Early Irish short spear & shield vs. 13thC sword & buckler

[demomanchaos]

Try the same bout but with a longer 2 handed spear instead of a short one and shield. I'd like to see how the buckler bloke tries to close the range.

[Z0tteltier]

As mentioned before, the spearman seems in big trouble against the sword and buckler 'cause they ve no armor which doesnt allow him to use his weapon properly. In my opinion a sword is less dangerous than a spear. If you stab with a spear you have a strong impact on a small area. I think that in a real fight the spearman would ve won without problems.

[iwnnugget501]

if the guy with the spear could follow through with his lightning jabs it would be a different story. atm he needs to be careful to not poke the other guy to hard as his reach is longer and thrust quicker

[PrometheusIICaucasus]

Hey Highlander !!!! That small round shield is purely of Highlander  Iberians !!! Have you seen Georgian highlander Khevsur fighters? That small shield and and shorter sword way more effective and dangerous !!! Not everyone realises that, or know how to fight with it ;))

[RoscoesRiffs]

Well, maybe there were nerds back then too. . . . Spoken as a member of the nerd community. :)

[billybones69420]

I keep waiting for him to announce that he is not left handed.

[morgasm657]

lol can you imagine what the people that actually fought with these weapons would think of this display?

[muddyworm]

fail

[shanahanism]

id hate to go up against a guy with a sword with that tiny ass buckler instead of a proper shield

[TheVoraciousSnapmare]

the guy with the buckler looks like he'd be more comfortable with two swords, and the spear guy is using it like a sword

[colddrake80]

I've never used a buckler so to me its seems to small. I'm sure the proof is in the doing. Monkeyishi does make a good point. Treat it like a big fist to quickly swat away an incoming weapon. Being small it would be quick. I see these things as offensive in nature used to aggressively attack foes with slower weapons or kill lots of missile troops quickly. All done at very close range. Sword and buckler men must have been the bane of pike men.

[bigvalen]

@colddrake80 Alas a fist+buckler moves slower than a sword, so usually any attempt to punch a weapon results in opening yourself for attack. As one of the other readers mentioned, the I.33 manuscript makes it very clear that a buckler is mainly for protecting your sword hand from attack (though if you have bound their weapon somehow, you can use the buckler for punching to the face).

[TheAnigai]

hey thats geraldstown house, i was'ent there when this was made though, ive got to show the chief lol

[bigvalen]

Yes; though over-hand is only really useful when trying to get over a large shield, I think. It's great for face and neck stabs, but you can't use it for blocking at all, which is a problem when I use small shields. You can do another interesting move when holding over-hand; dip the spear head down (feint a low stab) and smash the butt-end of the spear over someones head. Hilarious.

[tullyDT]

You did good considering he had his sword in his left hand so he was automatically around your best defence. Just wondering have you ever tried using the spear over hand? I know it's a pretty dangerous thing to do unless you have a larp spear or something but it is way more offensive and can make it easier to get around a shield

[Irishfianna]

whats the point in doing that ??/

[bigvalen]

entertainment and education mainly

[UFMD1]

@Irishfianna Bit of health and mastery perhaps. Some history and movements of our ancestors. The Fianna of old used these movements and weapons, you might find it interesting yourself, no? There's much more to martial arts than just moving around and swatting at each other. I know its an old post but others may wonder the same thing, hope I've answered in a good way. Amergin.

[Pawnbroker00]

@UFMD1 True! But even if they used wood swords they would get all frightened. Bruises are a small price to pay when you learn a lot about real fighting. The man playing sword and buckler was probably frustrated (i would be) because his opponent wont man up and spar properly. Some of these people sparring give me the impression that they have never had to fight in their whole lives, aswell as some people in the comments. Poking the opponent is not the only maneouver in spearfighting and otherwise

[NorseWarriorKing]

@Pawnbroker00 Poking may not be the only thing you can do with a spear, but blocking a sword swing and using it as a club would end up breaking it. You want to whack someone like the Irish did? Grab a shillelagh.

[UFMD1]

@Pawnbroker00 I agree with that but it's only one part of training. There needs to be practice in technique, footwork and if the system is complete, there is energy work involved. These things will not be practiced full bore like grunting cave men or UFC matches. At least these guys are training and attempting to keep the culture alive, they deserve respect and encouragement.

[Dawn59er]

It must of been hard to block blows from that dinky little thing. But it was probably used to more offense than defense.

[kaosspear]

P.S u have a spear he has a sword keep him away then he cant hit u yours is LONGER lol

[kaosspear]

i agree with with trifidus 13 1st off go out side were u can use the spear properly then learn how to use it ,also i seen that u nearly copped it in the face bout 4 times both of u need to learn what your doing b4 u can teach or show ppl

[bassistoftheyear]

i can only see the buckler being of use to an archer who because of his bow and quiver can't carry a full size shield on his back personally i'd just carry a hand and a half sword or a nice quick short sword

[slavuBOG]

and i suppose you saw it all on film or at video game

buckler was widely use in europe and not only. manly it was carrying by unarmoured civilian in day-by-day life.

[bassistoftheyear]

no i said i can only see it being useful to an archer not that i've only seen it being used by an archer i'm talking practicality man but i do know that most fights aren't at opportune times so i guess civilians might have use for a small buckler or heater. and by saying it was manly are you insinuating that archers are not?

[slavuBOG]

ok, and have you got any practical experience ?? i have, and i can say that in medieval combat there are plenty of situation that buckler can be usefull. archers were using and kinds of shields, from bucklers to pavises

[bassistoftheyear]

actually i do have experience and i'm not saying that anyone did or didn't do anything i was merely stating my opinion you should learn to stop assuming and thinking that you're better than everyone and also i'm not gonna hold an argument over a comment on youtube so this is my last one bye

[trifidus13]

Ha! I am sorry for anyone who believes that the guys in this video have any talent or ablity other than to be defeated. Or perhaps to make me laugh. It would be a sad, sad excuse for battle.

[000majorwinters000]

1) Not a real battle 2) Wouldn't have been sent into battle, the description itself says they aren't very experienced. 3)They weren't armored, and therefore didn't want to kill each other. 4) Deflate your head.

[eddiedaskull]

buckler and single sword looks like fun especially if you mix it up with salsa like moves.Guy in black looks like he is comfortable in his fot work

[bioemir]

isent buckler very hard to use in combat?? and low block rate?

[bigvalen]

It's pretty tough to fight with a buckler alright. Check out books & articles on the I.33 manuscript..it's not really to block the sword, its there to protect your sword hand. The I.33 is all about teaching you how to attack (or protect!) the sword hand in unarmoured combat.

[monkeyishi]

its like having a large hand to push the sword away not blocking as such

[HipposHateWater]

@bioemir

If the buckler was more of a disadvantage than an advantage, then it wouldn't have been around as long as it did. The Western mindset has no place for "novelties", especially in warfare. (the buckler outlasted many other weapons.)

I seem to recall an anecdote or two [albeit kind of obscure and dry reading] of Spanish troops equipped with sword & buckler wreaking havoc on the infamous Swiss pikemen around the same time in history when Magellan was fighting Lapu-Lapu in the Philippines.

[slykittysamurai]

i agree i do fencing and the won wiht the spear is to close back away when he swings u counter and when he swings his sword use ur shiled

[wstar72]

Hacks.

[Headwave]

..and slashes :P

[qukai000]

even if they are skilled. they can never match against chinese kung fu

[GreyEyes2]

Damn right!

[qukai000]

i know. in the western style of fighting. its ALL about strenghth. that is pathetic. you need to have endurance, agility, and a calm mind.

[Konane12]

At least do some research bofore posting crap like that and making a moron of yourself. It is true that this video sucks. For some skilled western swordsmanship try watch?v=6bZWuNd-tqY , and to see how the sword&buckler guy should have looked like try watch?v=d8S1VpynYD8 . if that looks like "all about strength" to you, well then you have issues beyond just being an average biased moron who watched one stupid anime too many.

[CrimsonCrux]

Your never going to get through to people like that. Their aguments are based on the poor interpretaions you see in fantasy films and the supernatural hype of Eastern martial arts in film and anime. I doubt they even heard of Sigmund Ringeck, Johannes Liechtenauer, Paulus Kal, Peter Falkner, Peter Von Danzig, Talhoffer....the list is endless. It's also funny that these people think that EVERY single person that fought in ancient China or Japan was a master martial artist.

[Konane12]

Thats why I posted some videos to back it up, but copying%pasting links is probably too advanced for such morons anyway.

[warkwarkelite]

There is no one perfect form of martial strategy. There are some damn good ones - Eastern and Western - but none of them can beat all the rest. When it comes right down to it, many forms of swordsmanship are fundamentally the same. There is but one purpose for a sword - to cut. That is universal, no matter what style you study. The only difference is how you go about cutting. (And that's not even getting into the technical aspects of the sword itself).

[000000AEA000000]

a friend and me does a familiar thing, we changed the weapons afte every turn and used no shields at all.

The Spear guy then always won.

[howdyadoo]

the sword guy swings too wilde and leaves himself too open!

[032125]

The shortspear and buckler never saw eachother on the battlefield, they are from different eras.

The swordsman is a hack. The spearman needs a large shield, or he needs to learn to shoot properly, or both. You can user your shield hand to shoot, you know.

Back to the drawing boards, guys.

[nlw00t]

they cant fight :P

[Rich141288Trex]

My God, it is so unfair! The guy have no idea how to fight with a spear, and that being much shorter...LoL!

[deathruler24]

You're completly right! the guy with sword is aubviuly experienced! he was'nt holding the fucking speer right!

[6rasta6bhoy6]

dude, it's a f**kin curtain rod with that length

[Headwave]

That's some handbagging of the sword. I'd walk away from someone with such lack of control or concern for their sparing partners safety. John you show far better stance, control and technique. (Love the overhead forearm block with your bracer)

[Sollai123]

Spear is easy to use with a sheild. Tuck it up real tight the strike really hard and fast.

Thats why playing with real weapons is dangerouse though! LOL!

the moment you actualy try to use your weapon properly, someone dies!

[SchmittySwitch]

fuking oath! you hit the nail on the head!

[Sollai123]

cheers mate.

[venomouscreed]

good use of a buckler.. though i'd have speared for the sword arm not the buckler..

[opasni1]

Same here

[jonisteinmann]

Go Brendan and John!!! Cool to find a video of ye on youtube, Greetings from Amsterdam!

- ex lady of MedRen

[JUKIO01]

nerds,

[shavadavadava]

i cringe every time i see indoor combat.really kills the mood.

[Scotsgit]

Nice to see spear being used more, one of the more sadly underused weapons.

[cpcrame]

spear > sword, yo

[wormproduction]

The guy with the spear actually isn't bad at all. Fighting with a short spear against a sword is really hard.

[fsbritney]

It doesn't seem stilted! Looks pretty good to me! I use the one handed spear with Regia, I tend to tuck one end under my arm if I want to quick change the direction of the tip.

[fsbritney]

Besides, I'm pretty sure that both combatants would have been quite cautious in real life! Sword and spear wounds are nasty...