One circumstantial advantage of the axe that I've heard a lot of axe wielding reenactors in Norway point out, is that you can't necessarily fence against an axe, using a sword, in the same way you would fence against another sword. When we've met reenactors from the Netherlands and such, who are great with swords, and spears etc. but have little experience with axes, experienced practitioners make the rookie mistake of parrying the axe as if it was a sword. I.e. by conserving movement and only shifting the sword a couple of cm away from the center body alignment. Against an axe, this means you may still have a significant amount of metal burried into your sholder, head or torso.
Thanks very much. Axes have always interested me, and I also think it's a shame we don't know more about them. I suppose part of the problem is that (short-handled) battleaxes were slowly falling out of use by the time you started getting large numbers of treatises published. The axe was also an almost purely martial weapon, unlike the sword, which was far more frequently carried in a civilian context, for reasons you explained very well.
+Braden Vande Plasse I don't think that's the reason. For reasons Matt explains in the video, there would gave been key differences between axe and sword combat.The fact of the matter is, though, that fighting manuals simply didn't exist during the early and high middle ages, at least as far as we know. Skills were transmitted orally from master to student, and people didn't see any need to write them down. By the time that manuals did emerge from the 14th century onwards, axes were no longer being used by their target audience as much as they had before. Anyone wanting to learn how to use an axe would just have to get someone to teach it to them.
Cost and status are probably significant issues. Books where expensive, swords where expensive, axes where cheap. You could make an axe manual and try to sell it to peasents, or a sword manual and sell it to nobels who could afford it.
While I agree with basically everything you've said, including the sword having an advantage over the axe when used as a single weapon, what I find and you didn't mention is that the force of an axe blow that it has because of the tip-heavy balance actually makes it quite a bit more difficult to parry than a sword blow.
I think he meant that it's harder for the swordsman to parry the axe should you strike first or get an opening - as all that force, compared to a sword, is harder to simply deflect
I've done a bit of sparring and experimental testing over the years with larger "war" axes (as opposed to the poll-axe or lighter hatchets) in a HEMA context -- a couple points I've found while working with them. • As you note, the two-handed stick-parry is about the only way to defend yourself against an opponent with a thrusting or impact weapon. It does more poorly against cuts, at least in my experience, because they're easier to re-direct onto the hands. • On the other hand, the "beard" on an axe makes for an acceptable finger-guard if you don't have another option. Likewise, you can take cuts across the top of the axe-head, which is a remarkably solid block of iron. A spike on the head even allows you to trap blades and pummel with the base of the axe-shaft as well as thrust. • You can rapidly shift from a defensive to offensive posture with an axe in both hands by pushing off with the off-hand near the head and rapidly sliding it down towards the primary hand to gain leverage. It also allows you to make potent undercuts (which is otherwise pretty hard with an axe) and close off thrusting lines rapidly by side-stepping and "pulling" the axe rapidly back into a defensive posture with your primary hand. Unfortunately, this can telegraph quite loudly and tends not to work with an experienced opponent (who will be shutting off your head's striking lines as much as possible).
Hey Matt, I've been watching your videos for quite some time, I hugely enjoy them. Just wanted to thank you for this very thoughtful extrapolation on the use of axes. I always enjoy characters in fiction who use axes as their main weapon. Excellent food for thought. Thanks again.
Mind if I give a suggestion, Matt? When you say names of very specific weapons, such as the langobard axe, it would be nice if you displayed the word on screen, just so we know how it's spelled. It would help a lot for for words with lots of homophones, and for people who speak english as their second language. That said, that smooth high quality camera is so awesome!
4:00 I think it can be said that a warhammer and an axe work very similarly against plate armor, they have mass concentrated at the end for high percussive force and enough edge or protrusion on the head to bite or adhere to the armor at the point of contact, as opposed to deflecting, thus very effectively transferring their kinetic energy. I will go out on a limb and say that the primary striking side of a war hammer was the hammer end, I think, as I believe has been forwarded by Shad, that the spike end was, due to its typically quite short length, used chiefly for going for the head and penetrating helmets, given this I think it makes axe and war hammers even more analogous in function as mainly (against armor) percussive weapons.
I can never play a warrior-type in a role playing game again (and have any enjoyment). I know too much now. This video was the tipping point. Great video.
I agree completely. What a great video. I'm a big fan of the single handed axe and I have been waiting for this one. Using a short axe with both hands defensively makes perfect sense and is intuitive. I'm glad you pointed out that only with a shield the advantages of the axe begin to shine. It's axe and shield combo when the magic happens.Thanks Matt. Your videos rock!
Would you ever consider doing a sparing demo with axes vs other weapons, as you did with spears verses swords, and try to compile some ideas on how the axe would have been used with and without a shield?
One thing I noticed in your parrying techniques that seemed interesting to me was the fact you have essentially a bladed d-guard protecting the hand that isn't through your retaining strap and if necessary you could punch with quite some force utilizing not just your presumably dominant hand but the force of your offhand to propel the blade into the opponent in a blow easily from that position. Assuming you were able to close of course.
also if you are good enough you can through the axe to increase the range but downside is you have thrown your only weapon but you can throw it hard enough to where the axe gains extra momentum and speed that catches your oponent off gaurd
Always great insight. You conjecture on axe defense without a shield is spot on IMO. Something you didn't mention is the ability of the ax to reach around a shield to hit the other guy. What I mean is because the blade is several inches away from the haft the blade could potentially hit before the haft contacts the shield. A sword, being linear, can't do this. The angled reach of a sword essentially makes the other guy's shield smaller and makes him pay more attention to his blocks. My opinion, but I think the ax is an anti-shield weapon and went out of favor when shields started to go away. Certainly the ax is going to do the most damage to a shield out of the available hand weapons. Dane axes were there to break up shield walls (IMO).
8:52 The point about shields negating the range disadvantage of a shorter weapon only seems to be reinforced heavily by the roman army's fighting style of massive shield and short stabbing/cleaving sword. At a time when they must have been engaging mostly spears it seems they all advanced past the point that the enemy can hit you at and pressed his long weapons up against him confining and attacking freely with their short weapons.
Very nice video and I tend to agree with just about everything you say. The only minor things I would add: If you have two combatants with shields and armored in mail, I think the axe is at an advantage. Cutting through mail with a sword should prove difficult and your shield prevents you from halfswording and the enemies makes piercing it with the point a risky thing. You have said something along those lines when you talked about armor in the beginning but it didnt make it to the conclusion. Secondly, I would add that if you have closed the distance enough to grapple, you can use the axe sort of as a bladed brass-knuckles (especially if it is a bearded axe)- not really effective against armor but against an unprotected face it should be devestating. Awesome video filling the gaps left by the treatises with some rather sound guesswork :)
With a longer handle, you choke up on it midway, essentially giving it the same effective length as shown here. The excess handle is run down the forearm, and fixed to it by a supporting hand or shield manipulation. High guard, attacks swoop down. The body movement is to the opposite direction, like pivoting on an axis. Shield moves around a lot. Try it.
Matt, your opinion on axe use reflects closely to my experience using the CS 'hawk trainers. Against just about any weapon, using it like a short staff was the best method of defense. I've also found that a good means of offense is in using the axe head basically as a set of knucks - choke up with your strong hand near the head, weak hand near the end of the shaft. Defend as you said there, offend either by stepping into grappling range and pummeling them with your edge set of iron knuckles, or if you can't establish a grapple, by casting the weapon out at regular fighting distance again. Also when choked up like that, I notice the shaft makes a nice parrying bar even in one hand, along the forearm, like we see with daggers.
It is a very discussed topic, the use the axe in combat, and I think it would be great to have a live demonstration of combat, even if is speculating on the technique.
Kind of surprised you didn't discuss the various ax heads in more detail. My amateur knowledge is that axes made for war weren't all cresent axes or at least had a much smaller crescent. Either way excellent video as always, cheers!
The axe in this video is more a tool axe than a war axe (the beard gives it away). The purpose of the beard is to increase the length of the edge with a minimal increase in mass, and war axes tend not to have too long an edge. They also tend to be pointy in both ends, because a wide and long beard makes hooking more difficult. If you attempt to hook a shield with your axe, the longer the beard the smaller the angle between the face of the shield and the shaft - and it would start to be difficult to get your axe back. I would not want to hook a shield with Matt's axe, here. You don't need - indeed, you wouldn't want - the hook of your weapon to be much smaller than 90 degrees.
That was a a very well done video. Several of my friends and I practice with small axes and tomahawks while using pekiti or kuntao respectively as a basis for our movements, and we came to similar conclusions. I will certainly try the half handle grip, as it does seem like a good method for closing the distance against certain ranged weapons.
Hey Matt, unrelated question here. Would it be possible to fight with spears in each hand? Sounds stupid I know, I certainly don't mean in a battle scenario, but in a duel for example. Obviously there are better choices of weapon yet I'm curious if it would be viable at all? Maybe one middle length and one short? Like dancing around the opponent while keeping him at a distance with the longer weapons so he wouldn't be able to reach the spearman but eventually one of the spears would hit a leg/arm and decide the outcome. I obviously overlook something because I've never heard about a fighting style like that but it looks cool in my mind. I had to ask.
You are goddamn right. Are you sure he's ready to be overwhelmed by the power of memes? ... It is too late though, pandora's box have been opened, nothing can stop the memes now, nothing! Our alliance will crush him like a thrown pommel crushes a confused travolta
I salute your channel on the educational value. More power to your elbow and thanks for showing my Norse loving brother that axes are as good as a Uzi .Thanks .😎
Hello Matt, Can you talk about murder strike(longsword skill)? Is murder strike powerful as warhammer? And How many weapon a solider can carry in battlefield? Can they take one primary weapon and more than one secondary weapon? (for example, carry one spear, one warhammer and one sword)
Wang Ralph I suppose all that depends on the strength of the individual. I could carry a spear a sword and a hand axe. But that's just me and I wouldn't expect others to do it unless they chose to do so.
Notice that the beard of the axe protects the left hand which provides some protection against a sword in the right hand of the opponent. If you close and punch with the left, allowing the axe blade to lead the blow ...
The "hook" arguments is one of the things I like about the Kopesh, the curved blade would often be made in such a way that the back end of the tip had a hook (although this point seem lost on modern versions. And I guess some ancient versions didn't have it as well)
Some points: It depends a lot on how specifically the axe is made. If you have an axe with a heavy head then yeah it will hit a lot harder but be slower than a sword, but if you make an axe with a long handle and a really small, light head then you have a weapon which is lighter than a sword overall but hits just as hard. Also, something that's probably been brought up before is that the Bayeux tapestry actually seems to show the great daneaxe being used as sort of a secondary weapon. When then Normans first charge the saxon huscarls are shown initially holding a spear and shield with the daneaxe being held in the shield hand. After the initial charge the shield and spear are discarded and the huscarls are shown as only using their daneaxe. Last point, in the late 1500s English mercenary Humfrey Barwick made a statement along the lines of "the English love their bows the way the Danish love their axes/hatchets" so evidently the axe did still see use in some capacity into the 16th century. Although it was considered an antiquated weapon.
This is why I like khukris, you have a little less power than the handaxe but you get all the versatility of a sword, and if you make it with enough weight towards the end you can have enough power to get through plate
Having played around with axes, a bit, I believe they are a pretty good defensive weapon, once you do not treat them like a clumsy sword and can overcome your fear of being hit and be agressive. Instead of parrying, you should execute your parries as perpendicular draw-cuts against the opponent's weapon (e.g. going from prim to quint against an attack to your left side.), and if possible, step into measure at the same time. This way, you hook and displace the attack, and can immediately follow with a kick, punch, or any weapon in your off hand while having control of the weapon. You can then release the bind with a twist of your hand, and follow up with the axe. Putting a more emphasized twist into the axe can very well result in disarmament of the opponent, as well (a few times out of a few dozen tries, it happened acidentally) as we found out, but you'd need a lot of training to do it on purpose, I'd guess. Now with a second axe in the off hand, and using a "scissor block", disarming worked 9 times out of 10, though. Worked even better against a spear-wielder. I'm pretty sure the draw cut parry technique also reduces wear on the haft, as the perpendicular motion twists the blade on impact, deflecting a bit of the power and preventing it from bite in too deep. At least it looked like it.
there is one type of battle axe that was used through several millennia but there is not much talk about. Of course it is not a Western European weapon. I am talking about what is now called Shepard's axe (good, valaska) however it originally it was a cavalry weapon. used by the Scythians, xiongnu, and other steppe people. it was last used in war as an issued weapon in the first world war. it has a very light head. usually around a pound or less a long handle. On the backside of the head there is either a hammer or a spike. It can be wielded relatively fast thanks to the light head, one or two handed. because of the long handle it is capable of delivering a huge blow still relatively easy to handle.
very light head = thin. Thin vs cloth & fabric does not end well if there's more than one opponent, no matter how far they hold the handle, because the padding creates some resistance and so does the bones of the enemy, so it sticks in really well and cant be retrieved without what sounds like considerable effort. it sounds quite effective maybe a millenia ago, but i reckon that there's a reason why they stopped issuing them after ww1
Azhag the Faggot A pound of sharp metal on a meter long stick could kill pretty much anything that moves. It would penetrate plate armor. Bulls, bears had been killed with these things. Now I do think that in an unarmored fight it is inferior to swords, by large, But still it is a decent weapon and a good and versatile tool in the same time.
Adam Koncz im talking about in a battle, so likely more than one opponent, so while im sure its great against *single* opponents as you get shit tonnes of leverage from that meter, what i was saying was that it wouldn't have been used in battle, so its less of a battle axe and more of a self defensive axe.
Azhag the Faggot As a weapon it was used in battle by Chinese, steppe people from Xiongnu, Huns Avars, Magyars, Khazars. It was used thorough the Turkish wars in Eastern Europe, it was used in wars of the 18th and 19th century. It was the symbol of power and the chosen sidearm for a number of military leaders in the 17th 18th century. It is a weapon that stayed in use for several thousands of years from 1000BC to the 19th century. Against an armored enemy I would pick it instead of a sword or a mace. It is light enough to be a companion weapon next to your sword, bow or musket also a useful tool in your daily life. Now I am not saying that a Shepard's axe is a superior weapon but if I would gear up for a military campaign I would pack my sword and bow or musket pike or whatever. Then I would definitely add grab this in addition. Hang it next to the saddle or use it as a walking stick. And if the time comes depending on *context* it may be my chosen weapon.
+Adam Koncz Thanks for the info. Never heard of this weapon. It seems like cross between a "pole axe" and a "war pick", in that it sacrifices cutting edge to make it pierce better. I can imagine that it would be much cheaper/easier to make axes with smaller, narrower heads like that, because the shaft would likely face less force (so less likely to break). But, like Azhag said, I think it would get stuck inside people more easily than other weapons.
For parrying with an axe I keep my hand just below the axe head in one hand. you will observe an axes for battle has a long curved bit making up the heel and the beard of the axes head that covers my hand and can in a sense be used as a make shift buckler. my free hand is used for grappling. when you get in close to strike you loosen your grip and slide the axe in to the general known position which you can do very quickly in less then second if it is to muscle memory. striking at this point is easy for a an axe wielder but not the sword.
For what few actual weapon strikes it features, I found Valhalla Rising displayed some interesting points. One such instance was when One-eye dove headlong, almost torpedo like, to strike as he landed on his side, taking out a mans ankle. The short axe will do massive damage if it's momentum goes unchecked.. Of course, in a battlefield scenario, one does not often have the opportunity to launch such risky 'all-or-nothing' attacks.. Just thought I'd plug that (rather odd) film, as one where small, short axes can be seen delivering blows. Great vid Matt!
Impressed did not think many had seen that movie or atleast not many that seen the whole movie. its one of those movies i dont know if i hate or love. if it is great or crap :)
I think it's important to identify 'from who's perspective is a story told'. Valhalla Rising is pretty...vague, on this point. It doesn't offer our own perspective a ready made anchor point. The imagery is often skewed by the characters perception's.. At other times, the imagery is quite clinical.. In any case; One-eye is very efficient with a short axe. :)
6:55 Not to say that a war axe couldn't have a hand guard, I can definitely visualize a round one a bit like a rondel or tsuba, I think this was present on a minority of single handed war axes.
You are probably right about two-handed parries with axes and maces; but additionally, in my own usage, I figure blocking with a shield or parrying with the weapon once while closing distance against a swordsman to get past his guard, and also negate his reach advantage, then either striking with a thrust to the face or swing to the temple is a viable option when coupled with a quick retreat. (Wow, that's quite the run-on sentence.) A risky maneuver? Perhaps; that's why you want to be quick. Furthermore, I find if you keep the mace moving, it's quicker than you'd guess. Handing my mace, axe or war hammer in two hands, I use them somewhat like a shortsword and can do similar parries. But, parrying with my war hammer in the fashion you showed with the axe is practically second nature; as a matter of fact, I have a photo from a couple of years ago where I am holding in that manner, as if parrying a downward strike.
I would love to see a discussion of the use of 2-handed axes as well - admittedly the only one I know of though is the Dane Axe and the polearm "axes."
Love the way you use the axe. I would add when the axe is being used 2 handed the axe head can be used as a punch daggar. Stabbing your opponent repeatedly will cause them to stagger thus allowing for the killing blow.
I'd like to know more about the offensive use of shields. I would assume that some shield designs are better for striking and or pushing, but I'm not sure which would be most effective. Also, it seems like hitting someone with your shield or just knocking him off balance would be a great way to create openings for your sword/spear/ax/mace/war hammer/etc.
It's almost ridiculous how similar are our two medieval weapons' collection. I'm performing in a cutlass fight show later this year... we'll film it; make certain to look for maneuvers borrowed from your saber videos.
Matt, taking your approach to to defensive use of an axe alone. There's an interesting (to me at least) study there in the length of handle, and by extension head proportions. For parrying etc with two hands it seems to me as if handle length would be an advantage, as a longer 'staff' in effect. Yet that would trade off against an even tippier balance one handed (if using all the length) and more encumbrance once you'd gotten in close. Trading out weight in the head, would be compensated by the increased leverage given a full blow, but in close, getting a full blow seems less likely the longer the handle. Mind you, I dare say the historical range is about right for that context :)
Using it for defence like that, with both hands, I expect you'd have to be pretty good to avoid losing fingers. But the way in which you've placed your left hand next to and underneath the inward-curving axehead seems to give that hand a fair degree of protection.
A question only tangentially related to the video: how do shield-wielding combatants, with either axes/swords/maces, measure up against those with polearms? Of course, the polearm/sidearm choice would depend on the armour of the fighters, so lets assume in one scenario both fighters are unarmoured and in the other they have a gambeson, hauberk and helm. Is the advantage of reach and additional striking power matched by the shields protection?
Fall back and see if they over extend. I sort of an Expert in the Viking Axe. A Late medieval weapon. Then there was its actual use in the Battle at Stamford Bridge.
I've been thinking that do you necessarily need both hands to parry. You could basicly just grab the shaft from just underneath the bussiness end and whack attacks to side with the shaft, very similiarly to how you would parry blows with a sword.
Plus, if you get a bunch of your Viking mates together you can breach a castle by throwing a bunch of axes at the draw bridge and climb over the top. :).
I recall having read the claim that an advantage of Axe+shield vs sword+shield is that it uses up less space in a formation situation. So that if the axemen close ranks as much as is practical, for each 10 men of their 'frontage', opposing swordmen might only practicaly oppose them with 8 or 9. Not sure if there is any valididty to this claim, but it is an interesting question.
interesting video Matt, thanks :) I wonder how a long axe would handle against a sword, alone or with a shield. it still wouldn't be as nimble as a sword, but the longer shaft I suppose could give you more leverage and greater reach. I've always loved Sparr axes that you find in Western Highland and Islands of Scotland and Ireland; Gallowglasses in Ireland used them from the 13th to mid 16th centuries, and its interesting that in response the English administration in Ireland chose to hire other Gallowlasses to fight them, rather than relying on more conventional men at arms, responding to axemen with axemen as it were.
I wonder how effective it would be the use the the spine of an axe head (between the eye and the toe) like a cross guard. Like choke up on the shoulder holding it out like a buckler. use the shaft to protect the arm (as much as is possible). That might draw the person with the reach advantage in more. And if you could over extend them and put them off footing, than maybe you could give it a wind letting the grip looser to allow the hand to slide to the butt of the shaft for one good blow.
I have often wondered if the lack of source material for the axe has to do with social structure of the times commoners could get a axe easily compared to a sword My understanding is that swords especially early was a weapon almost exclusivly a nobles weapon Just a thought I play with
I dispute that. Before the the high middle ages, the technology didn't exist to create long, two-handed swords. So the well-armored lords and their champions used large axes as a substitute. People weren't stupid back then, and the militias mustered regularly to train. This is the exact same way that the knights trained and lords trained.
Another option would be holding the axe one-handed with your hand right up against the axehead. This will make it handle much more like a sword for defense and you can easily change hand positions when you close or just "punch" with it not unlike some very lethal brass knuckles. You can hold it inverted or not (pros and cons to both) and while it's probably not ideal, it's certainly passable, fast, enables you to present a smaller target to your opponent, and uses more similar motions to other 1-handed weapon techniques so there's some extra transfer of skills.
Two thoughts, first, I see a big advantage in formations using axes, which is even more true with poleaxes, as one person can hook the shield and his comrade next to him has an open line to strike the opponent with the additional force the head provides. Second, from my LARPing days back then I remember that axes also were pretty awesome in dual wielding. Essentially the same method. You strike, hook the weapon or shield and strike with the other weapon, which is preferrably a sword as your defense would be too weak otherwise.
Here is a reproduced one from an archaeological example. Note the hammer-like end. www.gettyimages.nl/detail/nieuwsfoto's/long-bearded-axe-used-by-the-langobards-reproduction-of-a-nieuwsfotos/587772259
I think a better comparison would be between axe and short sword. Its worth noting that most cultures that used short swords as primary sidearms almost invariably used shields. Or for that matter, any culture that used short weapons. The Zulu spear was paired with the large shield. The Spartans had their xiphos and so on. Later medieval knights using maces and such simply substituted more armor for shields. Think of it this way, if you were using say a cinquedea for defense you'd want something in your off hand like a buckler. So any short weapon is best paired with a shield or parrying device. Its not so much the weight distribution as the length.
Hi Matt, it´s an interesting view and a good point in the use of axe alone. I want to know more about sword and shield, axe and shield, i mean, I´d like know about the art of the battlefield shield (let me put this generic label) its almost non existent in the treatises. Would be good to know your opinion and where to look for in the hema literature. I love the movie fight reviews. Good luck.
IMO comparing swords to axes is a folly. Axes are all in weapons, if the hit connects on a lightly armored opponent (if its a good hit anyway) the fight is over, aside from the bone crushing force axes can be thrown effectively to cause a lot of disruption and inconvenience. Swords are great for what they are made for and so are axes within their specific design. I would classify axes as low skill available weapons like spears. Highly effective, available, with a lot of utility and flexibility. Especially when you think about that with less experienced combatants limbs become a major factor as targets of opportunity and what their permanent loss(cracked or broken bones) means in combat. I agree that one handing an axe only is difficult, then again pairing it with a 10+ cm bladed weapon can be effective. Lovely video, the small parry stick idea is inspiring to me
on hooking with the axe, wouldn't the person with the shield, particularly one were an arm is strapped in like your example, give the shield user greater control of movement if hooked? I generally assume as well that the axe user must be extending his weapon hand for this maneuver, meaning he also has less leverage so that overall, hooking the shield surrenders control of your weapon
Axe as a hooking device is nice in single combat, but becomes tremendously more useful if you introduce more people into the fray. Problem with hooking (well, one of the problems) is that you can't hook and attack at the same time, so your opponent can raise their shield again once you redirect their force, if they're quick enough. Once you have a friend, one of you can hook while the other goes for the kill, especially if he has a longer weapon like a sword. Or, ideally, if he is right behind you with a spear, a good axeman/spearman team can wreak havoc on shield walls...
one maneuver that can be done is to hook the shield, pull it down/out then thrust forward with the head of the axe. With a dane axe the horn can be driven into the body or throat, a spike on the head would obviously be more effective and even if you only have a flat top on the axehead and the opponent has a full helm three pounds of metal in the face is ...distracting.
they way you suggest using the axe in defense is very similar to how you would use a shillelagh which would make sense because they have similar weight characteristics
In historical settings (like a long military campaign) rather than a duel setting I could imagine axes being important for their use as tools rather than weapons. Build up makeshift walls quickly, chop wood for fire, that sort of stuff might on the long run make it more valuable to a sword if they are both sidearms anyway. Or indeed to break down doors, poles and other wooden fortifications.
I still think the lack of reach and hand protection would be much to difficult to compensate for. And for hooking shields, the sword wielder could slide the blade up the shaft and find the hand or arm easily.
watching you move and stuff i feel like where you place the second hand could be different. like you could have two hands down near the 'pommel' end or one more towards the middle, that way you could parry or block or whatever further away from your body. you could probably be quite dynamic and move from stance to stance to suit the situation. a bit like with a stick. also how about throwing it :P
Hi Matt, great vdeo! I have a question about gambesons and/or clothes and unarmoured combat: would it be best to wear loose fitting clothing that could ruck up or fold when a blow is struck on you compared to tight clothing with no give at all? Seems like a stupid question but thought you might have a view.
Just a thought as I was watching, are there historical sources to show that different weapons were used together that complemented and augmented each other, so there would be shields and spears to keep opponents at a distance, pole arms to strike and hook at a distance, armoured men at arms and knights to "tank", swords and shafted weapons like the axe to move in or finish off where possible. Each element cooperating and complementing to find opportunities to not fight one-on-one but to gain every advantage from breaking opponents' guard or cohesion and gain local advantages of many v few or many v one? So, sort of combined weapons tactics? So the weapon or armour or shield would dictate the specific role and function in a group fight?
You make very entertaining videos...do you have one that shows how to fight & defend with a sword in one hand and an axe in the other without a shield?
Hello Matt. One question. Around the 7:07 mark you mention that an axe is a relatively slow moving weapon compared to a sword because it is tip heavy. I was wondering, doesn't the weight concentrated at the end actually increase the speed, as soon inertia has been overcome? Or is the inertia simply too great to let the momentum make a difference in such a small time frame? Of course it flows into your statement about its nimbleness around 7:12 but I assume that swing speed and ability to change direction are two different things. Cheers in advance, Glenn
Mr. Easton, Huge fan of your work. You are one of my favorite martial arts youtubers ever. We go on and on about how axes/spears are cheaper than swords because its less metal and simpler to build. But how much cheaper? How about shields? [Historical context here blah blah blah]. Also I couldn't help but notice how the shield you are using has a strap that positions your arm like a boxer. As you probably know from kung fu the arm position its used to shield the head. Coincidence?
This is a very specific question but how do axeheads and hammers compare on the end of a pollaxe against armour? Is there a reason to pick the axe-hammer version over the axe-spike version or the hammer-spike version?
The defensive tactics for axes must have been different to swords, otherwise we'd find langets at least, steel shafts & crossguards at most. (Not withstanding the freakish objects Tod Todeski manages to uncover & reproduce!)
One circumstantial advantage of the axe that I've heard a lot of axe wielding reenactors in Norway point out, is that you can't necessarily fence against an axe, using a sword, in the same way you would fence against another sword.
When we've met reenactors from the Netherlands and such, who are great with swords, and spears etc. but have little experience with axes, experienced practitioners make the rookie mistake of parrying the axe as if it was a sword. I.e. by conserving movement and only shifting the sword a couple of cm away from the center body alignment. Against an axe, this means you may still have a significant amount of metal burried into your sholder, head or torso.
Sir, I found your comment both fascinating and helpful in my own research. Thank you very much, and I hope this finds you well!
13:10 Yes, the battle-cello was indeed a fearsome instrument of war.
lmao
Lol
Mainly used by thugs given to mindless violins.
Thanks very much. Axes have always interested me, and I also think it's a shame we don't know more about them. I suppose part of the problem is that (short-handled) battleaxes were slowly falling out of use by the time you started getting large numbers of treatises published. The axe was also an almost purely martial weapon, unlike the sword, which was far more frequently carried in a civilian context, for reasons you explained very well.
Yes I think these are the key reasons we don't see them in treatises.
Maybe you were expected use an axe like a sword when in combination with a shield and that's why there aren't any manuals?
+Braden Vande Plasse I don't think that's the reason. For reasons Matt explains in the video, there would gave been key differences between axe and sword combat.The fact of the matter is, though, that fighting manuals simply didn't exist during the early and high middle ages, at least as far as we know. Skills were transmitted orally from master to student, and people didn't see any need to write them down. By the time that manuals did emerge from the 14th century onwards, axes were no longer being used by their target audience as much as they had before. Anyone wanting to learn how to use an axe would just have to get someone to teach it to them.
+Braden Vande Plasse Plus, of course, we don't have any treatises on sword and shield either (unless you count bucklers as shields).
Cost and status are probably significant issues. Books where expensive, swords where expensive, axes where cheap. You could make an axe manual and try to sell it to peasents, or a sword manual and sell it to nobels who could afford it.
13:53 looked super cool, I would love to see that included in movie, sadly Hollywood doesn't like realistic fighting.
Agreed
look at the Patriot.
jeremy stewert Do you have a link to the scene?
No but you might be able to RUclips, Patriot tomahawk. They're some pretty bloody scenes, Mel Gibson goes crazy with that thing.
Intertaining scene but I didn't see that technique.
While I agree with basically everything you've said, including the sword having an advantage over the axe when used as a single weapon, what I find and you didn't mention is that the force of an axe blow that it has because of the tip-heavy balance actually makes it quite a bit more difficult to parry than a sword blow.
I think he meant that it's harder for the swordsman to parry the axe should you strike first or get an opening - as all that force, compared to a sword, is harder to simply deflect
I love it when you make videos on weapons other than swords. I find them especially educational and enlightening.
I've done a bit of sparring and experimental testing over the years with larger "war" axes (as opposed to the poll-axe or lighter hatchets) in a HEMA context -- a couple points I've found while working with them.
• As you note, the two-handed stick-parry is about the only way to defend yourself against an opponent with a thrusting or impact weapon. It does more poorly against cuts, at least in my experience, because they're easier to re-direct onto the hands.
• On the other hand, the "beard" on an axe makes for an acceptable finger-guard if you don't have another option. Likewise, you can take cuts across the top of the axe-head, which is a remarkably solid block of iron. A spike on the head even allows you to trap blades and pummel with the base of the axe-shaft as well as thrust.
• You can rapidly shift from a defensive to offensive posture with an axe in both hands by pushing off with the off-hand near the head and rapidly sliding it down towards the primary hand to gain leverage. It also allows you to make potent undercuts (which is otherwise pretty hard with an axe) and close off thrusting lines rapidly by side-stepping and "pulling" the axe rapidly back into a defensive posture with your primary hand. Unfortunately, this can telegraph quite loudly and tends not to work with an experienced opponent (who will be shutting off your head's striking lines as much as possible).
You missed the chance to make the opening line I've been axed a lot of questions :(
that would be cheesy as fuck but still great
Racist
Hey Matt, I've been watching your videos for quite some time, I hugely enjoy them. Just wanted to thank you for this very thoughtful extrapolation on the use of axes. I always enjoy characters in fiction who use axes as their main weapon. Excellent food for thought. Thanks again.
Mind if I give a suggestion, Matt?
When you say names of very specific weapons, such as the langobard axe, it would be nice if you displayed the word on screen, just so we know how it's spelled. It would help a lot for for words with lots of homophones, and for people who speak english as their second language.
That said, that smooth high quality camera is so awesome!
4:00 I think it can be said that a warhammer and an axe work very similarly against plate armor, they have mass concentrated at the end for high percussive force and enough edge or protrusion on the head to bite or adhere to the armor at the point of contact, as opposed to deflecting, thus very effectively transferring their kinetic energy. I will go out on a limb and say that the primary striking side of a war hammer was the hammer end, I think, as I believe has been forwarded by Shad, that the spike end was, due to its typically quite short length, used chiefly for going for the head and penetrating helmets, given this I think it makes axe and war hammers even more analogous in function as mainly (against armor) percussive weapons.
I can never play a warrior-type in a role playing game again (and have any enjoyment). I know too much now. This video was the tipping point. Great video.
Same here, I can never watch Game Of Thrones again!
THE WALLHAMMER RETURNS!!!!
Once he ups the video quality it will be a 40k Wallhammer
I agree completely. What a great video. I'm a big fan of the single handed axe and I have been waiting for this one. Using a short axe with both hands defensively makes perfect sense and is intuitive. I'm glad you pointed out that only with a shield the advantages of the axe begin to shine. It's axe and shield combo when the magic happens.Thanks Matt. Your videos rock!
Thanx for the info. Especially the how to guard with it, which seems to be a great weakness.
Would you ever consider doing a sparing demo with axes vs other weapons, as you did with spears verses swords, and try to compile some ideas on how the axe would have been used with and without a shield?
"You can now release that head, and you have a huge amount of impact potential from that head" - Great quote, and life lesson.
Thank you for brightening my day again good sir.
I love Mett Euston!
k
Don't we all, that said I'm a fan of Lednybeeg as well.
William Stark Trayter
I prefer shkallygrum
Have you found the Holy Spadrune?
One thing I noticed in your parrying techniques that seemed interesting to me was the fact you have essentially a bladed d-guard protecting the hand that isn't through your retaining strap and if necessary you could punch with quite some force utilizing not just your presumably dominant hand but the force of your offhand to propel the blade into the opponent in a blow easily from that position. Assuming you were able to close of course.
also if you are good enough you can through the axe to increase the range but downside is you have thrown your only weapon but you can throw it hard enough to where the axe gains extra momentum and speed that catches your oponent off gaurd
Excellent Video, thanks a lot for discussing the pros and cons. Best wishes, Erik
In tomahawk training I do use the two handed method but also reverse grip for lack of a better term works well also.
Thanks, Matt. I've been hoping for more information on fighting with the axe.
Always great insight. You conjecture on axe defense without a shield is spot on IMO.
Something you didn't mention is the ability of the ax to reach around a shield to hit the other guy. What I mean is because the blade is several inches away from the haft the blade could potentially hit before the haft contacts the shield. A sword, being linear, can't do this. The angled reach of a sword essentially makes the other guy's shield smaller and makes him pay more attention to his blocks.
My opinion, but I think the ax is an anti-shield weapon and went out of favor when shields started to go away. Certainly the ax is going to do the most damage to a shield out of the available hand weapons. Dane axes were there to break up shield walls (IMO).
8:52 The point about shields negating the range disadvantage of a shorter weapon only seems to be reinforced heavily by the roman army's fighting style of massive shield and short stabbing/cleaving sword. At a time when they must have been engaging mostly spears it seems they all advanced past the point that the enemy can hit you at and pressed his long weapons up against him confining and attacking freely with their short weapons.
Very nice video and I tend to agree with just about everything you say.
The only minor things I would add:
If you have two combatants with shields and armored in mail, I think the axe is at an advantage. Cutting through mail with a sword should prove difficult and your shield prevents you from halfswording and the enemies makes piercing it with the point a risky thing. You have said something along those lines when you talked about armor in the beginning but it didnt make it to the conclusion.
Secondly, I would add that if you have closed the distance enough to grapple, you can use the axe sort of as a bladed brass-knuckles (especially if it is a bearded axe)- not really effective against armor but against an unprotected face it should be devestating.
Awesome video filling the gaps left by the treatises with some rather sound guesswork :)
Good stuff Matt, and of course the axe is very powerful on horseback at speed for added percussive power.
Brilliant! Totally agree with your interpretation of single-handed, no-shield usage. Now to try in sparring one day!
With a longer handle, you choke up on it midway, essentially giving it the same effective length as shown here. The excess handle is run down the forearm, and fixed to it by a supporting hand or shield manipulation. High guard, attacks swoop down. The body movement is to the opposite direction, like pivoting on an axis. Shield moves around a lot. Try it.
Matt, your opinion on axe use reflects closely to my experience using the CS 'hawk trainers. Against just about any weapon, using it like a short staff was the best method of defense. I've also found that a good means of offense is in using the axe head basically as a set of knucks - choke up with your strong hand near the head, weak hand near the end of the shaft. Defend as you said there, offend either by stepping into grappling range and pummeling them with your edge set of iron knuckles, or if you can't establish a grapple, by casting the weapon out at regular fighting distance again.
Also when choked up like that, I notice the shaft makes a nice parrying bar even in one hand, along the forearm, like we see with daggers.
It is a very discussed topic, the use the axe in combat, and I think it would be great to have a live demonstration of combat, even if is speculating on the technique.
Kind of surprised you didn't discuss the various ax heads in more detail. My amateur knowledge is that axes made for war weren't all cresent axes or at least had a much smaller crescent. Either way excellent video as always, cheers!
The axe in this video is more a tool axe than a war axe (the beard gives it away). The purpose of the beard is to increase the length of the edge with a minimal increase in mass, and war axes tend not to have too long an edge. They also tend to be pointy in both ends, because a wide and long beard makes hooking more difficult. If you attempt to hook a shield with your axe, the longer the beard the smaller the angle between the face of the shield and the shaft - and it would start to be difficult to get your axe back. I would not want to hook a shield with Matt's axe, here. You don't need - indeed, you wouldn't want - the hook of your weapon to be much smaller than 90 degrees.
That was a a very well done video. Several of my friends and I practice with small axes and tomahawks while using pekiti or kuntao respectively as a basis for our movements, and we came to similar conclusions. I will certainly try the half handle grip, as it does seem like a good method for closing the distance against certain ranged weapons.
Hey Matt, unrelated question here. Would it be possible to fight with spears in each hand? Sounds stupid I know, I certainly don't mean in a battle scenario, but in a duel for example. Obviously there are better choices of weapon yet I'm curious if it would be viable at all? Maybe one middle length and one short? Like dancing around the opponent while keeping him at a distance with the longer weapons so he wouldn't be able to reach the spearman but eventually one of the spears would hit a leg/arm and decide the outcome. I obviously overlook something because I've never heard about a fighting style like that but it looks cool in my mind. I had to ask.
Yes it would be possible, but I don't really see the purpose.
you know it ( ͡o ͜ʖ ͡o)
ready to meme up his channel? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
You are goddamn right. Are you sure he's ready to be overwhelmed by the power of memes? ... It is too late though, pandora's box have been opened, nothing can stop the memes now, nothing! Our alliance will crush him like a thrown pommel crushes a confused travolta
I think they did that in some african martial arts.
I wonder how many cameras have died bringing footage like this to us...
I salute your channel on the educational value. More power to your elbow and thanks for showing my Norse loving brother that axes are as good as a Uzi .Thanks .😎
Hello Matt,
Can you talk about murder strike(longsword skill)? Is murder strike powerful as warhammer?
And How many weapon a solider can carry in battlefield? Can they take one primary weapon and more than one secondary weapon? (for example, carry one spear, one warhammer and one sword)
Wang Ralph I suppose all that depends on the strength of the individual. I could carry a spear a sword and a hand axe. But that's just me and I wouldn't expect others to do it unless they chose to do so.
Notice that the beard of the axe protects the left hand which provides some protection against a sword in the right hand of the opponent. If you close and punch with the left, allowing the axe blade to lead the blow ...
The "hook" arguments is one of the things I like about the Kopesh, the curved blade would often be made in such a way that the back end of the tip had a hook (although this point seem lost on modern versions. And I guess some ancient versions didn't have it as well)
Some points:
It depends a lot on how specifically the axe is made. If you have an axe with a heavy head then yeah it will hit a lot harder but be slower than a sword, but if you make an axe with a long handle and a really small, light head then you have a weapon which is lighter than a sword overall but hits just as hard.
Also, something that's probably been brought up before is that the Bayeux tapestry actually seems to show the great daneaxe being used as sort of a secondary weapon. When then Normans first charge the saxon huscarls are shown initially holding a spear and shield with the daneaxe being held in the shield hand. After the initial charge the shield and spear are discarded and the huscarls are shown as only using their daneaxe.
Last point, in the late 1500s English mercenary Humfrey Barwick made a statement along the lines of "the English love their bows the way the Danish love their axes/hatchets" so evidently the axe did still see use in some capacity into the 16th century. Although it was considered an antiquated weapon.
This is why I like khukris, you have a little less power than the handaxe but you get all the versatility of a sword, and if you make it with enough weight towards the end you can have enough power to get through plate
Having played around with axes, a bit, I believe they are a pretty good defensive weapon, once you do not treat them like a clumsy sword and can overcome your fear of being hit and be agressive.
Instead of parrying, you should execute your parries as perpendicular draw-cuts against the opponent's weapon (e.g. going from prim to quint against an attack to your left side.), and if possible, step into measure at the same time. This way, you hook and displace the attack, and can immediately follow with a kick, punch, or any weapon in your off hand while having control of the weapon. You can then release the bind with a twist of your hand, and follow up with the axe. Putting a more emphasized twist into the axe can very well result in disarmament of the opponent, as well (a few times out of a few dozen tries, it happened acidentally) as we found out, but you'd need a lot of training to do it on purpose, I'd guess. Now with a second axe in the off hand, and using a "scissor block", disarming worked 9 times out of 10, though.
Worked even better against a spear-wielder.
I'm pretty sure the draw cut parry technique also reduces wear on the haft, as the perpendicular motion twists the blade on impact, deflecting a bit of the power and preventing it from bite in too deep. At least it looked like it.
there is one type of battle axe that was used through several millennia but there is not much talk about. Of course it is not a Western European weapon. I am talking about what is now called Shepard's axe (good, valaska) however it originally it was a cavalry weapon. used by the Scythians, xiongnu, and other steppe people. it was last used in war as an issued weapon in the first world war. it has a very light head. usually around a pound or less a long handle. On the backside of the head there is either a hammer or a spike. It can be wielded relatively fast thanks to the light head, one or two handed. because of the long handle it is capable of delivering a huge blow still relatively easy to handle.
very light head = thin. Thin vs cloth & fabric does not end well if there's more than one opponent, no matter how far they hold the handle, because the padding creates some resistance and so does the bones of the enemy, so it sticks in really well and cant be retrieved without what sounds like considerable effort. it sounds quite effective maybe a millenia ago, but i reckon that there's a reason why they stopped issuing them after ww1
Azhag the Faggot A pound of sharp metal on a meter long stick could kill pretty much anything that moves. It would penetrate plate armor. Bulls, bears had been killed with these things.
Now I do think that in an unarmored fight it is inferior to swords, by large, But still it is a decent weapon and a good and versatile tool in the same time.
Adam Koncz im talking about in a battle, so likely more than one opponent, so while im sure its great against *single* opponents as you get shit tonnes of leverage from that meter, what i was saying was that it wouldn't have been used in battle, so its less of a battle axe and more of a self defensive axe.
Azhag the Faggot As a weapon it was used in battle by Chinese, steppe people from Xiongnu, Huns Avars, Magyars, Khazars. It was used thorough the Turkish wars in Eastern Europe, it was used in wars of the 18th and 19th century. It was the symbol of power and the chosen sidearm for a number of military leaders in the 17th 18th century. It is a weapon that stayed in use for several thousands of years from 1000BC to the 19th century. Against an armored enemy I would pick it instead of a sword or a mace.
It is light enough to be a companion weapon next to your sword, bow or musket also a useful tool in your daily life.
Now I am not saying that a Shepard's axe is a superior weapon but if I would gear up for a military campaign I would pack my sword and bow or musket pike or whatever. Then I would definitely add grab this in addition. Hang it next to the saddle or use it as a walking stick. And if the time comes depending on *context* it may be my chosen weapon.
+Adam Koncz
Thanks for the info. Never heard of this weapon.
It seems like cross between a "pole axe" and a "war pick", in that it sacrifices cutting edge to make it pierce better. I can imagine that it would be much cheaper/easier to make axes with smaller, narrower heads like that, because the shaft would likely face less force (so less likely to break).
But, like Azhag said, I think it would get stuck inside people more easily than other weapons.
For parrying with an axe I keep my hand just below the axe head in one hand. you will observe an axes for battle has a long curved bit making up the heel and the beard of the axes head that covers my hand and can in a sense be used as a make shift buckler. my free hand is used for grappling. when you get in close to strike you loosen your grip and slide the axe in to the general known position which you can do very quickly in less then second if it is to muscle memory. striking at this point is easy for a an axe wielder but not the sword.
For what few actual weapon strikes it features, I found Valhalla Rising displayed some interesting points. One such instance was when One-eye dove headlong, almost torpedo like, to strike as he landed on his side, taking out a mans ankle. The short axe will do massive damage if it's momentum goes unchecked.. Of course, in a battlefield scenario, one does not often have the opportunity to launch such risky 'all-or-nothing' attacks.. Just thought I'd plug that (rather odd) film, as one where small, short axes can be seen delivering blows. Great vid Matt!
Impressed did not think many had seen that movie or atleast not many that seen the whole movie.
its one of those movies i dont know if i hate or love. if it is great or crap :)
I think it's important to identify 'from who's perspective is a story told'. Valhalla Rising is pretty...vague, on this point. It doesn't offer our own perspective a ready made anchor point. The imagery is often skewed by the characters perception's.. At other times, the imagery is quite clinical.. In any case; One-eye is very efficient with a short axe. :)
EgaoKage True. might be one of the reasons i just can't make up my mind about that movie
And yeah but he is pretty efficient without weapons to :)
6:55 Not to say that a war axe couldn't have a hand guard, I can definitely visualize a round one a bit like a rondel or tsuba, I think this was present on a minority of single handed war axes.
Great point about not being able to block a sword swing with an axe because the axe is tip-heavy. I had never considered that.
Thanks for the detailed video! Maybe you could try out some thrust parrying with a "half-axed" axe sometime and show the results?
You are probably right about two-handed parries with axes and maces; but additionally, in my own usage, I figure blocking with a shield or parrying with the weapon once while closing distance against a swordsman to get past his guard, and also negate his reach advantage, then either striking with a thrust to the face or swing to the temple is a viable option when coupled with a quick retreat. (Wow, that's quite the run-on sentence.) A risky maneuver? Perhaps; that's why you want to be quick. Furthermore, I find if you keep the mace moving, it's quicker than you'd guess. Handing my mace, axe or war hammer in two hands, I use them somewhat like a shortsword and can do similar parries. But, parrying with my war hammer in the fashion you showed with the axe is practically second nature; as a matter of fact, I have a photo from a couple of years ago where I am holding in that manner, as if parrying a downward strike.
I would love to see a discussion of the use of 2-handed axes as well - admittedly the only one I know of though is the Dane Axe and the polearm "axes."
Another very informative and interesting video!
Hi Matt, if you paint that shield, you should emblazon it with the schola gladiatoria logo!
Great video. Love those axe video's.
very in formative and fascinating!
Wonder how many cameras matt has messed up xD
None.
download.manycam.com/effects/get?f=l&i=34390&v=2.00
Quick, pour some cold water onto those burns! XD
Thats what you want us to belive we are not fooled
there's always that one guy who ruins an otherwise great comment thread.
ironically i am now one of those.
I was going to ask about axe and knife combo versus sword, but I just watched your review on the end duel in "The Patriot" instead.
Love the way you use the axe. I would add when the axe is being used 2 handed the axe head can be used as a punch daggar. Stabbing your opponent repeatedly will cause them to stagger thus allowing for the killing blow.
I'd like to know more about the offensive use of shields. I would assume that some shield designs are better for striking and or pushing, but I'm not sure which would be most effective. Also, it seems like hitting someone with your shield or just knocking him off balance would be a great way to create openings for your sword/spear/ax/mace/war hammer/etc.
It's almost ridiculous how similar are our two medieval weapons' collection. I'm performing in a cutlass fight show later this year... we'll film it; make certain to look for maneuvers borrowed from your saber videos.
Matt, taking your approach to to defensive use of an axe alone. There's an interesting (to me at least) study there in the length of handle, and by extension head proportions. For parrying etc with two hands it seems to me as if handle length would be an advantage, as a longer 'staff' in effect. Yet that would trade off against an even tippier balance one handed (if using all the length) and more encumbrance once you'd gotten in close. Trading out weight in the head, would be compensated by the increased leverage given a full blow, but in close, getting a full blow seems less likely the longer the handle. Mind you, I dare say the historical range is about right for that context :)
This video really makes me want to hear your opinion and strategy with hand scythes, scythes, and sickles.
Also flails.
Using it for defence like that, with both hands, I expect you'd have to be pretty good to avoid losing fingers. But the way in which you've placed your left hand next to and underneath the inward-curving axehead seems to give that hand a fair degree of protection.
A question only tangentially related to the video: how do shield-wielding combatants, with either axes/swords/maces, measure up against those with polearms? Of course, the polearm/sidearm choice would depend on the armour of the fighters, so lets assume in one scenario both fighters are unarmoured and in the other they have a gambeson, hauberk and helm.
Is the advantage of reach and additional striking power matched by the shields protection?
AL Aqsahi in his Fursulliyaat manual does have a chapter on the use of mace
Thanks for sharing .
Fall back and see if they over extend. I sort of an Expert in the Viking Axe. A Late medieval weapon. Then there was its actual use in the Battle at Stamford Bridge.
I've been thinking that do you necessarily need both hands to parry. You could basicly just grab the shaft from just underneath the bussiness end and whack attacks to side with the shaft, very similiarly to how you would parry blows with a sword.
Plus, if you get a bunch of your Viking mates together you can breach a castle by throwing a bunch of axes at the draw bridge and climb over the top. :).
"The Long Ships" :D
I recall having read the claim that an advantage of Axe+shield vs sword+shield is that it uses up less space in a formation situation. So that if the axemen close ranks as much as is practical, for each 10 men of their 'frontage', opposing swordmen might only practicaly oppose them with 8 or 9.
Not sure if there is any valididty to this claim, but it is an interesting question.
interesting video Matt, thanks :) I wonder how a long axe would handle against a sword, alone or with a shield. it still wouldn't be as nimble as a sword, but the longer shaft I suppose could give you more leverage and greater reach. I've always loved Sparr axes that you find in Western Highland and Islands of Scotland and Ireland; Gallowglasses in Ireland used them from the 13th to mid 16th centuries, and its interesting that in response the English administration in Ireland chose to hire other Gallowlasses to fight them, rather than relying on more conventional men at arms, responding to axemen with axemen as it were.
I wonder how effective it would be the use the the spine of an axe head (between the eye and the toe) like a cross guard. Like choke up on the shoulder holding it out like a buckler. use the shaft to protect the arm (as much as is possible). That might draw the person with the reach advantage in more. And if you could over extend them and put them off footing, than maybe you could give it a wind letting the grip looser to allow the hand to slide to the butt of the shaft for one good blow.
I have often wondered if the lack of source material for the axe has to do with social structure of the times commoners could get a axe easily compared to a sword
My understanding is that swords especially early was a weapon almost exclusivly a nobles weapon
Just a thought I play with
Yes this. Use of common weapons was passed down inside family/tribal groups or from soldier to soldier by word of mouth.
I dispute that. Before the the high middle ages, the technology didn't exist to create long, two-handed swords. So the well-armored lords and their champions used large axes as a substitute.
People weren't stupid back then, and the militias mustered regularly to train. This is the exact same way that the knights trained and lords trained.
Another option would be holding the axe one-handed with your hand right up against the axehead.
This will make it handle much more like a sword for defense and you can easily change hand positions when you close or just "punch" with it not unlike some very lethal brass knuckles.
You can hold it inverted or not (pros and cons to both) and while it's probably not ideal, it's certainly passable, fast, enables you to present a smaller target to your opponent, and uses more similar motions to other 1-handed weapon techniques so there's some extra transfer of skills.
Hey, Matt. I'd love to see a video where you give your thoughts on tomahawk and long knife combat.
Two thoughts, first, I see a big advantage in formations using axes, which is even more true with poleaxes, as one person can hook the shield and his comrade next to him has an open line to strike the opponent with the additional force the head provides. Second, from my LARPing days back then I remember that axes also were pretty awesome in dual wielding. Essentially the same method. You strike, hook the weapon or shield and strike with the other weapon, which is preferrably a sword as your defense would be too weak otherwise.
But what about the other guys buddies? Your mate beside you might be too busy trying not to get stabbed to attack the guy you just hooked.
Googled "longobard axe" found tons of longboards, no axes... such dissapointment...
same. then found some long bearded axes.
Lombards axe
Same results here.
bandholm even then, all i can find are franziskas or people named lombard wielding axes.
Here is a reproduced one from an archaeological example. Note the hammer-like end. www.gettyimages.nl/detail/nieuwsfoto's/long-bearded-axe-used-by-the-langobards-reproduction-of-a-nieuwsfotos/587772259
so. .. the purpose of the house carl, maybe, is to open up the shield wall by hooking shields to allow spear men to score hits?
I think a better comparison would be between axe and short sword.
Its worth noting that most cultures that used short swords as primary sidearms almost invariably used shields. Or for that matter, any culture that used short weapons. The Zulu spear was paired with the large shield. The Spartans had their xiphos and so on.
Later medieval knights using maces and such simply substituted more armor for shields.
Think of it this way, if you were using say a cinquedea for defense you'd want something in your off hand like a buckler.
So any short weapon is best paired with a shield or parrying device. Its not so much the weight distribution as the length.
So using the axe like Fiore's baton during parries? Nice.
Hi Matt, it´s an interesting view and a good point in the use of axe alone. I want to know more about sword and shield, axe and shield, i mean, I´d like know about the art of the battlefield shield (let me put this generic label) its almost non existent in the treatises. Would be good to know your opinion and where to look for in the hema literature. I love the movie fight reviews. Good luck.
Could you please do some videos on bastoncello use? Looks interesting, and applicable with many weapons/objects.
IMO comparing swords to axes is a folly. Axes are all in weapons, if the hit connects on a lightly armored opponent (if its a good hit anyway) the fight is over, aside from the bone crushing force axes can be thrown effectively to cause a lot of disruption and inconvenience. Swords are great for what they are made for and so are axes within their specific design. I would classify axes as low skill available weapons like spears. Highly effective, available, with a lot of utility and flexibility. Especially when you think about that with less experienced combatants limbs become a major factor as targets of opportunity and what their permanent loss(cracked or broken bones) means in combat. I agree that one handing an axe only is difficult, then again pairing it with a 10+ cm bladed weapon can be effective. Lovely video, the small parry stick idea is inspiring to me
on hooking with the axe, wouldn't the person with the shield, particularly one were an arm is strapped in like your example, give the shield user greater control of movement if hooked? I generally assume as well that the axe user must be extending his weapon hand for this maneuver, meaning he also has less leverage so that overall, hooking the shield surrenders control of your weapon
Axe as a hooking device is nice in single combat, but becomes tremendously more useful if you introduce more people into the fray. Problem with hooking (well, one of the problems) is that you can't hook and attack at the same time, so your opponent can raise their shield again once you redirect their force, if they're quick enough.
Once you have a friend, one of you can hook while the other goes for the kill, especially if he has a longer weapon like a sword. Or, ideally, if he is right behind you with a spear, a good axeman/spearman team can wreak havoc on shield walls...
one maneuver that can be done is to hook the shield, pull it down/out then thrust forward with the head of the axe. With a dane axe the horn can be driven into the body or throat, a spike on the head would obviously be more effective and even if you only have a flat top on the axehead and the opponent has a full helm three pounds of metal in the face is ...distracting.
they way you suggest using the axe in defense is very similar to how you would use a shillelagh which would make sense because they have similar weight characteristics
In historical settings (like a long military campaign) rather than a duel setting I could imagine axes being important for their use as tools rather than weapons. Build up makeshift walls quickly, chop wood for fire, that sort of stuff might on the long run make it more valuable to a sword if they are both sidearms anyway. Or indeed to break down doors, poles and other wooden fortifications.
I still think the lack of reach and hand protection would be much to difficult to compensate for. And for hooking shields, the sword wielder could slide the blade up the shaft and find the hand or arm easily.
watching you move and stuff i feel like where you place the second hand could be different. like you could have two hands down near the 'pommel' end or one more towards the middle, that way you could parry or block or whatever further away from your body. you could probably be quite dynamic and move from stance to stance to suit the situation. a bit like with a stick.
also how about throwing it :P
Holy Crap I learned so much about Axes in this video I never knew! This is really cool thank you for these vids and keep up the great work!
Hi Matt, great vdeo! I have a question about gambesons and/or clothes and unarmoured combat: would it be best to wear loose fitting clothing that could ruck up or fold when a blow is struck on you compared to tight clothing with no give at all? Seems like a stupid question but thought you might have a view.
Could you make a video on what kind of strikes should come after a "half-sword " parry when using an axe?
a lot of people tend to overlook the logistic part which is where axes and spears shine
Just a thought as I was watching, are there historical sources to show that different weapons were used together that complemented and augmented each other, so there would be shields and spears to keep opponents at a distance, pole arms to strike and hook at a distance, armoured men at arms and knights to "tank", swords and shafted weapons like the axe to move in or finish off where possible. Each element cooperating and complementing to find opportunities to not fight one-on-one but to gain every advantage from breaking opponents' guard or cohesion and gain local advantages of many v few or many v one? So, sort of combined weapons tactics? So the weapon or armour or shield would dictate the specific role and function in a group fight?
You make very entertaining videos...do you have one that shows how to fight & defend with a sword in one hand and an axe in the other without a shield?
Hello Matt. One question. Around the 7:07 mark you mention that an axe is a relatively slow moving weapon compared to a sword because it is tip heavy. I was wondering, doesn't the weight concentrated at the end actually increase the speed, as soon inertia has been overcome? Or is the inertia simply too great to let the momentum make a difference in such a small time frame?
Of course it flows into your statement about its nimbleness around 7:12 but I assume that swing speed and ability to change direction are two different things.
Cheers in advance,
Glenn
I'm not Matt, but I'm gonna answer all the same: Yes, inertia.
Mr. Easton,
Huge fan of your work. You are one of my favorite martial arts youtubers ever. We go on and on about how axes/spears are cheaper than swords because its less metal and simpler to build. But how much cheaper? How about shields? [Historical context here blah blah blah].
Also I couldn't help but notice how the shield you are using has a strap that positions your arm like a boxer. As you probably know from kung fu the arm position its used to shield the head. Coincidence?
Really enjoyed this- Thank you
This is a very specific question but how do axeheads and hammers compare on the end of a pollaxe against armour? Is there a reason to pick the axe-hammer version over the axe-spike version or the hammer-spike version?
I would love to see a proper comparison video!
The defensive tactics for axes must have been different to swords, otherwise we'd find langets at least, steel shafts & crossguards at most. (Not withstanding the freakish objects Tod Todeski manages to uncover & reproduce!)