The
klewang is a traditional single-edged
macheteThe machete is a large cleaver-like cutting tool. The blade is typically long and usually under thick. In the English language, an equivalent term is matchet, though the name 'machete' is more commonly known...
-style
swordA sword is a long, edged piece of metal, used in many civilizations throughout the world, primarily as a cutting or thrusting weapon and occasionally for clubbing...
from
IndonesiaThe Republic of Indonesia is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia comprises 17,508 islands. With an estimated population of around 237 million people, it is the world's fourth most populous country, with the world's largest population of Muslims.Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. In size, weight and shape it is halfway between the
golokGolok is the name given to a range of large knives and short swords originating from Southeast Asia, most notably from Indonesia and the Philippines....
and the
kampilanThe Kampilan is a type of single-edged long sword from the Philippines, widely used throughout the archipelago before European colonization. In the predominantly Muslim southern Philippines, whereas the Tausug of Sulu favored the barung, the Maguindanao and the Maranao of mainland Mindanao...
. The style of the klewang differs between the various cultures of Indonesia; there are straight bladed types, but most are curved.
During the Aceh War the Acehnese klewangs proved very effective in close quarters combat with Dutch troops and the
Royal Netherlands East Indies ArmyThe Royal Netherlands East Indies Army was the army of the Netherlands in its former colony of the Netherlands East Indies...
adopted a heavy
cutlassA cutlass is a short, broad sabre or slashing sword, with a straight or slightly curved blade sharpened on the cutting edge, and a hilt often featuring a solid cupped or basket shaped guard.-History and Use:...
, also called klewang, to counter it.
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The
klewang is a traditional single-edged
macheteThe machete is a large cleaver-like cutting tool. The blade is typically long and usually under thick. In the English language, an equivalent term is matchet, though the name 'machete' is more commonly known...
-style
swordA sword is a long, edged piece of metal, used in many civilizations throughout the world, primarily as a cutting or thrusting weapon and occasionally for clubbing...
from
IndonesiaThe Republic of Indonesia is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia comprises 17,508 islands. With an estimated population of around 237 million people, it is the world's fourth most populous country, with the world's largest population of Muslims.Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. In size, weight and shape it is halfway between the
golokGolok is the name given to a range of large knives and short swords originating from Southeast Asia, most notably from Indonesia and the Philippines....
and the
kampilanThe Kampilan is a type of single-edged long sword from the Philippines, widely used throughout the archipelago before European colonization. In the predominantly Muslim southern Philippines, whereas the Tausug of Sulu favored the barung, the Maguindanao and the Maranao of mainland Mindanao...
. The style of the klewang differs between the various cultures of Indonesia; there are straight bladed types, but most are curved.
During the Aceh War the Acehnese klewangs proved very effective in close quarters combat with Dutch troops and the
Royal Netherlands East Indies ArmyThe Royal Netherlands East Indies Army was the army of the Netherlands in its former colony of the Netherlands East Indies...
adopted a heavy
cutlassA cutlass is a short, broad sabre or slashing sword, with a straight or slightly curved blade sharpened on the cutting edge, and a hilt often featuring a solid cupped or basket shaped guard.-History and Use:...
, also called klewang, to counter it. Mobile troops armed with
carbineA carbine is a firearm similar to a rifle or musket. Many carbines, especially modern designs, were developed from rifles, being essentially shortened versions of full rifles firing the same ammunition, although often at a lower velocity...
s and klewangs succeeded in suppressing Aceh resistance where traditional infantry with
rifleA rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
and
bayonetA bayonet is a knife-, dagger-, sword-, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on, over or underneath the muzzle of a rifle barrel or similar weapon, effectively turning the gun into a spear. It is a close quarter battle combat or last-resort weapon.-History: The origins of the bayonet are...
had failed.