Great video, it seems like most misconceptions come from fiction, with knights swinging long swords like they are 100 kilos and rogues wielding rapiers like they are pencils.
people often think they are faster and easier to use because the weight is in the hilt allowing for easier tip control and for it to feel lighter (they are still the same weight but holding a kilo in your hand feels lighter than holding a kilo on the end of a stick) great video as always dude
Mel F well that's partly true actually, the rapier was a civilian weapon and, as swords have been for most of western post-roman history, was just as much a statussymbol as it was a weapon. New advancements in metallurgy allowed the constuction of the rapier and made such a complex hilt somewhat affortable. So having a fancy hilt was definitely part of the rapier, cause it also was like, look at my fancy sword. That doesn't mean it was its only purpose, as weapon it was one of the most effective sword designs ever.
I used to fence when I was younger, and I really loved epee and foil. I got a chance to play around with an actual rapier when a Destreza instructor came around and showed us a few moves. Man some of those techniques are really brutal on the forearms especially when you take into account the weight difference between a fencing foil over an actual (though be it blunt) Rapier.
Well, yeah, thrusts are an awful lot deadlier, but unless you hit the heart, they are not incapacitating, whereas when you land a decent cut to the lim, you will either sever it, or damage it to the point when your opponent won't be able to use it. There where situations in the past, when duelists hit each other several times with thrusts, but still were able to fight. Yes, they were pretty much dead, but it took time for them to die
Found this video amongst your videos after finding out Rapier was your favourite in the Q&A. Not sure if you know but Matt Easton (or Scholagladitoria if you prefer) has said more than once that for a 1v1 civilian situation that rapier and dagger is probably the hardest to beat.
It's a more efficient sword, it's designed to target vital organs with minimum effort (not that it doesn't take effort to use) compared to the broad sword, but the trade off was it's fear factor, although it was an effective killing sword it doesn't have the savagery and barbarity of the broad sword, that strikes fear into other on coming challengers. The enemy is more likely to want to give up after seeing limbs flying off and hearing the cries wounded soldiers slowly dieing a painful death compared to someone just dropping down dead.
Something I've noticed about weaponary in general. The more specialised a weapon is in it's role, the harder they are to weild. The weapons that serve two roles at the same time, seem to be easier to learn and practice.
I love rapiers, especially with swept hilts. They look awesome and they're great for unarmoured fighting. They're a bit of a pain though because one handed holding a piece of heavy metal with an outstretched hand tests the endurance.
Btw, I watched the test by Matt Easton already and rewatched it now and I can't believe how many sparks were flying, they struck that thing really hard and it was bent but unbroken. Also, it may not have broken the blade but the guy at the end had +2 to disarm skill....
1:54 I was only listening to the video and heard "because i use this for breakfast". made me think for a second at what kind of breakfast includes swords.
I used to hate rapiers because well, I didn't really know what a rapier is, after research they became one of my favourite swords, so cant like this video enough!
A rapier is not only exceptionally deadly, it's also highly defensive due to the fact that in stance with extended blade even a longsword user is in your kill range before he can reach you. Let's assume there's two of you, one with a longsword and one with a rapier. The rapier user will be standing sideways in his guard and the longsword user stands at a slight angle. This means that you keep your centerline further from your opponent. This is an excellent deterrent if you're for example a reasonably light troop such as a musketeer as it will keep the majority of enemies from wanting to close on you; you can lethally stab them before they can reach you. Hence fighting you is a pretty bad option, because even if they kill you they've probably been run through and are currently bleeding out. Add to that mix the option to also off hand a pistol... Personally I really would not want to advance against a rapier user without wearing plate (but if you are then he's not going to want to fight you, he's just going to keep his distance or run away because he's at a disadvantage).
The speed perceived in the rapier is its ability to make offensive and defensive movements very small. I'm a Salvatore Fabris geek, myself. Where are you training Capoferro?
Great video! I had some questions about the rapier after having read about them and this not only answered them but has me viewing the rapier with much more regard!
as former sport fencer: modern fencing equipment is all about reducing the possible damage in case of an accident. you want very light blades for very quick nimble movement, the blades are extremely flexible and thing to make thrusint all the easier but the weight limitation really is about nimble fencing, the damage in a thrust doesnt come from the blades weight but the force of the body behind it. fencing gear has top be abtle to withstand 10k Newtons of force per cm³ at least to be considered safe enough to be used also there are 3 types of sport fencing, epee, foil and sabre - the latter is the only one were hitting (slashing) is allowed And to your point about the rapier - musclewise a foil and epee may actually weigh very little but you hold them extended all the time and that really puts a lot of stress ond your muscles and you tire out very quickly - try and hold a book stretched out infront of you - id be surprised if you hold out longer than a minute. Similiar most movements in sport fencing are done with the wrist and the wrist has very small muscles so moving the blade around really does become hard. "Anyone" can pick up an arming sword or longsword and start training - in sport fencing you really gotta builsd up those small muscles that we usually never train in order to actually fight and that is quite time consuming. Similiar like bow shooting .- if you want to be a war archer and use heavy draweeight bows you gotta train for years before you can actually use warbows
Arming swords are the same weight but you hold them ready behind or beside your shield. You hold the rapier out in front of you and it is very tiring. One nice trick is to support your sword hand with your off hand when you have a quiet moment. Puts off fatigue.
A reason for calling rapiers being called faster might be the center of mass being closer to the handle (usually) allowing for the point to be moved faster.
Great video! The triangular cross section on the smallsword allows the blade to be withdrawn from an opponant’s body. You see a similar triangular cross section on socket bayonets.
The ability to withdraw it comes, in a large part, from eliminating the tendency to flex as it penetrates. If the blade wobbles back and forth going in then that's a lot of friction when trying to pull it out. Kind of like a Chinese Finger Trap. The triangular cross section stays far more rigid while still offering significant weight reduction over a cylindrical spike. This makes it easier to withdraw.
The thing is, thrusts are not a something you ever see in games and even in movies they are under-represented so the rapier is not something that people really know, respect, like, not sure what to call it. The fan factor is minimal behind it. It's not something exotic like katanas, not something iconic like the typical medieval 2 handed sword or the gladius so they are kind of uncommon in the media...
There are a lot of such swords which are very uncommon, but the rapier was commonly used in the 16/17 Century and at that period gun powder weapons wiere prmary being used and pikes of course, but if you played Empire Total War or Napoleonic Total War games, you see that in some duels of noblemen they use rapiers.
I suspect you don't see thrusts in movies because they're not nearly as safe to do with sharp-looking weapons in a way that still looks convincing for the camera. In games, I've seen thrusts plenty. Mount & Blade and Kingdom Come: Deliverance both have directional attacking systems where you can choose to cut from different directions or to thrust. I've not played them, but I believe that at least with some weapon times the Dark Souls series has thrusts. What I don't think I've ever seen a game attempt to replicate is the aspect of blade control that's common in rapier fencing. The common thrust in Spanish "Destreza" fencing involves sliding your blade against your opponent's as you thrust, forcing your opponent to make a large disengaging action if they want to hit you at the same time. You're controlling your opponent's blade to keep yourself safe as you attack. No games I know of try to do that.
All the old swashbuckler movies had them. They usually used an epee or foil to make it easier on the actors but they were supposed to be representing the rapier. Pretty much every Hollywood movie of the 1930’s-50’s that involved swordplay did. During and after the 50’s they started making more movies about medieval knights but I don’t think it replaced it in popular thought at all. Matter of fact the rapier is super iconic and I totally disagree with you there.
you have a good build for using a rapier--but as a 170cm (5'7") minime to cousins who played guard and tackle as college American football player--at 90 to 95 kg I was benching about 160 to 180 kilo so a more cut centric blade would work better for me
Smallsword can be used for cutting too (not all but some), thrusting is faster than cutting, rapier blade is more aerodynamic than regular sword (due to the narrow blade) which mean easier/faster to move, adding to that the fact you often need to move only the point of the blade which mean smaller movement, modern fencing's lunge go as far as your body goes so it's not shorter than rapier fencing's lunge. Also you shouldn't put the sword on your wall on the edge of the blade
> modern fencing's lunge go as far as your body goes so it's not shorter than rapier fencing's lunge Especially since in some forms of rapier fencing (e.g. Destreza) you don't really lunge _at all_. Instead, you thrust by transverse stepping closer to your opponent.
I think the "faster" thing about the Rapier is how you can move the blade's tip around to threaten an opponent from one area of his body to another with better wrist work control that's allowed by the balance point of the Rapier being further back near the cross guard, I'll be damned if I could do that sort of wrist work with my Arming Sword having that its balance point being further up the blade and that resulting levering effect is far more stressful on the wrist....
As far as cutting through a rapier goes, what would actually happen in such cases is that the steel would break, which incidentally is how machines mechanically cut steel. They don't actually cut, they create a controlled break from one end of a metal sheet to the other. This could happen with any sword, but three factors that would make a rapier particularly susceptible are: Non-homogeneous steel - There's a structural weakness somewhere along the blade Over-hardening - As you said, rapiers were meant to thrust, and it wasn't uncommon to increase their rigidity by hardening the blade to a higher degree. Harder blades also hold a sharper edge. Straight and spindly - Rapier blades are not only thinner and lighter than most swords, they have very little if any taper. Tapering doesn't just help distribute a beefier sword's weight towards the balance point, it actually makes the weapon stronger at its most integral point, namely the base. This makes the whole weapon stronger. If you take a thin, perfectly straight blade, however, with preexisting structural faults and limit it's flex and toughness, what you have is indeed a sword that's *more* likely to break. Likely itself is a relative term, but in any case it's not a phenomenon you could judge using modern examples made from significantly tougher steel. Also (this is just a hunch) given various buggery laws ubiquitously in effect throughout Europe during the period when arming and longswords were still carried by some people and rapiers were growing in popularity, there's likely no reliable historic text to draw upon in determining the ratio of homosexuals who preferred carrying rapiers over the standard models. It is worth noting, paradoxically however, that some of the last holdouts were the Scotts, a hyper-masculine culture who shunned frilly little swords in favor of their stout, basket-hilted traditional weapons, and who's men would typically walk around in dresses similar to those worn by girls attending old Catholic schools, only a little longer usually with no panties... so, really quite similar then, except that they were longer.
would you say that a rapier could sever a tendon in the hand or arm, to disable that limb. or , can a well place cut to the neck cut major blood vessels . cause being able to disable or kill your opponent with a cut like that would be very nice to have in a weapon . I know a lot people think for some reason , you have to cut a whole body limb off for a weapon to be effect in a cut . I know smaller cut at the can be just as effect at disabling is just as effective. so would you say a rapier cut certainly disable or kill if the cut was in the right spor
The Rapier is one of my favorites also. I like all kinds of swords. I have a swept hilt rapier, 2- handed and hand and a half sword. Would like to get more proficient with all of them. Great video. Thanks.
Here is a couple of questions I have. I cannot imagine a rapier used with a shield. Also, I believe that with equal skills a fighter with a shield is more likely to win than a fighter without it (which can be wrong - I am not an expert at all). So the questions: - Can be a rapier used with a shield (cannot imagine that, except for bucklers) - Are there any reasons not to use a shield if it's so useful
you could use a shield with a rapier but it wouldn't be really smart, you are better off using your left hand for balance or grappling and yes, the shield became largely unused when plate armor started to develop, small ones were still used by cavalry men sometimes but footsoldiers didn't carry them anymore since polearms dominated the battlefield, with more polearms and guns people slowly stopped wearing armor so a 1hit kill weapon like a rapier became more common. you could technically use a shield with your rapier but if it was a dual and 1 hand a shield an 1 did not then the one without the shield would most likely win.
N. Giganti, R. Capoferro and S. Fabris, the three most referenced authors for rapier fighting in HEMA, all talked about the use of the rapier with a rotella (a mid-sized strapped shield) and I think that Giganti also discussed rapier and buckler in his infamous book two. An alternative to the buckler was the targa, which could more adequately defend against thrusts (because it was square-shaped and not round). Main problem of the shield will always be ease of transport, especially alongside the rapier which is overall more of a civilian weapon (why would you stroll around town with a shield?). The only use of such a combo would be in a prepared duel or a demonstration of skill.
I know that I'm super late but rapiers can be really fast. More then a misconception it is that when saying they are fast it is meant that the point of the blade achieves a great angular speed since, as said in the video, the rapier is rather long and most of the weight is in the guard/hilt instead of the blade.
do you know of any dealers that sell quality rapiers? or any particular companies or models that are quality? I've wanted one for a while but dont really know what to trust because of what I've heard from people saying that quality rapiers are hard to come by.
Actually not all rapier techniques involved extending the arm all the time, that's what usually give a lot of people problems with learning to use one. Other techniques don't extend the arm unless they are thrusting, other wise that would tire you out sooner. Though later rapier designs were lighter, that might be when leaving the arm extended came around.
When you said you used it for practice, it sounded as if you said breakfast :D As for the myth of cutting rapiers, I think that comes from the miniseries of "The Count of Monte Cristo". Although he doesn't cut through the opponents sword, he breaks it by hitting the side of the blade. This is indeed possible, although it would require metalfatigue, slag in the metal(ie. poor worksmanship/material) or a pre-existing crack in the blade.
I have 3 Questions I hope you can answer. 1. Can fully armored knights use them in combat? 2. If an opponents sword was caught in the cage, or the rapiers neat hand guard, would that prove beneficial to the rapiers user to either break or disarm his opponent or bad if his hand was unarmored. 3. That dagger below your Feder sword, what is that called? I've seen them with some rapier pictures prior and was wondering if they were used in tandem with a rapier.
Taijess Basnaw 1: Technically speaking, depends on their gauntlets. Would they? No, while fighting armored opponent's a rapier or really any sword simply is not as good as a poleaxe or mace for fighting against armor. 2: This mostly depends on the skill, type of swept guard, and situation. This can end good or bad for the user depending on the situation. 3: I'm not sure, I saw something like it made by Windlass
1. Can? Sure. But it doesn't make a lot of sense. The defining quality of a rapier is the hand protection which a fully armored knight wouldn't need because he already has armor on his hands. Anyway, when rapier or rapier-like weapons were used widely by military, the time of the fully armored knight was already over. 2. Most of the time getting the opponent's sword in your guard is really bad because in like 99% of the cases it means a hit to your hand since you don't use rapiers with armored gloves). Only when you're lucky the opponent's point will miss your hand and then you are in an advantageous position because you essentially bind the most dangerous part of the blade. Can you break his sword? Only if your opponent has a low-quality blade in the first place. There is no chance in hell you can break a properly heat treated blade. Not even the so-called sword-breakers could really break swords. 3. It's called a parrying dagger. It's one of most common companion weapons for rapier fencers.
Great video man, keep up the good work! Also, on a side note, how would you feel about making a video about staves/quarter staves etc? Would that be hard for you? ^_^
depends, it's easier to hack with a shorter blade. the effective portion to cut with is about 2/3 into the blade so it moves up quite a bit with a rapier and most of the weight is in the handle so there's not much force behind it
is it possible for a saber to have a straight blade? to add some context, my friend drew a character holding a sword and called the sword a rapier even though the blade of the sword was thicker then most rapiers i've seen and the guard looked like a naval cutlass guard, so i called it a straight-blade saber and i would like to know if either of us was right or if we're both wrong
It depends how you define a saber. Some define it as a sword with a curved blade, specifically a forward curved sword. But others at some point called also some straight swords sabers. And to make things more complicated saber just means sword in french
knives actually do have a lot of mass in them. Knives are usually very thick so that they don't bend when you try to cut something and they usually are quite tall so you can press down hard. A standard meat knife would actually have a lot of force in a chop as it's so thick and tall.
To prevent the death of your opponent... You don't practice swordplay with sharp bladed and pointy weapons, manslaughter carries jail time in most countries.
Ok, you can't cut through a rapier with a long sword, but isn't it harder to stop the hit cuz rapier's blade are lighter? I belive you can parry it somehow, but can you block it?
Hopefully, Tom Leoni and Christian Tobler already tried it so that you don't have to! Rapiers aren't (significantly) lighter than longswords for that matter. www.salvatorfabris.org/RapierParryingLongsword.shtml
I didn't say rapier is lighter than longsword. I said blade of a rapier is lighter than blade of a longsword. As I understand from the video - rapier's balance moved to a handle. I could get it wrong ofc)
I thought Small Swords were smaller versions of Rapiers, that were developed for officers abroad ships... much like the Cutlass was a shrunken down Sabre for sailors.
Watching Matt Easton's (Scholagladitoria) video, it was evident he was having a lot of fun showing how indestructible a rapier can be. He certainly was having more fun than his friend holding the rapier as Matt assaulted it vigorously with everything at hand.
@@donna30044 my point is this: using a short scimatar that has enough mass or a bulky macete and cutting at a proper angle can break a rapier. Now of course the term rapier is pretty broad and most honest people include the foil epee estoc, etc in the category of rapiers but even so mass does matter. I mentioned the angle because at a too straight angle it probably just bend and at a too low angle it will bounce off. Probably at something between 45 and 60 degrees angle should cut if hit with enough force.
U can easily tell it’s a rapier because of it’s handle and blade.Also basically what he’s saying is the swords before the rapier lead into the making of the rapier
@@SnapJelly Hi okay, at first, sry my english! At second, i love training with them. Of course, you can find differences between federsteel training rapiers, original rapiers and synthetic rapiers (Black fencer) in the way, how the blade to blade kontakt feels, BUT in the most ways, the feel *very* realistik. Wight, balance and flexibility is very close to the originals. Flexibility is even closer to original battle ready rapier, than federsteel training Rapier (they are to soft). The main plus is the savety plus. They are less dangerus and painfull (they still painfull, but compare to steel ....;)) in full contakt sparring and you need lesser heavy protektion than with steel ones. Of course you need Basic Protektion ( Fence Mask!!!!!! and so on) but lesser heavy one than with steel blades. You can do *light* sparring only with Mask! VERY PLUS point for me! The Black Fencer are not cheap for synthetic rapiers , but they worth every penny! Thx for your Video!
Rapiers are "light" in that you have the length of a longsword with *only* the weight of an arming sword. They are "fast" because that length means a small movement of the hand turns into a large movement of the tip. (But there's a maximum speed your brain can keep up with, so once you've reached that the ability to go faster doesn't help much.) As for cutting off arms or hands or heads... It depends on the precise design. Some were more specialized than others. But... Well... ua-cam.com/video/9MloYsf7XII/v-deo.html
Thank you for a great and informative video!! Please, would you make a suggestion as to one, or more, of your preferred fighting battle rapier for me to purchase?
My third lesson in, I misjudged the distance of a lunge and tried to parry it down at the weak part. Caught it at the strong part. Guided it straight into my crotch. I know all about how rapiers aren't flimsy lol
Hi! Awesome videos! Could this sword also be used on horseback? Just wondering what kind of swords of the period (17th century) were used on horseback. Thanks!
Rapiers were never used on horseback, there were specific cavalry swords and sabres which were often not that much different from infantry sabres only a little bigger.
a common misconception about the rapier, it is not really mean't for close up, in reality you are supposed to take it by the ricasso and take your arm back and give it a mighty good heave at your opponent like a spear
You have made me think about them in a good way :)
Is that some kind of accomplishment?
All in all, they are finesse weapons with a d8 Piercing Damage, with the option of applying Slashing damage if you wish
That is literally the reason I'm watching rapier vids
Shit I've been caught to
At least they haven’t been given the Light property like all the other plebes say they are.
Yuuki Kuroutarou
*laughs in dual wielder feat*
Great video, it seems like most misconceptions come from fiction, with knights swinging long swords like they are 100 kilos and rogues wielding rapiers like they are pencils.
The rapier's by far my favorite sword. It's not only as effective as hell, it's also really beautiful.
people often think they are faster and easier to use because the weight is in the hilt allowing for easier tip control and for it to feel lighter (they are still the same weight but holding a kilo in your hand feels lighter than holding a kilo on the end of a stick) great video as always dude
Something tells me this guy is the reincarnation of a Spanish swashbuckler.
Nah Italian not Spanish very different styles
Yeah, I'm gay
G- ood
A- T
Y- rapier fencing
Toit
I thought you said "Cause I use this for breakfast" 1:53 xD
Well you need something to spread butter on your bread.
This one got me. xD
Seems like everyone on UA-cam owns the same Rapier.
Noble Tiger It's a nice and affordable rapier
Mel F well that's partly true actually, the rapier was a civilian weapon and, as swords have been for most of western post-roman history, was just as much a statussymbol as it was a weapon. New advancements in metallurgy allowed the constuction of the rapier and made such a complex hilt somewhat affortable. So having a fancy hilt was definitely part of the rapier, cause it also was like, look at my fancy sword. That doesn't mean it was its only purpose, as weapon it was one of the most effective sword designs ever.
You are mostly correct, but my master has a couple of original XVIII century small swords that are actually very sharp at the tip
I used to fence when I was younger, and I really loved epee and foil. I got a chance to play around with an actual rapier when a Destreza instructor came around and showed us a few moves. Man some of those techniques are really brutal on the forearms especially when you take into account the weight difference between a fencing foil over an actual (though be it blunt) Rapier.
Well, yeah, thrusts are an awful lot deadlier, but unless you hit the heart, they are not incapacitating, whereas when you land a decent cut to the lim, you will either sever it, or damage it to the point when your opponent won't be able to use it. There where situations in the past, when duelists hit each other several times with thrusts, but still were able to fight. Yes, they were pretty much dead, but it took time for them to die
I know you're not hispanic, but you gotta do the line from Princess Bride lol the hair, the sword, and when you have the facial hair... yup
Nathan Marraffino Well the Netherlands was once under Spain so close enough
"I first produced my pistol. Then produced my rapier. I say, stand and deliver or the devil he may take ya."
A classic
Found this video amongst your videos after finding out Rapier was your favourite in the Q&A.
Not sure if you know but Matt Easton (or Scholagladitoria if you prefer) has said more than once that for a 1v1 civilian situation that rapier and dagger is probably the hardest to beat.
It's a more efficient sword, it's designed to target vital organs with minimum effort (not that it doesn't take effort to use) compared to the broad sword, but the trade off was it's fear factor, although it was an effective killing sword it doesn't have the savagery and barbarity of the broad sword, that strikes fear into other on coming challengers.
The enemy is more likely to want to give up after seeing limbs flying off and hearing the cries wounded soldiers slowly dieing a painful death compared to someone just dropping down dead.
Something I've noticed about weaponary in general. The more specialised a weapon is in it's role, the harder they are to weild. The weapons that serve two roles at the same time, seem to be easier to learn and practice.
I love rapiers, especially with swept hilts. They look awesome and they're great for unarmoured fighting. They're a bit of a pain though because one handed holding a piece of heavy metal with an outstretched hand tests the endurance.
Most say that katanas only get their curve when they’re quenched
so are they straight until they get wet?
Btw, I watched the test by Matt Easton already and rewatched it now and I can't believe how many sparks were flying, they struck that thing really hard and it was bent but unbroken. Also, it may not have broken the blade but the guy at the end had +2 to disarm skill....
1:54 I was only listening to the video and heard "because i use this for breakfast". made me think for a second at what kind of breakfast includes swords.
I used to hate rapiers because well, I didn't really know what a rapier is, after research they became one of my favourite swords, so cant like this video enough!
Only second to the Jian, The Rapier is my favorite sword. You inspired me to look into old rapier manuscripts for inspiration to add to my Jianfa
A rapier is not only exceptionally deadly, it's also highly defensive due to the fact that in stance with extended blade even a longsword user is in your kill range before he can reach you. Let's assume there's two of you, one with a longsword and one with a rapier. The rapier user will be standing sideways in his guard and the longsword user stands at a slight angle. This means that you keep your centerline further from your opponent.
This is an excellent deterrent if you're for example a reasonably light troop such as a musketeer as it will keep the majority of enemies from wanting to close on you; you can lethally stab them before they can reach you. Hence fighting you is a pretty bad option, because even if they kill you they've probably been run through and are currently bleeding out.
Add to that mix the option to also off hand a pistol... Personally I really would not want to advance against a rapier user without wearing plate (but if you are then he's not going to want to fight you, he's just going to keep his distance or run away because he's at a disadvantage).
isn't this the basic message from Rob Roy? Really, the guy with the smaller blade was kicking Rob's ass through most of that duel.
The speed perceived in the rapier is its ability to make offensive and defensive movements very small.
I'm a Salvatore Fabris geek, myself. Where are you training Capoferro?
Great video! I had some questions about the rapier after having read about them and this not only answered them but has me viewing the rapier with much more regard!
I think It would be great if you Made a video on The cutlass And The saberAnd gave your opinion on each weapon
as former sport fencer: modern fencing equipment is all about reducing the possible damage in case of an accident. you want very light blades for very quick nimble movement, the blades are extremely flexible and thing to make thrusint all the easier but the weight limitation really is about nimble fencing, the damage in a thrust doesnt come from the blades weight but the force of the body behind it. fencing gear has top be abtle to withstand 10k Newtons of force per cm³ at least to be considered safe enough to be used
also there are 3 types of sport fencing, epee, foil and sabre - the latter is the only one were hitting (slashing) is allowed
And to your point about the rapier - musclewise a foil and epee may actually weigh very little but you hold them extended all the time and that really puts a lot of stress ond your muscles and you tire out very quickly - try and hold a book stretched out infront of you - id be surprised if you hold out longer than a minute.
Similiar most movements in sport fencing are done with the wrist and the wrist has very small muscles so moving the blade around really does become hard.
"Anyone" can pick up an arming sword or longsword and start training - in sport fencing you really gotta builsd up those small muscles that we usually never train in order to actually fight and that is quite time consuming. Similiar like bow shooting .- if you want to be a war archer and use heavy draweeight bows you gotta train for years before you can actually use warbows
Arming swords are the same weight but you hold them ready behind or beside your shield. You hold the rapier out in front of you and it is very tiring. One nice trick is to support your sword hand with your off hand when you have a quiet moment. Puts off fatigue.
A reason for calling rapiers being called faster might be the center of mass being closer to the handle (usually) allowing for the point to be moved faster.
I like how many times you say "thrust" in this vid. XD
Hey, a real man has to know how to thrust...
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
fyrekidd maybe because thrusts are a very good attack type?
Great video! The triangular cross section on the smallsword allows the blade to be withdrawn from an opponant’s body. You see a similar triangular cross section on socket bayonets.
The ability to withdraw it comes, in a large part, from eliminating the tendency to flex as it penetrates. If the blade wobbles back and forth going in then that's a lot of friction when trying to pull it out. Kind of like a Chinese Finger Trap.
The triangular cross section stays far more rigid while still offering significant weight reduction over a cylindrical spike. This makes it easier to withdraw.
The thing is, thrusts are not a something you ever see in games and even in movies they are under-represented so the rapier is not something that people really know, respect, like, not sure what to call it. The fan factor is minimal behind it. It's not something exotic like katanas, not something iconic like the typical medieval 2 handed sword or the gladius so they are kind of uncommon in the media...
There are a lot of such swords which are very uncommon, but the rapier was commonly used in the 16/17 Century and at that period gun powder weapons wiere prmary being used and pikes of course, but if you played Empire Total War or Napoleonic Total War games, you see that in some duels of noblemen they use rapiers.
I suspect you don't see thrusts in movies because they're not nearly as safe to do with sharp-looking weapons in a way that still looks convincing for the camera.
In games, I've seen thrusts plenty. Mount & Blade and Kingdom Come: Deliverance both have directional attacking systems where you can choose to cut from different directions or to thrust. I've not played them, but I believe that at least with some weapon times the Dark Souls series has thrusts.
What I don't think I've ever seen a game attempt to replicate is the aspect of blade control that's common in rapier fencing. The common thrust in Spanish "Destreza" fencing involves sliding your blade against your opponent's as you thrust, forcing your opponent to make a large disengaging action if they want to hit you at the same time. You're controlling your opponent's blade to keep yourself safe as you attack. No games I know of try to do that.
@@JimCullen to be fair it would be very complex for both the programmers and the players if it was a game mechanic
All the old swashbuckler movies had them. They usually used an epee or foil to make it easier on the actors but they were supposed to be representing the rapier. Pretty much every Hollywood movie of the 1930’s-50’s that involved swordplay did. During and after the 50’s they started making more movies about medieval knights but I don’t think it replaced it in popular thought at all. Matter of fact the rapier is super iconic and I totally disagree with you there.
you have a good build for using a rapier--but as a 170cm (5'7") minime to cousins who played guard and tackle as college American football player--at 90 to 95 kg I was benching about 160 to 180 kilo so a more cut centric blade would work better for me
Smallsword can be used for cutting too (not all but some), thrusting is faster than cutting, rapier blade is more aerodynamic than regular sword (due to the narrow blade) which mean easier/faster to move, adding to that the fact you often need to move only the point of the blade which mean smaller movement, modern fencing's lunge go as far as your body goes so it's not shorter than rapier fencing's lunge.
Also you shouldn't put the sword on your wall on the edge of the blade
> modern fencing's lunge go as far as your body goes so it's not shorter than rapier fencing's lunge
Especially since in some forms of rapier fencing (e.g. Destreza) you don't really lunge _at all_. Instead, you thrust by transverse stepping closer to your opponent.
would you say the soul calibur character Raphael Sorel's main weapon, Flambert is a rapier?
Hey Jelly I'm from the EU and I can't really find any good sites that sell swords. If you know any sites could you tell me them?
I recognized that stance from "the duelests" movie now i know what that sword style is called.
When I think of rapiers I think "Gatotsu!"
I think the "faster" thing about the Rapier is how you can move the blade's tip around to threaten an opponent from one area of his body to another with better wrist work control that's allowed by the balance point of the Rapier being further back near the cross guard, I'll be damned if I could do that sort of wrist work with my Arming Sword having that its balance point being further up the blade and that resulting levering effect is far more stressful on the wrist....
As far as cutting through a rapier goes, what would actually happen in such cases is that the steel would break, which incidentally is how machines mechanically cut steel. They don't actually cut, they create a controlled break from one end of a metal sheet to the other. This could happen with any sword, but three factors that would make a rapier particularly susceptible are:
Non-homogeneous steel - There's a structural weakness somewhere along the blade
Over-hardening - As you said, rapiers were meant to thrust, and it wasn't uncommon to increase their rigidity by hardening the blade to a higher degree. Harder blades also hold a sharper edge.
Straight and spindly - Rapier blades are not only thinner and lighter than most swords, they have very little if any taper. Tapering doesn't just help distribute a beefier sword's weight towards the balance point, it actually makes the weapon stronger at its most integral point, namely the base. This makes the whole weapon stronger. If you take a thin, perfectly straight blade, however, with preexisting structural faults and limit it's flex and toughness, what you have is indeed a sword that's *more* likely to break. Likely itself is a relative term, but in any case it's not a phenomenon you could judge using modern examples made from significantly tougher steel.
Also (this is just a hunch) given various buggery laws ubiquitously in effect throughout Europe during the period when arming and longswords were still carried by some people and rapiers were growing in popularity, there's likely no reliable historic text to draw upon in determining the ratio of homosexuals who preferred carrying rapiers over the standard models. It is worth noting, paradoxically however, that some of the last holdouts were the Scotts, a hyper-masculine culture who shunned frilly little swords in favor of their stout, basket-hilted traditional weapons, and who's men would typically walk around in dresses similar to those worn by girls attending old Catholic schools, only a little longer usually with no panties... so, really quite similar then, except that they were longer.
would you say that a rapier could sever a tendon in the hand or arm, to disable that limb. or , can a well place cut to the neck cut major blood vessels . cause being able to disable or kill your opponent with a cut like that would be very nice to have in a weapon . I know a lot people think for some reason , you have to cut a whole body limb off for a weapon to be effect in a cut . I know smaller cut at the can be just as effect at disabling is just as effective. so would you say a rapier cut certainly disable or kill if the cut was in the right spor
definitely
Rapiers have a car alarm?! I have fallen victim to a scam!
I cant believe i just stumbled across your account,and i cant wait to support you on patreon. Keep up with the awesome content
thank you guy from pirates of the Caribbean
The Rapier is one of my favorites also. I like all kinds of swords. I have a swept hilt rapier, 2- handed and hand and a half sword. Would like to get more proficient with all of them. Great video. Thanks.
On a marathon of your videos. Love your content, even though im not that much into swords haha. But i like to listen to you! Keep it up. + 1 sub
I enjoy these. thanks, snapjelly!:)
Fun fact rapier in swedish is värja
Here is a couple of questions I have. I cannot imagine a rapier used with a shield. Also, I believe that with equal skills a fighter with a shield is more likely to win than a fighter without it (which can be wrong - I am not an expert at all).
So the questions:
- Can be a rapier used with a shield (cannot imagine that, except for bucklers)
- Are there any reasons not to use a shield if it's so useful
you could use a shield with a rapier but it wouldn't be really smart, you are better off using your left hand for balance or grappling
and yes, the shield became largely unused when plate armor started to develop, small ones were still used by cavalry men sometimes but footsoldiers didn't carry them anymore since polearms dominated the battlefield, with more polearms and guns people slowly stopped wearing armor so a 1hit kill weapon like a rapier became more common.
you could technically use a shield with your rapier but if it was a dual and 1 hand a shield an 1 did not then the one without the shield would most likely win.
N. Giganti, R. Capoferro and S. Fabris, the three most referenced authors for rapier fighting in HEMA, all talked about the use of the rapier with a rotella (a mid-sized strapped shield) and I think that Giganti also discussed rapier and buckler in his infamous book two.
An alternative to the buckler was the targa, which could more adequately defend against thrusts (because it was square-shaped and not round).
Main problem of the shield will always be ease of transport, especially alongside the rapier which is overall more of a civilian weapon (why would you stroll around town with a shield?). The only use of such a combo would be in a prepared duel or a demonstration of skill.
I know that I'm super late but rapiers can be really fast. More then a misconception it is that when saying they are fast it is meant that the point of the blade achieves a great angular speed since, as said in the video, the rapier is rather long and most of the weight is in the guard/hilt instead of the blade.
Also, whenever you get in your stance, you suddenly look very impressive to me, like a film hero. I get like a flash of Three Musketeers in my mind.
do you know of any dealers that sell quality rapiers? or any particular companies or models that are quality? I've wanted one for a while but dont really know what to trust because of what I've heard from people saying that quality rapiers are hard to come by.
Actually not all rapier techniques involved extending the arm all the time, that's what usually give a lot of people problems with learning to use one. Other techniques don't extend the arm unless they are thrusting, other wise that would tire you out sooner. Though later rapier designs were lighter, that might be when leaving the arm extended came around.
what is your preferred sword technique
I know you're mostly HEMA, but I'd really like to hear your thoughts on the jian or other bronze age Chinese weaponry.
When you said you used it for practice, it sounded as if you said breakfast :D
As for the myth of cutting rapiers, I think that comes from the miniseries of "The Count of Monte Cristo". Although he doesn't cut through the opponents sword, he breaks it by hitting the side of the blade.
This is indeed possible, although it would require metalfatigue, slag in the metal(ie. poor worksmanship/material) or a pre-existing crack in the blade.
I have 3 Questions I hope you can answer.
1. Can fully armored knights use them in combat?
2. If an opponents sword was caught in the cage, or the rapiers neat hand guard, would that prove beneficial to the rapiers user to either break or disarm his opponent or bad if his hand was unarmored.
3. That dagger below your Feder sword, what is that called? I've seen them with some rapier pictures prior and was wondering if they were used in tandem with a rapier.
Taijess Basnaw 1: Technically speaking, depends on their gauntlets. Would they? No, while fighting armored opponent's a rapier or really any sword simply is not as good as a poleaxe or mace for fighting against armor.
2: This mostly depends on the skill, type of swept guard, and situation. This can end good or bad for the user depending on the situation.
3: I'm not sure, I saw something like it made by Windlass
1. Can? Sure. But it doesn't make a lot of sense. The defining quality of a rapier is the hand protection which a fully armored knight wouldn't need because he already has armor on his hands. Anyway, when rapier or rapier-like weapons were used widely by military, the time of the fully armored knight was already over.
2. Most of the time getting the opponent's sword in your guard is really bad because in like 99% of the cases it means a hit to your hand since you don't use rapiers with armored gloves). Only when you're lucky the opponent's point will miss your hand and then you are in an advantageous position because you essentially bind the most dangerous part of the blade. Can you break his sword? Only if your opponent has a low-quality blade in the first place. There is no chance in hell you can break a properly heat treated blade. Not even the so-called sword-breakers could really break swords.
3. It's called a parrying dagger. It's one of most common companion weapons for rapier fencers.
Jürgen Kohde 3. is also sometimes called a Main Gauche, although I prefer the term parrying dagger.
I've head it called Sail Dagger
Great video man, keep up the good work! Also, on a side note, how would you feel about making a video about staves/quarter staves etc? Would that be hard for you? ^_^
Lol you made my day with the car alarm, I had such a shitty day unil now and even despite that you made me laugh. thanks.
I've seen a foot long knife, about at thick as the base of that thing cut through a (dead) sheeps leg in one. I think a rapier could too
depends, it's easier to hack with a shorter blade. the effective portion to cut with is about 2/3 into the blade so it moves up quite a bit with a rapier and most of the weight is in the handle so there's not much force behind it
is it possible for a saber to have a straight blade? to add some context, my friend drew a character holding a sword and called the sword a rapier even though the blade of the sword was thicker then most rapiers i've seen and the guard looked like a naval cutlass guard, so i called it a straight-blade saber and i would like to know if either of us was right or if we're both wrong
It sounds like a backsword
thanks
It depends how you define a saber. Some define it as a sword with a curved blade, specifically a forward curved sword. But others at some point called also some straight swords sabers. And to make things more complicated saber just means sword in french
knives actually do have a lot of mass in them. Knives are usually very thick so that they don't bend when you try to cut something and they usually are quite tall so you can press down hard. A standard meat knife would actually have a lot of force in a chop as it's so thick and tall.
Whose style of rapier fencing do you practice? You said his name insanely quickly.
ridolfo capo ferro
Thank you
Ever since I read the Three Musketeers I've always thought that Rapiers were manly. I also live under a rock, which is why I read books.
Why are the tips of the swords folded inwards.
To prevent the death of your opponent... You don't practice swordplay with sharp bladed and pointy weapons, manslaughter carries jail time in most countries.
Ok, you can't cut through a rapier with a long sword, but isn't it harder to stop the hit cuz rapier's blade are lighter? I belive you can parry it somehow, but can you block it?
yes, you're supposed to block with the strong of the blade nomatter what sword you're using
Hopefully, Tom Leoni and Christian Tobler already tried it so that you don't have to! Rapiers aren't (significantly) lighter than longswords for that matter.
www.salvatorfabris.org/RapierParryingLongsword.shtml
I didn't say rapier is lighter than longsword. I said blade of a rapier is lighter than blade of a longsword. As I understand from the video - rapier's balance moved to a handle. I could get it wrong ofc)
I know this might be personal, but I hear you talk about working with them. What exactly do you do while working with swords.
I thought Small Swords were smaller versions of Rapiers, that were developed for officers abroad ships... much like the Cutlass was a shrunken down Sabre for sailors.
07:12 by who?
He said Ridolfo Capo Ferro
Watching Matt Easton's (Scholagladitoria) video, it was evident he was having a lot of fun showing how indestructible a rapier can be. He certainly was having more fun than his friend holding the rapier as Matt assaulted it vigorously with everything at hand.
his test is a bad test. depending on angle and force you can easily destroy most rapiers
@@Ciprian-IonutPanait
A cutting remark which is not on point.
🤔
@@donna30044 my point is this: using a short scimatar that has enough mass or a bulky macete and cutting at a proper angle can break a rapier. Now of course the term rapier is pretty broad and most honest people include the foil epee estoc, etc in the category of rapiers but even so mass does matter. I mentioned the angle because at a too straight angle it probably just bend and at a too low angle it will bounce off. Probably at something between 45 and 60 degrees angle should cut if hit with enough force.
U can easily tell it’s a rapier because of it’s handle and blade.Also basically what he’s saying is the swords before the rapier lead into the making of the rapier
Rapiers are badass bois. Also, I like hard bladed rapiers not the flimsy ones. ~dark souls flashbacks~
i love Rapiers i own 3 ! 2 Black fencer Training Rapiers. love the sparring with it. God bless you!
you use synthetic rapiers? how do they feel?
@@SnapJelly Hi okay, at first, sry my english!
At second, i love training with them. Of course, you can find differences between federsteel training rapiers, original rapiers and synthetic rapiers (Black fencer) in the way, how the blade to blade kontakt feels, BUT in the most ways, the feel *very* realistik. Wight, balance and flexibility is very close to the originals. Flexibility is even closer to original battle ready rapier, than federsteel training Rapier (they are to soft). The main plus is the savety plus. They are less dangerus and painfull (they still painfull, but compare to steel ....;)) in full contakt sparring and you need lesser heavy protektion than with steel ones. Of course you need Basic Protektion ( Fence Mask!!!!!! and so on) but lesser heavy one than with steel blades. You can do *light* sparring only with Mask! VERY PLUS point for me!
The Black Fencer are not cheap for synthetic rapiers , but they worth every penny!
Thx for your Video!
The longer the blade is, the faster the tip is going to be Jelly. Nice video ;)
I've done modern fencing and it destroys my arm. Can't imagine doing the same with a full-size rapier
Thanks for the info.
what do you think about sideswords?
My Munich Town Guard Raper Sword is great for thrusting and chopping. Combined with My Talhoffer Buckler I am a formidable opponent.
Rapiers are "light" in that you have the length of a longsword with *only* the weight of an arming sword.
They are "fast" because that length means a small movement of the hand turns into a large movement of the tip. (But there's a maximum speed your brain can keep up with, so once you've reached that the ability to go faster doesn't help much.)
As for cutting off arms or hands or heads... It depends on the precise design. Some were more specialized than others. But... Well... ua-cam.com/video/9MloYsf7XII/v-deo.html
Hey Snapjelly, can you do a video on dual wielding?
sure
Great! Thanks
Sammy Boy this isn’t dark souls 2
Not that i dislike rapiers but their not my sort of sword, great for duelling but they did seem to fail as a weapon for war.
1 Kilo? That's...absolutely nothing! I'm sure waving it around is incredibly difficult but goddamn!
Could a long sword break a rapier because The rapier blade is thin.
no
what's your opinion on Estocs tho
Guy loves rapiers so much he tries look like Inigo Montoya.
what the hell you said at 7:13?? The Italian Master name
Ridolfo Capoferro
Thank you for a great and informative video!! Please, would you make a suggestion as to one, or more, of your preferred fighting battle rapier for me to purchase?
Its francis from malcom in the middle
Damn, what's that sword in the background with the knuckle guard?
Can Rapiers slice?
yes
My third lesson in, I misjudged the distance of a lunge and tried to parry it down at the weak part. Caught it at the strong part. Guided it straight into my crotch. I know all about how rapiers aren't flimsy lol
Incredibly awesome!
At the beginning i understood "gut" instead of "cut". Well one can cut anotherone in the gut i guess?
Hi! Awesome videos! Could this sword also be used on horseback? Just wondering what kind of swords of the period (17th century) were used on horseback. Thanks!
Rapiers were never used on horseback, there were specific cavalry swords and sabres which were often not that much different from infantry sabres only a little bigger.
@@SnapJelly Pappanheimer rapier was used from horseback (as well as on foot)
a common misconception about the rapier, it is not really mean't for close up, in reality you are supposed to take it by the ricasso and take your arm back and give it a mighty good heave at your opponent like a spear
are you joking?
these are a foil, a smallsword and a epee! :D (did i got it right?)
almost :P the 3rd one is a modern fencing sabre
i dont have the time to watch the whole video but does he adress the weird thing on the rapier`s hilt? what is it for?
to protect your hand
seems way to strange looking.
arte0021 It s worth watching
@@arte0021 would you rather have a strange looking sword and a safe hand, or a great gaping stab wound through your hand and a cool sword
Thanks for making me like rapiers even more :D
My favorite sword