Chronology of bladed weapons explained

The different types of bladed weapons (swords, dress-swords, sabers, rapiers, foils, machetes, daggers, knives, arrowheads, etc..) have been of great importance throughout history. In addition to its use for fighting, or in wars, the bladed weapons have been the object of special considerations forming part of funerary rituals, mythology and other ancestral traditions.

History

The present chronology is a compilation that includes diverse and relatively uneven documents about different families of bladed weapons: swords, dress-swords, sabers, rapiers, foils, machetes, daggers, knives, arrowheads, etc..., with the sword references being the most numerous but not the unique included among the other listed references of the rest of bladed weapons.

Prehistoric Era

The oldest known Oldowan tools were found in Gona, Ethiopia. These are dated to about 2.6 mya.^[1]

Early examples of hand axes date back to 1.6 mya in the later Oldowan (Mode I), called the "developed Oldowan" by Mary Leakey.^[2] These hand axes became more abundant in mode II Acheulean industries that appeared in Southern Ethiopia around 1.4 mya.^[3] Some of the best specimens come from 1.2 mya deposits in Olduvai Gorge.^[4]

Bronze swords

Copper daggers appeared first in the early Bronze Age, in the 3rd millennium BC,^[5] and copper daggers of Early Minoan III (2400–2000 BC) were recovered at Knossos.^[6]

The earliest known depiction of a khopesh is from the Stele of the Vultures, depicting King Eannatum of Lagash wielding the weapon; this would date the khopesh to at least 2500 BC.^[7] The khopesh evolved from the epsilon or similar crescent-shaped axes that were used in warfare.^[8]

The first known bronze swords with a length equal to or greater than 60 cm date from the 17th century BC in regions of the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea. A sword must be constructed from the correct alloy, have the right shape, and have the necessary thermal (and finishing) treatments applied to it for it to be useful in combat. In a longer sword, the stresses (bending and buckling) are more important. What is needed is a weapon that is hard enough (to cut), fairly flexible (without being fragile) and quite durable enough to withstand blows.

The manufacturing process is summarized as follows: The bronze swords were cast into moulds, heated to a certain temperature and allowed to cool slowly before being cold hammered (a process whereby they are hit with a hammer on a type of anvil) to increase their hardness.

• c.1275 BC. Assyrian sword, with inscriptions.^[9]
• c.650 BC. According to Pausanias, Theodore of Samos invented the casting of bronze objects.^[10]

5th century BC-5th century AD

• c.450 BC. Herodotus. He mentioned iron swords (as a representation of the god Ares/Mars) in Scythian people's tombs
• c.401 BC. He described the Indian steel (Wootz steel) and two swords made with that material.^[11]
• 326 BC. Battle of the Hidaspes River. Alexander defeated King Porus, who gave him about 10 kg of "Indian steel" (Wootz steel).^[12]
• c.230 BC. Philo of Byzantium In his treatise Belopoeica (artillery), he describes the flexibility of the swords of the Celts and Iberians in Hispania.^[13] An elastic behavior, such as a spring, would imply some tempered steel content in the mentioned swords.^{[14] [15] [16] [17]}
• 216 BC. Battle of Cannae Polybius described the swords of the Iberians (good for cutting and thrusting) and those of the Gauls (good for cutting).^[18]
• c.209 BC. After the Battle of Cartagena, Gladius was promoted by Scipio Africanus for the Roman army.^{[19] [20]}
• 197 BC. The Gauls were defeated by the Romans, led by Gaius Cornelius Cetegus near the River Clusius (perhaps the current Brembo River). In spite of the numerical superiority of the Gauls, their swords were bent at the first blow and had to be straightened. The Romans took advantage of this weakness to win the battle.^[21]
• c.20 BC. Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian of Sicily that lived in the 1st Century BC, and a contemporary of Julius Caesar and Augustus. His comments on the celtiberian swords indicate the cut quality and an aspect of their manufacture.^[22]
• c.5 BC. Gratio Falisco, in his poem Cynegeticon, mentions the knives of Toledo: "... Ima toledano praecingunt ilia cultro ..."^{[23] [24]}
• c.50. Pliny the Elder talks about the types of iron, and the importance of water in the temper of steel.^{[25] [26] [27] [28] [29]}
• c.90 AD The poet Martial, born in Bilbilis (near Calatayud), prided himself on the steel of his country, better than the Gallic and the Noricum.^{[30] [31]}

Middle Ages

The longsword emerges in the 14th century, as a military steel weapon of the earlier phase of the Hundred Years' War. It remains identifiable as a type during the period of about 1350 to 1550.^[32] Use of the two-handed Great Sword or Schlachtschwert by infantry (as opposed to their use as a weapon of mounted and fully armoured knights) seems to have originated with the Swiss in the 14th century. ^[33]

In the Nanboku-chō period (1336–1392), long weapons such as ōdachi were popular, and along with this, sasuga (刺刀), a kind of tantō (short sword or knife) used by lower-ranking samurai lengthened and finally became katana.^[34]

The Turko-Mongol sabre was used by a variety of nomadic peoples of the Eurasian steppes, including Turkic and Mongolic groups, primarily between the 8th and 14th centuries.^{[35] [36] [37] [38]}

• c.500. Ship wrecked near Nydam (Denmark) with a cargo of swords of the type "pattern-welded".
• c.700. According to a Japanese legend from the province of Yamato, the sword maker Amakuni was concerned that many swords were broken in battle. And after days of work and prayer, he modified the forging and tempering process by getting swords that were curved and did not break in combat.^[39]
• 796. The emperor Charlemagne rendered the king Offa of Mercia with a sword made by Huns, obtained like war loot.^[40]
• 802. Harun al-Rashid possessed a sword of great quality, called Samsam or Samsamah. Supposedly it was a sword that had belonged to a king of Yemen. Nikephoros I, the Byzantine Emperor, sent him a few swords of Byzantine manufacture, indicating that he no longer wanted to pay the tribute. Harun broke them all with his Samsam sword, and he did not blunder the least.^{[41] [42]}
• c.850. Abu Yusuf well Ishaq al-Kindi describes the swords of Damascus.^[43]
• c.900. First documentation of the tachi. Master Yasu-tsuna (from Hoki)^[44]
• 966. Embassy of Borrell II to To the-Hàkam II. giving a present of 100 "frank swords", very famous and feared.^[45]
• 1146. Earliest clear references to naginata.^[46]
• 1233. Jaume I mentions the sword called "Tiso" (forged in Monzón in the siege of Burriana.^{[47] [48]}
• 1248. Sword Lobera of the king Fernando III de Castilla.^[49]
• 1274. Sword of the knight Soler de Vilardell (Sword of Vilardell). A sword considered magical, "of virtue". Its cut quality indicates a very successful manufacturing process.^[50]
• 1370. Last will of Pere el Cerimoniós with the sword of Sant Martí and the sword of Vilardell.
• 1392. Ibn Hud Ibn Hudhayl, in his work " Gala de caballeros y blasón de paladines ", mentions two types of quality swords: those of Indian steel and those of the francs (Catalan) . The latter with exceptional qualities and supposedly forged by genius.^[51]
• 1425. The sword makers of Valencia asked for confirmation of their ordinations, copied from those of the sword makers of Barcelona.

....Item. Senyor los dits privilegis, capítols e ordinacions vees(?) plaurets a Déu a justícia (e) egualtat car axí son stats obtenguts per la spaseria de ciutat vostra de Barchinonae per vos atorgats (a) aquella segons han pres los prohomens de la spaseria de la dita vostra ciutat de Valencia...1425...Alfonsi Dei gratia Regis Aragonum, Sicilie, Valencie, Majoricam, Sardinie et ...^[52]

• Examination of applicants for master of sword making:

They had to present:“4 fulles d’espases e recapte per a guarniment de aquelles. Ço és la una fulla de dues mans la qual haie a guarnir vermella. E l’altra fulla sia de una mà la qual haie a esser guarnida mitadada de dues colors. E l’altra de una mà que sia buydada e guarnida tota negra. E la quarta ço és un estoch d’armes tot blanch los quals guarniments se vien(?) e haien a fer per lo volent usa(n)t de la dita spaseria dins la casa e habitació de un dels dits diputats...”

• 1433. Barcelona. In the "Book of the councils" of the guild of sword makers, the way of tempering the leaves of the swords is indicated.^[53]
  • In folio f_099r and others of the "Guild book of the sword makers" appears the expression "confrare ho confraressa" . Apparently a woman could belong to the guilt of sword makers. Maybe only as the wife or widow of a sword maker.^[54]

1450-1700 AD

Bilbo, a cut-and-thrust sword were forged in Toledo from Basque bilbo steel and exported to Americas in 16th century.^[55]

Claymore in use from the 15th to 17th centuries, The word claymore was first used in reference to basket-hilted swords during the 18th century in Scotland and parts of England.^[56]

The first known mention of the use of bayonets in European warfare was in the memoirs of Jacques de Chastenet, Vicomte de Puységur. He described the French using crude 1-foot (0.30 m) plug bayonets during the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648).

• 1474. The fencing teacher of Majorca Jaume Ponç was the author of a fencing treatise published in Perpinyan.^{[57] [58] [59]}
• 1478. References of the sword maker Julián del Rey. Related to the famous swords with the mark of the "perrillo" (supposedly a stylized dog). He probably was the same persona as a former Muslim armourer who was baptised and under the protection of Fernando el Católico, who worked in Zaragoza and Toledo.^[60]

Notes and References

1. Semaw . Sileshi . Rogers . Michael J . Quade . Jay . Renne . Paul R . Butler . Robert F . Dominguez-Rodrigo . Manuel . Stout . Dietrich . Hart . William S . Pickering . Travis . Simpson . Scott W . August 2003 . 2.6-Million-year-old stone tools and associated bones from OGS-6 and OGS-7, Gona, Afar, Ethiopia . Journal of Human Evolution . 45 . 2 . 169–177 . 10.1016/S0047-2484(03)00093-9 . 14529651.
2. Book: Leakey . M. D. . Olduvai Gorge: Volume 3, Excavations in Beds I and II, 1960-1963 . 1971 . Cambridge University Press . 978-0-521-07723-1.
3. Asfaw . Berhane . Beyene . Yonas . Suwa . Gen . Walter . Robert C. . White . Tim D. . WoldeGabriel . Giday . Yemane . Tesfaye . 31 December 1992 . The earliest Acheulean from Konso-Gardula . Nature . 360 . 6406 . 732–735 . 1992Natur.360..732A . 10.1038/360732a0 . 1465142 . 4341455.
4. Book: Foley, Robert Andrew . Principles of Human Evolution . Lewin, Roger . Wiley . 2003 . 978-0-632-04704-8.
5. Sheridan, Alison, A Beaker Period Copper Dagger Blade from the Silees River near Ross Lough, Co. Fermanagh, Ulster Journal of Archaeology, Vol. 56 (1993), pp. 61–62
6. C. Michael Hogan, Knossos fieldnotes, Modern Antiquarian (2007)
7. Book: Loades, Mike . Swords and Swordsmen . Pen & Sword Military . 2010 . 978-1-84884-133-8 . 1–21.
8. Book: Hamblin, W.J. . William J. Hamblin . Warfare in the Ancient Near East . Routledge . 2006 . 0-415-25589-9 . 66–71.
9. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/11.166.1 Assyrian sword.
10. Book: Herodotus Halicarnasseus. George Rawlinson, John Gardner Wilkinson (sir). Henry Creswicke Rawlinson (sir). History of Herodotus. 27 April 2011. 1862. J. Murray. 150–.
11. Book: Niharranjan Ray. Brajadulal Chattopadhyaya. A sourcebook of Indian civilization. 24 April 2011. 1 January 2000. Orient Blackswan. 9788125018711. 81–.
12. Book: James H. Swank. History of the Manufacture of Iron in All Ages. 24 April 2011. 1 January 1965. Ayer Publishing. 9780833734631. 8–.
13. Book: Terence Wise. Richard Hook. Armies of the Carthaginian Wars, 265-146 BC. 16 July 2022. 25 March 1982. Osprey Publishing. 9780850454307. 20–.
14. Book: Alfred S. Bradford. With Arrow, Sword, and Spear: A History of Warfare in the Ancient World. 2001. Greenwood Publishing Group. 978-0-275-95259-4. 181–.
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17. Book: Revue archéologique. 1864. Ernest Leroux.. 348–.
18. Book: Polybius. Robin Waterfield. Brian McGing. The Histories. 26 April 2011. 5 November 2010. Oxford University Press. 9780199534708. 219–.
19. Book: M. C. Bishop . The Gladius: The Roman Short Sword . 2016 . Bloomsbury Publishing . 978-14-728158-6-6 . es.
20. Book: Flavius Vegetius Renatus . Flavius Vegetius Renatus . Vegetius: Epitome of Military Science . 1996 . Liverpool University Press . 978-08-532391-0-9 . es.
21. Book: Polybius. James Hampton. The general history of Polybius. 25 April 2011. 1809. 184–.
22. Web site: Diodor de Sicília. Espases dels celtíbers. . 2017-09-11 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180128133326/http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/classical_diodorus.html#B5 . 2018-01-28 . dead .
23. Book: Patricia Shaw Fairman. Obra reunida de Patricia Shaw. 26 April 2011. 2000. Universidad de Oviedo. 9788483172049. 134–.
24. Book: Le Tour du monde. 26 April 2011. 1868. 1–.
25. Book: James Vincent Ricci. The development of gynæcological surgery and instruments. 24 April 2011. 1949. Norman Publishing. 9780930405281. 6–.
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27. Book: John William Humphrey. John Peter Oleson. Andrew Neil Sherwood. Greek and Roman technology: a sourcebook : annotated translations of Greek and Latin texts and documents. 24 April 2011. 1998. Routledge. 9780415061377. 218–.
28. Web site: Plini el Vell. Diferents tipus de ferro. . 2020-07-22 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200122055808/http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/L/Roman/Texts/Pliny_the_Elder/34*.html . 2020-01-22 . dead .
29. Book: Julius Sillig. Pliny (the Elder.). Dictionary of the artists of antiquity: architects, carvers, engravers, modellers, painters, sculptors, statuaries, and workers in bronze, gold, ivory, and silver, with three chronological tables. 24 April 2011. 1837. Black and Armstrong. 19–.
30. Book: Gocha Tsetskhladze. Ancient West & East. 24 April 2011. June 2005. BRILL. 9789004139756. 381–.
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32. 56. http://www.e-reading.co.uk/bookreader.php/135704/The_Sword_in_the_Age_of_Chivalry.pdf. 15 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131215195610/http://www.e-reading.co.uk/bookreader.php/135704/The_Sword_in_the_Age_of_Chivalry.pdf. 15 December 2013. live.
33. Book: Boeheim, Wendelin . Handbuch der Waffenkunde: Das Waffenwesen in seiner historischen Entwicklung . 1890 . Seemann Verlag . 9783845726038 . 261ff . 11 June 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304070921/https://books.google.ch/books?id=NNVgAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA261 . 4 March 2016 . live.
34. 歴史人 September 2020, p. 40.
35. Kirpichnikov . A.N. . 1966 . Old Russian weapons . Academy of Sciences of the USSR Institute of Archeology . 1.
36. Tom . Philip M. W. . 2001 . Some Notable Sabers of the Qing Dynasty at The Metropolitan Museum of Art . Metropolitan Museum Journal . 36.
37. Inkova . Mariela . 2013 . A Medieval Sabre And a Knife from the Exhibition of the National Museum of History in Sofia . Acta Militaria Mediaevalia . IX . 63–88.
38. Web site: Military sabers of the Qing dynasty . 2019-09-28 . Mandarin Mansion . en.
39. Book: John M. Yumoto. The Samurai Sword: A Handbook. 1958. Tuttle Publishing. 978-0-8048-0509-4. 26–.
40. Book: England Under Anglo-Saxon Kings. 1845. Bell. 232–.
41. Book: An universal history: from the earliest accounts to the present time. George Sale. George Psalmanazar. George Shelvocke. Archibald Bower. John Campbell. John Swinton. Printed for C. Bathurst. 1759. 349–.
42. Book: Arabian Nights, in 16 volumes: Volume II. 1 December 2008. Cosimo, Inc.. 978-1-60520-581-6. 127–.
43. http://www.history-science-technology.com/Articles/articles%205.htm al-Kindí
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45. Book: Marta Sancho i Planas. Homes, fargues, ferro i foc: arqueología i documentació per a l'estudi de la producció de ferro en època medieval : les fargues dels segles IX-XIII al sud del Pirineu català. 4 May 2011. 1999. Marcombo. 9788426712219. 49–.
46. Book: Markus Sesko. Encyclopedia of Japanese Swords (Paperback). 30 September 2014. Lulu.com. 978-1-312-56368-1. 311–.
47. Book: Les quatre grans croniques: Llibre dels feits del rei En Jaume. Ferran Soldevila. Maria Teresa Ferrer i Mallol. Jordi Bruguera. Institut d'Estudis Catalans. 2007. 9788472839014. 258–. 26 April 2011.
48. Book: Joaquim Miret i Sans. Maria Teresa Ferrer i Mallol. Institut d'Estudis Catalans. Itinerari de Jaume I "el Conqueridor". 26 April 2011. 2004. Institut d'Estudis Catalans. 9788472837515. 104–.
49. Book: Sociedad Española de Excursiones. Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Excursiones. 1942. Sociedad Española de Excursiones..
50. Book: Johan I D'Arago. 24 April 2011. Institut d'Estudis Catalans. 380–. GGKEY:8CXSF5T5A0D. 1929.
51. Book: ʻAlī ibn ʻAbd al-Raḥmān Ibn Hudhayl. Gala de caballeros, blasón de paladines. 23 April 2011. 1977. Editora Nacional. 9788427604087. Pàg. 185
52. http://bivaldi.gva.es/es/catalogo_imagenes/grupo.cmd?path=1012435 Manuscritos (Capítulos y privilegios del Gremi dels Armers de la ciudad de Valencia) (1462-1518) - Gremi dels Armers (Valencia). Capítulos referidos a los oficios de "armers, cuyracers, sellers, speroners, llancers, spasers, lloriguers i brodadors"
53. Book: Antonio Capmany y de Montpalau. Real Junta y Consulado de Comercio de Barcelona. Memorias históricas sobre la marina, comercio y artes de la antigua ciudad de Barcelona .... 26 April 2011. 1779. En la Imprenta de Sancha. 2–.
54. http://mdc.cbuc.cat/u?/manuscritAB,110929 Llibre gremial dels espasers, 1433-1713
55. The encyclopedia of the sword, Nick Evangelista. page 55
56. Book: Blair, Claude . Claude Blair . The Word Claymore . John Donald Publishers . 1981 . Edinburgh . 378.
57. Book: Fèlix Torres Amat. Memorias para ayudar a formar un diccionario crítico de escritores catalanes. 24 April 2011. 1836. J.Verdaguer. 489–.
58. Book: Luís PACHECO de NARVAEZ. Engaño y desengaño de los errores que se han querido introducir en la destreza de las armas.... 1635. Imprenta del Reyno. 5–.
59. Book: Catálogo de los manuscritos catalanes, valencianos, gallegos y portugueses de la biblioteca de El Escorial. Escorial. Real Biblioteca. Eusebio-Julián Zarco-Bacas y Cuevas. Tip. de Archivos. 1932.
60. https://books.google.com/books?id=1bgHAQAAIAAJ&dq=espadas+de+Zaragoza&pg=PA393 Espases de Saragossa obsequiades a Henry VIII d'Anglaterra.
61. Book: Michael A. Bellesiles. Arming America: the origins of a national gun culture. 29 April 2011. 19 November 2003. Soft Skull Press. 9781932360073. 46–.
62. Book: José Fernando González. Crónica de la provincia de Zaragoza. 25 April 2011. 1867. Editorial MAXTOR. 9788497610674. 74–.
63. Book: Vannoccio Biringuccio. The pirotechnia of Vannoccio Biringuccio: the classic sixteenth-century treatise on metals and metallurgy. 3 May 2011. 1 January 1990. Courier Dover Publications. 9780486261348. 61–.
64. Book: Catálogo histórico-descriptivo de la Real Armería de Madrid. 17 July 2008. Editorial MAXTOR. 978-84-9761-453-5. 216–.
65. http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/microsites/henryviii/MicroObject.asp?item=6&themeid=1073&object=61316&row=5&detail=magnify Sabre d'Enric VIII d'Anglaterra.
66. Book: Georgius Agricola. De Natura Fossilium (Textbook of Mineralogy). 3 May 2011. 10 June 2004. Courier Dover Publications. 9780486495910. 183–.
67. Book: Josep Romeu i Figueras. Recerques d'etnologia i folklore. 24 April 2011. 2000. L'Abadia de Montserrat. 9788484152415. 35–.
68. Book: Cruilles (marqués de.). Los gremios de Valencia: memoria sobre su origen, vicisitudes y organizacion. 24 April 2011. 1883. Impr. de la Casa de beneficencia.
69. Book: Mercurio de España. 1826. Imprenta Real. 177–.
70. http://www.waffensammlung-beck.ch/waffe2.html "Säbel, 'Dusägge', Deutsch Ende 16. Jahrhundert"
71. https://archive.org/details/byswordhistoryof00cohe_0 Espasa de Solingen.
72. Web site: Wilson . William E. . Fencing Masters of the 16th & 17th Centuries . 23 November 2023 . Elizabethan Fencing and the Art of Defence.
73. Book: Harold L. Peterson. Daggers and Fighting Knives of the Western World: From the Stone Age Till 1900. 27 March 2001. Courier Corporation. 978-0-486-41743-1. 32–.
74. Book: John Florio. Queen Anna's New world of words: or Dictionaire of the Italien and English Longues. 1611.
75. Chisholm, Hugh (ed.); "Dagger", Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th ed., Vol. VII, New York, NY: Cambridge University Press (1910), p. 729.
76. Book: Evangelista, Nick . The Encyclopedia of the Sword . 1995 . Greenwood Press . Westport, Connecticut . 208.
77. Épée-de-Combat. 9. 667–669. This contains a detailed contempraneous description of the history and form of the sport.
78. Book: Jacques Savary des Bruslons. Philémon-Louis Savary. Dictionnaire Universel De Commerce: Contenant Tout Ce Qui Concerne Le Commerce Qui Se Fait Dans Les Quatre Parties Du Monde, par terre, par mer, de proche en proche, & par des voyages de long cours ... : [Divisé en III Volumes et en IV Parties]. D - O]. 28 April 2011. 1742. Cramer. 118–.
79. Book: Sebastian de Miñano. Diccionario geographico-estudistico de España y Portugal. 3 May 2011. 1827. Pierart-Peralta. 80–.
80. Book: José Amador de los Ríos. Toledo pintoresca, o descripción de sus más célebres monumentos. 23 April 2011. 1845. Editorial MAXTOR. 9788497613071. 209–.
81. Book: Mark Barton. John McGrath. British Naval Swords and Swordsmanship: _. 3 July 2013. Seaforth Publishing. 978-1-84832-135-9. 112–.
82. http://bdh-rd.bne.es/viewer.vm?id=0000119761&page=1 Reglamento e instrucción para los presidios que se han de formar en la línea de frontera de la Nueva España : resuelto por el Rey ... en cédula de 10 de septiembre de 1772.
83. Book: Max L. Moorhead. The Presidio: Bastion of the Spanish Borderlands. 1991. University of Oklahoma Press. 978-0-8061-2317-2. 190–.
84. Book: Richard S. Whitehead. Donald C. Cutter. Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation. Citadel on the Channel: The Royal Presidio of Santa Barbara, Its Founding and Construction, 1768-1798. 1996. Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation. 978-1-879208-02-5.
85. http://www.militarymuseum.org/Arms%20and%20Armament%2C%20Presidio%20Santa%20Barbara.pdf#page=7 Arms and Armament.Presidios of California. Michael R. Hardwick.
86. Book: William Bowles. Introducción a la historia natural y á la geografía física de España. 27 April 2011. 1782. Imprenta real. 295–.
87. Book: Miquel Coll i Alentorn. Miquel Coll i Alentorn. Història. 29 April 2011. 1992. L'Abadia de Montserrat. 9788478262991. 240–.
88. Book: Historia de la economía política de Aragón. Ignacio Jordán de Assó y del Río. por Francisco Magallon. 1798. 219–. 27 April 2011.
89. Book: Michael Springman. Sharpshooter in the Crimea: The Letters of the Captain Gerald Goodlake VC 1854-56. 31 December 1990. Pen and Sword. 978-1-4738-1809-5. 218–.
90. Book: Sharpshooter in the Crimea: The Letters of the Captain Gerald Goodlake VC 1854-56. Michael Springman. 31 December 1990. Pen and Sword. 978-1-4738-1809-5. 218–.
91. Book: Manual histórico-topográfico estadístico y administrativo ó sea Guía general de Barcelona. Manuel Saurí. José Matas. Editorial MAXTOR. 2004. 9788497611411. 177–. 27 April 2011.
92. Book: Great Exhibition. Robert Ellis (F.L.S.). Great Britain. Commissioners for the Exhibition of 1851. Official descriptive and illustrated catalogue. 29 April 2011. 1851. Spicer brothers. 1346–.
93. Book: Librería Española. Diccionario de artes y manufacturas, de agricultura, de minas, etc: A. 27 April 2011. 1856. Establecimiento Tipográfico de Mellado. 2–.
94. Book: Henry George O'Shea. A guide to Spain. 27 April 2011. 1865. Longmans, Green. 278–.
95. http://gladius.revistas.csic.es/index.php/gladius/article/viewFile/203/205 [1]]
    • 1509. Marriage of Catalina of Aragon and Henry VIII of England. Swords of the armoury of Zaragoza presented to the English king^[60]
    • 1517. Superiority of the sword over other weapons in the war of the conquistadores against the Native Americans in Florida.^[61]
    • 1522. Sword of Ignacio de Loyola offered to the Virgin of Montserrat.
    • 1525. Battle of Pavia. Francis I of France surrendered his sword to Joan Aldana, a cavalier native of Tortosa.^[62]
    • 1540. "Pirotechnia", work of Vannoccio Biringuccio, armourer of Siena. Among other topics it deals with some iron mines and the reduction of the mass in a forge with bellows.^[63]
    • c.1541. Sword of Francisco Pizarro, made in Valencia by the armourer Mateo Duarte.^[64]
    • 1544. Hunting saber of Henry VIII of England, decorated by Diego Çaias.^[65]
    • 1546. Georgius Agricola (Latinized name of Georg Bauer). Work "De Natura Fossilium" which deals with mineralogy. He talks about iron exporting regions and the area of ??Noricum (now Steyr in Austria) that produced steel for the quality of the mineral. In other places (Bilbao, Turassio in Spain and Como in Italy) steel would be "manufactured" by the quality of the water.^[66]
    • 1547. Mentioned the sword called "de San Martí".^[67] (See year 1370)
    • 1547. Law agreed on the maximum length of the sword-blades of Mallorca, Valencia and Catalonia.^{[68] [69]}
    • 1579. Styria records delivery of some 700 Dusäggen by local bladesmiths, besides payment of 40 Dusäggen delivered from Passau, as part of the preparation for the war against the Turks under Archduke Charles II.^[70]
    • 1599. The Pope Clement VIII gives a sword of Solingen as a present to the king Henry IV of France.^[71]
    • 1600. Rapier developed as a result of the geometrical theories of such masters as Camillo Agrippa, Ridolfo Capo Ferro, and Vincentio Saviolo.^[72]
    • 1611. Oldest definition of a cinquedita. (“Cinquedita: a weapon but five fingers long used in Venice”. Similar to a sgian-dubh. So the modern definition of Cinquedea should be inaccurate.).^{[73] [74]}

    1700-1950 AD

    The Dirk was the traditional sidearm of the Highland Clansman and later used by the officers, pipers, and drummers of Scottish Highland regiments around 1725 to 1800^[75]

    The modern Épée (French: épée) derives from the 19th-century French: épée de combat,^[76] a weapon which itself derives from the French small sword.^[77]

    • 1742. "Dictionnaire Universel De Commerce", Jacques Savary des Bruslons, Philémon-Louis Savary. French name of the composite leaves with iron core and steel exterior ("lame de ettofe").^[78]
    • 1750. News about the "varnished iron" or "iron" mines of Mondragón.^[79]
    • 1760. Carlos III of Spain orders to Luis de Urbina, infantry colonel, a report on the bladed weapons factories of Toledo, Valencia, Zaragoza and Barcelona (in precarious state) to establish a new factory in Toledo
    • 1761. " Bladed weapons Factory of Toledo" (Fábrica de armas blancas de Toledo), created by decree of Carlos III of Spain. It was organized and directed by the Valencian sword's master Lluis Calisto, contracted expressly.^[80]
      • 1766. Esquilache Riots 1772. Henry Nock was the founder of a gun-making company. He bequeathed to his manager James Wilkinson, maker of the famous swords and sabers.^[81]
    • 1772. Rules for Californian presidios. Soldado de cuera. Cutting arms. Broad sword and lance characteristics.^{[82] [83]}
    • 1781–1782. For the armament of the Presidio of Santa Barbara (California) the swords of Toledo are rejected and they are asked for German, Valencian or Barcelona swords, more suitable for military tasks. According to Felipe de Nieve report English by Richard S. Whitehead): "... Uniforms are in deplorable shape due to the fact that supply ships have not arrived. Much of the equipment is defective. Safeties on the pistols are inoperative and The swords of Toledo are so tempered that they can be broken to pieces if they are used carelessly. ".^{[84] [85]}
    • 1782. William Bowles, "Introduction to Natural History and the Physical Geography of Spain." With information on the making of swords in Spain.^[86]
    • 1793–1795. War of the Pyrenees. The weapon workshops in Catalonia, are opened again.^[87]
    • 1798. History of the political economy of Aragon. Ignacio Jordán de Assó. talks about the sword makers of Zaragoza .^[88]
    • 1804. James Wilkinson.^[89]
    • 1844. Henry Wilkinson^[90]
    • 1849. "Barcelona General Guide"; Manuel Saurí, José Matas. Describes the sword of the guild of sword makers of Barcelona (60 inches long, 24 inches to the crosshead), which required a strong man to carry it in parades.^[91]
    • 1851. Sword of Toledo (of Manuel de Ysasi) presented to the Great Exhibition of London. It could be unsheathed and sheathed in a nearly circular sheath.^[92]
    • 1856. Details of the manufacture of swords (according to the Toledo Factory).^[93]
    • 1865. Henry George O'Shea. "A guide to Spain". List of swords of the armoury of the Royal Palace of Madrid (at the time of the publication of the work).^[94]
    • 1943. Sword of Stalingrad

    External links

    • Chronology of the swords. Information on the different types.