Weapons in the Middle Ages

Weapons in the Middle Ages

On May 23, 2015 from 10 am – 5 pm The Friends of North Berkeley Library will once again welcome the Shire of Sylvan Glen (local chapter of the Society for Creative Anachronism) for the 2nd Mini-Renaissance Festival at North Berkeley Library. 

During the Day, members of the SCA will demonstrate thrown weapons and armored combat.  What forms of weapons were used during the Middle Ages?

Flaming fire! Hot oil running down castle walls! 

Arrows and massive stones hurled at enemies! These were just some of the weapons soldiers feared during the Middle Ages. Throughout the middle ages, the feudal system defined the weapons used in battle. While noble knights carried lances, spears, and swords, they were joined by peasant foot soldiers who often fought with little more than axes, daggers, and farm tools. Other weaponry of the period included the long bow and cross bow for use against enemy soldiers. The catapult and trebuchet were used for tearing down thick castle walls.

Swords:

A sword is a long, edged piece of forged metal, used primarily as a cutting or thrusting weapon and occasionally for clubbing. A sword fundamentally consisted of a blade and a hilt, typically with one or two sharpened edges for striking and cutting, and a point for thrusting.

Clubs and Maces:

A mace is a simple weapon that uses a heavy head on the end of a handle to deliver powerful blows. The mace, a development of the club, differs from a hammer in that the head of a mace is radically symmetric so that a blow can be delivered effectively with any side of the head. A mace consists of a strong, heavy, wooden, metal-reinforced or metal shaft with a head made of stone, copper, bronze, iron, or steel.