Sword Sunday #11 - The Glaive: king of the killing field

This particular breakdown is one I have been looking forward to for some time. Ever since I first picked up a glaive in the SCA, I fell in love with it, and made it my primary weapon for the rest of my fighting career. Either in tournament or melee combat, I could depend on my seven-and-a-half foot glaive to hold its own against any challenger, no mater their choice of arms.  Little known in the modern age, and also largely misrepresented, the glaive does not even have the sword's longevity in culture, if not combat, with the sword persisting well into the gunpowder age, and the glaive lost to antiquity for most. 

Glaive (Center)

As I have said before, swords don't win battles, spears do. With their low cost, high level of power and impressive reach, spears were the undisputed backbone of the infantry formations of Europe and Asia dating back from the bronze age all the way until the firearm surpassed them as the standard infantry weapon in the early 18th century.

However, at the height of the middle ages, while the spear was the undisputed teeth of a major land army, another weapon was evolving next to it. One that offered the power of a two-handed pole axe, the penetration of a spear, and better range than any sword ever made. In Japan, it was called the naginata, in China the guandao, and in Russia, it was called the sovnya.

In England, and the German states, however, it was called the glaive, and one western marshal arts mater considered it the greatest class of individual combat weapons ever made.
Between five and 8 feet long, and most often more than 6 pounds, but less than 10, the glaive was considered a short, but heafty polearm, but its construction, and speed let it punch well above its weight (to borrow the modern parlance) in combat. The weapons complex head was mounted to the haft, or handle, with a socket cup, like a spear, or a poleaxe.

It was the union of several different types of weapons, and at its core, all of them were built onto the concept of a quarterstaff. This was critical, since the quarterstaff of the middle ages was considered fundamental to the education of  elite and peasant sons alike. A son in europe could be expected to be functional with the quarterstaff when they were ten, and formidable with it before they were fifteen. In many instances, its use and instruction predated sword training for nobles and royals.

The quarterstaff was considered in its day, as dangerous and capable a self defense weapon as the modern Glock pistol is now. 

With five to seven years worth of experience had even before they were adults, prospective soldiers, squires, and men-at-arms could easily take up the glaive as a weapon to make war with.

Glaive (Center)

One of the major advantages of the glaive was that with its balance, and sturdy construction allowed it to be twirled, spun, twisted, and swept with ease. All of the primary strikes attributed to the quarterstaff, and many of the advanced maneuvers are doable with the glaive, including tripping, deflecting, and basic striking. Even without its edge, the butt end of of the haft could shove a person off their feet, or cave in the chest or skull of a victim caught flat footed.

Bringing the actual fighting end of the weapon to bare on a target offered  plethora of options for the wielder. The tip was strong, sharp, and well pointed,  allowing a powerful piercing jab or lung, usually propelled by both hands. Armor not strong enough stop the blade would be punched open, and even if it did catch, the total force of the attack could topple or spin someone hit by it.

The striking surface of the weapon carried the sharpness of the edge down along it's length, and could range anywhere between twenty and forty inches in length. It could deliver a hacking blow, and records show it was more than capable of severing unarmored limbs. But also, it was usually sharp enough to cut on a draw or push, meaning that if the weapon got caught under some's arm, or in a gloved hand, could to reasonably drive it in and slice through clothing or leather.

Assortment of European glaive heads

On the back of most (but not all)  blades was either a hook, a spike, or some other type of gabbing protrusion. These were intended to capitalize on the weapon's reach and allow a combatant to grab and deflect another weapon, or even a person before they could close in and attack. These hooks could bite into, or grab spear hafts, shields, limbs, and even heads, allowing the attacker to lever his target out of position, or even off of their feet. This item allowed a user to not only manage their position in a fight, but to forcibly affect their opponent's at the same time.

Period instruction manual for quarterstaff combat. 

The glaive's nimbleness also lent itself to close quarters fighting where a true spear, or almost any other polearm would not fair well. Where proximity often favored a sword or knife, and was dangerous, if not lethal to a spearman, the glaive could easily, and lethally transition into multiple positions for toe-to-toe combat, most of which were directly derived from its quarterstaff ancestry.

The glaive's greatest weakness was not physical, but financial. The need to balance strength, sharpness, weight, and temper required blacksmiths who were not only good, but above par, and as such the glaive's cost meant that they were most often found in the hands of the men who could afford them best.During the height of the medieval tournament culture, the glaive was considered one of the quintessential ground weapons for dismounted nights or their men-at-arms, and were used to great affect before audiences of spoke highly of their power.

Glaives were found on the European battlefield from the 12th century all the way until the rise of firearms, when the last of the pike and polearm formations vanished. The English line at the battles of Crécy , Poitiers, and Agincourt were documented as having included a large number of dismounted nights with glaives, and glaive was used in individual combat and melee in most major English conflicts through the middle of the Tudor dynasty, when their use began to shift more towards ceremonial work and guard duty.

Today, the glaive's combat history is carried on in several sports, including Naginatajutsu, the Japanese marshal art similar to kendo that recreates the Naginata's reach, speed, and cutting ability.

Also, the seven-and-a-half-foot-unpadded-glaive is a popular heavy weapon in the Society for Creative Anachronisms fighting community, where it can credibility compete against both nine foot long spears and sword-and-shield fighters.

By the time I had hung up my helmet for the last time, my entire kit was build around the glaive ans its use. I could effectively use it like a spear,, swing it like an axe, use the hook to grapple, and the haft to block, or just shove if I needed to. One nasty little trick I learned from a late medieval war manual was a rough called 'broken pike', where a foot soldier could use a chunk of broken spear 4 or 5 feet long as a makeshift shield while using his backup short-sword to fight with. My kit included a 24" sword sword belted on my left side where I could get to it quickly. When a fight got so close that even glaive couldn't physically move, I could shove out with my glaive in my left hand and draw my sword, suddenly becoming a whole different type of threat to whoever was face-to-face with me. 

When I played DnD with my wife and friends for the first time, I was instantly drawn to the game's glaive, and as my character progressed, I sought out feats and traits that would let me capitalize on the weapons' damage dealing and grappling potentials. By the time we were all 10th level, even though I didn't have stats that were numerically as good as some others, I was one of the undisputed damage dealers in the party, and several opponents who tried to walk over me were hacked to pieces for their effort. 

To this day, my SCA combat glaive, which was names "Righteous Rebuke" by a good friend of mine, is still with me, and even though age has not been kind to the ratan its made of, I consider it an old friend that as earned its quiet resting place in my home. 

#Swordsunday is intended as a fun and educational series of posts for the enjoyment of readers.

His Lordship Ivo Blackhawk
Kingdom of Ansteorra
"Long Live the King!"