European Executioner Sword

Emanuel · 10th December 2006, 11:35 PM

Hello,

First of all, I do not care about how executions were carried out or about their outcomes. I am interested in the shape of a particular Mediaeval executioner sword that might have been used in continental Europe in the 14th-15th centuries.

This is prompted by the reading some years ago of a book entitled "The French Executioner." The protagonist of the novel used a straight double-edged sword with an almost fully square tip. While he employed such a sword in his job, it could also be used as a regular offensive weapon.
Ann Bolein is said to have been executed by a renowned French executioner using a special sword. Did such things exist, and if so could anyone point out some examples?

Thanks and regards,
Emanuel

Chris Evans · 11th December 2006, 01:17 AM

Chris

Chris Evans · 11th December 2006, 01:18 AM

Hi Manolo,

Such swords certainly did exist. In Alfred Huton's `The Sword Through The Centuries`, there is a whole chapter devoted to it.

Hope this helps

Cheers
Chris

Jim McDougall · 11th December 2006, 03:04 AM

Since this macabre topic seems to keep being pursued, I will try to address this in hopes of staying on topic, and focusing on the weapons. It seems most of the 'executioners swords' I have seen in various resources are German. Typically these 'swords of justice' are actually used as bearing swords, and are carried processionally in front of a judge to indicate his power over life and death. This tradition seems to have derived from 7th century Byzantine Empire where unsheathed sword carried point upward by arms bearer behind the ruler.
While these typically were actually bearing swords, it appears they were used in degree for thier suggested purpose. In England use of such weapon was uncommon, in fact Anne Boleyn in 1536, was the only instance in England of the use of such a sword in execution, and it was by her request.
An example of a sword similar is shown in "Swords, Daggers and Cutlasses" by G.Weland on p.26. The sword is German made, as are three examples shown in "Torture & Punishment" (Royal Armouries, p.19).

These swords characteristically had the squared point and according to Tarussuk & Blair (p.51) the balance of the sword was set forward, clearly for effective cut, but was entirely unwieldy for combat. Although examples seem to be made virtually all in Germany with dates ranging from 1530's through 1700 (one of this late date appears in "European Arms & Armour", Blair, #82), their use extended into Moravia and likely other Continental countries.

One thing that seems curious is that on some examples there are three pierced holes at the squared blade tip in triangular configuration (Wagner, "Cut and Thrust Weapons", plate 34), possibly the Holy Trinity?

I hope this is of some help.

Best regards,
Jim

Emanuel · 11th December 2006, 03:36 AM

Jim and Chris, thanks to both of you for the sources. I will look them up as soon as possible.

I also wish to compare these examples to the less curved variety of Nepalese kora and Naga Dao, both of which have more or less square tips. Would this feature be to emphasize the sword's purpose as a non-combat tool, or could it have simply resulted from commodity as the tip is useless for the intended job?

Thanks again,
Emanuel

Chris Evans · 11th December 2006, 03:58 AM

Hi Jim,

As always, a very well written and highly informative post.

Just to complete the picture, this is what the good Captain Hutton had to say:

... Its object was decapitation and nothing else, and it was fashioned in such a manner as to make its work sudden and complete. It was a heavy sword with a blade some 33 inches in length and 2.5 in breadth, having both its edges very sharp, but with no point, while its hilt consisted of a simple cross guard, a handle long enough to be grasped with both hands, but not so long as that of the fighting two-hander, and a pommel sufficiently heavy to make it balance well for its work. Such was the headsman's sword. And now what of him who wielded it? Of the mode of life, both public and private, of such men we learn much from the memoirs of the Sansons, who for seven generations were the hereditary executioners of France.....

My own view on this somewhat gruesome subject is that such swords were not weapons, rather tools and essentially no different from those used by slaughtermen, save for the victim. By all this I mean that the traditional Chivalric values that we normally associate with edged weaponry were totally absent. Whilst I understand the morbid fascination that such swords can evoke, I do not think that they form part of our combative heritage, rather that they belong to another class of implements altogether.

Cheers
Chris

Jim McDougall · 11th December 2006, 05:43 AM

Hi Chris,
And thank you very much

I agree completely in your perspective on these! Very well said.
These 'tools' could not interest me less, no matter how esoteric.
Thank you for sharing the Hutton excerpt also.
All the best,
Jim

Philip · 11th December 2006, 07:46 AM

Thanks, Jim, for the useful info on the topic.

Yes, it's true that the vast majority of specimens seen in collections and on the marketplace appear to be German or Moravian. However, I have encountered two or three Polish examples, of the same general form, as well. One element of the design of these devices, not mentioned in previous posts, is the CROSS SECTION of the blades. Invariably, it is lenticular and not lozenge-shaped as is the case with many blades intended for combat. A few have a short fuller at the forte, undoubtedly to move the point of balance out towards the tip.

Recently, I noticed in a dealer's online catalog (he's in TX, I recall) a HUNGARIAN example of a headsman's sword. Same blade type as the Germanic style described previously, but with a one hand grip patterned after an early hussar saber. Without seeing it in person, I can't rule out the possibility of it being a composite, since I have seen no similar example elsewhere.

A friend in Israel recently sent me a rather fuzzy photo of what is purportedly a French beheading sword, which he saw in a museum in Paris. It does have a lozenge-shaped section with a clearly defined central ridge, and an unusual blade profile which is wasp waisted at the forte, widens somewhat from there on out, and then comes to a point. Neither of us have encountered another one like it in any other collection, although the sword was de rigueur for capital sentences (for the aristocracy) in France until the Revolution and there ought to be more such blades in existence.

Ann Boleyn did indeed request to die by the sword; being of noble birth, she felt entitled to it and a headsman was brought over from France to do the job. The French had quite a reputation for proficiency in this grim task.

In both France and the Germanic countries, the headsman's sword was employed with a horizontal cutting stroke.

10th December 2006, 11:35 PM	#1
Emanuel Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 1,242	European Executioner Sword Hello, First of all, I do not care about how executions were carried out or about their outcomes. I am interested in the shape of a particular Mediaeval executioner sword that might have been used in continental Europe in the 14th-15th centuries. This is prompted by the reading some years ago of a book entitled "The French Executioner." The protagonist of the novel used a straight double-edged sword with an almost fully square tip. While he employed such a sword in his job, it could also be used as a regular offensive weapon. Ann Bolein is said to have been executed by a renowned French executioner using a special sword. Did such things exist, and if so could anyone point out some examples? Thanks and regards, Emanuel

11th December 2006, 01:17 AM	#2
Chris Evans Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Australia Posts: 676	Chris Last edited by Chris Evans; 11th December 2006 at 04:00 AM.

11th December 2006, 01:18 AM	#3
Chris Evans Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Australia Posts: 676	Hi Manolo, Such swords certainly did exist. In Alfred Huton's `The Sword Through The Centuries`, there is a whole chapter devoted to it. Hope this helps Cheers Chris

11th December 2006, 03:04 AM	#4
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 9,943	Since this macabre topic seems to keep being pursued, I will try to address this in hopes of staying on topic, and focusing on the weapons. It seems most of the 'executioners swords' I have seen in various resources are German. Typically these 'swords of justice' are actually used as bearing swords, and are carried processionally in front of a judge to indicate his power over life and death. This tradition seems to have derived from 7th century Byzantine Empire where unsheathed sword carried point upward by arms bearer behind the ruler. While these typically were actually bearing swords, it appears they were used in degree for thier suggested purpose. In England use of such weapon was uncommon, in fact Anne Boleyn in 1536, was the only instance in England of the use of such a sword in execution, and it was by her request. An example of a sword similar is shown in "Swords, Daggers and Cutlasses" by G.Weland on p.26. The sword is German made, as are three examples shown in "Torture & Punishment" (Royal Armouries, p.19). These swords characteristically had the squared point and according to Tarussuk & Blair (p.51) the balance of the sword was set forward, clearly for effective cut, but was entirely unwieldy for combat. Although examples seem to be made virtually all in Germany with dates ranging from 1530's through 1700 (one of this late date appears in "European Arms & Armour", Blair, #82), their use extended into Moravia and likely other Continental countries. One thing that seems curious is that on some examples there are three pierced holes at the squared blade tip in triangular configuration (Wagner, "Cut and Thrust Weapons", plate 34), possibly the Holy Trinity? I hope this is of some help. Best regards, Jim

11th December 2006, 03:36 AM	#5
Emanuel Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 1,242	Jim and Chris, thanks to both of you for the sources. I will look them up as soon as possible. I also wish to compare these examples to the less curved variety of Nepalese kora and Naga Dao, both of which have more or less square tips. Would this feature be to emphasize the sword's purpose as a non-combat tool, or could it have simply resulted from commodity as the tip is useless for the intended job? Thanks again, Emanuel

11th December 2006, 03:58 AM	#6
Chris Evans Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Australia Posts: 676	Hi Jim, As always, a very well written and highly informative post. Just to complete the picture, this is what the good Captain Hutton had to say: ... Its object was decapitation and nothing else, and it was fashioned in such a manner as to make its work sudden and complete. It was a heavy sword with a blade some 33 inches in length and 2.5 in breadth, having both its edges very sharp, but with no point, while its hilt consisted of a simple cross guard, a handle long enough to be grasped with both hands, but not so long as that of the fighting two-hander, and a pommel sufficiently heavy to make it balance well for its work. Such was the headsman's sword. And now what of him who wielded it? Of the mode of life, both public and private, of such men we learn much from the memoirs of the Sansons, who for seven generations were the hereditary executioners of France..... My own view on this somewhat gruesome subject is that such swords were not weapons, rather tools and essentially no different from those used by slaughtermen, save for the victim. By all this I mean that the traditional Chivalric values that we normally associate with edged weaponry were totally absent. Whilst I understand the morbid fascination that such swords can evoke, I do not think that they form part of our combative heritage, rather that they belong to another class of implements altogether. Cheers Chris

11th December 2006, 05:43 AM	#7
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 9,943	Hi Chris, And thank you very much I agree completely in your perspective on these! Very well said. These 'tools' could not interest me less, no matter how esoteric. Thank you for sharing the Hutton excerpt also. All the best, Jim

11th December 2006, 07:46 AM	#8
Philip Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: California Posts: 1,036	More comments on headsman's swords Thanks, Jim, for the useful info on the topic. Yes, it's true that the vast majority of specimens seen in collections and on the marketplace appear to be German or Moravian. However, I have encountered two or three Polish examples, of the same general form, as well. One element of the design of these devices, not mentioned in previous posts, is the CROSS SECTION of the blades. Invariably, it is lenticular and not lozenge-shaped as is the case with many blades intended for combat. A few have a short fuller at the forte, undoubtedly to move the point of balance out towards the tip. Recently, I noticed in a dealer's online catalog (he's in TX, I recall) a HUNGARIAN example of a headsman's sword. Same blade type as the Germanic style described previously, but with a one hand grip patterned after an early hussar saber. Without seeing it in person, I can't rule out the possibility of it being a composite, since I have seen no similar example elsewhere. A friend in Israel recently sent me a rather fuzzy photo of what is purportedly a French beheading sword, which he saw in a museum in Paris. It does have a lozenge-shaped section with a clearly defined central ridge, and an unusual blade profile which is wasp waisted at the forte, widens somewhat from there on out, and then comes to a point. Neither of us have encountered another one like it in any other collection, although the sword was de rigueur for capital sentences (for the aristocracy) in France until the Revolution and there ought to be more such blades in existence. Ann Boleyn did indeed request to die by the sword; being of noble birth, she felt entitled to it and a headsman was brought over from France to do the job. The French had quite a reputation for proficiency in this grim task. In both France and the Germanic countries, the headsman's sword was employed with a horizontal cutting stroke.