The Martel-de-Fer.—Under the mace variety the martel-de-fer may be classified. It is of very ancient origin, and has at all periods been a favourite weapon of both horse and foot soldiers, but probably more so during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries than at other periods. The mediæval archer is often represented with this weapon, and apparently preferred it to the sword. The general shape was a plain hammer-head projection, often serrated to prevent glancing off plate, balanced by a pick or blade upon the opposite side; in only a few examples is the shaft prolonged into a spike. In the Chain Mail Period it was often made with a heavy falcon beak without the hammer-head, while some examples dating from the Tabard Period have two sharp beaks of pick-axe form for penetrating the joints of armour, which are probably the same weapons mentioned by writers of the fourteenth century and termed bisacutas.
The Lance.—The spear, javelin, and lance of the Bronze and Iron Periods down to the time of the Saxons and Normans have been treated under their different headings. For three centuries after the Norman Conquest the spear does not exhibit any remarkable change; it was of uniform size and thickness from end to end, with a lozenge or leaf-shaped head, rarely barbed, the lozenge being the commoner form. For tournament purposes the heads were blunted, but as jousting became more popular special points or coronals were introduced, of which examples are shown in most museums. These were not intended to pierce, but only to give a grip upon plate armour.
During the Splinted and Camail Periods the men-at-arms invariably dismounted and fought upon foot, and in order to adapt the lance to these altered conditions it was cut down to about five feet in length. Later in the Camail Period a small circular plate was fixed upon the lance to protect the hand, and this subsequently developed into the vamplate of varied form and dimensions. At this time also the shaft of the lance became much enlarged for tilting purposes, and was made hollow, with longitudinal grooves upon the exterior; in this form it splintered in the encounter; when the tilting had for its object the unhorsing of combatants the lance was made stronger and heavier. During the reign of Elizabeth the lance ceased to hold the important position it had hitherto maintained among weapons, and became obsolete, but in later times it has been revived for the use of cavalry.
The Sword.—The various parts of a sword should perhaps be mentioned before proceeding to a chronological description of the varieties. The two essential parts are the blade and the hilt. The prolongation of the blade which fits into the handle is the tang; the upper portion near the hilt the ricasso. The essential portions of the hilt are the quillons, which cross at right angles between the blade and the handle to protect the hand; the grip, which is self-explanatory, and the pommel, the expanded piece at the end of the grip.
Fig. 436.—Sword, c. 1340; blade 33 in. long, 2 in. wide at hilt. (Wallace Collection.)
Pre-Norman Period.—The swords of this age generally in use throughout Europe were of the Scandinavian type, and may be divided into three classes: (1) those having the character of a broadsword, with parallel sharp edges and an acute point, and the tang only for a grip; (2) a similar variety having a cross guard; and (3) a sword with the blade slightly curved. The grip was usually of wood covered with skin, but sometimes of bone: the pommels were of varying shapes, as round, triangular, trefoil, and quatrefoil. The cross-guards began in a simple projection, but increased as time went on; they, together with the pommel, were at times very highly ornamented. The sheaths were usually of leather, stiffened with a wood framing. As will be seen by referring to the plates, the sword did not vary much in form from the twelfth to the end of the fifteenth century ([Fig. 436]). The blade was always two-edged, and about forty inches in length; the quillons at times drooped towards the blade, but were generally straight; the grip varied perhaps more than any other part, being at times almost double handed, and at others—the later Tabard Period, for instance—was so short and swollen as to appear unserviceable. The shape of the pommel takes many forms, varying almost with the individual taste of the owner; occasionally the pommel and other parts were subjected to a high degree of ornamentation, with precious stones and inlaid work of all descriptions. During the thirteenth century the curved sabre was used, but very rarely; it is shown in [Fig. 154], p. [125], a group from the Painted Chamber. Other varieties were the falchion, cultellus, anelace, and scimitar.
The Falchion was chiefly used by archers and men-at-arms. It had a blade wide at the point; the edge was curved and convex, the back concave.