Medieval Battle Axes! with Thor's Forge 14th Century Replica
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 5 сен 2024
- Battle axes, of the one-handed variety, were popular from the Viking era onwards, but with the addition of rear spikes and other adaptations they saw a resurgence of popularity in the heavily armoured periods of the middle ages, particularly from the 13th century.
Thor's Forge: / thorsforge
When an axe maker sends you an axe packed so solidly that you need an axe to get it out ... that's a good axe maker.
Had a bow sent to me in a similar type of box.
The people who delivered it still managed to break a piece of the box, but the bow survived.
Comrade McSalty How is this information relevant whatsoever?
The spike looks blunted already.
@@Bughunt89 Who asked for your input?
Me: "Kids, stop watching those silly unboxing videos!" Also me, staring in awe at an axe
It's a guy thing, "damn kids and their stupid toys" meanwhile you buy a ton of little plastic men and paint them, defending it to your better half as "those ain't toys! they are highly accurate military miniatures!"
I'm not sure of what that might have been called at the time, but nowadays in Italian the distinction is:
ascia = axe (which is what I'd call that)
accetta = hatchet (clearly indicating a "piccola ascia", so also a small axe used as a weapon, of course, but predominantly a tool)
azza = pollaxe (apparently being a portmanteau word combining "ascia" and "mazza")
mazza = mace (just in case there were any doubts)
Sound historical and martial information, as always. I like the bit about how axe blades were thinner when there was less armor and changed over the centuries. It's like how thin machetes are, since plants don't even have heavy clothing. Falchions are thin for similar reasons, heavy clothing is the most they're designed to cut. One of my favorite blade geometries
8:18 that is another reason to avoid blocking with these too, if you get a polearm swing it might just push the spike inside your face.
I would presume that the correct way to block with an axe like this one is similar to blocking with a tomahawk. Use the top surface of the axe to block and shove the other weapon back or aside.
Trying to block a polearm with any one handed weapon is a bad idea period. You use your own polearm or a shield, otherwise it'll blow right through your block. Even quarterstaffs can do this.
@@gabzdark07
Obviously, there are better tools for the job, like a shield or your own polearm. But if an axe like this is all you have, then that's all you have. Using the axe with two hands as if it were a really short pole arm is most optimal. One handed, as in you're holding another weapon in your other hand, choke up on the axe and use the top surface like a crossguard or a buckler, you'll be fine.
I'm delighted that Matt is broadening his range of topics into the world of comedy.
To Rodney Dangerfield's wife, specifically.
A buddy I served in the military with grew up in California right down the street from Rodney, and said they would wait on their bikes for him to get his mail because he would always drop a funny one liner about being hung over or his wife busting his balls. He said the guy you see him playing in all his movies wasnt a character, that's just how he was.
@@GroundbreakGames,
As a kid, long ago, I heard some of his stand-up on the radio; he took questions from the audience.
"How's your sex life?" someone asked.
"How's my sex life?" says Rodney, "It's like shoot'n pool wid a rope."
As a footnote, since you've (correctly) mentioned a few times that Dane axes wouldn't have been called that during the time they were used, the term used in East Norse would've been "Genja" for the two-handed axes typically associated with Huskarls.
Other names for axes, again in East Norse, would've been "Tenja" for one-handed axes, "Skegga" or "Barda" for bearded axes, "Snagga" for Bardiche like ones where the beard extended upwards as well as down, and "Tveita" for throwing axes.
These are all separate, of course, from the Norse word for axe ("øx") which just means the general object itself
Again, I'm caveating this with my knowledge of it being limited to East Norse, so West Norse could possibly have entirely different names for the same things
Understatement of the year 'if you plunged your own axe spike into your head that would be counterproductive' 😂😂
Best unboxing video I've ever seen. First we see the box, then you're holding what was in it. That's how it should be done.❤️
I just received a smart bomb upgrade kit advertisement on this video. WTF?
Like, the bombs that get dropped from planes.
"Based on your interest in [Robert the Bruce], [The Holkham Bible] and [14th Century Armaments], we have determined that you might also be interested in [Starting a War in the Middle-East]"
Is there any proof that they could penetrate late 15th century plate though?
Maybe it's time to upgrade your bombs?
*'He was twitching because I had MY AXE buried in his nervous system!'* Gimli replying to Legolas's claim the Orc he had killed was not really dead yet!
AXES ARE AWESOME
That battle axe looks vicious...
Btw, I am the guy that asked about that kidney shaped club some time ago. Well with the help of google I came to the conclusion it is probably a maori battle club?
Yes, it's almost certainly a wahaika, which is a Maori weapon. You could say wahaika were a type of patu, or short club. To give you an idea of their uses, the main weapon used was a long club called a taiaha. The patu was for close in fighting, or as a backup weapon. A bit like the pollaxe being the main weapon, and the sword or dagger as the back up or close in weapon.
Some links for you. Or just Google any of the Maori words I used
Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wahaika
New Zealand Army museum www.armymuseum.co.nz/maori-weapons/
Te Papa which is the national museum of NZ collections.tepapa.govt.nz/search/wahaika/results
@@Muritaipet Thanks man, I appreciate it. I was wondering about that rather puny size for a club, your explanation makes sense. Will have fun looking through those links.
Love this axe. War hammers, maces, are my favorites for some reason. Love this channel as while.
Same here, I also love polearms
@4:58 just an observation - 2 of the axes shown have obvious enlargements at the base of the handles to prevent the hand slipping off, and the guy at the right is fighting with axe AND buckler rather than two-handed; I wonder whether this has been illustrated elsewhere?
Any chance of a video on central/east-asian two-handed single-edged swords? Alternatively, more uncommon varieties of polearms such as fauchard or guisarme?
He was talking about jian and dao at some point, use the search.
@@tehanureaver4299 Jian are one-handed. However I have seen two-handed variations of Tang Dao and Changdao.
@@CyrusKazan jian are only defined as being double edged you can be curved slightly, 2 handed, one handed.
@@tehanureaver4299 I think he means things like the pudao and gwandao which stray into polearm territory.
Roman Armies had pick axes and mattocks. However; these were used as clearing and entreching tools.
Usually. There was one famous battle where their weapons couldn't do a thing against the enemy armor so they went back to camp to retrieve those tools. My google-fu is failing me to find the battle name.
@@somerando1073
It was during a Gladiator Revolt, and they were fighting Crupellari, who were fully armored, so the Legionaries got their Dolabras (Pickaxes) to make short work of them.
imgur.com/a/NuCZ9kg
@@ArmouredProductions which is an interesting story and i dont doubt that this is an original telliing
but, while the crupellari were heavily armoured, the armpits throat and groin were still exposed unless the crupellari also wore mail shirts under their segmentata
and these were the places the roman infantry were supposed to target regardless.
@@elgostine
The account was written by Roman Historian Tacitus, so take it for what you will. Also the picture shows the Crupellarii with Gladius & Pugio, but other descriptions say they carried the Gladius & Scutum. So combine the Armor + Scutum and it would have been hard to land a hit, so they just figured to use their tools.
"but our men, snatching up hatchets and pickaxes, hacked at their bodies and their armour as if they were battering a wall" - Tacitus, Annals.
@@elgostine Thing is tiny weak points are extremely hard to take advantage of in a live battle or fight. Even in a duel if your opponent is mobile, it's hard to target small points like that.
I love these old can-openers. The axe and spear have always been my favorite melee weapons. Bows are still number one, but there is no "one and only" in historical context for me.
I believe the addition of the spike on the back coincides with improvements the metallurgy and smithing techniques.
Axes like the Dane axe have an eye formed by forge welding while that hand axe has an eye that was punched and drifted.
Very surprised that no mention is made of the sagaris, a weapon used by, both, the Achaemenid Persian infantry and cavalry, and virtually identical to the battleaxe Matt shows us here.
@Jon Goat,
I totally agree. I don't believe the ancient Persian sagaris inspired the medieval European battleaxe.
But, Matt himself does ask, "why didn't this weapon design appear earlier?"
I am just pointing out that it did.
@@fuferito and then admittedly dissapeared for a good several centuries
missed opportunity to open the box with the dane axe... LIKE A MAN! :D ;)
You're thinking AvE... thought he might have gone with a chainsaw.
That would be a very poor way to treat a Daneaxe, they're NOT well built for chopping wood.
I think Thor knows the dangers of sending anything with Royal Mail :P
"The armour of the day" sounds like a badass series
AND MY AXE
AND YOU SIR, TYPING FIRST LIKE A CHILD.. I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW I'M THE FIRST.. oh wait now I'm the one being childis-
How very appropriate!
Heavens above! What vulgar namesake did thee refer to mine self with? I shall teach thee the vastness of my worldy knowledge, for i was trained by the greatest of masters in the matters of warfare and graduated with honours most high!
"You have to be careful and aware of the back end so you don't hit yourself in the face."
Proceeds to swing it around his head while not paying attention to it...
Three descendants of Henry de Bohun disliked this video.
A man who knows his medieval history. I salute you sir.
I watched the videos on making the Dane Axe. I am in awe of his craftsmanship.
I bought one of his Dane axes a few months after you put up your first video on your's
New video. Great way to start my evening. 😎
Wow, what a replica. That spike in particular is just wicked looking.
Helmets: good for all round protection, not least of which from swinging and axe into your own face.
WOW! What a review of that Thor's Forge and their Great Axe. Best replica weapon you have purchased of any type! That is one heck of a reference.
indeed
An adze is not just an axe by a different name; it's a different type of axe altogether. The adze has a blade with a 90 degree rotation relative to a typical axe blade. They are also smaller and have finer edges (they aren't made for fighting).
Thought for sure I was gonna see my wife in this video
Really interesting how these short axes are shown so often being used with both hands. I guess if you're trying to get through heavy armour with one it would make sense.
You should look up the late Norwegian battleaxes too, like the ones used in the battle of Kringen in 1612.
I’ve often wondered about the development of armor and weapons and change in industrial processes to produce iron and therefor steel. They can’t be unrelated.
Battle axe doesn' t need to be big and heavy. In the 9th century, Hungarian warriors used light axes on long shafts, called fokos, with similar spikes, beside their sabers and bows. It was effective on horseback and on foot.
Matt Easton needs some exciting music and slo mo like Modern History. Imagine him brandishing with slo mo and Carmina Burana.
4:58
Can we take a minute and talk about the form of the sword and buckler dude in the middle. That wrist on the sword hand looks painful. Even the halbedier behind his opponent is displeased.
That is a nice weapon. Dual purpose. Sort of warhammer spike and chopper. From horseback a downward polo mallet swing while cantering would smash someone up so they wouldn't be getting back up off the floor, might need a rope around the wrist through a hole drilled in the end to stop it from getting lost though.
For my knowledge the Azza in italian is the poleaxe, this axe would be called Ascia (i'm italian). About the question of why these spikes on axes came out mostly in the 13n sec, maybe during that period the armor where more commonly used also by lower status men at arms, and so a more specialized weapon was required...
I keep glancing over at the Cold Steel Spike Hawk on my wall as I watch this.
I've heard the back spike on axes came from the lumber industry which got militarized like plug bayonets.
If you were living in the later 15th century and were going into battle tomorrow what armour and weapons would you bring if money not being a factor?
I really, really wish that I could afford one of his Dane axes. So beautiful, so deadly.
Thought it was a boarding axe for a second.
Cold steel used to have a Viking great axe similar in ways to that first axe you showed. Don’t think they make it anymore but they use the same head or at the least the same style of axe head for a new smaller Viking battle axe with about a 30” handle.
Also I really like the second axe you show here :)
I like that beefy edge that axe has. You could split wood or fell saplings with it.
You *might* have more to say about that axe?
I fully expect you to be wittering on about that gorgeous thing and those who might have used it for decades.
And you can fully expect me to be watching.
*Receives wooden box*
*has multiple axes and warhammers literally in arms reach*
*uses screwdriver to open box*
Matt what are you even doing, this unboxing could have been so much more fun. That's a nice axe though, doubt it's in my budget but I love me a good fighting axe.
Lord Malcom the One-Eyed, blinded by his own weapon.......
A fine ax, I feel an ancestral connection to it.
6:19 If it had two axe heads instead of a spike, it would basically be the bat symbol from batman.
I have been curious about both single and two handed axes as they are portrayed quite a lot in high fantasy video games often with a liberal helping of creative licence.
Am I the only one who think's the begining of the video lok like an old school comercial : You know I like Haxe, particuliarly Dane Axe...
Matt,
What do you know about the history of the Tomakawk's origins in Europe? I would be interested in learning about how the kinds of boarding axes used aboard French and other ships evolved, and about examples of weapon/tool axe hybrids found in medieval Europe. Were there early axes that were mounted on their hafts in the way a tomahawk is (passing the handle through the eye of the axe head)? What kinds of axes might people carry for the dual purpose of utility and defense?
It's awesooooome!
I think a blow with the axe head should knock someone out without piercing the helmet. A thick axe-head with forward weight balance and that long handle for leverage would strike with massive force.
I think the spike was more of a finisher weapon to dispatch downed or dazed opponents.
The benefit of a square point is that your weapon a lot easier to release is wood and bone I think.
Could be, but also better to break mail. The corners focus the force in spots on the ring it hits rather than a round point which spreads the force evenly and less likely to burst it.
Were axe hafts smooth or rough? Wood axes should be rough to improve the grip, because smooth hafts make it easy for them to slip out of your hands during the swing.
8:25 Harald the Slow-of-Understanding did stryke hymselfe upon ye flank withe his hachett, and fore dayse later dyed of embarassment... and infectione.
A double bladed dane axe?
Would it work? Maybe.
Would it be awesome? Yes!
No and no. You played too many computer games.
@@PalleRasmussen And you are far too narrow minded, grounded in reality and totally confined to what is logical. Go away!
I'm sure it could work, but there's just no reason for two axe heads instead of a hook or a hammer or something
The one handed battle ax looks a great deal like later North American trade tomahawks. I wonder if there was any continuity?
The spike being thinner near the base seems likely to have increased the risk of getting the axe stuck in a target. I suspect that some users may have regretted that weight saving...
You should look at reviewing the burka style Viking age axe that tord recently made and posted on his Facebook!!
Speaking of axes, it would be keen to see a video discussing throwing axes. Just a thought.
I know this might "offend" you but... what about double bitted axes?
Well actually 9th/11th century Norse one handed axes had hammers on them occasionally, basically just a square protrusion on the back of the axe head, two handers probably had them as well but its unconfirmed though no evidence to say contrary as "great axe" heads were sometimes similarly sized to one handed heads
In Europe were spiked weapons (without an axe) ever used on their own? I am thinking of something like the small one handed Chinese Ji "dagger axe." Or just something simple like spike on a wooden shaft?
Yes, sometimes referred to as a military pick.
Often war hammers had an spike where the spike sometimes looks like the "main" side. But as Matt said it will be a problem with many opponents with only a spike because it will get stuck. lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/u-WRlEpUwyXcj7nFt6BXU0Xazn4B6EmW21OHK5zgbVVWOb_kb2P2gIJQPkvL5GJSJ4BxaeOc0AyjaemEakU8tTr_NYG-9HrMRCFHxHQm0aF7KkR657_z4NKgkpb_XoCI
A weapon in this style i have never seen, but there is a tool , in german called , Sappie' for moving logs. It is used by woodcutters or sawmill workrs. Many polearms have tools as ancestors. In german ax is Axt, a small axe is a Beil.
@@brittakriep2938 .. the pick version with spike used by lumberjacks in the 19th and early 20th centuries often had a projecting "spear" point as well as the pick side and we're similar to if not exchangeable with ship's boarding pikes, having nearly if not identical uses. More modern equivalents used in 19th & 20th century sawmills (like my Uncle Joe's) for hand turning logs have a very small spike but also a hinged crescent-shaped arm ending in an inner spike to catch, lever the log round, then easily release. Not a weapon, but a tool used to roll logs. Floating logs would be easier to roll via just the loggers Pike or by foot (log rolling). Just some odd tidbits from visiting logging camp museums as well as working at my uncle's sawmill as a kid.
Mot Agrad : I never worked with such a tool. In my homeregion few people own their own piece of forrest, to get firewood it was common up to few years ago to buy a , Flächenlos' in the comunity forest. This means the tree was cut by community workers, the log was sold by the major. The buyers of the Flächenlos could use the branches, so i only know how to use ax, hatchet and billhook. But in former times, and sometimes still now, dangerous tools are used as emergency weapons.
Why don't you make a vídeo of how effective the seax was on a shield wall, and why we find so many typologys for them?
@8:35 two guys lower left: "Dude, it's an axe, not a golf club. You're gonna take our heads off when you swing."
please please do a demo of this axe ( test it, and or show some techniches... i know axe techniques are very basic, but it would be nice to actually see them )
For the record, the pronunciation of the second Italian term "ascia" is quite close to that of "Asha", the Greyjoy sister from "A song of ice and fire" that was renamed in "Game of thrones" to avoid confusion with the similarly pronounced wildling "Osha".
With the pronunciation in the video, "accia" it becomes a pejorative suffix.
Thank you for another great video Matt. Can you make a video about parrying techniques, specifically edge alignment when parrying? I recently read the Eragon books ( The Inheritance Cycle), in which is described rotating ones blade while parrying as to catch your opponent's blow with the flat of your blade rather than the edge. While it makes sense that doing so would preserve edge integrity longer, it is a technique I have never seen or heard taught. I had actually been taught that one could break their opponent's blade (if their opponent has lesser steel) if they strike the flat of their opponent's sword. Is there validity to either teaching, and did the validity change over time with the evolution of weaponry? Thank you.
Messers had their "niel" to protect from blades sliding down the flat rather than the edge, but aside from that I think it's a bit of an overstated thing in general. Even in Japan where katana fans make a very big deal of never blocking with the edge despite historic swords showing signs of exactly that.
Another purpose of the axe is to actually add mass, I'd think - or rather, an efficient use of mass. If it's just that spike, you have less inertia unless you want to make it longer or broader (which may be unhelpful for actual use). So instead, you keep an efficient spike and add mass on the other side - which, instead of being a blunt lump, gets worked into something more broadly useful in combat (and camp, if need be). That's my idea, anyways.
I wonder what do you think about a swordstaff ??
I know shad have done a vid about it though ^^
If I'm not mistaken some of the axes of the Varangian guardsman had a spike on the back, And some reason said to be double bitted .
Are there other advantages to a battle axe over a war hammer when only fighting opponents in armor, besides hooking action and trying to damage the opponent's wooden shafts/shields? Whether in one-on-one or in group battle situations. Suppose both have spikes.
the killing can opener
That's a Serious Gift box!!!
Supposing you were a Medieval 'Adventurer' wandering the land on horseback, would you rather have a dedicated battle axe and a small wooden utility mallet, or a warhammer and a wood cutter hatchet?
Where did Thor find an anvil that can withstand his mighty hammer?
Zideric Tord, I believe, is the artist’s name. . . Sounds like Thor with Mat’s accent.
He asked his friendly neighborhood dwarf. Must have been a special sale that day.
@@brianmincher716 his name is Tord, but his business is called "Thor's forge"
@@ProjectThunderclaw Roger that, makes sense now.
6:20
"Come here lad, I want to present you to your forefathers!"
Could you talk more about the length on hafts of smaller axes?
I would really like to see a spiked axe/hammer vs modern body armour.
I wonder if Robert the Bruce used the backspike instead of the axehead to go through the helmet of that English knight?
Great video! Now, how long are you going to tease us with that constant wahaika that has drawn the eye in the background?
Is that the thing next to the heater shield?
@@konstellashon1364 Yep! It took me months to figure that out and by happy accident.
Looks like an oversize tomahawk those have been a thing of light I would like to get a hold of Todd and see how much and axe like that would cost
Not Todd, Thor, of Thor's Forge.
Quick semi-unrelated question : what his your opinion on Gimli (lord of the rings) axes (throwing axes, walking stick battle axe and double-edge huge battle axe) ? Hope you see this and thank you ! 🙂
Yeah, all I could think of is that looks like a poleaxe, but smaller.
You could call it a stick-axe...
Would it be reasonable to suppose that axes of roughly this shape were the historical predecessors of the later-period boarding axe? The shape seems close to identical, for all the variation of primary purpose.
Hi. What are the conditions for classifying an ax as a hatchet? We can also see that on a number of one-handed axes, there is room for two hands. In the predominantly D&D role-playing game their classifications are incorrect compared to reality.
Were there any one-handed poleaxes (one-handed war axes with a hammer and spike)?
Hi Matt what is the total weight of your dane axe and the weight of just the head? (either one mono-steel or pattern-welded) ---- also what is the type of haft wood?
Something I'm curious about, but I've had trouble finding any reference to anywhere is whether there was any custom anywhere of painting or varnishing the wood of hafted weapons. Seems almost natural that some people would paint or stain the wood -- people love color and decoration, right? Has anyone ever seen any references to something like that?
Polish Hussars (maybe other lancers too) had their lances painted all fancy, that's not quite the same thing though.
What's your opinion in the Nadziak used by Polish winged Hussars ?
My ancestor, Sir William De Baguely used an axe like this in the Fifth Crusade.
Does anybody know how to get blueprints for a castle? I am looking for blueprints of Hohenzollern castle, and can't seem to find it online.
is that the same canute from VInland saga?