The Heaviest Swords in History and Battle (True Weights Revealed) [Updated]
The Heaviest Swords in History and Battle (True Weights Revealed) [Updated]
Medieval and early modern swords are the subject of fascination for modern history buffs, bladesmiths and movie junkies.
We’ve all seen medieval swords in combat, whether in our favorite historical documentary or at a Renaissance festival.
Although the medieval and renaissance sword is one of the most famous weapons, it is also often misunderstood thanks to media misrepresentations and inaccurate reproductions.
When studying historical swords, one of the most important characteristics to pay attention to is the weight of the weapon.
This is a short list of the heaviest swords in history, but the article is also dedicated to dispelling some of the most common myths about the weight of swords in the middle and early modern period.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the heaviest swords wielded by medieval and renaissance fighters.
The following is a discussion of the average weight of swords and some common misconceptions.
Japanese Swords: Cultural Icons of a Nation; History, metallurgy and iconography of the samurai sword
The German Zweihänder was a massive sword that weighed up to 10 pounds.
This two-handed weapon was used ceremonially.
Lestat (Jan Mehlich), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The German Zweihänder is perhaps the strangest sword of the early modern or Renaissance era.
This two-handed sword averaged 4 feet 7 inches in length and weighed 8.8 pounds or more.
The sword saw battle in the early and mid-16th century.
By the end of the century, the Zweihänder was used for ceremonial purposes.
Zweihänder swords used in battle would necessarily be smaller and lighter than those wielded in ceremony.
Ceremonial specimens could weigh up to 10 kilograms!
Close-up of the medieval clay sea.
This sword was used in Scotland and was similar in style to the English greatsword and earlier Viking swords.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
The two-handed claymore was a Scottish sword developed in the 13th century.
Scottish soldiers mostly used this sword in the 15th-17th centuries. century in clan wars and skirmishes with the English.
Similar in size and design to the English greatsword, the claymore is also modeled after Viking swords.
Soldiers in the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 13th and 14th centuries used early versions of clay.
A claymore averaged 55 inches long and weighed about 5.5 pounds.
Regardless of design, the average medieval sword used in battle weighed around 2.5-3.5 kilograms.
Surprisingly, swords in medieval and early modern Europe averaged 2.5-3.5 pounds.
Renowned sword expert and historian Ewart Oakeshott studied hundreds of medieval and renaissance swords during his career and noted that most of them were very light and manageable:
“Medieval swords are neither unfathomably heavy, nor are they all alike – the average weight of any normal size is between 2.5lb.
Even the great “hand and a half” “war” swords rarely weigh more than 4.5 lbs.
Such weights, for men who had been trained to use a sword from the age of seven (and who had to be tough specimens to survive that age), were by no means too great to be practical.” (Oakeshott, Sword in Hand, p. .
Oakeshott worked in the 20th century, a time when many misconceptions about medieval weapons were taken as fact.
Unfortunately, Ffoulkes even stated in 1945: “All swords from the ninth to the thirteenth century are heavy, poorly balanced, and equipped with short and impractical hilts.” (Ffoulkes, Arms, p.
Imagine 500 years of professional warriors and fighters getting it all wrong, but a museum curator in London in 1945, who has never been in a real sword fight, let alone trained himself with real swords in any form, can inform us of the shortcomings of this magnificent weapon.
Most of these one-handed medieval swords weigh no more than 4 pounds.
Two-handed swords would be harder, but not nearly as hard as one would think.
Ewart Oakeshott, the foremost sword expert of the 20th century, handled hundreds of medieval swords and categorized them by style, function, weight and other characteristics.
Modern scholars and swordsmen agree that the average medieval sword was well balanced, light and easy to use.
Dr Timothy Dawson explains that one-handed swords weighed only 3.5 kilograms.
Ceremonial swords such as the Zweihänder discussed above could be much heavier, but were not used in combat.
Although many of the soldiers were quite strong due to years of practice, it would not make sense for the swords to be unnecessarily heavy.
As John Clements points out above, medieval bladesmiths and swordsmiths had hundreds of years to develop functional, balanced swords that would be effective in the fighting styles of the period.
One-handed swords are featured in this illustration of the famous Battle of Agincourt by Enguerrand de Monstrelet.
Enguerrand de Monstrelet, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
While the myth of the heavy sword is slowly fading in scholarly circles, the popular misconception about the weight of the medieval sword continues to be perpetuated in movies, TV shows, and other media.
We hope this article and other resources online can help combat these misunderstandings (pun intended) while celebrating the uniqueness of the Claymore and Zweihänder swords.
Final note: while this article is about European swords, the same information applies to swords on other continents during this period.
There are several stories of swords in India weighing 40 pounds or more, but these stories lack significant historical evidence.
List of the largest and longest swords in world history [Updated]
List of the largest and longest swords in world history [Updated]
The sword is a well-known weapon that appears in famous historical events, movies, video games, television and books.
Almost every culture in the world has used the sword in certain periods of its history.
This usually meant that swords were limited to a certain weight and length in order for the soldier to use them effectively.
Some of the most fascinating swords in world history were large and long.
From ancient China to Renaissance Europe, military professionals used large and long swords for special purposes.
Below are some of the longest and largest swords in world history.
Each of them has its own unique characteristics, but all eight swords discussed also share some interesting similarities in their construction and purpose.
The Miaodao sword is one of several great swords in Chinese history.
student, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
“Miaodao” is commonly used to refer to several great swords in Chinese history.
The miaodao sword itself is a modern sword dating from the Republican era (1912-1949).
It averages about 1.2 meters or 47 inches long.
Although this sword is not commonly used in Chinese martial arts today, it was used by soldiers during the Second Sino-Japanese War from the 1930s to the 1940s.
The modern miaodao is part of the long history of great swords in China.
This variation was used during the Tang Dynasty and was 213 centimeters or 7 feet long.
This blade was mainly used between 1129 and 1141 as an anti-cavalry weapon.
The length of the blade made it ideal for cutting enemy horses.
林義親, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Japanese ōdachi or nodachi were used by samurai during the Kamakura period (1185-1333).
This sword was really great with a weight between 2.2 kilograms and 14.5 kilograms and dimensions from 90.6 to 337 centimeters.
Historians are not entirely sure how a weapon of this size would have been brought to the battlefield.
The ōdachi was less common than the famous katana, but proved useful in destroying enemy horses.
In this way, ōdachi can be compared to the Chinese changdao and zhanmadao.
Because of its size, the ōdachi sword was best used for downward thrusting maneuvers by samurai infantry.
In addition to being lethal weapons, medieval Japanese also offered ōdachi to the kami, or gods, at Shinto shrines.
Norimitsu is the largest known ōdachi in existence.
It was made in 1446 and is 376 centimeters or 12 feet long!
3) Oakeshott type XIIa
3) Oakeshott type XIIa
Simocarina, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Simocarina, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
While medieval swords are sometimes referred to as longswords, a few particular variations were indeed longer than others.
Scholar Ewart Oakeshott organized medieval swords into several categories, one of the largest being type XIIa.
In the Middle Ages, the type XIIa sword was called a “great sword” or “war sword”. Soldiers used this type in the 13th and 14th centuries, and some swords appeared earlier or later than this range.
The Type XIIa was a larger version of the typical knight’s sword of the time.
It had a two-handed grip and a straight, wide and evenly tapered blade.
4) Oakeshott type XIIIa
4) Oakeshott type XIIIa
Dbachmann at en.wikipedia, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Another uniquely large sword of the Middle Ages was Oakeshott’s Type XIIIa. This variation of the knight’s sword reached its peak of use in the 13th and 14th centuries.
Artworks of that time indicate that knights used the sword as early as the 12th century and up to the 15th century.
Type XIIIa is similar to Type XIIa, but has even larger proportions.
The grip of this variation alone could be 6.5 to 10 inches.
Average Type XIIIa swords measure 94 to 102 centimeters (37 to 40 inches).
These swords are recognizable not only by their size, but also by their flat cross-sections, wide and parallel blades, and half-full.
Scottish claymore with its distinctive forward facing cruciform handle and quatrefoil decoration.
Pearson Scott Foresman, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
The Scottish claymore is a famous large weapon used during the Scottish Wars of Independence and clan warfare.
The sword was most common between 1400 and 1700, but earlier and later versions existed.
The Battle of Killiekrankie in 1689 was the last major conflict that saw the widespread use of clay.
Early clay swords looked different than the type pictured above.
These swords were smaller and did not have the distinctive quatrefoil design of overlapping decorative circles on the hilt of the cross.
This greatsword averaged 140 centimeters (55 inches) long and had a hilt of 33 centimeters (13 inches).
The largest clay swords could weigh up to 5.5 pounds.
Portrait of a Landsknecht soldier with his zweihänder.
Marie Müller (1847-1935), Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Perhaps the most famous sword on this list is the zweihänder.
This sword is known for its size.
The Zweihänder is categorized as a large sword by experts and could measure between 144.5 and 199 centimeters, with an average length of 170.6 centimeters.
Two-handed greatswords like the zweihänder are considered Renaissance weapons in their true form.
While medieval swords often had two-handed hilts, none were used in the same way as Renaissance greatswords.
Because of their size, soldiers wielded zweihänder and other large swords against pikemen.
The long blade of the zweihänder could easily knock the poles away or even cut them in half.
Only the biggest and strongest soldiers like the landsknecht could handle such a powerful weapon.
Details of the wavy blade of the flaming sword.
Rama, CC BY-SA 2.0 FR, via Wikimedia Commons
The Flammard is another example of a great Renaissance sword.
This version had a wavy blade that resembled a flame.
Landsknecht mercenaries carried this unique sword in battles throughout Germany.
A common myth surrounding the flaming sword is that it could cut pike more easily than other swords such as the zweihänder.
Although this curved blade looks unique, the sword actually did the same amount of damage as other swords of this category.
The last major sword variation on the list is the carrying sword or parade sword.
This type of great sword caused confusion among sword enthusiasts.
Since many carrying swords look similar to the zweihänder, a common myth is that these swords were actually used in combat despite their large size.
In reality, soldiers carried swords only in ceremonial processions.
Perhaps it is best to think of them as parade swords to avoid confusion between them and the similar zweihänder.
Carrying swords or parade swords were really massive at 10 to 15 pounds, but their use as ceremonial weapons meant they did little real damage.