Spanish Rapier Vs Japanese Katana
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- Опубликовано: 3 авг 2024
- Two contemporary weapons that were used at the same time, and occasionally against each other: Spanish rapier and Japanese katana.
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There is an important detail, the Spanish not only used the rapier, they also used the dagger in their free hand, in this way they could defend themselves against short-range or multidirectional attacks. A Spanish soldier with a rapier and dagger will generally have the advantage at both short and long range.
Japanese have tanto and wakizashi too.
@@44krishnan79 but the katana is pretty bad used one-hand, they could have used tanto and wakizashi at the same time but wakizashi is even shorter so more points for the spanish rapier
@@virtualcosmos2340 @44krishnan79 Indeed, Spanish soldiers used both a rapier and a vizcaina dagger at the same time, sometimes even also using a cloak to distract enemies. A small demonstration of the rapier and dagger sword fight style: ruclips.net/video/doehPgOnqLA/видео.html
@@44krishnan79katana is unusable with one hand. Too heavy at the tip
La espada corta manejada con la mano izquierda se llamaba "vizcaína".
I imagine that you already knew that the Spanish and the samurai already fought in the past, to the bad luck of the Japanese.
The combats of Cagayan were a series of military confrontations that took place in 1582 between the Spanish Armada of the Philippines under the command of Captain Juan Pablo de Carrión against the troops of Tay Fusa, despite the numerical superiority of the samurai. They did not end well for the japanese.
Even, taking in consideration the numerical disadvantage of the spaniards.
They weren't samurai, they were Ronin, which is almost the same but not exactly the same, plus there were also Chinese pirates. The Spanish were not alone either, they had the help of Tlaxcalan warriors (a Native American tribe)
Spanish were helped by allied natives warriors, Japanese were in fact pirates "wokou"
Amén @@Decreto1903
the only european nation that faced samurai was the portuguese
As an practicioner of the Spanish school "Destreza" as you migth know, I have to say that I am copleatly agree. The rapier is a sword made for dueling, while the katanas of the 17º century haven´t forget their battlefield pourposes.
But I would like to add something in the dueling topic. In close combat, as you say, the rapier has a lot of mobility despite its length because of the poit of balance. And to that affirmation you have to add that the Spanish school has "tretas" (triks and moves) for the close combat, being the "movimientos de conclusión" the most important ones.
Wasn't the Destreza thing mocked by all other fencing masters of the time for being unnecessarily complicated?
Absolute nightmare to fight. Extremely demoralizing.
@@arx3516 Absolutly. But the reason for that complication was more social and intelectual than for true sparring. In reality all thoes books are the theorical part, were you could lern from them, but is you want to learn how to really use the conceps of that book you must go to a fencing school, usually manage by the books author.
17º century advertising baby.
The idea of making such complicated theory was:
1º- Make people wach you as an intelectual and not a simple fencer, the idae was to be seen as an artist in the Spanish catholic society.
2º The humanist movement. The idea of synthesizing everything to analyze it was very popular in this moment. This concept says that if you analyze something you can make a deeper understand, finding better solutions. So what was the Spanish idea for the fencing problem? SUPER ANALIZE!
For the 2º point I have to say that it really works. Not in the 17º century concept but the 21º. It happens to me that when I understand something rationally, I can apply it conscientiously, and from there do it automaticlly. An example is what we call "Planos de defensa" ("Shadow of the blade" in English I thinks), ones I understan it, I improved a lot my deffens.
I hope I anwerd your question and my grammar did´t let you blind.
@@celtibero599And we should be grateful they wrote stuff down in more detail than "poke them with the pointy end". Older manuals often need a lot of interpretation as they are quite bare bones.
Pacheco or Rada?
I collect Japanese swords, but recently bought a rapier. Not only is the rapier much longer but using it in a one-handed side stance puts your heart (for right-handed people) in a place that is harder to stab. The katana being a two-handed weapon, puts your heart in spot where it is relatively easy to trust towards. One on one, I'd give the advantage to the rapier.
U can choose side stances with katana as well
im starting to come to the same realization, though being a rather big guy i like the power i can put behind the katana
I wouldn’t necessarily give katana a clear advantage for fighting indoors, especially in close quarters (like aboard a ship). You still need quite a bit of space to deliver a powerful cut and it may get very cumbersome very quickly. Low ceilings, door frames, narrow passageways etc. Not unlike trench warfare. Neither rapier, nor katana would be the best option. In an open space - rapier all the way.
When you've lost someone literally called katana1960, you're in a bind!
@@leofedorov1030 literally why Samurai primarily used Yumi > Yari > Katana > Wakizashi > Tanto , as the battle space gets smaller and distance closer, they too move to shorter ranged weapons, always prefering the longest range weapon that can still do the job
The Spanish rapier had very important advantages against the katana. First of all you only need one hand to get the most of it. Adding this to its longer blade gives it a huge range. Meanwhile the katana needs two hands to be used efficiently, which makes the movements way too slower, and the hands stay unprotected. The Spanish rapier followed a path of evolution throughout Europe, while the katana stayed in its primal form due to the limited geographic context where it was used.
el japonés manejaba la catana siempre dando preferencia a la mano derecha , la ropera en manos de un zurdo o de un ambidiestro tendria que ser otra cosa a estudiar , poder cambiar ángulos de ataque en un combate a un japonés lo volvería loco 🤔🤔🤔
Katana pretty much have balance of offense and defense and aggressive at the same time
Spanish sword technique is a two swords one. We fight with a dagger on the left hand, which is the one that really kills the opponent in the closest sort of combat. Musashi developed this technique too as explained in the Five Rings Book (go rin no sho).
Hey Matt, All the Audio is coming through the right channel. (Before anyone asks yes, my headphones work.)
I see now you said it's in Mono.
should be able to split the mono audio between both channels or, easier copy it and make it play through both channels simultaneously. It may sound a little unnatural but will at least be even.
Yeah, same here. The intro music worked, but all the speach is right channel only.
lol I was convinced my old, tired speakers were broken until I tested it on a different channel.
My left ear is lonely.
It has to be said that rapiers where mainly a civilian sword. It's name in Spanish is "ropera" or "used with clothes". Spanish military swords of the period used to be beefier and could cut better than rapiers, for the reasons the video explains when getting to larger fights.
Pike and shot era?! Musketeers?!
@@Kinetic.44they used The swords too
That Spanish rapier is awesome!
That rapier is BEAUTIFUL. I hope we get a more in-depth video about it
The range difference is true. We've all seen it in action in the duels between Raphael and Mitsurugi.
Yo, Amy player reporting in. My roommate always played Raphael so I would often play a Mirsurugi style custom character against him.
Side step is key counter to the rapier
Didn't expect a Soul Calibur reference here
@@kimashitawa8113did you expect a Bushido blade reference instead?
@@doyouwanttogivemelekiss3097 Samurai Shodown👀
There are portuguese combat chronicles from the 16th century about the clash of the spanish rapier sword against japanese katanas. The Japanese swords broke when they collided with the superior quality spanish Toledo steel of the time.
source?
@@אורן-ב8ע May be "Cagayan Combats" not exactly Spanish Tercios VS Japanese Samurais.
It was more Spanish (and some mexican natives) against Japanese Pirates
Curious to see that the four most important swords in history were the Iberian falcata (used by the Greeks and Carthaginians), the gladius hispalensis (later used by the Romans), the rapier and the katana..... Three of them were born in the Iberian peninsula .
Buen aporte 👍👍
Moral of the story - don't piss off a Spaniard (or a Portugese)@@kini74jb
most important swords:
a spear (yea i know it isnt a sword)
an even longer spear
and a long azz spear
You're missing the medieval arming sword.
Toledo Steel
Tienes que tener en cuenta que los españoles utilizábamos también una daga de unos 40 cms. en la mano izquierda junto con el estoque. Por otra parte el estoque es un arma civil, los soldados utilizaban espadas de punta y corte algo más cortas y anchas.
Excelente respuesta, y como prueba de eficiencia en combate el imperio español llegó a ser tan extenso que en el nunca se ponía el sol, todo un imperio conquistado y mantenido con las armas, la destreza y el valor de los españoles, el acero toledano (de Toledo, España) era con diferencia el mejor del mundo, ahí reseñas de una batalla en el siglo XVI en aguas de Filipinas donde un grupo pequeño de soldados españoles se enfrentaron a un grupo diez veces mayor de "ronin" (samurais jamponeses que iban por libre) y en esa batalla los españoles arrasarón a los japoneses y sus katanas. Japón nunca conquistó ni mantuvo suyo un imperio tan basto como el de España, supongo que tuvo mucho peso la funcionalidad de sus armas y el valor de sus combatientes.
@@racasmer1129sabes que lo de que eran ronin y demás está muy mitificado no? Alguno habría, pero eran fundamentalmente piratas sin formación militar previa. Además, la bibliografía al respecto es muy reducida.
@@critex123 Haaa...parece que estás más y mejor documentado que los historiadores de los que he obtenido esta información, antes de volver a opinar sobre hechos históricos medievales primero consultaré contigo que al parecer estas muy bien documentado y desmitificado. ¿Como afirmas entonces que "alguno habría" ? ¿y que "eran fundamentalmente piratas y sin formación militar previa"? ¿eso como lo sabes? el caso es ni quedarse callado ni aportar nada ¿verdad?
@@racasmer1129 Pero es que eran piratas y no soldados, eso es lo que dicen las fuentes y lo que es consenso en la historiografía actual. Tay Fusa era un pirata, de hecho sus hombres eran un cpnglomerado de chinos, japoneses y coreanos. También es cierto que las tropas de Carrión no eran tercios ni mucho menos, a penas si había algunos sargentos peninsulares, el grueso lo formaban nativos filipinos y americanos al servicio de la Corona.
@@Car2145 Los ronín eran samurais que no servían a ningún señor, pero ya ejerciesen como piratas, mercenarios o corsarios eran: samurais. Estoy muy bien documentado sobre todo lo referente a ese hecho histórico, y como es bastante largo y extenso no voy ha entrar en detalles, solo advertirte de que aunque creas saber algo "no sabes nada Jhon Snow".
As spanish, I can proudly say that we were great swordmakers. El "Acero Toledano" (Toledan steel?) was pretty famous for quite some time.
Cheers!
The katana is basically a long, pointed machete. I know it's a very basic definition but I think it defines its function. The reason it continued to be used in Japan in the 16th century, and into the 19th century, was because it was still effective against the armor their opponents used at the time. The war in Europe had abandoned the use of these types of weapons after the advent of firearms. The armor, and the type of cutting weapons that were used at that time were replaced by others with a greater range. An example is the Spanish tercios, made up of a body of arquebusiers, another of pikemen, and one of hand-to-hand soldiers. They were obviously outmatched by other tactics, but they dominated European battlefields for over a century. Then there are the cavalry sabers, which lasted until the first world war, but I think that is a separate issue.
Machetes are far better than katanas, as well as more durable
It's probably also important to realize that, historically, the use of firearms was artificially suppressed in Japan. By the late 1500s following their introduction by the Portuguese, Japan had more and better personal firearms than any European nation, but as their presence destabilized the feudal order-based at least symbolically on the right to bear a sword-they were banned. Firearms didn't return in quantity until Perry's visit in 1853..
@@Artemisarrowzz The whole point of the design of Japanese swords is edge retention. It's not that they're so ungodly razor-sharp (a very fine edge would be stupid to put on a sword, meant to deal with bone, clothes, armor, etc.), it's that the edge geometry, metallurgy and blade shape keep it sharp after extended bouts of cutting. Nice for combat, but the downside is that resharpening the blade essentially means repolishing the whole surface. A machete is just some scrap steel that you take back to the grinder to resharpen every 10 minutes...which is also something that can only be usefully produced by modern industry. Any steel hard enough to be worth anything would have had to be hand forged in the ancient world, pre-Bessemer process. Might as well put a little art into such a costly thing.
Incidentally, cutting through vegetation (cellulose) is a lot tougher on a blade than meat. Ask any chef which knife they use on veggies vs. meat. Carving knives are sharp and smooth, but comparatively delicate (cleavers-essentially an axe-are meant for parting bone and joints).
Katana Will never Equal to a GODCHETE
Probably the weapon that could have similar abilities could be the western saber / sable / sabre. Despite being a single hand blade.
This is one of the main reasons why i want to write/draw/imagine a historically accurate (as possible) story about piracy during the 17th century; there's so many cultures, weapons and warriors from different parts of the world involved: Chinese, Korean, Japanese, English, Portuguese and Spanish can duke it out, and it isn't beyond the realms of possibility at all. Depending on *CONTEXT* any of them can come up as the victor of an encounter too.
Ship combat is probability one of the few cases where weapon length becomes a disadvantage (rapier getting in the way in tight hallways).
@@martytu20Wouldn't that only be the case for cutting? If you do the stereotypical, almost olympic fencing style thing with a rapier, tight hallways don't matter.
@botondhetyey159 If you're simply standing in a straight hallway, you'd probably be fine. However, corners are a different story, and I'm sure you'll be diving for cover once that flintlock is drawn on you. Of course I suppose you could half sword your rapier, but then it's like fighting in the trenches with a bayonet. Difficult, but certainly doable.
@@martytu20 Any type of tight places, but you could also get ambushed or attacked from behind. Not everything in armed combat is about duels
Your story is quite interesting, does it include the Ottomans? They were also a power in their moment.
good luck with your project.
The Spanish rapier is usually wielded alongside a short dagger that is wielded simultaneously. In a tight space, that short dagger makes up for the inconvenient length of the rapier.
I once fenced a friend of mine, an iaido instructor, katana vs basket-hilt backsword. He had done alot of open-hand sparring (an instructor in multiple martial systems,) but because of how iaido tends to be practiced, had less experience sparring with swords than myself.
It was most enlightening. I don't remember the name of the school of iaido underwhich he studies, but I was working primarily with Silver.
Hand-sniping was my first available target. He quickly learned to adjust the way he held the katana to shield his hands with the tsuba. After that, the fencing really began.
We both learned alot about ourselves, our weapons, and our techniques in about 12 bouts. I highly recommend such practice with someone you respect and trust, and with both of you open to learning from the other.
Was there a clear winner? I have recently been (attempting) to study Iaido. I think the differences are Samurai also studied JuJutsu, they would fight with two swords, and they were wearing armor that would impede the Spanish Rapier. Do you think those variables would have affected a fight?
@@ValleyDragon Interesting notion.
Clear winner? As far as points, I edged out, but again, I think that had much to do with me being more experienced in free sparring with swords. He was, at the time, teaching me iaido, and had been one of my hapkido instructors, so he was likely the superior all-round fighter, but I was perhaps the superior fencer in that context.
The only armor we had were masks and gloves/ gauntlets (he doesn'ttrain iaido in armor.) He used a shinai (I hope I spelled that correctly, I can never remember,) and I was using a synthetic backsword.
He kept both hands on his weapon for the most part, as I have seen usually done with katana. By my understanding, katana were more often weilded in two hands, to make the more blade-balanced sword quicker and more secure. On the other hand, I had a strictly one-handed sword, so when I wasn't keeping my off-hand clear of danger, I used it to try and control his sword arm, usually at the elbow, when it came to the close fight.
Most of my European sword training and study has, at one point or another, included a dagger, buckler, shorter sword, etc, to make use of the off-hand, but I declined that option in this case as he had only a single blade with which to work.
Iaido technically isn't real swordsmanship, it's a gendai form so not being particularly combative. i'm not sure it would have given much justice to japanese swordsmanship as a whole.
Soft. Fully sharpened weapons at all times
@@thewalruswasjason101 😆
Excellent explanation as always. Do not forget Spaniards also used to fight with a dagger in their "free" hand. A hint of this can be seen in the movie "Alatriste"
Thanks for your lessons, much appreciated.
Yes
That style of fighting is referred to as "diestra y siniestra".
Spanish, not Spaniards. Thank you.
@@mferdeher Apparently It,s the same man; Spanish or Spaniard not pejorative meaning as inglés and anglosajón or anglo
Another thing in favour of the rapier on a duel is that the rapierist tends to keep the arm somewhat extended, increasing even more the reach difference (I guess Iberian rapierists also tend to do this more consistently)
Of course, the wrist is a viable target and one that kenjutsu practitioners practice hitting regularly ;)
That's actually a very defining principle of Destreza: keep your oponent as far from you as possible. That's why the sword is held at a 90º angle with the body.
Also to mention that european steel, specially spanish from Toledo, was far superior than Japanese steel around 1600.
Los espaderos ingleses y alemanes importaban hierro de Bilbao y acero español para los productos de élite.
my right ear liked this video
Indeed. I thought my earphones were broken
Spanish duelists used swords with a small sword in their left hand, or the left hand, which was said to kill more than the main sword, so as not to be left unprotected in combat at closer range, in fact at that time it was called "dextri "That sword technique and it was very popular in Europe.
La "vizcaína".
La verdadera destreza.
"Really quite fatally skewered," is one of my favorite descriptive phrases of all time, now. Thanks!
I've read that the Spanish Conquistadors used rapiers, arming swords, falchions, cinquedea, two-handed great swords (Montante) and medieval long swords. Be cool to see a video on why they used so many different kinds.
First conquistadors had to arm themselves, the crown did not provide weapons. A lot of them were veterans from Granada War and used late medieval weapons, other bought what whey could afford, if it was cheap stuff, then cheap stuff should work. Even in XVI and XVII century spanish military, swords were expected to be bought by the soon to be soldiers befor even being recruited.
@@luiscastro2918 Yes, that would explain why they carried such a varied assortment of swords. Poor recruits would naturally have to settle for whatever was both cheap and available.
Thanks for answering my question!
In Spain at the time the first born son was expected to inherit amd run the family lands. The second born was expected to enter the priesthood. And the third born (and any subsequent sons) were expected to become soldiers.
Needless to say there was not much money for them to outfit themselves before leaving to fight for the glory of Spain.
I have a distant relative that was a Conquistador. Unfortunately I do not know anything about his martial activities, I do know he started a university for the Indians in Colombia. The first in the New World.
I think is because videogames or history taught wrong but "spanish conquistadors" weren't a military unit, so there were not much uniformity aside from the actual soldiers from the kingdom who joined the expeditions. So yeah, was pretty much you wanted to leave spain maybe running away, looking for fortune or whatever reason and grabbed any weapon you could afford and just enroled into one of the ships going to the new world.
@@sae1095hc heck, there are records of Spaniards wearing local armour (iztahuippili I think) during the conquest of Mexico, they weren't all fully equipped with top notch armour/weapons
My money is on the rapier. Those things are _obscenely_ dangerous. The tip zips about like a wasp, and you can _easily_ step right into a stab. The only thing to do (as Matt says), is to get your blade as close to the mid-point of the rapier as you can, rush them, then draw/push-cut to the head or neck. But...a competent rapier-user will stab you in the face for your trouble.
Personally, I'd use a greatsword if I had to fight a rapier-ist.
Ropera* 🤺
Even if you manage to get really close you will find a dagger on the left hand of the spaniard and theres no better weapon at really close range than a good dagger. People often forget that us the spaniards use to figth with dual weapon.
I would use a gun, but a greatsword would be a good choice I guess
Let's not forget that (at least spaniard) soldiers from XVI-XVII century usually didn't use rapiers in battle, they carried shorter and wider ones, almost like medieval sword, since they were more durable and easy to mantain, being the sword the "emergency" last dich weapon.
Something else I've come across. As detailed in the book "The Martial Arts of Renaissance Europe" there were also wrestling styles on par with jujitsu; the book shows engravings demonstrating the fighting techniques of the time showing how disarm someone with a knife. Hans Talhoffer also did a martial arts manual which also shows how to fight unarmed.
Hi Matt, could you talk about the battles of Cagayan in 1582? There they faced katanas against rapiers and it was not a duel
Harquebusier goes brrrr
Gunpowder power was superior.
Pirate group not only was composed by Ronin's, also Chinese and Philippines pirates
The actual source material for the battle of Cagayan is very scarce, anyone telling you in detail how the battle went is lying; no one actually knows (For now, until more information is discovered), even if they proclaim themselves to be historians they never provide further proofs explaining how they know how the battle went
And thank you for always having been Matt Easton, another great video sir.
As someone who practices kenjutsu but also studies HEMA, i wouldn't want to go against a rapier unless my Japanese sword in question is a Nodachi or an O-Katana. There's simply too many advantages on its favor, from the guard to the better reach and a free hand.
Getting beyond the point of the rapier and delivering a quick cut or taking control over the blade are the safest bets i can think of, and half swording might be a good option too. Aside from that, all the rapier fencer has to do is stay out of reach and pierce the hell out of me the first chance they get.
Used a long rapier and fence against a nodachi before. 100% not a pleasant time
How do you deal with the lack of hand protection? I wondered that since I saw far eastern swords at first.
@@jaketheasianguy3307Depending on length, you're basically going against the Japanese equivalent of a Greatsword; it's not fair at all.
@@addictedtochocolate920 the nodachi my friend used has 100cm blade length with 40cm handle length. Range advantage went out of the windows immediately because of it's monstrous cutting ability that constantly beating down my blade. Disengage and try to counter thrust will only resulted in doubles, and not even in my favor (one get cut on the head while the other get stabbed in the belly).
@@EzyasnosThere's not as many binds or constant blade contact as with Longswords precisely because it would be dangerous for both fencers. Aside from that, everything is quite similar, especially if you practice with O-Katanas (the size can match that of many Longswords).
There's also some Tsubas that are a lot larger than what most people are used to, but they don't offer the kind of hooking capability I've seen some Longsword fencers take advantage of.
Esas 2 clases de espadas ya se probaron en enfrentamientos entre las tropas españolas en Filipinas y piratas japoneses, como en Cagayan. La versatilidad de la ropera de 2 filos que se usaron ( hay también de 1 solo filo) ya que no solo es un arma punzante, fue fundamental
Totalmente de acuerdo, además, la ropera te protege la mano y te permite defenderte con un escudo. La katana es preciosa y contundente, pero la ropera es capaz de alcanzar al enemigo a mayor distancia.
@@humbertogarciacolomina7425 Exacto. Además de la concha, como se llama su protección, decía lo de doble filo porque se la presenta muchas veces como una espada solo de estoque, como los floretes típicos de los duelos, pero ese diseño tan largo permitía también causar heridas al rival en la mano, si estaba poco protegida como en la katana, o en los brazos, lo que daba ventaja a su usuario
I'm glad you went into the differences between something being good for a duel in a controlled environment compared to a battle.
In addition for the Sengoku Jidai period of civil war in Japan, the Katana wasn't even really the primary melee weapon. It was spears, pikes, naginatas, etc. I think you went into it in an earlier video that in older periods, the longer Tachi was more prevalent, but by the time of the Sengoku Jidao, the sword was relegated more as a backup. The Tachi was shortened, for a more handy personal weapon and we got the Katana.
Great overview Matt. Lovely example of each blade! I look forward to you sharing with us some period accounts of maritime encounters between East and West. I'm just finishing up some research to discuss comparing blade length of earlier Japanese swords to European swords (looking at more 13th-16th centuries) so I really appreciate your attention to these early Edo blades!
Awww snap! The famous 1582 Cagayan Skirmish?!😲
Btw, that's a beautiful original rapier, Matt! Congrats, and it's great to finally see a SHARP rapier in your collection now!😁
Close, the “Japanese pirates” at Cagayan were actually Chinese and Filipino but it is possible they used katana-inspired weapons
Well, you certainly can't blame me for making such a connection! Your own quotation marks implicitly acknowledge the fact that most accounts suggest that Japanese combatants were involved. They even specifically mention rōnin samurai. However, I'm also willing to accept that you may well have seen more recent, ground-breaking research than I... 😁
It’s all about ‘the context’ 😁 Metatron (I believe) has made a rather good vid about this very subject.
@@andreweden9405 if you read the original letters from Peñalosa and Juan Baptista Roman from 1582, beside that both the writers were not involved and relied on second/third hand account, the two accounts differs substantially, and no rōnin are mentioned but just pirates which are also claimed to be armed by the Portuguese (another quite frankly ridicolous claim).
Not even that, but supposedly, 1000 men were supposed to fit into east asian boats of 3 to 5 meters, while also having artillery, seriously read that the whole thing is mindblowing on how exagerated it is.
Essentially the Spanish administration was trying to make a case for the crown to send men and resources to Luzon, since it was constantly under equipped and the man there while being low in numbers constantly got sick.
If you read the other letters you will also find mentions of any sort of enemy attacking them as well, increasing the demand for reinforces and the like.
Over the years, fanboys and nationalist have singled out these very two peculiar episodes and in a classic internet lore episode turned the whole event into an epic Conquistador vs Samurai clash in which Tercios were involved and won 60 vs 1000. The whole thing is legit a urban legend at this point.
@@andreweden9405 no I def can’t blame you for thinking that. That has been the common perception ever since the event itself. Metatron made a good video on it ruclips.net/video/ehTJ3M2kMPk/видео.html
Soldados españoles y samurais se enfrentaron una vez y el resultado fue apabullante. Batallas de Cagayan
The hand protection of later katana is an issue that has been talked about by the Japanese themselves: there are texts that recommend larger tsuba (up to 10cm in diameter) with minimal cut-outs (to avoid getting stabbed in the hand). Indeed early iron tsuba are quite big, although their lack of decoration may be attributed to technology, time constraints, and priority (function over style).
Great discussion of two famous swords. Thank you.
I do agree with everything said, though I feel swordsman size also deserves a mention if we're going to be comparing blade length. In Musashi's "The 5 rings", he explicitly extolls the virtue of using tachi over katana specifically because of its greater reach and heft. It should also be noted that Musashi (who was estimated to be around 6 feet tall) was considered extraordinarily large compared to his contemporaries, which likely explains why few swordsmen, even among his students, followed his advice on weapon choice. Were japanese swordsmen typically the size of their european counterparts, I imagine katanas would have been longer on average too.
No doubt. I only did a little preliminary stuff in kendo/kenjutsu/iaido myself, but I think most Japanese schools agree that a properly sized blade should just barely miss the ground if held relaxed with one hand at the guard (tsuba) at your side, with the wrist neutral but not extended. I'm about Japan-sized myself (5'6"), so a typical modern-make uchigatana of about 27" blade length (nagasa) fits me perfectly. So do Miatas, which is nice.
Didn't he win a duel using a boats oar?
The Spanish faced samurai pirates when they had the Philippines, a century before the Dutch and English.
Always worth a look. Thanks, Matt!
It's like a peek into history and how weapons worked back then. Cool stuff! 👍
You forget though, that the antimatter edge of the katana annihilates every atom of matter it touches. So all it has to do is touch the rapier to win.
Exactly
😂👍🏻
90% of those who make these videos have just enough historical knowledge not to mix Romans with cowboys.
1º The rapier was a CIVIL weapon, rapiers were not used on the battlefield.
2º The effectiveness of the western sword on the katana is HISTORICALLY demonstrated.
They should only know the chronicles of the time in which the Portuguese maintained commercial relations with Japan and what happened.
I'm not even going to talk about Cagallan where the haters of the Spanish empire insist that they weren't samurai but pirates and ronnins (that's if they forget to say that to be a ronnin you first have to be a samurai).
It's like wanting to differentiate between a mercenary and a soldier. The motivations may be different but they do the same thing.
Not only that, but most of the Spanish soldiers who faced the Asian pirates were Tlaxcalans with basic training in the use of European weapons. In such a way that a design hundreds of years more advanced, as well as its use and handling techniques. In the hands of combatants not born in that tradition, they managed to subdue the users of the much mythologized katana.
If these people knew how to read Spanish and Portuguese, they would still be able to transmit something close to true history, the rest seems to have been taken from one of those Hollywood garbage.
Anime has mythified the katana to an insane level. Weebs think it's some kind of super weapon when in reality it was mediocre at best.
I like how you will continue to be Matt Easton!
Loved the ep. Matt. The Plausibility took me there.
In 1638 the third Tokugawa shogunate made a law that katanas were supposed to be shorter than they were previously and have shorter handles as well. It would be interesting to see how much those extra five or so inches in the blade as well as the handle, I might change things up. Not to mention the swords before the law were wider and a little bit heavier.
what was the reasoning behind that regulation I wonder🤔
@@andersbjrnsen7203 very good question, long story short, because it was an an era of peace after nearly a century of Civil War the shogunate wanted to control the samurai to keep them from getting a little bit… Too rowdy. So they put in a bunch of smaller laws.
I think it is quite a late comment on the subject, rapiers vs katana has been around as early as the internet became a thing.
Such episodes however were quite rare and are lost to internet legends of misterious Spanish archives listing the various victories of the Hidalgo in the far east. All BS of course, since Iberian countries had to fought against the Ottoman and the Dutch in the time period, and were much more keen on trading in Japan rather than fighting them.
Despite the various legends of keyboards warriors, if one digs enough in shrines archive and local history in Japan, we do have something. A skirmish occured in Hirado in the 1560s and it was recorded as the Miyanomae jiken( 宮ノ前事件). The dispute was cauded over the price of a piece of cloth and ended with the death of fourteen Portuguese, including the current Captain-Major Fernão de Sousa. No Japanese were killed, so I wonder if rapiers were involved.
In any case, due to preserve the trading relationship, Spanish and Portuguese were ordered to not risk their reputation by the sword in Japan by the authorities in Luzon
stop your bs, in 1560 the captain major was Baltasar Guedes de Sousa, Fernão de Sousa is from 1624
@@sabatonx9134 It is not BS, it is referenced. Yanagiya, Ruisu Furoisu, Nihonshi , Book 2, p. 70-77; Book 6, p.192-193 and Yamashita, Noboru ‘The Jesuit Mission in Hirado and the Vanished Christians of Takushima - A Historical and Anthropological Research’ (Nagasaki University Academic Output Site, 2015), p. 44.
There wer plenty of De Sousa in history, not to mention that how the name was transmitted through Japanese is another matter
@@lucanic4328 nice find, I couldn’t find the actual source and had only heard of the event from the Matsura family timeline
It is very interesting and the arguments are very good.
I would make an observation, in Spain many people, if they went to war or similar environments, they wore shorter rapiers with a wider blade.
We call these rapiers 'roperas terciadas', because it was useful outside of cities or towns.
Wonderful video. Greetings from Academia Da Espada (A Coruña).
Is that related to the Tercio formation?
. I heard the story from my fencing teacher (Verdadera Destreza).
After consulting, it seems that the term 'terciada' was for any sword whose blade had been cut to a maximum of 1 meter. And that this would apply to rapier.
Army officers often complained that new soldiers carried rapiers that were too long for military combat.
I hope I wasn't wrong.
I finally check back in on scholargladiatoria and now he's got a Spanish rapier! I've been waiting for this video forever now!
Not to mention that the rapier wielder might be using a main gauche as well.
The Spanish and Japanese already clashed more than 400 years ago in the Philippines. 1,500 Japanese ronin vs 40 Spanish... The Spanish won
In the movie HIGHLANDER, you see the Spaniard Villalobos who is Sean Connery and is the master of the Scotsman. There they talk about Toledo and its reputation for making the best swords. Villalobos teaches the Scotsman how to handle the sword in the Spanish style. Even When the policeman has it at the police station, he says that it is Spanish and is worth 1 million dollars. They have always had that fame. There is a reason why Spain was an Empire of 300 years and a very powerful reason in the close combat, it was the Toledan Sword .
Very interesting, thank you. Was initially a bit confused as to why you were comparing two such dissimilar weapons but you not only covered my misgivings but went the extra mile besides.
One disadvantage with the rapier is also its much slower draw time. I have heard that Europeans in Japan always had a parry dagger that they could get out first in case of ambush, and then hopefully buy some time to get out their rapier.
That seems really like something made up, and utterly impractical. It's far better to step back and draw your main weapon, then fumbling to get out a useless dagger that won't save you anyway, because the opponent will keep cutting until you are dead.
@@Kamamura2In hallway situations, there won’t be enough space to step back and draw anyways. A dagger to defend yourself is far better than fists.
@@Kamamura2 You could step back, and draw the dagger.
@@Kamamura2 dagger can be very useful, people carried it as a backup weapon for a reason. In this particular scenario, when you attack someone who didn't draw their sword yet, but then in less than a second this person steps forward and stabs til you are dead. daggers underrated nowadays
@@Kamamura2 Rapier and dagger is a documented and popular dueling/fencing system. having a parrying dagger with a rapier is absolutely a valid viable and historical choice. taking out your short weapon in close quarters engagements first rather than your 40" steel bar is also relatively logical because its a faster easier motion that requires WAY less room. will some people have chosen to draw their sword? sure, will others have chosen to draw their dagger first? sure even if its just to be contrarian. also a parrying dagger is not useless, by definition they're big enough to use in a fight and effectively parry swords.
people do superstitious or illogical things they're convinced will help. people act differently just for the sake of not being like everyone else and they think they're smarter for acting contrarian. the people of the past are no different. different individuals will have decided drawing either sword or dagger first to both be the greatest choice and probably argued with each other ad nauseum over wine and ale as to which one was superior. i wouldn't be surprised if there wasn't a documented duel fought over that exact argument, winner didn't get stabbed.
With rapier, however, you have another hand available for you. Most probably holding a much shorter and lighter parrying dagger. It helps a lot in a confined space, as well as parrying and counterattacking.
or possibly a buckler !
To be fair the Japanese could (and did) use a blade in each hand as well.
Katana can be wielded one handed and a rapier blade is easier to grab than a two and a half foot razor. Grab the blade and cut off the arm that holds it. You win. Try that with a katana and you might loose all your fingers. You might survive by sacrificing your hand today, but what about tomorrow?
@@andrewk.5575 well, technically you're right. At the same time, it's more like a longsword, really. Not all too easy to wield (strike and parry) with one hand. Rapier, on the contrary, is the epitome of one-handed blade evolution, and is designed for swift and deadly one-handed use. Consider the handle & guard system - it not only provides serious hand protection, it also uses the power of leverage to increase control of the blade with your fingers grabbing the cross-guard rather than just a handle.
Seriously, one-handed katana vs one-handed rapier is not even funny.
I thought the same thing. If the katana best strategy is to get inside the range of the rapier then an off-hand blocking dagger seems like a great pairing. A katana loses advantage when used 1-handed, but a rapier is designed for one hand, so an off- hand weapon seems natural.
Once again, a good analysis and explanation!
You forget that the sword is one handed and was usually used with a dagger on the left hand for short distances
That the rapier is one handed make me think you have even more of a range advantage.
And for fun, with a rapier you can dual wield a shorter weapon which would make it very difficult for a katana wielder.
(Especially if it's a flintlock gun)
I would definitely say that when it comes to rapier and katana on a ship possibly in a conflict involving pirates that the rapier weilder would definitely have major problems.
Usually in such group battles, a rapierist would also have other sailors using sabers backing him up though
1582 Cagayan battles
What a clash of military cultures that must have been. I enjoyed this video.
I've been messing around with my headphones for 5 minutes then I realized I was hearing white noise out of both ears and pulled up another video and realized that it's actually this video's audio thats messed up.
The Lord of Arms is here🗿🗡🔥💯
Matt what did historical accounts of the period exactly say about such close combat encounters ?
He mentioned that a bit when he talked about the Spanish and English expressing respect for the ferocity of the Japanese swordsmen, but it would certainly be interesting to hear more details.
There are a few things I would like to point out. Actually, in the type of confrontations that the Spanish and the Japanese had, rapiers of this type would not be seen on almost any occasion. Similar but wider war-swords ('de punta y corte') were used and, although slightly heavier, they were generally combined with a buckler-type shield. The combination of both plus the armor doubled the advantage that a rapier of that type would already have over a katana.
Rapier sword will always be my favorite, I used to practice with one & ended up being experienced enough with it to chop a raspberry in half mid air.
One caveat I’d add to the vid is the inclusion of specific time periods for the scenario as well as where the pirate’s sword may have come from.
The katana we know today (and the one Matt is showing) got its common length in the 1630s due to laws imposed by the Tokugawa shogunate. This means all swords in Japan and all katana made in Japan from then on had to be shortened to the 27”-28” blade length we know now. However pirates, being outlaws, could simply ignore these laws and keep their longer blades. During this time many described “Japanese pirates” were actually Chinese and if their blade was forged in a foreign country like China, then the smith obviously wouldn’t have to abide by another country’s law.
So depending on the time period as well as where the swords was made, not all katana/katana-inspired blades would’ve been the length that we know them to be (27”-28” blades). That would really only apply to law abiding Japanese who got their blades domestically after the 1630s. That’s not to say these blades didn’t exist prior, but they were uncommon
Wasn't Japanese steel considerable worse than European steel? And aren't Japanese swords more brittle than European ones? I've always assumed Renaissance Europeans had longer swords generally because their steel was less likely to break when flexed.
@@fattiger6957 not at all. The idea that they had significantly worse steel is a very modern misconception. Their steel was relatively the same. To think that Japan always had smaller swords comes from just looking at Edo/modern katana. The Japanese were capable of making nodachi that were as long as European greatswords. The reason why we don’t see them at that length anymore is, as I’ve said, due to the laws put into place to limit them. These laws persisted through the modern era.
Edit: we modern people believe that swords that are not tempered shouldn’t be that long but historical people didn’t think like us. Check out “we’re Celtic swords bad?” As well as “Hallstatt Iron Age Celtic swords” on the channel called Fortress of Lugh. He shows Iron Age swords that were longsword length
@@outsideiskrrtinsideihurt699 I admit I am far from an expert.
I was under the impression that tachi were longer and were phased out in favour of the shorter katana due to them being more durable than the tachi.
@@fattiger6957 interesting theory, but tachi were used all the way up to the early 17th ce and had coexisted with katana since the 14th ce. The only reason they were phased out was because katana typically fared better in civilian environments. This is only amplified when all Japanese sword underwent their mass shortening and became what we know it as today. Because the katana blade is worn upwards and is now ~28” it has more versatility in the draw.
@@fattiger6957 a tachi is generally used as a sabre it's aimed to be used on horse back and is worn as such in a slung down possition, a katana is not, it's got nothing to do with strengh concerns. At the the end of the day it's still a peice of steel so it's not going to be easily broken unless outright abused. The brittle thing is often very over played, yes it's more brittle than European spring steel but it's not a piece of glass. Extreme views often get pushed back with extreme views from the other way. It's does what it was deisined to do and it does well so regarless of what steel it's made of i'd rather not be hit by one.
Katana seems like it would also have an advantage in a self-defense context, not only due to its greater utility in close quarters, but also because of its ability to translate seamlessly from sheathed to cutting. A rapier isn't exactly slow to draw if you're skilled, mind you, but it still has more delay simply because you physically can't draw and thrust at the same time.
Most katana styles really come into their own in that context. The Edo period was the golden age of Japanese Swordsmanship, because warring states period was no longer, there was alot of board people in the warrior class looking to pick fight either in a officiated dual or a street fighting context. Prior to this pole arms and bows were usually focused more on. Even most older Koryu styles incorperated the Kenjutsu element of their schools from the edo period at a latter date so thier school would stay relent in the changing time and not die out, Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto Ryu is one such example. You'll find the stronger Kryu sword schools usually have their lineage start in the Edo period before that the main focus in battlefield orientated weapons.
rapiers have a part where they study the close combat called conclusion, also rapierist always had a second weapon or tool to protect , like daggers called vizcaina
@@angelaguerrero3808 Oh yeah, that's definitely true, I was just strictly comparing the weapons themselves. In real life, yeah, both combatants would probably have multiple weapons of some kind on their person, which changes things.
Note the Wakizashi and Tanto@@angelaguerrero3808
I agree with your comment on the transition from sheath to cutting. I think we have to look at the culture and purpose behind the design of any weapon. The katana is designed to be lethal as it is drawn from the sheath. This is why arts like iaido focus on drawing and cutting in one or two motions. It’s not necessarily built for a long duel. Additionally, the katana can be wielded with just one hand, we just tend to think of it as a two handed weapon because of kendo.
As a reference,when the Spanish and Japanese clashed in Cagayán (The Phillipinnes,XVI century),the Spaniards got the victory. Although the battle developed in different phases,the last one consisted in a close range combat. When the defeated Japanese (ronin,wako) fled,the Spaniards kept some katanas as a trophy.
The lesson to me is that all these weapons are suited to different circumstances. Like MMA, a good fighter becomes skilled in the variety of circumstances they are likely to face - and skilled in the variety of weapons suited to those circumstances. There is no one weapon suited for all situations, just the one you spend the most effort mastering. Then, it's a combination of will to fight, aggression, athleticism, skill, and weapon suitability that wins a fight in a circumstance. Good stuff!
Hey Matt, how about montantes? They were from around that time period as well, weren't they? I remember I've seen an Iberian report in which their ship was boarded by pirates/bandits, but the captain killed 3-6 men with his montante and the rest of the bandits fled. I know Figueyredo and Godinho teach how to use the montante in a ship as well, but I see so little historical texts about their usage overall. Could you make a video about that?
The greatest advantage a katana of that size has over a rapier is that it is a more well rounded sidearm, easy to carry and faster to deploy. Beside the law that enforce the length regulation, there is a reason why such length was also favoured as it worked quite well in a civilian context. The katana is much similar to storta and small swords.
As an interesting note there is a Japanese made rapier of the early 17th century preserved in Fujisaka Shrine in Minakuchi-cho, Koka. This was made in Japan probably as a form of parade sword. It was owned by Kato Yoshiaki.
I appreciate all the comments that you have been uploading across various channels. I think the information and intake you provide are very valuable.
Tbh though, I don’t think you will succeed in changing the already-entrenched bias of the western HEMA community held against Japanese swords and swordsmanship. From what I understand it’s simply far too difficult to find people practicing or researching authentic Japanese swordsmanship in the west, especially after having compared them to practitioners in the East.
m.ruclips.net/video/_gndIJnmS5o/видео.html
m.ruclips.net/video/9Jcz3LRhagc/видео.html (starting at 6:03)
The person in the vid is not even a koryu practitioner - his primary style is Lichtenauer-Meyer line of longsword. However, he is able to vastly outpace many other “kenjutsu practitioners” across the west, against a supposedly insurmountable weapon.
All of it possible because he copied , used, and followed techniques and principles of classic styles of Japanese swordsmanship.
(What he incorporated were 9 months of kendo, with hodgepodge techniques from RUclips-edition Onoha/Hokkushin Itto ryu, reconstructed Kage ryu, reconstructed 武藝圖譜通志 - 倭劍.)
@@adenyang4398 Thank you I apprecciate that.
Btw those videos are amazing stuff, wish more people got aware of this guy because he seems quite amazing
@@lucanic4328 the head of the actual organization the practitioner is in goes by the name Oldswordplayer, who runs a RUclips channel by the same name. He has been revolutionary in historical Joseon swordsmanship reconstruction.
@@adenyang4398 This is amazing stuff, I will share it for sure. Needs to be known more in the west too
Heard of pike and shot warfare? The musketeers? Hardly a civilian context. They and daggers and pistols too. Well rounded means it doesn't excel at anything.
I’m a bit of a history buff and I had heard and read pretty much a lot about English and Dutch pirates, in contrast this is the very first time that I have heard about the Japanese being pirates, it’s curious.
Cuando los españoles se embarcaron en la conquista de Filipinas, los informes militares decían que los japoneses eran el pueblo más belicoso de la zona. Practicaban a menudo la piratería en Filipinas y otras zonas y España tuvo que enfrentarse a los japoneses. Fueron los combates de Cagayán. Parece ser que los japoneses sufrieron una dura derrota. Es curioso que mientras España estuvo en Filipinas los japoneses apenas salieron de su isla. El expansionismo militar japonés no ocurrió hasta el siglo XX, una vez que España fue expulsada de Filipinas en 1898.
Great video!
Wouldn't you be able to "fix" the rapier's monodirectional shortcomings by pairing it with a parrying dagger or bucker? It was my understanding that this was fairly common.
It was common. Dagger and bucker. Even capes were used to hold enemy weapon and arms.
Just to chime in with some historical info (not as much for a historian like you, but for anyone else unaware) during the Edo shogunate, a katana could be at most 3 shaku (feet) in length. Anything longer and you'd get to honourably disembowel yourself. Which resulted in heirloom nodachi and the like being cut down to size and thus, sadly, losing the smith signature on the tang. But, anyway, yes, there was variability, but there also was a hard upper limit. (And most were a lot shorter, around 2.5 ft or less, according to fashion at the time.) Thus every single katana at the time was at a length disadvantage against a rapier. Yes, there was variability, but anything out-reaching a rapier would have been an illegal odachi/nodachi, so you probably would never see one except in a family shrine.
Really interesting. Thank you
Spain had many conflict with Japanese pirates in Philippines. The bigger battle took place in Cagayan at the end of the XVI siecle.
I think there are a few other points to also consider. First rapiers are relatively easy/safe to grab compared to other sword types. It’s not a simple task or risk-free, but it is one its weaknesses, especially considering how awkward it is to use at shorter distances. Secondly, we would need to consider what the combatants are wearing. Katanas (and sabres) tend to be great textile cutters, and while a strong rapier thrust should easily penetrate any clothing, I do wonder how light thrusts would do against loosely worn robes that were common in east Asia. Finally, the stopping power of a rapier thrust isn’t great. They were primarily developed as civilian weapons and often intended for use in less-than-lethal duels. While a thrust could instantly kill someone depending on the location, we know from modern wound research that penetrating wounds will often fail to stop a combatant if there isn’t enough associated trauma. If that first thrust fails to stop the attacker, either from a miss, a grabbed blade or a thrust that failed to kill, then the rapier wielder is going to be in a difficult position against an aggressive katana user.
For me personally I really wouldn’t want to rely on a single rapier in a life-or-death sword fight. I’ve actually experienced having a reasonably large piece of steel stuck most the way through my leg (accident not a fight) and other than the initial stinging pain, I didn’t even notice how bad the wound was until someone pointed out the blood later. I’ve also had a friend get stabbed in the arm during a drunken brawl (which severed a tendon) yet keep fighting afterwards as if nothing happened. He nearly died from blood loss and needed 2 years of rehabilitation, but the point is that if I was dealing with a highly aggressive opponent then I would really prefer a blade with more stopping power that can be used at both long and short ranges or at least the rapier+dagger combination. With the single rapier I feel there is just too much risk getting seriously injured yourself even if you did land a good thrust.
With the katana you could just grab the end of the handle to gain more reach. One handed cuts even with 2 handed swords are quite common in Chinese swordsmanship, is that not something the Japanese do? It might not deliver as powerful cuts but it deceives your opponent into believing you having a shorter sword than you really do.
I think this is doable though your cut will be very commited. If you miss or get parried it will be difficult to redirect in a fast and efficient way.
@@librabys I have seen this used with Miao dao for hand or leg sniping. You’re usually quite far when doing it, and Miao dao have a distal taper to them so the balance closer to the hand than katanas or tachis. They are more probing strikes to catch you off guard than full on committed strikes. Just not sure if such techniques are used often in kenjutsu.
There are some Japanese sword styles that include or specialize in nodachi training that do have a thrust like that.
the spanish empire made fencing a science. the rapier was separated in 10 parts, and it was based on the law of the plank. they were mede to have a couple of fighters between the pikemen and in pike-to-pike combat they would slide in between and cripple legs, also they were very popular between the noblilty and being a great fencer was seen as a status definer
Talk about a dream topic thank you for the amazing video like always
When facing a rapier my general strategy was to stay at relatively long range and wait for the rapier fighter to make a fully committed lunge and then aggressively close the distance. Anything less and they could backpedal quite easily. If they refused to cooperate then the plan was to stay at longer range and defend until they became tired and frustrated and started to make mistakes. I'm not an expert with either katana or rapier but in my limited experience the katana fared really well. These were one on one dueling type situations and as always, your milage may vary.
Then your plan will fail against Fabris and Destreza practitioners, as their tactics don't have long committed lunges, but rather using geometry to manipulate your sword and your structure, and then they stab you.
@@jaketheasianguy3307But doesn't Tybalt counter Capa Fero which Counters Belleti's Defense?
dont see how that could work? the rapier should be able to jab jab jab indefinitely without hardly tiring, and lots of those jabs should draw a bit of blood , concentration and endurance from the "cutter".
@@andersbjrnsen7203 That could work. Especially if you start off with your left hand and after probing your oppennet you tell him "I am not left handed."
1:44
We do has to be careful when looking at these events as many times they were described to be Japanese pirates but were actually Chinese or Filipino. In terms of weapons, it is possible they would use katana-inspired blades
Cagayan is the best example of what you say, the main part of the army were Chinise, Korean, and Indochinese.
There were also Ronins, stop it.
I guess basically in that era the key was using a combination of measures in battle. In a Spanish unit there was someone with a rapier or sword and shield (pike deviation and close melee), another guy with a pike for long range melee, and another guy with a gunpowder weapon for ranged combat, plus some artillery support that could come from cannons, and of course light cavalry for flanking
The rapier was used in the skillful hand of the warrior; in the other hand was a dagger that completed the defense and the attack at close range.
it wasn't really a dagger but a short sword called side word
Might be we are lost in the translation. The Spanish told DAGA to a bladed weapon with a short, wide and pointed blade, similar to the sword but smaller. I supossed, probably I did a mistake, that the English word for DAGA is dagger. Regards.@@ad-zh5ot
Initially, I hadn’t planned on commenting - however, this really is a very interesting topic. 👍🏻🙂
Historically, from the late 16th century and especially following the Sengoku Jidai (ie after ca. 1615), samurai would be carrying daishō.
Modern Kobudo (Japanese martial arts dating from after 1868) - like most Iaidō-schools (post 1932) - don’t necessarily have much focus on practice with two swords.
Traditional Ko-ryū, however, do often provide training in dual sword-techniques - to some extent or other.
Historical evidence thus do suggest, that a Sengoku- or Edo-period samurai could have, in theory, deployed his shōtō (tantō or wakizashi) in conjunction with his daitō (tachi or katana) in order to improve his odds against an opponent with a range-advantage. Such as a European rapier-wielder.
Anyhoo - it’s something to ponder, methinks… 🤔🎓⚔️🤓
The spanish soldier also carried his dagger and fought with two weapons.
Rapier >>> Katana
I know you want the Katana to be superior, Cope.
La espada y Daga Españolas son superiores en parte por el sistema de combate, la técnica Española era la verdadera destreza , por eso conquistamos el mundo, de hecho Japoneses Samuráis y Españoles se enfrentaron en Filipinas,siendo los Samuráis superiores en número la victoria fue Española
Outstanding video 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
The Japanese Katana as a weapon is excellent in every way, but Hollywood has terribly exaggerated its combat capabilities.
The Spanish Rapier is a weapon of excellent quality, and truly deadly on the battlefield. And this statement is not just an opinion, it is based on the same history and on multiple confrontations throughout history.
Like that of the Battle of Cagayan (Philippine Coast -1582) between 30-40 Spanish soldiers of the Tercios and approximately 1000 Japanese pirates, mostly Rōnin, samurai fallen in disgrace or without a lord.
The Japanese who survived the defeat, when they returned to Japan, said that they had not faced men, but sea demons dressed in steel.
I can't imagine what a shock it must have been for such great fighters to receive such a beating. Because when they fled, after several hours of combat, they left behind several hundred dead compared to 7 or 8 casualties on the other side.
A truly incredible feat in my opinion, but true and perfectly documented by both sides.
Fun Fact: The buckler on the left is vibranium, it absorbs vibrations including the left audio; so all y'all hearing is right audio.
"This isn't one of those 'musketeer vs samurai' videos..." Ah dammit.
This is a trick question. The rapier user would always win, just as long as his sword had a threaded pommel. Katana do not have removable pommels to which you end your opponent rightly.
"Apologies that it wsa recorded in mono"... and I thought my earphones started failing.
I really like these type of vids. Always makes me appreciate more my Kendo trainings and increased interest in HEMA. Man, I really want to give HEMA a go 😃
Parrying a cut from a katana(deliverd by a seasoned kenjutsu practitioner) with a rapier... possible if you manage to catch it precisely with the strong, otherwise your guard quite likely can be crushed through, especially if your opponent is from certain styles that emphasise exlposive cutting technique, such as jigenryu. The only things rapier user can truly rely on are: excellent footwork plus having enough space for maneuvering or really good grappling skill.
Please keep in mind that the Japanese are very short; even modern day, they are on average the shortest in Asia. If you've ever seen historical Japanese armor from the medieval period, you will understand how tiny the samurai were. I feel like if Japanese swords had been built for westerners they would have been make considerably longer. Something to keep in mind when doing these comparisons.
Alot of modern practitioners from the West custom made their sword to fit their size, yet, even a katana with 80-85cm blade length is still nothing compare to the length of a mid Renaissance period rapier
The Japanese "nobles" were of average height during the period. It is a myth to say that they were significantly below the average height of the European (for example).
@@jaketheasianguy3307 Japanese katanas are short because they were forcibly cut down by law in the Edo period.
@@jaketheasianguy3307 True. The Rapier is a very long sword. I just think that when people make these comparisons they should take into account the average size of the combatants.
@@Red-jl7jjThat's why I said modern practitioners. No need to give me an obvious history lesson
Nice video again! What a fantastic collection of weapons. Keep it secret, keep it safe!
Hey Matt, I've not seen that rapier before. It's super cool, have you or could you do a video one it?