Swords: Broad or Dainty

[Grey Wolf]

No: HPFGUIDX 45679

Melody wrote:
><snip canon descriptions of Godric's sword>
> Ok my point, what kind of sword would this be?  In the previews of
> the MTMNBM part II, we see Harry thrusting about a Musketeer-esque 
> sword. Very pretty, very honorable, but this type of sword did not
> come around till the 16th - 17th century, right?  Wouldn't Godric
> have a William Wallace type sword...a broad sword?  it does not have
> to be as big as Wallace's, I mean a normal 12 year old boy could not
> wield that size of a sword and Harry obviously was able to maneuver
> this one about a bit, but it would be substantially bigger, right?
> 
> So, any swords experts out there?  I confess to know a little.  I
> think I have a coloring book about swords somewhere.  :)
> 
> 
> Melody
> Who believes wherever there is a cape there has to be a sword...and
> preferable a kilt too.  :)

OK, I'm not an "expert" of swords except by a stretch of the word (I 
only know what I've picked up in years of videogames... which is quite 
a lot, on the other hand, but almost never related to real history, so 
I'm a little shacky in assigning swords to years), but I'm going to 
give a shot at answering this.

First, I should place the situation. We're around the year 1000, more 
or less (not even Binns know for sure, but it gives a figure to work 
with). Now, this is the very start of middle ages. Barbarism rules 
almost all Europe (except for Iberian peninsula, but I'm not going into 
that), and most of what the romans had advanced has been forgotten 
-except, presumably, the art of war. Smiths aren't really all that 
advanced; it is interesting that swords got bigger as time passed: in 
ancient times, swords were short, not those impresive bastard, broad 
and double grip swords we always picture middle ages knights in. This 
is for a very simple reason: making a sword that big requires very 
advanced smithy techniques, that weren't developed until later. IIRC 
(although don't quote me on this), the developments of correct 
steel-making techniques happened in the 12-14 century (depending on the 
place).

Which means that at the time of Godric no-one had thought of those sort 
of swords yet. The sort of sword you'd get is the one you'd expect a 
roman to use: a short, broad bladed, iron or steel sword. At first I 
thought I could play the "wizards are advanced" card, but wizards 
wouldn't be proficient in armoury tech - more the reverse, actually. 
So, what is the sword, I hear cry (toghether with not-so-few "get to 
the point"s)? IMO, it's the sort of sword you'd expect from a rich 
roman family, well preserved over the years. For one thing, it's the 
sort of sword a 12-year-old could find heavy, but still use with 
certain degree of aptitude: I have real broadswords in my house, and I 
know that when I was 12 I had difficulty to lift them, so that trying 
to wave it around meant that I orbited around the sword almost more 
than the sword orbited around me.

To cut this short, I think that historical evidence, as well as 
inter-textual evidence, would suggest a sensible roman or roman-esque 
sword (maybe somewhat improved from the basic design), but not the sort 
of sword you'd expect from Ivanhoe or Wallace - those came around 
later. A short sword (maybe coated in magic? after seing an enchated 
car, a magic sword sholdn't raise any blisters) that a skinny and small 
12 year-old could use. As I say, I might have gotten the timing wrong 
(meaning that longswords already existed at the time), but I still 
believe -now that I have actually thought rationally through it- that a 
short sword would make more sense.

Hope that helps,

Grey Wolf