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A glaive, sometimes spelled as glave, is a type of pole weapon, with a single edged blade on the end, known for its distinctive design and versatile combat applications. There are many similar polearms such as the war scythe, the Japanese naginata, the Chinese guandao (yanyuedao), the Korean woldo, and the Russian sovnya.
A glaive typically consists of a single-edged blade approximately 45 centimeters long affixed to a pole measuring about 2 meters. The blade is secured in a socket-shaft configuration, akin to an axe head, as opposed to having a tang like a sword or naginata. Some variations of glaive blades were even forged with a small hook on the reverse side to better engage mounted opponents, earning them the name "glaive-guisarmes."
In the 1599 treatise "Paradoxes of Defence" by English gentleman George Silver, the glaive is described as being used in a manner similar to other polearms like the quarterstaff, half pike, bill, halberd, voulge, and partisan. Silver considered this class of polearms superior to all other hand-to-hand combat weapons.
The Morgan Bible, also known as the Maciejowski Bible, features illustrations of two-handed glaives used on horseback, showcasing their historical application in mounted combat.
The contemporary term for this weapon may have been "faussart," which referred to various single-edged weapons related to the scythe, alongside terms like falchion, falcata, or fauchard, all derived from the Latin term for "scythe."
Historical records suggest that the glaive may have originated in Wales and remained a national weapon until the late 15th century. There is a mention of a warrant from the first year of Richard III's reign, dated 1483, for the production of "two hundred Welsh glaives," further highlighting its historical significance in weaponry.
It has been argued that the glaive had its origin in Wales, and that it remained a national weapon until the end of the XVth Century. Grose mentions a warrant (Harleian MS., No. 433) issued to Nicholas Spicer, dated the first year of Richard III's reign, 1483 for enrolling of smiths for "the making of two hundred Welsh glaives" – twenty shillings and sixpence being the charge for thirty glaives with their staves, made at Abergavenny and Llanllowel.[2]
- ^ Wendelin Boeheim (1890), "Die Glese und die Couse, figure 396", Handbuch der Waffenkunde. Das Waffenwesen in seiner historischen Entwicklung vom Beginn des Mittelalters bis zum Ende des 18. Jahrhunderts [Handbook of Weapon Knowledge. Weaponry in Its Historical Development from the Beginning of the Middle Ages to the End of the 18th Century.], Seemanns kunstgewerbliche Handbücher, VII, Leipzig: E. A. Seemann, pp. 343–344, OCLC 457086621
- ^ Laking, Guy Francis (1920). A Record of European Armour and Arms Through Seven Centuries. Vol. III. London: G. Bell and Sons. p. 104.