Today we take a closer look at the Arms and Armor Knightly Riding Sword, a one-handed arming sword from the early 16th century. This piece is a somewhat simplified replica of an original piece in the Wallace Collection, London England, ascension number A515.
A classic example of an Oakeshott type XVIII arming sword, this piece weighs just 2.25 pounds and is elegant and fast in the hand. As with all of our swords this piece is as functional, durable, and formidable as the original on which it is based. The blade is 31.5 inches of 6150 carbon steel hardened and tempered to 50-52 Rockwell. The grip is just under 4" long and is constructed of hand-shaped hardwood covered in fine leather and treated with natural beeswax.
Nathan Clough, Ph.D. is Vice President of Arms and Armor and a member of the governing board of The Oakeshott Institute. He is a historical martial artist and a former university professor of cultural geography. He has given presentations on historical arms at events including Longpoint and Combatcon, and presented scholarly papers at, among others, The International Congress on Medieval Studies.
Craig Johnson is the Production Manager of Arms and Armor and Secretary of The Oakeshott Institute. He has taught and published on the history of arms, armor and western martial arts for over 30 years. He has lectured at several schools and Universities, WMAW, HEMAC, 4W, and ICMS at Kalamazoo. His experiences include iron smelting, jousting, theatrical combat instruction and choreography, historical research, European martial arts and crafting weapons and armor since 1985