Excavated Partizan Polearm For Comment

Jim McDougall · 4th July 2014, 06:39 PM

Dana you continue to bring amazing contributions here, thank you!!
This excavated polearm would appear to be distinctly Spanish as you have well observed. In "Spanish Military Weapons in Colonial America 1700-1821" (Brinckerhoff & Chamberlain, 1972), p.106, pl. 206, a Spanish 'esponton' (spontoon) which has the same side blade profile and overall blade similarity of the spear blade is shown.
It is classified as c1750, and the authors note an unspecified similarity to French patterns.

Apparantly these polearms were carried by junior officers as a weapon and badge of rank until 1768, when superceded by short swords and fusils for these men. These remained in use until end of the century but certainly longer in the colonies (Havana had them in armouries in 1771).

It seems the terms partisan and spontoon are often used somewhat interchangeably with these widely varied polearms, while the halberd if I understand correctly is actually an axe on a pole with long spike atop.

I checked "Swords and Blades of the American Revolution" (George Neumann, 1973) but found no corresponding head shapes which were notably as close as the Spanish example cited.

While this example does not have the same ferrules around the base fixture and does not seem to have the raised royal escutcheon which usually appeared in the blade center between the blade projections, the side blades have the same distinct shape with volute terminals top and bottom symettrically.
Also the blade seems somewhat narrower and has the raised midrib of earlier examples in the century (Neumann, p.208) .

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4th July 2014, 06:39 PM	#2
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,292	Dana you continue to bring amazing contributions here, thank you!! This excavated polearm would appear to be distinctly Spanish as you have well observed. In "Spanish Military Weapons in Colonial America 1700-1821" (Brinckerhoff & Chamberlain, 1972), p.106, pl. 206, a Spanish 'esponton' (spontoon) which has the same side blade profile and overall blade similarity of the spear blade is shown. It is classified as c1750, and the authors note an unspecified similarity to French patterns. Apparantly these polearms were carried by junior officers as a weapon and badge of rank until 1768, when superceded by short swords and fusils for these men. These remained in use until end of the century but certainly longer in the colonies (Havana had them in armouries in 1771). It seems the terms partisan and spontoon are often used somewhat interchangeably with these widely varied polearms, while the halberd if I understand correctly is actually an axe on a pole with long spike atop. I checked "Swords and Blades of the American Revolution" (George Neumann, 1973) but found no corresponding head shapes which were notably as close as the Spanish example cited. While this example does not have the same ferrules around the base fixture and does not seem to have the raised royal escutcheon which usually appeared in the blade center between the blade projections, the side blades have the same distinct shape with volute terminals top and bottom symettrically. Also the blade seems somewhat narrower and has the raised midrib of earlier examples in the century (Neumann, p.208) .