@@HnZ88. I didn't mean anything by it dude. No need to be rude. It's just how I relate man, I was stoked to see him rocking and learning the poleaxe. Damn man.
To the guard: I was once sparring with some padded polearms. My opponent made a strike that was slightly C-shaped, trying to knock my polearm to the side as it curved to come in to hit me, using the resistance of my weapon as it was knocked aside to help redirect the strike towards my head/torso. Unfortunately, as the same moment I shifted my guard very slightly and instead of hitting my weapon and curving into my body and instead, hit my weapon and slid, full-power down the shaft into my hand, the shaft serving as a guide to help it slide right into my thumb. Dispite reasonably good hand protection, my thumb nail partly disconnect from the nail bed. A guard at any point along the length of the shaft his blow slid down would have saved my thumb from the blow. I don't think the guard needs to be right against the hand to be effective for the type of blow it was designed to protect against. It just needs to be _somewhere_ between the impact point where you opponent's weapon would hit and stard sliding down your shaft toward your hand and your hand, and the blows which spend the longest sliding down your weapon will often be the ones which hit with the most force. Moving the guard up would then be a compromise to preserve the protection against that with the ability to move the hands around. It may also be for the power of trying to punch through plate instead of finding the gaps. Likewise, it may also be largely a battlefield option, as there may be less range of motion available and you may want to stop a blow rather than just knock it aside if you have a friend there. Together, these would fit with them existing, but being less used by masters in dueling context where the ability to have unrestricted movement of your hands would be of greater importance.
Well thought out. I was thinking even a smaller disk, or even rounded triangular in profile, guard would allow for protection of the unarmored parts of a closed gauntlet with the ability to "skip" over it when slipping the hand up and down. Just need deflection, not a right-angle stop.
This makes all kinds of sense to me. Especially since we know that the sources we have are focused on dueling. An added point: In a battlefield situation, weapon retention becomes more important. The chaos of battle makes it far more likely to lose control of your weapon. So the added point of contact could be added value in indexing your hand position on the shaft as well as strengthening the grip on the weapon in an armored gauntlet. Similar to the large disk pommel and guard on a rondel dagger.
Your enthusiasm for the topic is very evident. I feel it's one of your most original, insightful videos. The hard work you have put into preparation and training has clearly paid dividends.
That rondel seems to be quite useful for delivering powerful thrusts with either end by stopping the hand from slipping (depending on where you put your hand relative to the rondel).
I was going to ask if that might be a reason for having it, to facilitate thrusting. It seems like when stabbing someone in armor, you're going to want all the advantage you can get.
Would you be interested in doing a little bit of research on the Chinese dagger-axe (Ge) and/or Chinese Halberd (Ji). I suspect they're both closer to a western Halberd than a poleaxe in terms of length, but I'm curious to see if there are any lessons/techniques you might be able to transfer by comparing them.
Not a HEMA participant, but from a physics/ergonomics perspective, can the hand guard be used to generate more force in the thrust, with either end? I can see it helpful against an armored opponent.
It is very unlikely to make a massive difference. The places where you're going to realistically penetrate to begin with, aren't typically strong enough that you need that difference. The types of places the spiky bits go into are places where a dagger thrust is enough, let alone a polearm wielded in two hands with a giant weight on the end of it. Ultimately, the mass of the head is going to be much more of the deciding factor in that hypothetical. The weakspots are weak enough that you don't need to worry about power, and the strong spots are so strong that power can never become (reliably) enough anyway. If you're using your point, it's because you have a gap to aim at. If you can't access that gap, you should be trying to smack them with the hammer bit instead.
Thank you for doing these videos on polearms. They are my favorite weapons, but you don't see nearly as many videos done on them as you do with swords and axes.
Fastest comment I've ever prepared to write: loved that opening. Literally laughing. Good work Matt. Normally come here for the serious discussion, so humour really caught me off-guard. :)
An overlooked point about the hand guard around @22:20 : If you're doing some 1-handed wrestling, that guard is going to be a crippling obstacle in getting your grip where you want it. Fantastic video! Very entertaining. Love watching you talk about your passion.
Wow I was surprised to find out they break a lot. As for the skirt protecting from grappling that makes sense. It would be hard to do a double leg if the skirt was long and hard enough...uh...ah...you know what I mean. The disc hand shield made me think of another weapon. The awl pike. I would love to see a video on that. :) Anyways great video Matt. :)
Keep in mind that the top and bottom of the axe are also good at penetrating between gaps in armor, especially the bottom part of the axe when doing techniques like the knieryssen (knee ripping) or the Halryssen, as the tip of the axe will stab into any gaps in the back of the knee armor in particular, but also in the back of the torso/neck area. I'd say that is probably the most beneficial part of the axe design vs an armored opponent.
REALLY enjoyed that. The poleaxe was more of a technical super weapon than I originally thought. A lot of this is by definition as noobies like me think that a poleaxe, Glaive, Bill, Halberd are the same thing. You covered a lot of this in a previous video. I especially enjoyed this one as you are actively training with it.
This might be an odd comment to make, but I reckon your sponsors must be quite pleased with the enthusiasm you present their products with. I hope that they keep sponsoring your channel. Oh, the poleaxe content was good too!
I’d imagine if a fight devolved into wrestling, a knight could drop their pole axe and draw their rondel dagger. Something tells me if they’re that well equipped, they’d have a sidearm.
I swear there's an earlier video where Matt describes fully-armoured fighting as "wrestling with large knives". Maybe it was the fight analysis of the Arthur vs. Lancelot fight from EXCALIBUR?
I've recently started getting into the idea of poleweapons after my indoctrination through popular fantasy has become broken. You mentioned you are using wooden poleaxes, where are you getting them from or what should you look out for when getting them?
About the disc hand guard, I think it'll make a huge difference if one wants to press and pierce the plate part of armor like the picture at 15:14 , especially when the shaft is soiled with slippery substances like mud and blood.
Excellent video, covers a lot of points in an organized fashion with little repetition. And those freaking gauntlets look awesome, wearing them instead of doing the video barehanded was a good choice.
Hi Matt! Long time subscriber here. would I be able to request a video? I know you have talked before about musketeers how they fought and what weapons they used but would you be able to compile all of that into a video explaining musketeers a little more in depth please? I would like to know their motivations weapons sidearms and their overall adeptness in combat. I would appreciate it. thank you
I just love these depictions of Saint George slaying the dragon. -”Behold, for I have slain the mighty dragon terrorising the land far and near!!” -” That's all nice and well, but has anyone seen my mutt? His names Steve, he's a bit ugly but luv him to bits I do.”
I made a halberd last winter and when I went to test it, it shattered near the head. Thanks for confirming that they need heavy reinforcement and that they break often :P
A point on swinging: It's not just reach you get from slipping the hand. You get power. To understand this, get an axe and chop some wood. You'll see pretty soon. The left hand guides, the right hand drives then slides to the left hand. Of course theres more to it with a weapon, but you'll get a good idea of what's happening chopping wood.
@scholagladiatoria In the event that the shaft breaks, do you think the hand guard could serve more as a handstop if what is left of the poleaxe is wielded more like a warhammer? Not sure if any sources depict such a technique.
That's an interesting question. If that were part of the thinking, wouldn't there be descriptions or artwork of it? I'm not saying you're wrong, just thinking aloud. Is it more likely that the fighter would resort to a sword if the pollaxe broke? Of course it could be done but maybe there were other, better options.
I think the axe blade would be great for hooking or pushing into the gap between any overlapping plates, particularly when it expands to allow for a movement, when it’s hooked and set you are pushing or pulling to take the opponents balance, you can twist as the force is forcing th widening blade further between the two plates, to further expand that gap, if you bring them down while keeping that blade wedged in, it gives you a great chance to drop upon them while unsheathing your dagger, while they are out of control and with clear path home for your dagger, or at least a path with less obstacle, I think that’s why the blade tends towards the shape on you’re example, or a quite shallow curve. The broadly curving shape of most fighting axes, are far more optimized towards slicing into and through fleshy, or textile targets, greatly increasing the distance and depth of the resulting injury. A flat faced axe with a shallow blade gives away (or at least minimizes) much of the benefits to using an axe against the lightly armored. I can’t imagine why that flat or nearly flat shape would be (almost) ubiquitous, on axe bladed pole axes, unless it was optimized for other than “normal,” unarmored axe combat.
A little oil helps when you’re sliding your hands up and down the pole, especially over the knobbly bit near the head. Don’t use so much force that you break your shaft. Happy training.
Our local museum has an exhibit of medieval arms and armor right now. The exhibit included a selection of pole arms including a pole axe. The single most intimidating thing in the whole exhibit was an English Billhook.
18:20 "look robust" this is what I was saying on an earlier video - Now for a video on hafting and securing the heads of spears, poleaxes, and other polearms on the hafts. Type of wood, depth of socket, circumference of socket/haft, flanges, number and type of pins, etc....
i am only starting to get into armored combat. my teacher from high school is an long time armored fighter on the other hand, and he focuses on long sword and great sword fighting. we had a first practice last September and we ended up sparring with a halberd i had built, and a zweihander a couple of rounds. what we found is that both were equally matched in a long range scenario. however grappling the halberd is very hard to work with, while the zweihander is very effective. would love to see u guys some sparring in full plate and some odd weapon pairing
@@crisis53142 oh then its fine. I cant stand the people at college calling everybody who teaches a professor. Its a life time of work to become one, at least in real science.
Also, if you make a strike with the croix (heavy end) and you slide your forward hand upwards towards the head you can quickly regain control of the momentum and then feint to a thrust or displacement. As for wrestling, there is a lot of it with pollaxe from my experience, it's just mostly done with the weapon. Look at the Halrysen/Knierysen and the backlever throw, even the hand rippings are a form of grappling... when you combine that with the stuff in the plays of the demihache in general the wrestling becomes very physically intensive. It's just that as soon as someone is pushed off balance back wards, or on the ground in front of you, you can complete your motion with either a schlag with the axe, a thrust with the dague, or otherwise finish them with the pollaxe without needing to go into grappling on the ground (where you would be better off pulling out your dagger honestly). And yeah, that rondel guard is a huge pain, it limits a lot of the better actions for really insubstantial protection.
I'm not sure straight spikes are best for striking- When you swing something it generally moves in an arc, so a curved spike can present a more straight point to the target depending on angles.
I imagine that in combat a weapon not glancing is often times more important than the weapon doing as much damage as possible. A straight spike might be less efficient but is it less likely to skip off armour? Maybe
I'd imagine a curved spike is a lot harder to stab with effectively , maybe a tradeoff of power/versatility ? Would explain why weapons like crow's beak have a straight spike (stabbing) and a curved one (striking)
@@edstringer1138 Sure if it's very curved but I think a slight curve would still penetrate in a straight attack but since a full swing with the beak wouldn't be dead straight anyway as the trajectory of swinging anything arcs naturally around your centre. it's rarer that you'd attacy with a trajectory dead perpendicular to the haft (unless you pushing with a high grip) as most attacks curve with the body's natural angular momentum.
Barely relevant larp anecdote: I LOVE grappling when I'm using a spear. It's a last ditch scenario, because even if you manage to slide down fast enough, sword and shield has a MASSIVE advantage when they're in range to strike. So I like to use their momentum, and take them to a range where they can't strike effectively, but I can, with a lovely sneaky little dagger. Or more likely, your friends come and help because using a pole without friends is death. Running works too, but it's usually better to die than to risk your formation breaking as everyone turns to chase the guy chasing you.
In the Marines our bayonet training (early 1990’s) was basically pole weapons training I guess. I held the rifle with the blade to the left side of my head/body because the butt of the rifle goes seated in your right shoulder when firing (usually). With almost every video now I keep wondering if there’s going to be another channel that will counter these great points so strongly. Lol
Curiously, Pietro Monte favored a rather long pollaxe, with total length beyond what a person can reach above their head. & certain late-16th-century English halberds, intended for fighting in armor in formation, could be quite short: 5-6ft according to Sir John Smythe & George Silver.
The guard would probably be more useful on a battlefield than in a duel, due to the limited physical space, both for the wielder and the opponents. You'd potentially be facing a lot of stabbing attacks, mostly from the front, and the more constrained environment would limit the types of attacks the user would be doing anyway.
I wonder if the rondel guard is more useful in a battlefield context where you have to stand in formation and would likely have to fight very differently to the one on one duels we see treatises describing.
@@Ketsuekisan Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure knights and men at arms fought in formation as well, if they diddn't how would they cover their backs or tell who was on their side.
I feel like there isn't much grappling in the pollaxe section is that once you are at that point in a pollaxe fight, it's dagger time. Pollaxes are hitting the ground and rondels are coming out.
I wonder if a polypropylene staff would be good for a more durable pollaxe trainer. Though I don't know if polypropylene is actually more durable than wood, or if that's just manufacturer hyperbole.
Yes, we have been talking about synthetic materials for the shafts. Though conversely, the fact that even well made pollaxes break is a good reminder than striking with full force can bite you in the ass in the end 🙂
@@scholagladiatoria True, but HEMA is expensive enough a hobby as it it lol. I'd rather have a longer lasting trainer that won't need replacing as often.
For me it seems like the guard is something for polaxes for war. I never fought with them in a battle, but I think, you won't swing your axe around very much but have the top always pointed towards the enemies. In this case the guard ist very useful. Maybe the polaxes without the guard are specifically for duelling, where you have way more room to switch the hands and apply actual techiques from the duelling-oriented systems.
I would imagine that if someone managed to successfully close the distance with you while you're holding a poleaxe, your best option would probably be to drop it and transition to your dagger. Similarly, if your opponent manages to throw you, you're probably going to lose your poleaxe as you crash to the ground. At that point, you're either going to want to get back up or reverse your opponent (both easier said than done).
I am of the opinion the "guard" was less of a guard, and more a force multiplier for the thrust, much like the rondels on a dagger. I have no proof, but it makes little sense to me otherwise.
thats actually pretty interesting. Yea, if youre thrusting with a weapon like that, the guard would prevent your hand sliding on the weapon and reducing the force behind a strike
there is A LOT of wrestling in the pollaxe treatises. Inparticular if you include wristhooks, neck hooks and leghoists as wrestling or a lead up to wrestling, but also just dropping the axe and throwing them full body is all over the treatises, quite a bit in various talhoffers... also anecdotal sources show a fair bit of wrestling, like Jaques de lalangs fights.
The bit about poleaxes breaking makes me wonder if that was one of the reasons for adopting a greatsword/zweihander. It would be all steel/iron and far less susceptible to breaking under it's own weight on a swing.
My Pollaxe has a short spike coming out of the Hammer. Several years back I found out that the Pollaxe is also quite handy in a confined space against Home-invaders armed with pangas.
Re breakages. Back then the wood used would have been seasoned stock dedicated for weapon use. But now seasoned stock has been replaced with -almost invariably- kiln dried material. Usually for wood uses that aren't dedicated to poll-weapon needs. Quite possibly made too dry and brittle as carpenters dont want to use timber with the capacity to keep "moving" as it continues to shrink as moisture is driven out. Weapon shafts would probably retain a higher moisture content than modern building stock and be prolly less brittle to sudden loads impacts and shocks. I think.... Which doesn't compare well with wood seasoned with the end in mind of shafted weapon use.
@@caseyhart9916 I didn't think that was in need of explanation... But since you seem to need one, its hardly a brain strainer. The timber's capacity to survive strains and impacts in the desperation of life and death battle - was exceeded. Probably repeatedly. Till it failed. But I think that commercially available woods nowadays would survive those conditions markedly less well by dint of being drier and more brittle than mediaeval seasoned stock. At that time it'd have been seasoned for the particular needs of weapons shafts and so would have been more moist and impact resistant than modern timbers. But even so wood shafts might have been seen as a consumable element of the weapon and as a result it might have been reshafted a number of times during its life. Quite possibly by those collecting discarded broken weaponry from battlefields.
Unarmoured opponents in 15th century? Hm, on battlefield perhaps persons not really belonging to fighting part of army. As a german, i don' t know english word for ,Tross'. In armies of 15th, even 16th and very early 17th century the nonfighting ,Tross' was often larger than real fighters ( mercenaries, last feudal groups and first levy of militia).This ,Tross' had been servants of knights, nobles or nonnoble officers, craftsmen for producing/repairing equipment, traders, freight coach drivers, doctors ( what was called doctors in those days), wifes of NCOs, maids ( sometimes more whores , in german Huren, than maids) , etc. etc. This Tross persons had been no combat personal, only persons, doing some auxillary/ support work. So this traders/ freight coach drivers transported food, cloth, equipment, the women, both serious wifes and maids, and whores cooked food for the soldiers, washed their cloth, and helped the ,doctors' to look after wounded soldiers, the servants of nobles etc. did paperwork, and in case of plundering and terrorizing an area this Tross was important. But: This civilian or semimilitary persons had no armour and mostly only weapons for civilian selfdefence. Next possibility,of unarmoured opponents in wartime could have been second or third line of levies, in german called ,Landsturm' ( yes, related to Volkssturm), nearly untrained men armed with cheap, old, their private arms or dangerous tools. Or civilians , trying to defend their food store, cattle and female family members. Unarmoured opponents in peacetime? Criminals or rebelling civilians, mostly not wellarmed or trained. But: In peacetime also Knights and nobles had been unarmoured and not armed with polearms, exept hunting spears.
@@brittakriep2938 interesting thoughts. Another possibility is guard duty while occupying a captured town. There are likely to be hostile civilians who may be armed. They would still want to be ready for armored combat since opposing forces could launch a counter attack at any time.
@@johnbennett1465 : Don' t know english situation. Here in Germany, i come from swabian region, in HRE,times most split part of HRE ( 100 independent states, the Reichsritterschaft not included). .Town and Town had not been the same. There had been , independent imperial towns/ Reichsstädte, and ,landsässige Städte' belonging to a noble or spiritual Lord. There had been large and rich imperial towns like Frankfurt, Ulm, Augsburg or Nürnberg, but also tiny imperial towns like Zell am Harmersbach. Inside of noble or spiritual lordships, there had been capital towns/residences, district capitals and rural towns like Zavelstein or Blumenfeld, twelve to thirty houses inside the walls. So size and equipment of medieval/ rennaisance german town guards/ police force/ militia is a thing for its own. .
@@brittakriep2938 sorry if I was not clear. I am talking about soldiers acting as guards just after a town/village/etc. was conquered. I think the local guards are likely to be one be one of the bigger threats to the soldiers trying to keep control.
I can see a slightly shorter version for the impending Zombie Apocalypse. 😉 Short front spike and a hammer and axe that can be used to break through a door or wall if the need arises. Axe head can also be used to help in climbing over a walk or reach a fire escape in urban areas.
What’s the difference between a poleaxe and a halberd? Possibly the halberd has a hook and the poleaxe has a hammer ? Or just a rear spike is the only difference.
Install Raid for Free ✅ IOS/ANDROID/PC: pl.go-ga.me/llqivocv and get a special starter pack 💥 Available only for the next 30 days
no.
i hope more people become patrons on patreon so you wouldn't have to stick this cringe in the comments and in front of videos
Sir, would it be considered in bad tasted to request that you don not stab into the camera?
Seeing Matt superimposed over the guy swinging his sword around like a noob larper feels like a cry for help.
@@HnZ88. I didn't mean anything by it dude. No need to be rude. It's just how I relate man, I was stoked to see him rocking and learning the poleaxe. Damn man.
25 min of Matt speaking about managing his pole while holding it. 10/10
And making extensive use of the back end. 👌🏻
ha! like dicks! 🤣
And also don't forget, in situations where you are exposed, it may be a good idea to slide your hand up your pole.
@@Daves_Not_Here_Man_76 That bloody guard stopping him from freely sliding his hands up and down his shaft
He didn't let go of his shaft the whole time!
The Pollaxe is my favorite medieval weapon. So versatile, yet it also excels.
It's awesome weapon. People are obsessed with swords, OK I like them too but man, give me the poleaxe - not a sidearm, proper weapon. The real deal.
Imagine not having good reach
This post is made by the Halberdiers
@@voltekthecyborg7898 imagine not having good reach. This post was made by pike gang
@@admiral_waffles533 Imagine not chopping and hooking
This post was yet again made by the Halberdiers
But other than that, well played
@@voltekthecyborg7898 imagine being easily killed by arrows-
This was made by the spear shield gang.
I like pollaxes as they have a choppy bit, smashy bit, and stabby end
Actually, two stabby ends!
@@dallenhumpherys7911 depends. Somethimes 3 replasing the smashy bit.
It's like the Swiss Army Knife of Pole-arms. So many uses.
To the guard: I was once sparring with some padded polearms. My opponent made a strike that was slightly C-shaped, trying to knock my polearm to the side as it curved to come in to hit me, using the resistance of my weapon as it was knocked aside to help redirect the strike towards my head/torso. Unfortunately, as the same moment I shifted my guard very slightly and instead of hitting my weapon and curving into my body and instead, hit my weapon and slid, full-power down the shaft into my hand, the shaft serving as a guide to help it slide right into my thumb.
Dispite reasonably good hand protection, my thumb nail partly disconnect from the nail bed. A guard at any point along the length of the shaft his blow slid down would have saved my thumb from the blow.
I don't think the guard needs to be right against the hand to be effective for the type of blow it was designed to protect against. It just needs to be _somewhere_ between the impact point where you opponent's weapon would hit and stard sliding down your shaft toward your hand and your hand, and the blows which spend the longest sliding down your weapon will often be the ones which hit with the most force. Moving the guard up would then be a compromise to preserve the protection against that with the ability to move the hands around.
It may also be for the power of trying to punch through plate instead of finding the gaps.
Likewise, it may also be largely a battlefield option, as there may be less range of motion available and you may want to stop a blow rather than just knock it aside if you have a friend there.
Together, these would fit with them existing, but being less used by masters in dueling context where the ability to have unrestricted movement of your hands would be of greater importance.
Full thumb protection? Check!
Pfffffffff
Well thought out. I was thinking even a smaller disk, or even rounded triangular in profile, guard would allow for protection of the unarmored parts of a closed gauntlet with the ability to "skip" over it when slipping the hand up and down. Just need deflection, not a right-angle stop.
This makes all kinds of sense to me. Especially since we know that the sources we have are focused on dueling.
An added point: In a battlefield situation, weapon retention becomes more important.
The chaos of battle makes it far more likely to lose control of your weapon. So the added point of contact could be added value in indexing your hand position on the shaft as well as strengthening the grip on the weapon in an armored gauntlet. Similar to the large disk pommel and guard on a rondel dagger.
Brilliant observation, love it!
I love Matts special enthusiam. He has a new favorite toy and it shows.
Simply the finest medieval knightly combat weapon.
Your enthusiasm for the topic is very evident. I feel it's one of your most original, insightful videos. The hard work you have put into preparation and training has clearly paid dividends.
That rondel seems to be quite useful for delivering powerful thrusts with either end by stopping the hand from slipping (depending on where you put your hand relative to the rondel).
I was going to ask if that might be a reason for having it, to facilitate thrusting. It seems like when stabbing someone in armor, you're going to want all the advantage you can get.
I was thinking the very same thing.
@@daveh7720 same here
Only with the top end surely?
@@Robert399 Moving the hand above the rondel would give one an advantage when thrusting with the tail spike.
That is such a beautiful weapon. Love the cross in the axe face too
I really appreciate that this video is filmed almost entirely as a single shot! Very captivating style of presentation, and great subject matter!
Would you be interested in doing a little bit of research on the Chinese dagger-axe (Ge) and/or Chinese Halberd (Ji). I suspect they're both closer to a western Halberd than a poleaxe in terms of length, but I'm curious to see if there are any lessons/techniques you might be able to transfer by comparing them.
Yes please
I'm supper happy to finally get some quality videos on pole weapons. Kudos!
Not a HEMA participant, but from a physics/ergonomics perspective, can the hand guard be used to generate more force in the thrust, with either end? I can see it helpful against an armored opponent.
It is very unlikely to make a massive difference. The places where you're going to realistically penetrate to begin with, aren't typically strong enough that you need that difference. The types of places the spiky bits go into are places where a dagger thrust is enough, let alone a polearm wielded in two hands with a giant weight on the end of it.
Ultimately, the mass of the head is going to be much more of the deciding factor in that hypothetical. The weakspots are weak enough that you don't need to worry about power, and the strong spots are so strong that power can never become (reliably) enough anyway.
If you're using your point, it's because you have a gap to aim at. If you can't access that gap, you should be trying to smack them with the hammer bit instead.
Thank you for doing these videos on polearms. They are my favorite weapons, but you don't see nearly as many videos done on them as you do with swords and axes.
I'm always happy to hear more about the poleaxe.
Fastest comment I've ever prepared to write: loved that opening. Literally laughing. Good work Matt. Normally come here for the serious discussion, so humour really caught me off-guard. :)
is there a chance you record the pollaxe event and upload it?
would be great to see pollaxe technices.
An overlooked point about the hand guard around @22:20 : If you're doing some 1-handed wrestling, that guard is going to be a crippling obstacle in getting your grip where you want it.
Fantastic video! Very entertaining. Love watching you talk about your passion.
Wow I was surprised to find out they break a lot. As for the skirt protecting from grappling that makes sense. It would be hard to do a double leg if the skirt was long and hard enough...uh...ah...you know what I mean.
The disc hand shield made me think of another weapon. The awl pike. I would love to see a video on that. :)
Anyways great video Matt. :)
Keep in mind that the top and bottom of the axe are also good at penetrating between gaps in armor, especially the bottom part of the axe when doing techniques like the knieryssen (knee ripping) or the Halryssen, as the tip of the axe will stab into any gaps in the back of the knee armor in particular, but also in the back of the torso/neck area. I'd say that is probably the most beneficial part of the axe design vs an armored opponent.
My favourite medieval weapon. Can't get enough of these poleaxe videos. (and halbers, and polearms in general).
REALLY enjoyed that. The poleaxe was more of a technical super weapon than I originally thought. A lot of this is by definition as noobies like me think that a poleaxe, Glaive, Bill, Halberd are the same thing. You covered a lot of this in a previous video. I especially enjoyed this one as you are actively training with it.
I am well pleased with your channel.
This might be an odd comment to make, but I reckon your sponsors must be quite pleased with the enthusiasm you present their products with. I hope that they keep sponsoring your channel. Oh, the poleaxe content was good too!
I’d imagine if a fight devolved into wrestling, a knight could drop their pole axe and draw their rondel dagger. Something tells me if they’re that well equipped, they’d have a sidearm.
I swear there's an earlier video where Matt describes fully-armoured fighting as "wrestling with large knives". Maybe it was the fight analysis of the Arthur vs. Lancelot fight from EXCALIBUR?
Primary, sword on left hip, dagger on right. Standard knight weapon load.
I've recently started getting into the idea of poleweapons after my indoctrination through popular fantasy has become broken. You mentioned you are using wooden poleaxes, where are you getting them from or what should you look out for when getting them?
About the disc hand guard, I think it'll make a huge difference if one wants to press and pierce the plate part of armor like the picture at 15:14 , especially when the shaft is soiled with slippery substances like mud and blood.
9:28
Matt's particularly excited about his pole penetrating something soft, squishy, and inside the other person.
Captain Innuendo strikes again!
Excellent video, covers a lot of points in an organized fashion with little repetition. And those freaking gauntlets look awesome, wearing them instead of doing the video barehanded was a good choice.
This was a fascinating presentation, Matt, thankyou for taking the time 👍👍👍
Hi Matt! Long time subscriber here. would I be able to request a video? I know you have talked before about musketeers how they fought and what weapons they used but would you be able to compile all of that into a video explaining musketeers a little more in depth please? I would like to know their motivations weapons sidearms and their overall adeptness in combat. I would appreciate it. thank you
Ah yes, the anonymous Bolognese sauce...now I'm hungry.
I just love these depictions of Saint George slaying the dragon.
-”Behold, for I have slain the mighty dragon terrorising the land far and near!!”
-” That's all nice and well, but has anyone seen my mutt? His names Steve, he's a bit ugly but luv him to bits I do.”
Bon courage for your event!
5:30: anonymous Bolognese sauce. For people with a hunger for combat.
Must be used with a colander helm
I made a halberd last winter and when I went to test it, it shattered near the head. Thanks for confirming that they need heavy reinforcement and that they break often :P
I love all things poleaxe, Tips for it regarding training is excellent, I would love more videos on in action training
Poll not pole
A point on swinging:
It's not just reach you get from slipping the hand. You get power.
To understand this, get an axe and chop some wood. You'll see pretty soon.
The left hand guides, the right hand drives then slides to the left hand.
Of course theres more to it with a weapon, but you'll get a good idea of what's happening chopping wood.
The English nobility have always made extensive use of 'the back end'.
So glad to see this worthy weapon
5:29 the Bolognese sauce is my favourite
@scholagladiatoria In the event that the shaft breaks, do you think the hand guard could serve more as a handstop if what is left of the poleaxe is wielded more like a warhammer? Not sure if any sources depict such a technique.
That's an interesting question. If that were part of the thinking, wouldn't there be descriptions or artwork of it? I'm not saying you're wrong, just thinking aloud. Is it more likely that the fighter would resort to a sword if the pollaxe broke? Of course it could be done but maybe there were other, better options.
A discussion on poleaxes? You have my attention. This will go onto my reference playlist.
It's interesting how the rondel is very useful for aiding the push
I think the axe blade would be great for hooking or pushing into the gap between any overlapping plates, particularly when it expands to allow for a movement, when it’s hooked and set you are pushing or pulling to take the opponents balance, you can twist as the force is forcing th widening blade further between the two plates, to further expand that gap, if you bring them down while keeping that blade wedged in, it gives you a great chance to drop upon them while unsheathing your dagger, while they are out of control and with clear path home for your dagger, or at least a path with less obstacle, I think that’s why the blade tends towards the shape on you’re example, or a quite shallow curve. The broadly curving shape of most fighting axes, are far more optimized towards slicing into and through fleshy, or textile targets, greatly increasing the distance and depth of the resulting injury. A flat faced axe with a shallow blade gives away (or at least minimizes) much of the benefits to using an axe against the lightly armored. I can’t imagine why that flat or nearly flat shape would be (almost) ubiquitous, on axe bladed pole axes, unless it was optimized for other than “normal,” unarmored axe combat.
A little oil helps when you’re sliding your hands up and down the pole, especially over the knobbly bit near the head. Don’t use so much force that you break your shaft. Happy training.
Has become the Logical answer to
Weapons especially the short version
That is a Ultimate weapon ..
Really the one I would pick
For a battlefield..
Our local museum has an exhibit of medieval arms and armor right now. The exhibit included a selection of pole arms including a pole axe. The single most intimidating thing in the whole exhibit was an English Billhook.
18:20 "look robust" this is what I was saying on an earlier video - Now for a video on hafting and securing the heads of spears, poleaxes, and other polearms on the hafts. Type of wood, depth of socket, circumference of socket/haft, flanges, number and type of pins, etc....
Poleaxes are so beautiful, lovely weapon.
i am only starting to get into armored combat. my teacher from high school is an long time armored fighter on the other hand, and he focuses on long sword and great sword fighting. we had a first practice last September and we ended up sparring with a halberd i had built, and a zweihander a couple of rounds. what we found is that both were equally matched in a long range scenario. however grappling the halberd is very hard to work with, while the zweihander is very effective. would love to see u guys some sparring in full plate and some odd weapon pairing
What is a professor doing at a high school?
You know that is an academic title?
@@fantikawerner8029 yea i messed up he was a high school teacher, then became a professor at ASU
@@crisis53142 oh then its fine. I cant stand the people at college calling everybody who teaches a professor.
Its a life time of work to become one, at least in real science.
Perfect analysis.
Says a lot regarding the Lawbringer's moveset in For Honor, being exactly how Matt describes the uses of the poleaxe.
Ad mortem.
I wish we could post photos here, as the pollax always reminds me of those old fashioned can openers with two blades on one end.
Thanks Matt,.. this was super interesting.
Brilliant video. Very interesting!
Thx for a vid about the best weapon in med history!
Also, if you make a strike with the croix (heavy end) and you slide your forward hand upwards towards the head you can quickly regain control of the momentum and then feint to a thrust or displacement.
As for wrestling, there is a lot of it with pollaxe from my experience, it's just mostly done with the weapon. Look at the Halrysen/Knierysen and the backlever throw, even the hand rippings are a form of grappling... when you combine that with the stuff in the plays of the demihache in general the wrestling becomes very physically intensive. It's just that as soon as someone is pushed off balance back wards, or on the ground in front of you, you can complete your motion with either a schlag with the axe, a thrust with the dague, or otherwise finish them with the pollaxe without needing to go into grappling on the ground (where you would be better off pulling out your dagger honestly).
And yeah, that rondel guard is a huge pain, it limits a lot of the better actions for really insubstantial protection.
I'm not sure straight spikes are best for striking- When you swing something it generally moves in an arc, so a curved spike can present a more straight point to the target depending on angles.
I imagine that in combat a weapon not glancing is often times more important than the weapon doing as much damage as possible. A straight spike might be less efficient but is it less likely to skip off armour? Maybe
I'd imagine a curved spike is a lot harder to stab with effectively , maybe a tradeoff of power/versatility ? Would explain why weapons like crow's beak have a straight spike (stabbing) and a curved one (striking)
@@pp-wo1sd a curved spike would limit those angles of use for sure
@@edstringer1138 Sure if it's very curved but I think a slight curve would still penetrate in a straight attack but since a full swing with the beak wouldn't be dead straight anyway as the trajectory of swinging anything arcs naturally around your centre. it's rarer that you'd attacy with a trajectory dead perpendicular to the haft (unless you pushing with a high grip) as most attacks curve with the body's natural angular momentum.
Thanks. Really interesting video. Poleaxe is my favorite weapon.
Sounds like you’re saying « le jus de la hache » (« axe s juice »), which cracks me up every time
Barely relevant larp anecdote: I LOVE grappling when I'm using a spear. It's a last ditch scenario, because even if you manage to slide down fast enough, sword and shield has a MASSIVE advantage when they're in range to strike. So I like to use their momentum, and take them to a range where they can't strike effectively, but I can, with a lovely sneaky little dagger. Or more likely, your friends come and help because using a pole without friends is death. Running works too, but it's usually better to die than to risk your formation breaking as everyone turns to chase the guy chasing you.
Also love tips for purchasing poleaxe
In the Marines our bayonet training (early 1990’s) was basically pole weapons training I guess. I held the rifle with the blade to the left side of my head/body because the butt of the rifle goes seated in your right shoulder when firing (usually). With almost every video now I keep wondering if there’s going to be another channel that will counter these great points so strongly. Lol
👍. Love to see some videos/techniques on the English Bill Hook
I wonder if the “guard” was primarily added to assist in pushing with the cross in addition to the obvious protection.
Curiously, Pietro Monte favored a rather long pollaxe, with total length beyond what a person can reach above their head. & certain late-16th-century English halberds, intended for fighting in armor in formation, could be quite short: 5-6ft according to Sir John Smythe & George Silver.
Thanks for knowledge and common sense
The guard would probably be more useful on a battlefield than in a duel, due to the limited physical space, both for the wielder and the opponents. You'd potentially be facing a lot of stabbing attacks, mostly from the front, and the more constrained environment would limit the types of attacks the user would be doing anyway.
I wish he would’ve clarified if the pollax was meant to use when armored or unarmored.
The innuendo was strong with this one
Polaxes and halberds are great, more of them pls
I wonder if the rondel guard is more useful in a battlefield context where you have to stand in formation and would likely have to fight very differently to the one on one duels we see treatises describing.
If you're the type of person who'd use a pollaxe on the battlefield, you wouldn't be fighting in formation like that.
@@Ketsuekisan Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure knights and men at arms fought in formation as well, if they diddn't how would they cover their backs or tell who was on their side.
I think that Guard is there to turn the Pollaxe as an impromptu lance when the Knight has to mount and give chase or join an counter charge.
Great video. Thanks!
Very cool video! It's a super interesting weapon and has that certain martial beauty.
I feel like there isn't much grappling in the pollaxe section is that once you are at that point in a pollaxe fight, it's dagger time. Pollaxes are hitting the ground and rondels are coming out.
I also make extensive use of the back-end…
I wonder if a polypropylene staff would be good for a more durable pollaxe trainer. Though I don't know if polypropylene is actually more durable than wood, or if that's just manufacturer hyperbole.
Yes, we have been talking about synthetic materials for the shafts. Though conversely, the fact that even well made pollaxes break is a good reminder than striking with full force can bite you in the ass in the end 🙂
@@scholagladiatoria True, but HEMA is expensive enough a hobby as it it lol. I'd rather have a longer lasting trainer that won't need replacing as often.
@@scholagladiatoria : An unimportand note: Man kann sich in den Arsch beißen is also used in german :-)
For me it seems like the guard is something for polaxes for war. I never fought with them in a battle, but I think, you won't swing your axe around very much but have the top always pointed towards the enemies. In this case the guard ist very useful. Maybe the polaxes without the guard are specifically for duelling, where you have way more room to switch the hands and apply actual techiques from the duelling-oriented systems.
I would imagine that if someone managed to successfully close the distance with you while you're holding a poleaxe, your best option would probably be to drop it and transition to your dagger. Similarly, if your opponent manages to throw you, you're probably going to lose your poleaxe as you crash to the ground. At that point, you're either going to want to get back up or reverse your opponent (both easier said than done).
I am of the opinion the "guard" was less of a guard, and more a force multiplier for the thrust, much like the rondels on a dagger. I have no proof, but it makes little sense to me otherwise.
thats actually pretty interesting. Yea, if youre thrusting with a weapon like that, the guard would prevent your hand sliding on the weapon and reducing the force behind a strike
Thought exactly the same thing. You can put all the pressure without having to worry about slippery gauntlets.
I’ve seen demonstrations where the pollaxe is used as a lever to throw the opponent to the ground.
Working the pole is important for any long and pointy bit.
there is A LOT of wrestling in the pollaxe treatises. Inparticular if you include wristhooks, neck hooks and leghoists as wrestling or a lead up to wrestling, but also just dropping the axe and throwing them full body is all over the treatises, quite a bit in various talhoffers...
also anecdotal sources show a fair bit of wrestling, like Jaques de lalangs fights.
That intro was like Mormons With Attitude.
Would you say that the axe is less of an axe and more of a double pointed hook?
thanks for the video 👍🏻
The bit about poleaxes breaking makes me wonder if that was one of the reasons for adopting a greatsword/zweihander. It would be all steel/iron and far less susceptible to breaking under it's own weight on a swing.
Awesome, now I know exactly how to handle my shaft.
My Pollaxe has a short spike coming out of the Hammer.
Several years back I found out that the Pollaxe is also quite handy in a confined space against Home-invaders armed with pangas.
You were actually attacked by home invaders with pangas?
@@Likexner - I live in South Africa
Re breakages. Back then the wood used would have been seasoned stock dedicated for weapon use.
But now seasoned stock has been replaced with -almost invariably- kiln dried material. Usually for wood uses that aren't dedicated to poll-weapon needs. Quite possibly made too dry and brittle as carpenters dont want to use timber with the capacity to keep "moving" as it continues to shrink as moisture is driven out. Weapon shafts would probably retain a higher moisture content than modern building stock and be prolly less brittle to sudden loads impacts and shocks.
I think....
Which doesn't compare well with wood seasoned with the end in mind of shafted weapon use.
Doesn't explain broken pollaxes being commonly depicted in period paintings and whatnot.
@@caseyhart9916 I didn't think that was in need of explanation... But since you seem to need one, its hardly a brain strainer. The timber's capacity to survive strains and impacts in the desperation of life and death battle - was exceeded. Probably repeatedly. Till it failed. But I think that commercially available woods nowadays would survive those conditions markedly less well by dint of being drier and more brittle than mediaeval seasoned stock. At that time it'd have been seasoned for the particular needs of weapons shafts and so would have been more moist and impact resistant than modern timbers. But even so wood shafts might have been seen as a consumable element of the weapon and as a result it might have been reshafted a number of times during its life. Quite possibly by those collecting discarded broken weaponry from battlefields.
"More on that later."
Matt's been hanging out with Lloyd, I think.
Beautiful mitten gauntlets.
I wonder if the axe version was more popular with groups that had to deal with many unarmored opponents in addition to armored opponents?
Unarmoured opponents in 15th century? Hm, on battlefield perhaps persons not really belonging to fighting part of army. As a german, i don' t know english word for ,Tross'. In armies of 15th, even 16th and very early 17th century the nonfighting ,Tross' was often larger than real fighters ( mercenaries, last feudal groups and first levy of militia).This ,Tross' had been servants of knights, nobles or nonnoble officers, craftsmen for producing/repairing equipment, traders, freight coach drivers, doctors ( what was called doctors in those days), wifes of NCOs, maids ( sometimes more whores , in german Huren, than maids) , etc. etc. This Tross persons had been no combat personal, only persons, doing some auxillary/ support work. So this traders/ freight coach drivers transported food, cloth, equipment, the women, both serious wifes and maids, and whores cooked food for the soldiers, washed their cloth, and helped the ,doctors' to look after wounded soldiers, the servants of nobles etc. did paperwork, and in case of plundering and terrorizing an area this Tross was important. But: This civilian or semimilitary persons had no armour and mostly only weapons for civilian selfdefence. Next possibility,of unarmoured opponents in wartime could have been second or third line of levies, in german called ,Landsturm' ( yes, related to Volkssturm), nearly untrained men armed with cheap, old, their private arms or dangerous tools. Or civilians , trying to defend their food store, cattle and female family members.
Unarmoured opponents in peacetime? Criminals or rebelling civilians, mostly not wellarmed or trained. But: In peacetime also Knights and nobles had been unarmoured and not armed with polearms, exept hunting spears.
@@brittakriep2938 interesting thoughts. Another possibility is guard duty while occupying a captured town. There are likely to be hostile civilians who may be armed. They would still want to be ready for armored combat since opposing forces could launch a counter attack at any time.
@@johnbennett1465 : Don' t know english situation. Here in Germany, i come from swabian region, in HRE,times most split part of HRE ( 100 independent states, the Reichsritterschaft not included). .Town and Town had not been the same. There had been , independent imperial towns/ Reichsstädte, and ,landsässige Städte' belonging to a noble or spiritual Lord. There had been large and rich imperial towns like Frankfurt, Ulm, Augsburg or Nürnberg, but also tiny imperial towns like Zell am Harmersbach. Inside of noble or spiritual lordships, there had been capital towns/residences, district capitals and rural towns like Zavelstein or Blumenfeld, twelve to thirty houses inside the walls. So size and equipment of medieval/ rennaisance german town guards/ police force/ militia is a thing for its own.
.
@@brittakriep2938 sorry if I was not clear. I am talking about soldiers acting as guards just after a town/village/etc. was conquered. I think the local guards are likely to be one be one of the bigger threats to the soldiers trying to keep control.
I can see a slightly shorter version for the impending Zombie Apocalypse. 😉
Short front spike and a hammer and axe that can be used to break through a door or wall if the need arises. Axe head can also be used to help in climbing over a walk or reach a fire escape in urban areas.
What’s the difference between a poleaxe and a halberd? Possibly the halberd has a hook and the poleaxe has a hammer ? Or just a rear spike is the only difference.
A halberd usually won’t have a hammer and will usually have an extra bit of length, it’s more of a commoner’s weapon as opposed to a knightly weapon.
Great one 👌