Soldier with broad-bladed spear -- myArmoury.com

Merv Cannon · Posted: Mon 09 Oct, 2006 7:17 pm Post subject: Soldier with broad-bladed spear

I found this Brit. Library image and I must say, I have never seen a pole arm quite like this before..... "Soldier with broad-bladed spear, S. Netherlands, early 16thC." ......and I was wondering if anyone has seen other pole arms similar ?
Your comments would be good to hear.....please post any unusual items that you may have on file.
Cheers !

Jean Thibodeau · Posted: Mon 09 Oct, 2006 7:46 pm Post subject:

The blade shape is very much like a Partisan or Langue de Boeuf type spear but is very very BIG !?

Could be the real size or artistic license drawing it bigger than life. A really big one like this might still be possible although I haven't seen any pics of one as big before.

Would be a very good cutter though at that size assuming it was meant for real combat: It could be a ceremonial weapon made this big for effect. ( A little over- compensation for something, maybe. Wink

)

Merv Cannon · Posted: Mon 09 Oct, 2006 8:06 pm Post subject: Wide Spear

Hi Jean........ Could be.........here's a Musketeer illustration in the same series for comparasion...... http://www.imagesonline.bl.uk/britishlibrary/...&idx=2
.....the musket looks a bit chunky although the length is about right and certinally everything else look in good proportion.

Jean Thibodeau · Posted: Mon 09 Oct, 2006 9:05 pm Post subject: Re: Wide Spear

Daniel Staberg · Posted: Tue 10 Oct, 2006 12:46 am Post subject:

Most authors writing about Tudor armies identify the image a showing a captain or 'pety captain' of foot about 1540 wearign half-harness and armed with partizan and sword. Both the partizan and the arquebus are a bit oversized, probably 10-15% at the most. (Though some historical artists does reduce the partizan more than that when making reconstructions based on that image.) To me the shaft seems a bit too thin for such a broad bladed weapon but that the only "strange" detail.

There is another image of partizan armed soldier in that series of images, indeed the entire series is one of the finest pictorial sources showing renaissance soldiers which havs survived to this day.

Daniel

Martin Wallgren · Posted: Tue 10 Oct, 2006 1:34 am Post subject:

Makes me think of the peasantsoldiers in Paul Dolnsteins drawings. They carry bigheaded spears or poleweapons of many diffrent designs. One of them is reconstructed by PJ and is discussed here... http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t...t=dolstein

Martin

Sean Flynt · Posted: Tue 10 Oct, 2006 7:53 am Post subject:

I don't have Waldman's book in front of me, but I can at least say that the size and form of this weapon looks reasonable for a partisan. The "captain" ID is convincing. Officers typically adopted the spear as a badge of rank, and this one (I'd call it a partisan) is a very fine example, with what appears to be etching/gilding and a tassle. The haft isn't much of a concern because this may not be a field weapon. We may be seeing the officer in his finest, fit for parade, with his fine badge of rank. I can easily imagine that this shows a captain of a bodyguard or other elite unit.

Combat spears/partisans of this era often have very long heads, by the way. Here are a couple from Czerny's, ranging from 17 inches (43 cm) to 27 inches (69 cm). Hunting spears like the one shown here (225 cm OA, Hermann Historica) were adapted for martial use. The broad-bladed boar spear became a common officer's weapon.

Waldman's book sometimes gives width-to-length ratios for some polearm heads, so I'll see what I can dig up....

Sean Flynt · Posted: Tue 10 Oct, 2006 1:55 pm Post subject:

See this photo for a better sense of scale:

http://www.myArmoury.com/albums/displayimage....amp;pos=22