The History of the Sword

The “white arm” of weaponry, the sword, went through many designs to make it ever more lethal on the battlefields of Europe.

By William J. McPeak Perhaps no other weapon in human history has lent itself so well to so many combat adaptations as the sword. From its first modest appearance 5,000 years ago, the “white arm” has remained the military’s Queen of Weapons. At no time was the functional variety of the sword more apparent than during Europe’s Middle Ages and in the early 17th century. Evolution of the Sword Beginning with the learning curve of making soft-metal swords—bronze was the only practical s