English or French Single-Edged Arming Sword, licensed by the Royal Armouries

An unusual single-edged arming sword of the mid-15th century, reputedly from the Castillon group of swords found in a nearby river and purchased by the Royal Armouries in 1984. Over 80 swords, as well as other weapons, were reputedly recovered from this one archaeological find, but this sword is without direct comparison in that group, having a distinctive hilt and very unusual single-edged blade. At first sight it looks like a regular double-edged arming sword with a central tip, but on closer inspection it has a single-edged blade, of wedge cross-section, having a false edge on the back of the blade near the tip. The blade is remarkably wide and thin, with a very acute edge geometry leading to a fine edge, sharing some physical similarities with other single-edged swords such as falchions. The crossguard quillons end in curled tips to retain an opponent’s blade, the asymmetrical grip is located towards the back edge, and the squat scent stopper pommel makes the short grip comfortable to hold. This sword could have been carried by any professional soldier of the late Hundred Years War, from a well-equipped archer to a man-at-arms or knight, or indeed as a civilian sidearm, perhaps with a buckler. Swords with comparable hilt forms are shown in art until the end of the 15th century. This sword feels very nimble, and it is deceptively light compared to its width, due to the thinness of the blade and distal taper.While it could thrust effectively against unarmored targets, it seems to be optimized for cutting, the tip being broader and the blade more flexible than a typical arming sword of the time. More information...