Hi, a couple of my friends mentioned that we don't know how europeans in the early to the late middle ages made their swords. I was under the impression that we have a very good understanding on how this would have been done. Am i incorrect or do we understand their techniques? Any sources would be appreciated. Thanks!

Here's one:

"How Were Swords Really Made?"

http://www.thearma.org/essays/How_Were_Swords...wLvYmKSxWI

Albion has a pretty decent summary here:

http://www.albion-swords.com/articles/images/...s-made.pdf

And while this mostly deals with modern reproductions, its points are worth considering for the actual practice of medieval swordmaking too:

http://www.myArmoury.com/feature_groundpound.html