dominate the first line, and be supported by soldiers with weaker armour and "long pointy sticks" in lines 2 & 3 etc etc. It's totally situational Also, people fight in units. 5 enlisted men with halberds, might be controlled by an "officer/NCO" with a pollaxe.

[@Nerazmus]

Modern historians: "We must calssifie these simmilar looking armaments into precise categories." Medieval masters: "It's a weapon."

[@robertspeedwagon982]

Hmmmm A X E

[@zyroguy8885]

Modern Specialist: "They must have named all the armaments but we just didn't get it" Weaponsmith at the time: I call this new weapons "Seventh-thing that hurts-thing on a stick"

[@vadenummela9353]

Medieval people in medieval times would probably refer to things exactly this way. In their own language of their own period. As just "thing". Modern historians that have to consider all periods and all environments where subcategories and era-specific versions of "thing" have to keep adding specifying terminology to keep "farming Thing from 900AD" separate from "Knight's weapon Thing from late 1500s France"

[@TuorTheBlessedOfUlmo]

@@vadenummela9353 okay now try going to a blacksmith and saying make me thing please... Clearly they used names that they never felt the need to write down. But to honestly think people back then we're morons who didn't classify types of variety in weapons you're deluded

[@jklinders]

@@TuorTheBlessedOfUlmo *Laughs in Latin* I bring you the Gladius which was literally Latin for sword. also Messer and Kriegmesser literally knife and war knife. It's not that medieval people were stupid. They weren't they just were not as hung up on terms as historians have to be to place a weapon in it's proper context.

[@jllemin4]

I saw another video one time describing the difference as: A poleaxe is thick and square handled with a metal pommel spike, plating, and the hammer pick head at the top. Its used in medium to close combat against heavy armor by using the spikes, hooks, and stout build of the poleaxe to yank the enemy's tools away from them with one end and strike with the other. Ideal for fighting in full plate on foot against another person in heavy plate armor. A halbird meanwhile is a short pike with an axe on it as well. Its made to be used like a spear or pike with the addition of a swinging head. Ideal for unarmored or lightly armored opponents since you can easily hew, stab, slash, and chop from a safe distance

[@undertakernumberone1]

for your pollaxe definition: bzt there are pollaxes with axe blades... it's mainly length and construction imo.

[@borttorbbq2556]

It's also the way it's used. Bergs are area denial while p.axs are combat focused

[@absoluteaficionado515]

Well,, I think that's overall a solid assessment, but I am not convinced by the description of the use of halberds and their ideal targets. Lindybeige has a video on how he thinks halberds were used and I think his explanation makes more sense, though depending on what exactly the halberd is like, the ideal target can be quite different.

[@spikeybridge1700]

@@absoluteaficionado515 and you can’t deny that if you can’t get to close range against a halberd it doesn’t matter if it’s good at close range (plus secondary’s were a thing)

[@Adam_okaay]

@@absoluteaficionado515 that's a specific example of a halberd there are halberds with convex semi-circular blade as well. You should check out oakeshott's pole arm typology the amount of overlap and variety between pole weapons is pretty wild.

[@billthebanuk6212]

What's crazy about pole arms is the variety they come in and all the shapes they allow You can have just about any shape on top of your polearm, as long as the weight is in check, it's a viable weapon. Edit: nevermind this does not extend to schythes, turns out you can still mess it up...

[@absoluteaficionado515]

Let's add iron sponge to the list of unviable bits on polearms!

[@johndododoe1411]

How about using a small cannon instead of a blade or spike?

[@niscent_]

@@absoluteaficionado515 that's a fine stick you're describing there!

[@DarkValorWolf]

@@johndododoe1411 that's just a hand cannon/handgonne

[@johndododoe1411]

@@DarkValorWolf That's the joke.

[@acorns-r-us]

They both deal d10 damage and have the heavy, two-handed, and reach properties

[@Chraan]

Reach on the Pollaxe doesn't make much sense, but if DnD says so...

[@TheHornedKing]

@@Chraan Pollaxes aren't in DnD. Not 5e anyway. You can however, easily take an in-game weapon and just change the name, and there you go. Most weapons that aren't in DnD would have the same stats and traits as some of those that are in the game.

[@Chraan]

@@TheHornedKing Glad to know, I would have been surprised of that big oversight there

[@cpt.awesome7281]

Poleaxes aren't reskinned halberds, they are reskinned greataxes. Because what else is a greataxe based off of if not a daneaxe? And, as the video stated, what is a poleaxe design inspired by if not a daneaxe? 🤔 Better damage without the reach bonus makes sense for it.

[@elenna_alexia]

Pollaxe really shouldn't have reach tbh. It should really have some anti-armor properties, but the default D&D armor system doesn't really do stuff like that well. Maybe other systems are better for that.

[@mattw.6726]

I like to refer to the Poleaxe/Bec de Corbin/Lucerne Hammer as "The Medieval Can-Opener".

[@T4nkcommander]

xD such a beautiful weapon

[@darkrage1138]

I grew up calling maces Medieval can openers, think I read it in a book somehwere.

[@matthewwriter9539]

That is one big can of soup!

[@jeanxza5395]

The can being analogous to a peasant's cranium

[@zaholykrusedar1459]

@@matthewwriter9539 sadly, the content is cured food, not soup Still yummy though

[@FullAdDariusBR]

The difference is that the Poleaxe is the most versatile weapon used by the Lawbringers.

[@crimsoncherry3525]

Ah a man of culture

[@Miraihi]

That guy knows a thing or two about axes ^

[@counterblast3885]

Facts

[@raver377]

god dammit, firstly i wanted to make that joke, secondly you made it to obvious of a refference

[@FullAdDariusBR]

@@raver377 That was the intention, m8.

[@silverjohn6037]

Just to add to the confusion regarding the origin of pollaxe, the version I've seen was that the name came from a killing tool used by butchers for large animals like cattle and horses. It was usually either a particularly heavy axe or hammer that could drop an animal with one hit when brought down on the head, or as it used to be called the poll (which is why a poll tax is used to describe a tax levies on each person or "per capita" in Latin). If you read some older books written in the 1920-40's you'll sometimes see people describe a boxer knocking out some one with one punch as dropping him like a pollaxed stear.

[@FillyH]

Thanks was coming to say this and you put it much better than I would!

[@Adam_okaay]

Actually the hammer head was used first to stun the cow and then you smash it with the axe/spiked side to put it down. But yeahh you're correct about everything else.

[@brianmccarthy5557]

I've seen a video of an early 20th Century slaughterhouse in Chicago where a muscular butcher is using something that looks a lot like a halberd to divide an already partially processed carcass in half with a single blow on an assembly line.

[@caseyhart9916]

Yeah, I've seen this too. It didn't get its name because it's an axe ON a pole, but because it's an axe that's used on a poll.

[@InterdictorCompellor]

In addition, the flat back of an axe is sometimes called the butt, but sometimes also called the poll. The entire metal portion is usually called the head, but never the poll, except possibly in some very old sources that I never found but suspect exist.

[@erloriel]

Currently writing a fantasy book with a particularly powerful character fighting in the poleaxe style with a modified halberd. So I was overjoyed, when I saw your video in my feed. During my research, I encountered the topics you covered. Every single one. And I came to the same conclusion. Somehow, this makes me feel like I did an at least adequate job in my research. As such: many thanks for your perspective! It really took a weight off my mind.

[@tillmen4444]

Book out yet?

[@ieatgluesoyoudonthaveto]

Book out yet?

[@robinbernardinis]

As an Italian, I would just like to point out that in modern Italian Azza specifically means Pollaxe, whereas a generic Axe is called Ascia. I do not know if at the time the terms were interchangeable, but now they are definitely not.

[@bimbotimboful]

Ackhtually, if you go by the dictionary, "Axe" would be either "Scure" or "Accetta" depending on the size, while "Ascia" would be a different tool (with the blade perpendicular to the handle). But yeah, today Ascia is a common catch-all term for all of those tools

[@samarkand1585]

Do you tell ascia with a soft c or hard?

[@bimbotimboful]

@@samarkand1585 The spelling "sci" reads with a soft c, like how in English you would pronounce the "Shi" part of "Ship" (the stress in the word may be different though). So you can read "Ascia" as "Asha"

[@samarkand1585]

@@bimbotimboful thank you

[@robinbernardinis]

@@bimbotimboful Huh, how about that. I honestly had no idea something like that even existed. Thanks for enlightening me!

[@busshock]

One clear difference in my mind, is that the halberd, when used in formation, is long enough to repel calvalry, while the poleaxe was a strictly anti-infantry weapon.

[@shaidrim]

The Italian term “Azza” is specifically referred to the Pole Axe, while the other axes (battle or great) are called “Ascia”

[@leonpeters-malone3054]

I always thought part of the definition, from a more knowledgeable position, was the use. There's a bit of a mode of use here. Poleaxe/pollaxe/pollhammer is an individual weapon. It's a deliberate anti-armour weapon, it's a weapon of the individual knight. It's meant and can be used close in and has a weakness in range. Sure, you have some range with it, but when you're capped out at 5ft, it's no spear in terms of reach. It's not just a 'knightly' weapon, it's a can opener, it's a brutal weapon and it's a deliberate weapon for defeating armour. It's the control of the user that makes the best of this weapon. A knockout blow or a lethal one. The halberd on the hand is a group weapon, a weapon of block infantry. Even perhaps cavalry. It's got the tools you need to make things interesting for the second and third ranks. More importantly it's not got a pointy/nasty backend to hurt your own guys with. It's about making an area uncomfortable to deadly for the other guy. This is a weapon of the mass drill, repeated drill, it's a weapon of rank and fill lines. On some level it's the definition of assault rifle and battle rifle, in a more modern context. Made even harder when you have a near enough definition of 'rifle' that fits both. Yet, really explains nothing. It's not something you can easily describe. Even with the old manuals, I feel there's some lost context to it that we have to use these specific names to try and cover. What was common, practical knowledge for them, isn't so for us.

[@Ranluinar]

Halberd's always been my favorite weapon, even when I was a kid, I preferred the idea of staves or polearms to swords. Having reach is no joke

[@sanae99.9.9]

Glaive is the thing man. In Japan also has naginata

[@SheffiTB]

My favorite distinction, I don't remember if it was from Matt Easton or someone else, was distinguishing them primarily by what they're meant to be used for, rather than their length, composition, etc. that can easily vary and become somewhat muddled. Pollaxes are meant for heavily-armored (usually in full plate) knights to fight other heavily-armored knights in a one-on-one or small skirmish. Halberds are meant for lightly armored (relatively; often wearing brigandine or similar armor) infantry to fight other lightly armored infantry in large formations. Those two categories don't have all too much overlap, and while it's not always easy to know what a weapon was meant for when you dig it out of whatever hole it's been sitting in for the last few centuries, approaching it from that perspective makes it easier to classify some of the more ambiguous cases.

[@Daetaur]

Apparently there is some some criticism written in the 16th century from the Spanish on the Italians, for using halberds that are "too light", and pointing as example the Marquis of Pescara, at the Battle of Sessia (1524), who was known for wearing just chainmail for skirmishes. It is told in said battle to be hit on the shoulders by a Halberd and not being wounded. Probably a glancing blow, but it tells about this while insisting on halberds should be "strong" and sharp and to be mainly used on armored enemies, and leave the unarmored to the sword-and-buckler soldiers still used in the era (rodeleros)

[@morlath4767]

THANK YOU! Seriously, Skal, this subject has been driving me absolute nuts. I've been trying to work it out for a lot of my fantasy writing and just couldn't get a mental grip on the differences.

[@Skallagrim]

Glad to know that you found it helpful.

[@Graycata]

Me too. This helped figure out what weapon I was going for in my writing of a character and their style

[@Tadicuslegion78]

All around the world Shad, Lindybeige, scholagladiatoria, and a whole slew of people I'm forgetting are looking up from what they're doing and know this is happening.

[@aleisterlavey9716]

Not forget Metatron

[@MrDelferi123]

The pol(l/e)ax(e) is one of my favorite weapons. It is a Swiss-army-knife-weapon with elements of axe, hammer, spear, quarterstaff and war-pick, AND, unlike most other multi-tool weapons, it is actually practical! It is a rare case where combining a lot of different weapons does not make one that is not that great at anything.

[@butchdeadlift10]

Subjects you may have covered but are just floating in my head. Best Egyptian weapons. Best African weapons. Know your knights by the helmet. What would be an authetic 5th century Camelot set of armament? 20 romans vs a war elephant: Tactics gone mad.

[@butchdeadlift10]

The best egyptian weapons is mostly because movies are always obsessed with Egypt and it mostly becomes about moses or aliens. Maybe finding out about egyptian soldiers, mercenaries, or assassins would make people actually interested in the egyptians and not the glowing things in the sky above the egyptians.

[@zappodude7591]

Okay, this might be controversial, but I think the Zat'nik'tel is better than the Goa'uld Staff Weapon. It seems roughly equal in anti-personnel use, though it may even be better, as even a grazing hit will stun. It is much smaller, which aids in concealability and close quarters, but doesn't sacrifice any accuracy. It obviously doesn't have the same punch for anti-vehicle use, but the Heavy Staff Cannon fills that role better anyway. While a staff is better than a tiny handgun for hand-to-hand, it's just kind of goofy? Just use a knife or something.

[@butchdeadlift10]

@@zappodude7591 (looks left and right) I am not sure how this is a response to me. Either I am high (very possibly) or you responded to me by accident

[@zappodude7591]

@@butchdeadlift10 Hey, you asked about Egyptian weapons ;)

[@butchdeadlift10]

@@zappodude7591 good. Because I was indeed high , it turned out

[@Deadcontroll]

Great video. I just want to add something. Something we should not forget or neglect is the use of the weapon in a infantry battle formation. The poleaxe seem more like duelling weapon (being shorter and easier to handle), than the halberd. I am not saying it can not be used in formation but it would seem to me that the Halberd is an improved spear in very compact infantry formation. I also think that could explain why it is also used much longer than the poleaxe (more reach in a battle formation is usually better). Knowing that Halberds were used during the Pike and Shot era, makes this even clearer that it complemented the pike formation.

[@necroseus]

Yeah, for sure! The halberd is an axelike spear, where the pollaxe is a spearlike axe. Pollaxes were employed by knights specifically for murdering other knights/ heavily armoured men at arms while still having killing power for lower tiers of armour. They likely were used like shock troops once formations started to fail, where their more menouverable weapons would allow them to seriously mess up fighters who have weapons specilized for formation fighting.

[@b.h.abbott-motley2427]

Two late-16th-century English sources mentioned that halberds/bills for fighting in close formation in armor were also rather short: no more than 6ft in total. Some Swiss halberds may have been this length as well, given that John Waldman says the rare surviving original hafts are 5-6ft (for a like total length of 6-7ft). & Pietro Monte favored a long pollaxe for duels in armor, as long as person could reach into the air or a bit longer, so probably 7+ft.

[@rotwang2000]

@@necroseus Armour gets to be so good that even a single handed warhammer isn't that effective so you need a larger weapon where mass and speed essentially start to do some nasty things to the fleshy bits inside the near impregnable armour. A good swing with a poleaxe to the side of the head might not even penetrate, but the guy inside has at the very least some serious neck and brain injury.

[@kamiloniszczuk9685]

The poleaxe is also a good choice for specific situations like assaulting enemy walls and buildings or other situation where you may find yourself in a bit tighter space facing a single or a few opponents as opposed to large formation fighting

[@Schmunzel57]

Affordability of halberds is off. I talked to a gunsmith caring for the collection in the Graz armoury. They have old documents that show that halberds where at a similar price as muskets (because you need more high quality steel, musketes only need litle springs from good steel.). So I guess they where used because the are easier on the logistics then muskets.

[@freelanceart1019]

Muskets were very inaccurate, whilst Halberds are great damage.

[@-Shinoray-]

For everyone interested in the techniques of using a halberd. The Channel from Björn Rüther has, i think 7 or 8 Videos in that.

[@roffels11-gamingandhistory69]

Very interesting, as always. I like the "solo" demonstration you did as well as the sparring scenes. A well made video. Congrats!

[@strellettes8511]

Ive been waiting so long for a nother polearm video from you! But a video about POLEAXES and HALBERDS? its perfect!

[@da-stickman-king2286]

I love your edits when you talk about how a weapon can be used for defense and you either give us a pov strike or bring in your double to demonstrate something, for me a visual learner it makes understanding the techniques your talking about easier to visualize or see the practical use of

[@Zorafin]

I love these kinds of comparisons. This makes it pretty clear what each one is about. Some more detail as to why you would want each one would be interesting too.

[@Ashtor1337]

And points out simple things... Like size. I never noticed the difference...

[@aleisterlavey9716]

Halberds work best in group, while pole axes allows as well for formation and 1:1 fighting. Halberds have more reach tough. Halberds really 😍 the formation porcupine 🤣

[@SheffiTB]

the short version is that pollaxes are designed for knights in full plate to use for fighting other knights in full plate, often in a one-on-one; while halberds are designed for (relatively) lightly-armored infantry to use against other lightly-armored infantry in large formations. Guards fall closer to "lightly-armored infantry" between those two, and thus would generally be seen with halberds.

[@connorbrowne2481]

Love your editing! Your production quality is incredible

[@Skallagrim]

Thanks!

[@m1moss]

Skall was one of the first KZbin channels that I ever subscribed to. Years later (a decade?) his information continues to inform me. Thank you, Skall!

[@JessieVanitas1993]

As a french speaker and longtime viewer I must say everytime you pronounce french words, I am quite impressed by your pronunciation. Keep up the great work!

[@noidentitynoname1256]

Love the videos my comment isn't a question just I love historical weapons and I am so glad I found your channel. 👍

[@johntheknight3062]

What I recall from most reenactors in Czech republic, what we call poleaxe is simply the one that is shorter (the hight of a grown man at most) and used in armor exclusively. It has spikes, hammers, axes etc. in different combinations. Halberd is a weapon used by common infantry mostly and is visibly longer. Also halberd has always an axe part, poleaxe doesn't have to have the axe.

[@James-nr7es]

Well done, you deliver information that is easy to understand and is entertaining at the same time. Thank you!

[@jeredmccorkle9831]

Man this is the best channel for weaponry, armor, and such.

[@meatchuck6984]

And then we have the Guisarme, a spike attached to another spike along a spike that is also a hook. Or the bardiche! An axe on a pole, but with extra axe for your axe.

[@cyrilgigee4630]

Hence why the Bardiche is my favorite weapon.

[@paulcaskey]

Lindybeige did a great video on these. He pointed out that in formation, the blade was used for the strong pull motion after trying to stab them with the spike. He said it was designed to either pull the opponent down so your mates to either side could stab them, to cut into the arms /hands of the enemy, or to cut into and damage an enemy spear/halberd, what have you.

[@GrenunnyProductions]

This video may be one of my favorites that you've produced thus far.

[@TheBlackbrrd]

Nice summary at the end, tying it all together.

[@WILDMUSTANGX]

I feel like in order to be considered a poleaxe, it has to actually have an axe blade with the hammer. If it has a curved beak/spike opposite the hammer, then it's a bec-de-corbin.

[@Marci-Ana-GMM]

Pole axe: An axe with a pole that is use like a Hammer for Smash your enemies. Halberd: The Chad Spear axe, since century XIV to XVIII (more like a Fashion item in 18, for showing your Rank to the simpletons).

[@aleisterlavey9716]

Halberd: Pope tried to ban its use against Christians, but had his own guards armed with.

[@robinrehlinghaus1944]

Did he ban it? That was crossbows, wasn’t it?

[@calvinwallis2634]

I love that you give stat ratings to compare medieval weapons. Great information 😊

[@nlcwilson2017]

Just wanted to drop a Thank You cuz I've been watching since like 2013 and still enjoying the vids. Thank you Skall.

[@savagex466-qt1io]

My favorite 2 handed medieval weapon for sure. I hope Bethesda is watching this. I hope they include spears in there next game or poleaxe.

[@JkaaraKoDi]

As I really hope, the next game is Starfield (Not another Skyrim, lord save us!) Having melee polearms there would be... interesting. I really enjoyed using both types though.

[@jericodawsonmarcos7529]

They did that when it was still morrowind

[@aneasteregg8171]

Skall, could you do a video about the practicality of Boba Fett's Gaffi stick? I know you've done some videos about the real world weapon it's inspired by, but his design does have some differences and I'm really curious about your thoughts on it.

[@erikdevries8686]

Finally found someone willing to answer the important questions. Now I can accurately say what I mean. Thank you!

[@theredqueen2283]

Just throwing this out there as a fan, your vids these past few months litterally never show up in my feed or notifications and they are switched on , hopefully this is fixed because everyone should see this great content

[@necroseus]

My preferred spelling is definitely "Pollaxe." I like the way it looks. Being anal about spelling, when all the other spellings are commonly used, is dumb. Enjoy your pole axes ;)! Also, I love pollaxes. Truly the pinnacle of the close quarters combat battleaxe!

[@lscibor]

From what I gather, it's the way it was mostly spelled in Chaucer and other early sources, and it's the etymology too. From the word meaning "head, pate, top, etc." also "hammer", not meaning "pole".

[@Riceball01]

@@lscibor I've also read that the poll in pollaxe is dreived from the act of using a large hammer, or similar implement, to hit cattle over the head before butchering.

[@schismannihilator4085]

HERE is a question I've had that's been bugging me for years because of the inconsistency of sources: What would the *atgeir* be considered, as mentioned in Njal's Saga? Also, awesome polearm content!

[@HasturT]

I was about to ask the same.

[@magister343]

Obviously an atgeir is an early firearm, using gunpowder whose nitrates come from fermented Icelandic shark. Didn't you see that video on it back on April 1st?

[@Jwine95]

I've been waiting for one of my hema creators to do a halaberd video for years. Thank you skal

[@mdscntst223]

Great video, and great summary graphic!

[@NickNapoli]

Whatever it is I’m sure Gimli would use it.

[@healmyvision5941]

Hes too short mate 😅

[@caseydubois3645]

It seems to me (and I could be totally wrong about this) that the pollaxe was more specifically a dueling weapon, while the halberd was more for for the battlefield. Perhaps it could be said that the halberd is a pollaxe optimized for the battlefield? Or maybe, in the opposite case, the pollaxe is a halberd/bec du corbyn optimized for dueling?

[@lscibor]

Most probably. Pollaxes also seem to be almost always seem in the hands of knightly/upper class or wealthy individuals, not common soldiers in iconography. And preserved originals are also usually much more ornamental than halberds, at least until ~16th century when halberd were increasingly becoming parade, ornamental weapons as well.

[@reaperwithnoname]

The halberd's longer reach makes it more suitable for formations of less armored men, and the axe being curved inward allows for cutting while retreating back to the formation after a missed thrust. The poleaxe is more specialized for armored fighting. The shorter pole makes it better up close (useful when you can tank hits on the approach), and having a spike or whatnot on the other end increases versatility. Superficially, they are similar, but they're really more like opposites.

[@johndododoe1411]

Why so you assume all single fighters are in duels, when there are lots of other scenarios where single or few men will be in a hard fight. Notable examples include forward operations against an enemy group, guarded transports and convoys for valuables of material, living or human kind, and of cause couriers carrying messages through untrusted territory.

[@edi9892]

Poleaxes require more space when used making them less suitable for formations. Halberds were more used like a spear and thus better for tight formations.

[@Debbiebabe69]

The poleaxe was generally used by dismounted knights, in place of the lance, which they would be using if fighting on horseback. It was optimized for fighting other men in very heavy armour - ie other dismounted knights. The halberd was optimised for the battlefield as you mention, the extra length is to give infantrymen the added reach to address charging cavalry. Poleaxe wielders never have to deal with cavalry - if the battlefield was suitable for cavalry, the poleaxe-wielder himself would rather than fighting on foot, tack up his war destrier, leave his poleaxe at camp, and RIDE into battle carrying a lance.

[@jamesfrye5387]

Dude, your researching skills are on point!

[@adoringfan1924]

Awesome video skall! Personally enjoy videos like these comparing and discussing similar weapons.

[@lexion21]

I was always under the impression that "pole"axe is a English.. what you call it, misname kinda thing, (orthographic mistake or something like that) of pollaxe, and even the e might have been added later since they dont necessarily have an axe to begin with, but since we hear pole-axe and usually see an axe on a pole, we must have thought they meant that, and we went with it

[@HanSolo__]

Funny coincidence. Pole means field in Polish. Battlefield as well.

[@lexion21]

@@HanSolo__ neat did not know that

[@navelwarfare3247]

"Misnomer" is the word you were looking for, I think. Cheers!

[@relativisticvel]

English didn’t have standard spellings till the 17th-18th century. So just found out the word, if the sound the same, they can be the same.

[@kevindenis9551]

Always liked pollaxes, I mean come on, it’s an axe, a hammer, and a spear all in one nifty hefty stick. I just can’t think of what more you could want other than more reach which the halberd gives plenty of. Polearmes in general are such good weapons especially if you’re already heavily armored with no need for a shield.

[@DeanCalaway]

It's always interesting seeing practice footage vs sparing footage. All the fancy clever moves go out the window.

[@reforgedrole-playinggames1035]

Great video sir. Also, you are looking healthy and strong. It is excellent to see. Thank you for years of great videos.

[@Masra94]

Halberds are basically spears. But the poleaxe is much more of an axe/hammer/spear hybrid and the other side of a poleaxe usually has a spike too. Halberds are really cool weapons for formation fighting because they can hook weapons, use the axe part to push down other weapons or even do neat things like push and pull cuts. So when you're in a formation a halberd can pull someone forward or hook a shield or a piece of armour and then make the other guy free target practice for everyone else. Edit: It's pretty annoying in games like Dark Souls halberds are usually treated like giant axes when they're really just spears. Super long points. But they usually don't include things like poleaxes which are actually pretty decent as an axe/hammer hybrid. It's not really a good idea to chop so much with a halberd, especially considering how long and stiff the point usually is for getting into weak spots between plates.

[@superrobotmonkeyhyperteamf3194]

Depends a lot on the type of halberd you use. Some have really long points some very short ones with broad axe blades. Interestingly enough most halberds with long points are of a much later date often being 1580 and later.The halberd is not really spear in itself while you can thrust with a halberd and ofc they did so.However you often see them using the back spike or the axe blade to deliver powerful blows against heavily amoured opponents.Schilling chronics, the battle of morgarten for example. Halberds also do behave somewhat different compared to partisans for example. Funnily enough Monte suggests a poleaxe that is a bit taller than a man with his outstrechted arm upward which is even taller than some halberds are. Using the Halberd with cuts is really good, Meyer tells us about the so called drivings for the halberd and the famous John Smith also says its best to put Halberds in the second rank so they can hew down the incoming men with swords which is something most Landsknechtarmies did. Even as late as 1711 Guiseppe Colombani tells us that if you need to fight multiple opponents you should use underhews or montanti to fight them off. So i wouldnt really say that a halberd is basically a spear and cuts are quite often used especially in war. However i dont mean that thrusts are bad , what i mean is cuts were used as often as thrusts. If i remember correctly from dark souls the halberd was okay you could thrust, use it with a shield or do circling cuts not the best but decent. At least in Dark Souls 1.

[@Masra94]

@@superrobotmonkeyhyperteamf3194 Some of your information is a little all over the place. First off, halberd heads that I have seen are pretty much all with a pronounced spear point, typically the most prominent part. Much of the time, this spear point is so large that to perform a typical attack with an axe will cause the spear point to impact first, unless you step out of formation and make sure that you're close enough to do a proper chop which will cause the axe head to impact first. That's why I emphasise push/pull cuts, hooking and thrusting. Not that you can't use the axe head like a normal axe, but how it typically would be used. A poleaxe has a relatively short spear point for this reason. So you can chop, hammer, etc. without the spear point getting in the way and it is there if you need it, just not the most prominent. Landsknecht were pike formations typically. I think every third man had some kind of smaller weapon, either a halberd or a greatsword, if I remember right. So the bulk of the formation is made of pikemen, and you have some troops with close combat weapons for more flexibility, a little like Spanish tercios (1/3rd pikemen, swordsmen, gunpowder). The use of a halberd in a pike fight is completely different compared to a halberd on halberd fight, because in such a battle, the halberd is a shorter weapon, meaning the guys with halberds and greatswords closed with the enemy at the right time as opposed to being the ones holding the line. Guiseppe Colombani I think has advice but more to do with situations other than the battlefield (getting a halberd from your house for example to defend yourself). There are of course differences in fighting in a loose formation by yourself and fighting shoulder to shoulder with other guys and trying to keep a formation. There are good reasons why a lot of people tended to get captured rather than killed, because armour works. That's why you have these long spears with very fine, stiff points like halberds that are meant to be used for this purpose. Even then other weapons were used, like maces, hammers, axes, swords (two handed swords became a lot more prominent), stiff long daggers, etc. A few guys working as a team with halberds is extremely effective in formation and I don't really see why the halberd would mostly be used as an axe when it's very easy to trap people with the halberd and not only that, you can have two or three halberds poking one guy who's been dragged out of formation pretty fast. Spear fighting is already dangerous. Halberd on halberd is even more deadly, especially without full armour, especially considering the weight and the difference in fighting styles. You're now using both hands and ditching the shield, which gives huge leverage to pull and push. If you have a guy opposite with a halberd and your polearms are clashing for position, there's not really a whole lot of time to set up an axe strike. Not when you have a very sharp point facing your direction and the only thing protecting you is your helmet, the distance between you and your own halberd.

[@superrobotmonkeyhyperteamf3194]

@@Masra94 It wont cause the spear point to impact first because you will hit with the blade not the point also the reason why many halberds have short points big axeblades. With the right technique it wont happen. Thrusting and Pulling is very dangerous to do so because you uncover yourself, it was done yes but most times it was axe or back end pike blows look up Schilling Chronics both the elder and the younger, or stumpfsche Chronics. Poleaxes can have very long points too skallagrim showed one in the video and Pietro Montes also has a similar one. Monte also uses Strikes without any problems against opponents in white armour and mentions that the same mechanics work with halberds, two handed swords etc. He calls them levada. The Landsknechte used pikes yeah they often called it Geviert or Gewalthaufen and depending on the time period the ratio of so called kurze Gewehren or short arms was as follow 400 men Fänlein should have 50 Greatswords and Halberds or other good polearms. But later it was much less and earlier time periods it was more halberds. However theres not much different from other Formations regarding the fighting with halberds. Also the short arms were used to defend the own pikes from others that tried to close in thats what their purpose is which is stated for example by the Warbook of Hans Wilhelm Kirchof. He says that every second or third rank should have short arms(greatswords halberds etc) And the spanish Tercios did have similiar ratios of short arms and pikes with more muskets later on.But they also had advanturer and esquadron volante for example. And do not forget they still have to fight the pikes so you dont want to pull or thrust at them the pikes will always win. Guiseppes Advice was for fighting multiple opponents and uses the same strikes as Alfieri mentions with Spadone vs Polearms or Hans Konrad Lavater(who talks about war) which are again similar to the halberd drivings from meyer who tells us to wound with the axe head or the back end spike. You forget that the axe blows of halberds are really strong an the cut defends as it offends as fabris says. Same advices you find from Giganti as well. It is mentioned in many eye witness accounts that it is better to cut because you deflect the incoming enemy weapons at the same time and in formation its often your only chance of defending yourself against incoming weapons. Also trying to thrust into the gaps of armor while you have several opponents before you isnt easy one will displace the other will strike you. With strikes you will get their weapons out of the way or hit their hands. In duels this is also done for example by striking first at the opponents halberd displacing it then thrusting to the face. So it makes perfectly sense. Sure a group of halberds is pretty good but they do not necessarily defeat spears since spears are more nimble. I mean you can look up contemporary evidence from battle etc most times its axe or back end spike blows that will a lot of damage. War is also different from what most treatises teach because the treatises are mostly for civilian or trial by combat duels and self defense. Also to defend yourself against a point is to parry or step or to strike into the sowrd/point which you also find with spadone sources, pietro monte, giganti d'alessandro. So it makes sense to do it in formation or outside of it. But ofc if the opportunity arises you can thrust thats perfectly fine its just that most tactics first rely on heavy blows at least from the swiss , the germans and according to john smith the english as well. You can look that up if you want there is a lot of pictorial evidence out there. Also from my own experience i never hit with the spike first as far as i can remember. So all in all it makes perfect sense to cut a lot, thrusting is really good too and cutting with halberds was done very often mentioned by masters as well as soldiers. Somewhat in a hurry so i apologise for the grammar. EDIT: Its Schilling chronicles not Schillinger corrected it.

[@Masra94]

@@superrobotmonkeyhyperteamf3194 There are short spear point halberds but I think not as common as ones with long points. Yes cutting and pulling is okay but that's in reference to hands and weapons not primary targets like the head and upper body. The hands are a decent target especially in a dueling scenario but most hits are demonstrably against more logical areas like the head. Mail and gauntlets were common hand protection not to mention the weapon to defend yourself with. Yes you can hit with the axe on the upper body especially the shoulder area but it means stepping out of formation to do a chop and pull. Let's not even start with the pointlessness of cutting plate or the relative ineffectiveness chopping would have in formation versus normal thrusts against armour. Spears are more nimble but in a halberd fight there are so many weapon binds and clashes that it's pointless. Your weapon will be caught no matter how nimble it is. Leverage, teamwork and timing are key. Binding someone's weapon to open him to an attack from someone next to you is key because while you are clashing and binding you are both gaining leverage and attacking while defending yourself and those next to you. There are times to chop. But the first thing is keep the halberd in front of you and maintain the formation's posture. A halberd or spear pointed at someone's face or body is an extremely effective deterrent, which allows you to maintain distance so you can control your own fighting area in the formation. There are a good amount of videos on real halberd fighting. The main thing is how dangerous they are even when blunt and how much the polearms clash even in normal combat. You can't afford to mess around in formation with big sweeping movements. You might see chops but only if the opportunity is there. The primary focus is the thrust and clash.

[@superrobotmonkeyhyperteamf3194]

@@Masra94 Shorter pointed ones tend to be more the older ones the long pointed ones tend to be younger for example many exemplars are from 1600 and the thirty years war and theyre really long compared to older ones. Hands were one of the main targets in battle. Pietro says it, also archeological founds from the massacre of towton showed that main targets were hand and ofc head/face. Many underhews are aimed toward the hands for example. Manciolino also says that in serious fights/war you should target the hands but not in friendly bouts. The fact that they did so suggest otherwise also some sources mentioned gauntles being smashed or cut that is definitely possible. You can cut into the arms even good armour wont protect you fully from those blows. If that isnt enough then just turn the halberd and use the backhand spike as you can see that in one of the Schilling chronicles. The wounds from the remaining skeletons of towton also show that this was possible especially with arms and hands. You assume that the partisan or spear will be found which is hard to do especially with a top heavy halberd. Doesnt mean the halberd has no chance but in reality its much harder to do so since you can simply evade or side step and thrust into the face. Depends mostly on the skill weapon does not really give you an advantage. From what i see from the contemporary sources they kept the halberds with the point toward the sky. You can if you have the space ofc put it before you but then it can be found and displaced or if you are second rank (which was often the case) you simply cant do this. And you cant do much in tight formations they do not often allow for much sophisticated things you find in many civilian manuals. You can show me primary sources about a full formation doing this but so far i only sometimes found it for skirmishing. I think i know most of those videos but most are from treatises in a civilian or semi civilian context but many of those do show lots of cutting as well. Also you dont use big sweeping movements you usw downward strokes, a simple oberhau or fendente. I mean if you look at the sources you see them not using big sweeping blows you see them using simple fedente etc same with great swords and other cutting centric weapons. And for those its mentioned that they do cleave off limbs of soldiers without much effort. Thats all in the context of war from veterans that experienced it first hand so they should know it. For example here: www.stadtwanderer.net/media/1schilling_jammertal.jpg or here: upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Schlacht_Sempach_Stumpf.jpg idk how youtube handles links now so i hope that this is okay.

[@titouanvlieghe6190]

The difference is that halberd is better at fighting cavalry while mighty poleaxe is better at dueling. Mighty poleaxe is also in my opinion the best weapon in medieval feodal duel.

[@Specter_1125]

The pollaxe is overall a better weapon when your wearing armor, especially when fighting people in armor.

[@Masra94]

A halberd might work against cavalry but most cavalry lances would be way longer than halberds. Later cavalry lances are even longer than pikes. The best defence against cavalry is a tight disciplined formation and cavalry of your own. Having a hooking polearm is good but not the most important thing. Halberds were not for fighting cavalry. They were for formation fighting, because a row of guys with halberds can thrust really well through gaps and getting past a forest of halberd points is difficult. Not to mention that your own weapons will be hooked and pulled by halberds and other polearms. It's really difficult even in plate armour to fight against a row of guys with halberds and make it out unscathed. You need nerves of steel to go into a halberd on halberd fight. You can't even train properly with replicas because halberds are just that dangerous even when blunt.

[@titouanvlieghe6190]

@@Masra94 your right, but when i say good against cavalry, i was meaning good to make knight fall of their horses

[@Masra94]

@@titouanvlieghe6190 Halberds are also pretty good at hurting horses and if you hurt the horse it will usually try to run away, throwing off its rider. There are a lot of weapons useful against cavalry but it's just that a halberd isn't a pike. A lot of the time horses get spooked or killed and then a bunch of infantry will rush and capture the guy who was unlucky enough to get thrown off his horse. Or they might rush and just literally pull him off with their bare hands. Japan had no-dachi often used against cavalry where these long swords would be swung against horses leaving the riders vulnerable. There's also the Dane Axe and the Goedendag. Really a lot of the weapons famous against cavalry are just big axes/swords/hammers, at least until gunpowder and pike blocks.

[@titouanvlieghe6190]

@@Masra94 I've learned more in this comment section than in my two first high school years. thanks you for the time you took to write that.

[@TheLastGarou]

I've wondered about this for a while. Thanks, Grim! PS: the 'Symphony of the Night' arena background made me smile. 😎👍

[@misterfrench894]

poleaxes are my favorite historical weapon, great video as always Skall

[@JohnDoe-on6ru]

A POLE axe comes from Poland, duh...

[@Darkningvolt]

YESSSSS MY Fav weapon, I have been waiting this video for 6 years

[@godsamongmen8003]

I remember Lindybeige covering this some time ago. He had some trouble finding written history on the use of the halberd, but he offered pretty good speculation.

[@htenerf137]

I’d be curious to hear about various infantry weapons and their implementation in Medieval combat. Formations, training, and tactics evolving with weapons has always been especially interesting to hear about. Thanks for such an informative episode!

[@SinnerBeta]

This will sound silly but I was wondering about this exact thing yesterday. Good timing, thanks.

[@jamesfrankiewicz5768]

Thanks for the sparring footage! It reminded me of a technique that I had forgotten about that might help me on my next martial arts exam - which will include the jō (Japanese chest-height staff).

[@Joeseph113]

Great video Skallagrim. Solid breakdown.

[@crimsongoldeagle8868]

I actually think you should keep using that white background while showcasing form, technique, and weapons. It makes everything super clear and easy to see.

[@AttiliusRex]

Enjoying the scoring system!

[@tymonnieduzak1127]

What a nice take on this subject 👏

[@theconstructor4448]

Oh my another sweaty video about some minor differences And it goes for like 15 minutes I love it ❤️

[@ramoverde4133]

Always refreshing ! 👍

[@leerussell8499]

Thanks for the last comparison

[@jessethebuilder2533]

The lighting and background is actually pretty good.

[@i9incher]

I was JUST talking about this last week with my GF that does cosplay. So helpful!

[@giovanni1984]

Great video Skal, have been wondering about the differences between the two for a while.

[@lestatstaton7856]

Yeees. This good content I like. Clarification and Classification of terms and tools!

[@MoggAssassin]

Thanks for this video!

[@calvinrieder5312]

Love this kind of video!!

[@I21oIoIl3]

I can't wait to try this out at my next battle.

[@RM-rn1nf]

Shared this to my Discord group, great video

[@SkellyBobRoss]

I have always had a great love for long polearm weapons, not that I know anything more than what you shared here... But I think that's my choice as a main weapon in a fantasy world where I needed one.

[@Tarico_]

Last episode I asked for halberd, now I got it, very happy

[@brenneisen-baumpflege]

Awesome, great video. 👍🏻

[@Kai9456Jojo]

An Poleaxe its a very versatile medieval polearm, is like a fusion between axe, spear, spike and hammer. The hammer normally is used for break armors and shields. The spike for disarm enemy, hurt him and break his defense. The spear for impale. And Axe for attacks in vertical or horizontal. This is a perfect combination for to deal more that 1 enemy in battlefield.

[@ironox8480]

The Pole Axe one of my favorite weapons. Why it combines my two favorite weapons into one easy to carry package. I do not have to choose between a hammer or an axe. I get both.

[@Venator631]

All the the better to axe someone a pointed question then hammer your point home.

[@andyalain6212]

a very complete video about the Poleaxe

[@arthursimsa9005]

Always impressed by Skall's pronunciation of French (I'm French myself).

[@sheogorath26]

great video!

[@goealshafay425]

Good video Really informative 👍

[@mechaulfr9600]

I like that like all of my D and D characters send me on just binges of your videos. :p Though this was more of a googling a general question and going "... oooh Skallagrim vid related to the topic." Great vid, really enjoyed it.

[@sharkchaos5160]

Great video.

[@kylermoore9079]

Nice work

[@mkv2718]

the subtitles in the definitions and spelling section are hilarious 😂. youtube got very confused it’s definitely a pet peeve of mine that in video games, they call all poleaxes halberds and have the few actual halberds be used more like a poleaxe, all but ignoring the giant stabby spike at the end. i think they just like the word halberd.

[@Orcus__]

Amazing video! To this day I've never questioned why the poleaxe is called that even though it doesn't make much sense

[@Dalenthas]

The tangent about volges and Lucerne hammers gave me flashbacks to the 2nd Edition D&D rules and their dizzying array of polearms with minutely different stats.