The History of the Bastard Sword

The bastard sword is a type of sword that was most popularly used during the Middle Ages by British, Scottish, Spanish, and French soldiers. Though it was rarely issued as the standard weapon for soldiers, it was very popular due to its diversity and ease of use in multiple situations. The bastard sword is often called the Hand and a Half sword, because that's how large the hilt is, enough for a hand and a half. It is named the bastard sword because of its split between being a long sword and a broad sword or two handed sword. This was meant to be a jab at children that were born out of wedlock, as they were often despised as parasites during this time.

The bastard sword has had many adaptations, though its standard construction is relatively widely used. The sword closely resembles a long sword, not sporting the curved hilt arms of many two handed blades or claymores. The arms are usually straight, sometimes coming with small curves on the ends of them, usually only for decoration. Most bastard swords also have a padded leather grip. This is because, at the time of its creation, luxuries such as leather were becoming more widely used. So to add it to a blade signified that the blade wielder was a man of no small means. A man of diverse wealth and skill.

The sword traditionally comes in around 42 inches, slightly longer than the standard long sword specifications. In nearly every way, the bastard sword is right in between the broad sword and the long sword. The length of the blade is normally right at 33 inches with the width being close to 2 and half inches. In order for its speed to be retained, it cannot weight any more than 3 pounds, with the more popular ones being around 2 and a half pounds.

The bastard sword is meant to be used for thrusting, but the edges are sharpened thin as well to make it for a valid slicing weapon as well. The blade is also usually still because of its primary use as a thrusting weapon. Because the sword comes to a narrow point, it is very fast, negating most wind resistance placed against larger and more cumbersome swords. With it being s fast sword, the intended use of it was often for a fast kill rather than fencing.

Because of its speed and lack of cumbersome weight, it was widely considered a perfect place, second only to the slender, faster blades of the east. Despite its distasteful name and name origins, the bastard sword is a fine piece of weaponry that was used for decades as a primary weapon.

Medieval Weapons