List of historical swords
Encyclopedia
This is a list of real famous named sword
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Early medieval swords and Viking sword
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European medieval swords
Asian swords
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
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Early medieval swords and Viking sword
Viking sword
The Viking sword is a form of spatha, evolving out of the Migration Period sword in the 8th century, and evolving into the classical knightly sword in the 11th century with the emergence of larger crossguards...
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- Sword of AttilaSword of AttilaThe Sword of Attila was the legendary weapon carried by Attila the Hun. The Roman historian Jordanes, quoting the work of the historian Priscus, gave the story of its origin:...
- The sword of Attila the Hun, said to have been sent by the gods. - LegbiterLegbiterLegbiter was the sword of Magnus III of Norway.When King Magnus was killed in an ambush by the Men of Ulster, his sword was retrieved and sent home....
- A gaddhjalt sword of the vikingVikingThe term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
King Magnus Barelegs killed in battle at County DownCounty Down-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
in 1103.
European medieval swords
- Sword of MercySword of MercyThe Sword of Mercy, or Edward the Confessor's Sword, is a symbolically broken sword that is part of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom...
– Edward the ConfessorEdward the ConfessorEdward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
's CurtanaCurtanaCurtana, also Cortana or Courtain, is a Latinized form of the Anglo-French curtein, from Latin curtus, 'shortened', used for a ceremonial type of sword.-Famous curtanas:For the main article see Sword of Mercy...
sword, is a symbolically broken sword that is part of the Crown Jewels of the United KingdomCrown Jewels of the United KingdomThe collective term Crown Jewels denotes the regalia and vestments worn by the sovereign of the United Kingdom during the coronation ceremony and at other state functions...
. The sword has a blade cut off short and square, indicating thereby the quality of the mercy of the sovereign. - GrusGrusGrus can refer to* Grus , a genus of birds in the crane family.* Grus , the constellation "Crane"* Grus or grit , a clastic sediment composed of hard, often abrasive granules of a size range between sand and pebbles, typically from exfoliation of bedrock * Grus, the historical sword of Boleslaw...
- The sword of Boleslaw Krzywousty (Boleslaus the Wrymouthed), medieval prince of PolandPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. - JoyeuseJoyeuseJoyeuse , was the name of Charlemagne's personal sword. The name translates as "joyful".-Joyeuse in legend:Some legends claim that it was forged to contain the Lance of Longinus within its pommel; others state it was smithed from the same materials as Roland's Durendal and Ogier's Curtana.The 11th...
- The sword of CharlemagneCharlemagneCharlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
(Charles the Great), the famed medieval king of the Franks and first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. - TizonaTizonaTizona is the name of the sword carried by El Cid which was used to fight the Moors in Spain according to the Cantar de mio CidThe name Tizón translates to burning stick, firebrand....
, El CidEl CidRodrigo Díaz de Vivar , known as El Cid Campeador , was a Castilian nobleman, military leader, and diplomat...
's personal sword which exists to this day in SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
as a national treasure. - ColadaColadaColada is one of the two best-known swords, along with Tizona, of El Cid Campeador. Won in combat from the Count of Barcelona, the sword was presented to his sons in law. According to the heroic verses of the Cantar de mio Cid, after his sons-in-law beat his daughters and then abandoned them on...
, the other sword of El CidEl CidRodrigo Díaz de Vivar , known as El Cid Campeador , was a Castilian nobleman, military leader, and diplomat...
. - LoberaLoberaThe sword Lobera was the symbol of power used by Saint Ferdinand III of Castile, instead of the more traditional rod, and so the king will be depicted with orb and sword in hand.-History:...
, the sword of the king Saint Ferdinand III of CastileFerdinand III of CastileSaint Ferdinand III, T.O.S.F., was the King of Castile from 1217 and León from 1230. He was the son of Alfonso IX of León and Berenguela of Castile. Through his second marriage he was also Count of Aumale. He finished the work done by his maternal grandfather Alfonso VIII and consolidated the... - SzczerbiecSzczerbiecSzczerbiec is the coronation sword that was used in crowning ceremonies of most kings of Poland from 1320 to 1764. It is currently on display in the treasure vault of the Royal Wawel Castle in Kraków as the only preserved piece of Polish Crown Jewels...
, the coronation sword of the kings of PolandPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north... - The Wallace SwordWallace SwordThe Wallace Sword is an antique claymore purported to have belonged to William Wallace , a knight and Scottish patriot who led a resistance to the English occupation of Scotland during the Wars of Scottish Independence...
, a large Scottish ClaymoreClaymoreThe term claymore refers to the Scottish variant of the late medieval longsword, two-handed swords with a cross hilt, of which the guards were in use during the 15th and 16th centuries.-Terminology:...
alleged to have been used by famous Scottish patriotPatriotismPatriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
and knightKnightA knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
William WallaceWilliam WallaceSir William Wallace was a Scottish knight and landowner who became one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence....
, when leading the resistance against England in the late 13th century.
Asian swords
- Sword of Goujian, a historical artifact from the Spring and Autumn Period.
- Kusanagi-no-tsurugiKusanagiis a legendary Japanese sword and one of three Imperial Regalia of Japan. It was originally called but its name was later changed to the more popular Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi .-Legends:...
(草薙の剣) / Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi (天叢雲剣 lit. Sword of the heaven of the clustering clouds) / KusanagiKusanagiis a legendary Japanese sword and one of three Imperial Regalia of Japan. It was originally called but its name was later changed to the more popular Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi .-Legends:...
("Grasscutter" or more probably "sword of snake"). It may also be called Tsumugari no Tachi (都牟刈の太刀) - Both a mythical and real sword of equivalent importance to JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
as ExcaliburExcaliburExcalibur is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Great Britain. Sometimes Excalibur and the Sword in the Stone are said to be the same weapon, but in most versions they are considered separate. The sword was...
is to EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. - Empress JitōEmpress Jitowas the 41st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Jitō's reign spanned the years from 686 through 697.In the history of Japan, Jitō was the third of eight women to take on the role of empress regnant. The two female monarchs before Jitō were Suiko and Kōgyoku/Saimei...
was handed the Sugari no OntachiSugari no Ontachiis a sword which represents the regalia of Japan. It is being held at the Ise Shrine in the Mie Prefecture and only taken when a new emperor ascends to the throne. During this ceremony, a feather from a Crested Ibis is also used...
(須賀利御太刀) as part of the regalia. - Honjo Masamune- represented the Tokugawa shogunateTokugawa shogunateThe Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...
, a feudal military dictatorship of Japan during most of the Edo period. It was passed down from one Shogun to the next. It is one of the best known of the swords created by Masamune and is believed to be one of the finest Japanese swords ever made. - Seven-Branched SwordSeven-Branched SwordThe Seven-Branched Sword , also known as the Seven-Pronged Sword, the Seven-Branched Knife, the Seven-Pronged Spear, Nanatsusaya no Tachi in Nihon shoki, Chiljido in Korea is a 74.9 cm long iron sword with six branch-like protrusions along the central blade originally made in Baekje Korea,...
, which WaWa (Japan)Japanese is the oldest recorded name of Japan. Chinese, Korean, and Japanese scribes regularly wrote Wa or Yamato "Japan" with the Chinese character 倭 until the 8th century, when the Japanese found fault with it, replacing it with 和 "harmony, peace, balance".- Historical references :The earliest...
received from BaekjeBaekjeBaekje or Paekche was a kingdom located in southwest Korea. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla....
. - Sword of Tippu Sultan
- Nitta YoshisadaNitta Yoshisadawas the head of the Nitta family in the early fourteenth century, and supported the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in the Nanboku-chō period, capturing Kamakura from the Hōjō clan in 1333....
, a famous SamuraiSamuraiis the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
, offered his gold-mounted sword to RyūjinRyujin, also known as Ōwatatsumi, was the tutelary deity of the sea in Japanese mythology. This Japanese dragon symbolized the power of the ocean, had a large mouth, and was able to transform into a human shape. Ryūjin lived in Ryūgū-jō, his palace under the sea built out of red and white coral, from...
for permission to let his army pass through the surf. Later, he used a shorter sword to cut off his own head, when hopelessly exposed to enemies.
Near Eastern swords- ZulfiqarZulfiqarZulfiqar "bifurcated" is the sword of the Islamic leader Ali. In Arabic the name is commonly transliterated as Dhu al-Fiqar, Thulfeqar, Dhulfiqar, Zoulfikar etc. The name Zulfiqar means which divides exactly in two parts....
– Sword of the Muslim Prophet MuhammadMuhammadMuhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
, Ali ibn Abu Talib and later Husayn ibn AliHusayn ibn AliHussein ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib was the son of ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib and Fātimah Zahrā...
in the Battle of KarbalaBattle of KarbalaThe Battle of Karbala took place on Muharram 10, in the year 61 of the Islamic calendar in Karbala, in present day Iraq. On one side of the highly uneven battle were a small group of supporters and relatives of Muhammad's grandson Husain ibn Ali, and on the other was a large military detachment...
.
Modern swords- The Curved saber of San MartínCurved saber of San MartínThe curved saber of José de San Martín is a historic weapon used by Jose de San Martín.-History:The curved saber of San Martín was acquired during his stay in London, shortly after he left Spain and before embarking to South America...
- the sword of American emancipator José de San MartínJosé de San MartínJosé Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the...
. - Jewelled Sword of Offering, Sword of King George IV of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1820–1830), is the only sword actually presented to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom during the Coronation and is part of the Crown Jewels of the United KingdomCrown Jewels of the United KingdomThe collective term Crown Jewels denotes the regalia and vestments worn by the sovereign of the United Kingdom during the coronation ceremony and at other state functions...
.
- Zulfiqar