European dueling sword smallsword

Swords & Armor Information

Under feudal systems, lords would generally make war rather than duel and their
subordinates would not duel but would submit to their lords for judgment. As the middle
classes gained power they took as one of their prerogatives the right to redress slights, not
by war but by the duel. Since duels were generally 'on the spot' affairs, those who would
claim the privilege of the duel must always be armed; and since these were civilians
dwelling in cities they had no need for heavy armor and preferred lighter weaponry. The
drive to be armed with lighter weaponry than required by a professional soldier gave rise
to specialized weaponry, the European dueling sword.

The dueling era began in the fifteenth or sixteenth centuries and lasted well into the
nineteenth century. Firearms displaced swords as the preferred weapons of duelists in the
late eighteenth century.

The evolution of the European dueling sword--from arming sword (often termed
broadsword, though sensu stricto this refers to basket and cage hilted weapons from the
late 17th through 19th ceturies) through three stages of rapier to the smallsword--
reflected the evolution from a cutting style of swordplay to a thrusting style ('foining' or
'fencing') coupled with the advantage achieved by wielding a slightly lighter and
therefore faster weapon. The smallsword and the last stage of the rapier were made
possible only by metallurgical advances in the seventeenth century.

Off-hand weapons

During the arming sword and rapier periods, a weapon or object was generally held in the
other hand from the sword for use in parrying attacks. The most common 'off-hand'
weapons were the buckler, the dagger, and the cape. In general the buckler was more
effective against cutting weapons, the dagger was more effective against thrusting
weapons, and the cape was better than nothing.

An edged off-hand weapon could also be used to strike. Especially in the era of longer
rapiers, it was common for the weapons to become entangled. Many duels were ended by
a timely strike with an off-hand dagger. They were also popular in areas where brawls
were common.

Some duellists fought with two rapiers, called a 'case' of rapiers. It is assumed that the
longer off-hand weapon was more useful for parrying attacks and less useful should the
opponents be brought to close quarters, although Giacomo DiGrassi taught that a man
who used two rapiers must be able to use either, indifferently, for offense or defense or he
would betray himself in combat.
Single Time versus Double Time

The arming sword and the rapier were heavy enough that if used to parry they could not
easily be used to mount an offense. Swordplay was usually thought of as occurring in
beats or tempos, and during a single tempo the heavy swords could only perform a single
action, thus only capable of an act in single time. If an attack could be intercepted with
the off-hand weapon, this meant that the main weapon could be used in that tempo for a
counterattack. Likewise, a swordsman could control timing and distance to
simultaneously parry and counterattack or avoid the attack and counterattack, although
these required much more skill.

Only with the development of the smallsword were weapons fast enough to allow the
riposte, where a parry is followed smoothly by an offensive action without delay. This is
called double time, because a combatant attacks and defends in two beats. After swords
were obsolete, metallurgical advances allowed the development of the épée and the foil
used in modern fencing. Modern fencing--and most sword fighting shown in movies--is
done in double time.

Cutting versus Thrusting

Cutting -- striking with the edge, which causes percussive damage as well a possibly
making a cut in the target, and thrusting -- striking with the point to puncture -- have been
shown to be essentially balanced modes of combat. However civilian dueling styles
leaned more and more to the thrust over time. The reason for this progression is not
known, though common arguments are discussed below. It is perhaps as simple as that
the thrusting style allowed for lighter weapons.

It is possible that the single most important advantage of thrusting weapons was that in
combat against a cutting weapon of a similar weight, the thrusting weapon -- especially
with the lunge -- was useful from a greater range. The wielder of a cutting weapon must
step in to strike, a predictable motion which would make him vulnerable to a time hit
while his major weapon was necessarily out of line for defense. However the Victorian
Captain A. Hutton repeatedly demonstrated that the cavalry sabre could hold its own
against the smallsword or the épée of a similar length. His success can be attributed to his
ability to use the thrusting swordsman's arm as a target, and that the lighter thrusting
weapon is inadequate to parry the heavier sabre.

It is often said that the thrust is more dangerous than the cut because the vital organs may
be struck at directly, and in fact many duels were ended by a single lunge. However there
are also many recorded instances of both contestants being run through several times
while the duel continued. Due to the limitations of medicine in that era, it often happened
that a duelist would die of infections or internal bleeding from such a thrust long after the
duel had concluded.

It is also alleged that thrusting weapons had various advantages in terms of speed of
defense: because they were kept in line with the opponent while preparing to strike they
were more available to defend. However it should be remembered that through most of
the dueling era -- until the last stage of the rapier and the smallsword were developed --
an off hand weapon was used for defense.

Evolution of blades

The first swords carried by civilians for use in duels were generally arming swords. A
military weapon turned to civilian use, they were generally less than 90 centimetres in
length, relatively heavy (2000 grams), and two-edged with a short point. The cross-
section was basically that of a narrow diamond or flattened hexagon.

Starting around 1500 CE, the arming sword began to be replaced by the rapier. 'Rapier' is
the british term for the sword, but they were used all across Europe where they were
called simply 'dress swords', 'side swords', or just 'swords'. The rapier was more slender
than the arming sword, and longer. Rapiers ranged from 90 centimetres to 130
centimetres, averaging about 107 centimetres. They weighed on average 1250 grams.
Early rapiers retained their cutting edges, are at times called 'cut and thrust rapiers' by
modern enthusiasts, and were diamond in cross-section, though less of a flattened
diamond than the arming sword. They generally had simple cross hilts similar to arming
swords. By the middle of the 16th century edges were often discarded in favor of purely
thrusting rapiers and the cross-section was very often triangular. Many other cross-
sections were tried in the attempt to minimize weight while maintaining strength. Since a
popular grip involved wrapping the finger over the quillon, a finger guard was added to
prevent injury when the rapier was parried.

The final period of the rapier is called the 'transitional' period, which lasted from about
1650 to 1680. This marked the shift into fighting in double time. Rapiers became shorter
and lighter; the off hand weapon was abandoned in favor of the parry-riposte; and the
cup-hilt became common. Also present during the transitional period is the
Colichemarde, a sword with a heavier blade up to the mid-point and then a light blade up
to the point.

The rapier was replaced by the smallsword, a very light weapon designed for fast double
time fighting. Smallswords might be around 78 centimetres in length and weigh 500
grams, considerably lighter and shorter than the rapier. While any sword of that size was
called a smallsword, there was a form specific to the smallsword: a blade that had a
triangular cross-section, although some still had a diamond cross-section well into the
18th century.

Regional variations

In Scotland heavier cutting swords (broadswords) remained popular into the nineteenth
century.

In southern Italy the off-hand dagger remained in use into the nineteenth century. Many
Italian fencers also used a heavier version of the smallsword and continued to fight in
single time.