All Topics  
Halberd

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Halberd
 
 
  Topics Halberd Topic Home

A halberd (also called halbert or Swiss voulge) is a two-handed pole weapon
Pole weapon

A pole weapon or polearm is a close combat weapon in which the main fighting part of the weapon is placed on the end of a long shaft, typically of wood, thereby extending the user's effective range....
 that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries. Possibly the word halberd comes from the German words Halm (staff), and Barte (axe).






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Halberd'
Start a new discussion about 'Halberd'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Svenska Hillebarder (1500 Talet), Nordisk Familjebok
A halberd (also called halbert or Swiss voulge) is a two-handed pole weapon
Pole weapon

A pole weapon or polearm is a close combat weapon in which the main fighting part of the weapon is placed on the end of a long shaft, typically of wood, thereby extending the user's effective range....
 that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries. Possibly the word halberd comes from the German words Halm (staff), and Barte (axe). The halberd consists of an axe
Axe

The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for Millennium to shape, split and cut wood, harvest Lumber, as a weapon and a ceremony or Heraldry symbol....
 blade topped with a spike mounted on a long shaft. It always has a hook or thorn on the back side of the axe blade for grappling mounted combatants
Cavalry

The Cavalry is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback in combat, it represents the mobility and offensive power of the armed forces....
. It is very similar to certain forms of the voulge
Voulge

A voulge is a type of pole weapon that existed alongside the similar glaive in medieval Europe. Superficially, a voulge might strongly resemble a glaive, but there are some notable differences in construction....
 in design and usage. The halberd was 1.5 to 1.8 meters (4 to 6 feet) long.

The halberd was cheap to produce and very versatile in battle. As the halberd was eventually refined, its point was more fully developed to allow it to better deal with spear
Spear

A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a sharpened head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be of another material fastened to the shaft, such as obsidian, iron or bronze....
s and pikes
Pike (weapon)

A pike is a pole weapon, a very long thrusting spear used two-handed and used extensively by infantry both for attacks on enemy foot soldiers and as a counter-measure against cavalry assaults....
 (also able to push back approaching horsemen), as was the hook opposite the axe head, which could be used to pull horsemen to the ground.

Additionally, halberds were reinforced with metal rims over the shaft, thus making effective weapons for blocking other weapons like swords. This capability increased its effectiveness in battle, and expert halberdiers were as deadly as any other weapon masters were. It is said that a halberd in the hands of a Swiss peasant was the weapon that killed the Duke of Burgundy, Charles the Bold, decisively ending the Burgundian Wars
Burgundian Wars

The Burgundian Wars were a conflict between the Duchy of Burgundy and the Valois Dynasty, later involving the Old Swiss Confederacy, which would play a decisive role....
, literally in a single stroke.

The halberd was the primary weapon of the early Swiss armies in the 14th and early 15th centuries. Later on, the Swiss added the pike
Pike (weapon)

A pike is a pole weapon, a very long thrusting spear used two-handed and used extensively by infantry both for attacks on enemy foot soldiers and as a counter-measure against cavalry assaults....
 to better repel knight
Knight

File:Gothic armor 2.jpgKnight is the term for a social position originating in the Middle Ages. In the Commonwealth of Nations, knighthood is a non-heritable form of gentry....
ly attacks and roll over enemy infantry formations, with the halberd, hand-and-a-half sword
Longsword

The Longsword is a type of European sword used during the late medieval and Renaissance periods, approximately 1350 to 1550 . Longswords have long cruciform hilts with grips over some 15 cm in length , straight double-edged blades often over 90 cm in length, and weigh typically between 1.2 and 1.4 kg , with light specimens just below 1 kg ,...
, or the dagger
Dagger

A dagger is a typically double-edged blade used for stabbing or thrusting. They often fulfill the role of a companion weapon in close combat....
 known as the Schweizerdolch
Baselard

The baselard or Swiss dagger is a historical Swiss blade weapon with a crescent-shaped Hilt#Pommel and crossguard.The baselard's characteristic hilt features a crescent-shaped Hilt#Pommel and crossguard....
 being used for closer combat. The German Landsknechte, who imitated Swiss warfare methods, also used the halberd, supplemented by the pike, but their side arm
Side arm

A side arm is a firearm, usually a pistol, which is worn on the body in a holster to permit immediate access and use. A side arm is typically required equipment for Police personnel and military personnel....
 of choice was the short sword known as the Katzbalger
Katzbalger

A Katzbalger is a short Renaissance arming sword, notable for its sturdy build and a distinctive s-shaped or figure-8 shaped guard. Measuring 75-85 cm long and weighing 1-2 kg, it the was the signature blade of the Landsknecht....
.

As long as pikemen fought other pikemen, the halberd remained a useful supplemental weapon for "push of pike
Push of pike

The push of pike was a particular feature of late medieval and Early Modern warfare that occurred when two opposing columns of Pike collided and became locked in position along a front of interleaved pikes....
," but when their position became more defensive, to protect the slow-loading arquebus
Arquebus

The arquebus is an early Muzzle -loaded firearm used in the 15th to 17th centuries. In distinction from its predecessor, the hand cannon, it has a matchlock....
iers and matchlock
Matchlock

The Matchlock was the first mechanism or "lock" invented to uncomplicate the firing of a hand-held firearm. This design removed the need to lower by hand a lit match into the weapon's flash pan and made it possible to have both hands free to keep a firm grip on the weapon at the moment of firing, and more importantly to keep both eyes on the...
 musketeers from sudden attacks by cavalry
Cavalry

The Cavalry is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback in combat, it represents the mobility and offensive power of the armed forces....
, the percentage of halberdiers in the pike units steadily decreased, until the halberd all but disappeared from these formations as a rank-and-file weapon by the middle of the sixteenth century.

The halberd has been used as a court bodyguard weapon for centuries, and is still the ceremonial weapon of the Swiss Guard
Swiss Guard

Swiss Guards is the name given to the Swiss soldiers who have served as bodyguards, ceremonial guards, and palace guards at foreign European courts since the late 15th century....
 in the Vatican
Vatican City

Vatican City , officially the State of the Vatican City , is a Landlocked country sovereignty city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, the Capital of Italy....
. The halberd was one of the polearms sometimes carried by lower-ranking officers in European infantry units in the 16th through 18th centuries.

Different types of halberds

  • Hippe
  • Scorpion
  • Ji
    Ji (halberd)

    The ji , the China halberd, was used as a military weapon in one form or another from at least as early as the Shang dynasty until the end of the Qing dynasty....


Weapons often mistaken for halberds

  • Bill
    Bill (weapon)

    The bill is a polearm used by infantry in Europe in the Viking Age by Vikings and Anglo-Saxons as well as in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries....
  • Bisento
    Bisento

    A Bisen-to is a kind of Japanese pole weapon which greatly resembles a naginata. It consists of a thick curved blade mounted atop a long wooden pole....
  • Dagger-axe
    Dagger-axe

    The dagger-axe is a type of weapon that was in use from Shang dynasty until at least Han dynasty China. It consists of a dagger-shaped blade made of jade , bronze, or later iron, mounted by the Tang of the dagger to a perpendicular wooden wikt:shaft....
  • Guan Dao
    Guan dao

    A guandao kwandao or kuantao is a type of China pole weapon that is currently used in some forms of Chinese martial arts. In Chinese it is properly called a ??? yan yue dao , the name under which it always appears in texts from the Song to Qing dynasties such as the Wujing Zongyao and Huangchao Liqi Tushi....
  • Lochaber axe
    Lochaber axe

    The Lochaber axe was a Scotland war axe that came into use around 1300. The name of the weapon derives from Lochaber, an area in the western Scottish Highlands, as the weapon was employed principally by the Scottish highlanders, who required armament against cavalry....
     (Jeddart axe)
  • Naginata
    Naginata

    Naginata is a pole weapon that was traditionally used in Japan by members of the samurai class. It has become associated with women and in modern Japan it is studied by women more than men; whereas in Europe and Australia Naginata is practiced predominantly by men - this is however only simply a refection of the martial arts de...
  • Poleaxe
  • Spear
    Spear

    A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a sharpened head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be of another material fastened to the shaft, such as obsidian, iron or bronze....
    s


Gallery