@spartan4118 actually the Scot's made a point of fighting edge on edge as a matter of honour. There is an old quote which escapes me now- if I can remember it I'll post it. But it's basically referring to this practice. It is a reason you'll find a large number of antique scottish blades are hacked at the edges.
@oo00infinity00oo There isn't a claymore in sight in this video, there are greatswords to be sure, but the claymore is distinguished by unique quillions, which none of the swords in the video have. Greatswords were of course in use among Lowlanders, including the monstrous six foot specimen on display in the Wallace Monument purported to have been used by William himself, as he was after all a Lowlander.
it diddnt look like they were displacing or blocking with the flat of the blade..i couldnt tell. i was under the impression that that was proper practice.
@spartan4118 It would sort of be easier on the blade, but you can't get a good grip with that sort of parry. Thus, sword smiths design blades to take the hit with the edge anyway.
Great video, some great sword skills there and its superb to see history being kept alive. Wielding Lowlanders as in this video is not as easy as it looks either, these guys just make it look easy. great stuff 10/10
@Eso1 Good question. Notice where they are holding the blades. It was actually common to only sharpen the lower portion of the blade. If you think about it, it makes sense since only the last foot or so was going to need to be sharp. If you look at many great swords sold today, you'll see a leather grip under the quillons (crossguard) where you can grab with your hand.
@Conan568 Actually, these men did block with the edge when I saw them in person. And actually it's very difficult to make an effective parry with the edge hence why historical fencers will parry with the edge.
@KraljLazar Very true. And if I may say, it's actually amazing how intuitive a person can function with a spear. A commoner could actually do fairly well. Swords, not so much. They were a sign of nobility, and if a peasant did have one for a war, my understanding is it would be soon taken away afterward, but others more qualified could speak to that.
I second that. In our local medieval fencing club we mostly used hand-and-half swords with two hands or one hand swords, studying some german medieval fencing manual. One day a guy brought a spear and only the best swordsman in the club could manage it.
I guess in a many-vs-many environment a one-hand sword and shield has the advantage that it's possible to block arrows with the shield over the spear.
Also theck out the "Deadliest Warrior" episode featuring William Wallace.
what the in the world are they doing oh who cares its funny. but no barrel chested men in here either I can honestly say that the romance books of sexy scotland warriors are totaly made up have not seen one in any of the clips i have seen here
nah lowlander is 6foot long, and the hand guard loops, the two hander the green guy is using is german though. The other is amost exactly like a claymore exept the hand guard is straight and not angled
From the shape of the german sword's blade, I thought it was a Flamberge at first glance, but then I saw it didnt have the wavy blade, it's defenitely a Zweihander.
That guy was defenitely not using a Claymore, or a Lowlander, I actually couldnt make that sword out, it's too generic looking for me to recognize.
and..."Stirling is not in Scotland" wtf...yes it is, im not sorry to tell you. also I find it odd you are even arguing this with me you can just go and look it up and see it is officially in the highlands. its not a mater of opinion its just a fact. btw I lived in Stirling for the first 17 years of my life.
Website like britainexpress list Stirling in central Scotland, not the Highlands. Doubtless some maps will say otherwise, and some will support my claim. Please do give it a rest. You have better things to do than gripe over this, I'm sure.
oh and i live in Canada now but i am Scottish..."a proud highland Scot" so i find it insulting that you an American tourist is trying to tell me where the highlands start in my country.
Well, you're the first Scot to tell me that the Stirling is the highlands. Everyone else when I was there told me that those are the start of the lowlands.
You can look at the discussion early on for this vid if you wish. It was because of those comments that I changed the name. Hence, you Scots can fight amongst yourselves about what are highlands and lowlands.
Very interesting. I'll have to remember the two hands on the blade of the longsword. can't do that very well with the katana (which is what I like to use, mostly in the form of battojutsu.)
Many Scots would dispute that Stirling is in the highlands. In fact, it's just around Stirling that you begin to see anything you could call "high". You have to go further north to see the real highlands.
well highlanders are better...at least they didnt sell out to the english...and i do red books...i have books from the 1800s about my family from scotland so suck it
But the question is: Can ye fight, laddie? I have family from scotland as well, who happened to fight along side both Wallace and Robert De Bruce. Both highlanders and lowlanders fought for both the brits and the scots. Its a little more complicated than you think.
who me?? im from clan leslie but the problem with my clan is were literally situated on the eastern highland/lowland border in aberdeenshire. ive read accounts that calls us lowlanders and highlanders so its kindof wierd...its moslty cuz my clan has more lands in fife near edinburgh than in the highlands..but still the origional land of my clan was on the border in the highlands..near the grampians..for me its more of what i like and i say highlanders.
actually, the particular form you're watching WAS practiced primarily by the Lowlanders. You know, from the lowlands. Turn off the TV and read a book.
Not likely seeing how I'm not one of the many "online" sword experts that like to mindlessly argue and pick apart every little detail because I have wikipedia at my disposal, but good try trying to reverse my comment against me. Now return to your anime.
Neither am I. I merely felt that such a response to your trollish would increase my lulz level for the time being. And infact it did. Now return to your scat.
Yeah, I did. Doesn't mean I own a basement. Your sterotype doesn't work on me, I'm afraid. I'm more of a gamer than an otaku. Infact I was watching this video because of interest generated by playing the game Medival 2: Total War. Fail troll.
Dude...why do all the anime geeks have that "my spinning dragon kick vs. your hidden crane strike" mentality?? And why do they all think they are master swordsmen? I taught Martial Arts for 8 years, and there was this one know it all snotty nosed anime worshipping kid who was trying to tell me how to use my katana in my own class! He tried to show me his "secret tricks" in my Judo class..and his gauranteed escapes in my Brazilian JiuJitsu class..needless to say I embarrassed him every time..
Haha yeah all this is really cool stuff but i'll be the first to admit I don't know shit about it. It just pisses me off when there's an awsome video with sword techniques and guys who are actually really good at it and all the internet sword masters come out of the woodwork to take about their bad form etc.
@commanderNSO I know what you mean. I've been studying the longsword for a while now, and it seems like every time I bring it up some guy who watches anime wants to tell me two hundred bullet points about why he thinks I should be studying the katana instead. It's because of this that I've learned why all other HEMA guys I know hate anime.
Oh, I guess I should have read further down. Its not actually a longsword. A longsword is a single hand weapon of usually no more than thirty inches from cross-guard to tip. To me it looks like a Landsknecht Zweihänder or two handed sword.
well, there's a fairly long record of trade between the germans and most other nations in that period. Solingen in germany was a noted trade hub for steel, and large numbers of blades were shipped to england, scotland, france and sweeden (among others). That included fully-made swords, as well as unmounted blades which would be hilted in regional styles.
So the Germanic landschnecht's sword is actually pretty appropriate.
I knew that many mercenaries traveled internationally but I hadn't much considered the possibility of an international weapons market. I would have thought that under a feudal system, a weapons market would have been a threat to certain monarchs and systems of government, such as in the case of Scotland where privately owned weapons of war were illegal under English rule. In many places the system was sustained by the fact that the feudal lords had all the weapons.
you'd be absolutely amazed at how widespread trade was back then - much more than people assume.
and it's not really a weapons market, in the sense that modern AK47's are shipped to the congo/iraq/wherever, and arms dealers, etc...
the weapons were'nt really regulated for that period, as the general peasant was armed with a bill hook or similar polearm, which was pretty much the same as used for farming. the english ban was much later, post-rebellion (1750s)
It's not a stretch of the imagination to see the feudal lords importing weapons that are seen to be superior.
The renaissance fashion of slashed sleeves etc made it to the far corners of the highlands so it's not hard to think that other renaissance items such as these swords did, even if it was only the design of them rather than the weapons themselves.
There is no evidence for weapons being outlawed here under English rule. Nor is there evidence of the system being sustained by feudal lords having all the weapons. As early as 1319, the Scottish Parliament had passed an act ordering men to equip themselves with a sword and polearm (spear). Before that, feudal lords who supported Edward I in Scotland would have had their own tenants pay for their weapons to reduce the costs of equipping an army.
Was there not an attempt by the English kings to control or restrict the proliferation of weapons among the Scots?
Large swords like the Zweihänder or the Claymore function very different mechanically than other swords. They do not slash, cut, or bludgeon. They create a dynamic shearing force on impact. That is why Claymores are typically not kept perfectly sharp. In combat, these swords were swunge side to side and not overhand or overhand. That would be mechanically inefficient.
No there wasn't - the nearest would be the restriction of weapons act of the 1750's, but that was passed by a British government after Scotland had joined the Act of Union. There was no attempt by any English king after one of the few successful invasions to remove any weapons anyone in Scotland.
I think I mispoke. Correct me if I'm wrong, but was not it illegal to train and openly equip yourself with arms around the 11th century (around or before the time of Robert the Bruce and William Wallace? I had the impression that this problem was a source of what became known as the Highland Games, where men attempted to hone their martial prowess without openly bearing arms.
Mercenaries DID travel for their contracts, but they would usually sell weapons and armour before they left to ensure that they had enough money to live on. The weapons they would take with them would be ones that would be easy to carry.
I know that Flemish, Norman, and perhaps Danish mercenaries were present in the British Isles at different times, but were mercenaries from as far as Italy, Germany, Poland, and Bohemia common as well. There seems to have been much diplomatic interaction between Scotland and France. Were French mercenaries common?
Depends at what time - and what constitutes a mercenary, for example just before Flodden, the French King sent instructors to Scotland to teach the army how to use the modern pike. But mercenaries from further afield would have been extremely rare.
Egladhon..It is a rare person these days who is considerate enough to accomodate "criticism". I am pleased that you renamed this as all too often we get so caught up in the "Highland" issue that the Lowlanders get ignored too. I am pro - highland and despair of the misrepresentation of the history but the Lowland Scots were not "English" and their proud history is also worthy of remembrance. In this context, the video is now commendable for it's portrayal of medieval Lowland longsword. Thanks.
Sure thing. I only wish I could change the title within the vid (which still says "Real Scottish Highlanders"). I threw away the project long ago. Oh well.
Real Scottish Lowlanders would be a much better and more accurate title as in present form it is misleading over Gaelic history. The blades here are indeed blunt to allow for reenactment without damage but real ones were very sharp with the upper portion often left blunt enough to grip. Medieval swordsmen then wore gauntlets anyway and so could grip the blades. It is a good enough vid but this sort of mistake is confusing accuracy in Scottish history. Highland doesn't apply to all Scotland.
I'm sorry to be negative but this isn't Highland swordplay it is only a reenactment group showing choreographed Germanic Longsword in a style reminiscent of Anglo Saxon / Norman culture.. and transplanted into Lowland Scotland. To be fair, this was prevalent across Europe in the medieval period but really has almost nothing to do with the Gaelic culture of Northern Scotland with its influences from Dalriadan,Picto,Norse origins. The Highlanders were famed for their martial skill & this isn't it.
True. They're not even using claymores, and everyone knows that Stirling is not really the highlands. Still, I thought it a good title for the video. If you can think of a better one, feel free to suggest it.
How many people in here know squat about this? Those blades are dull to BREAK BONE! Not to cut flesh. The blades were still sharp enough to penetrate, but the edges are dull enough to grip. Its a real technique. One of the more useful applications of it is to sweep the crossguard into their temple. And yes, that blade grapple could have easily been broken by an upward thrust. This is a real fight (except for when he got slapped on the bum with the flat side of the blade, lol)
The last foot of the blade might be sharpened before battle. Keep in mind, that's the part that would be cutting, and yes the area near the ricasso would be dull.
using the sword by the holding the blades a real technique. It's called the murderstroke and was designed for disarming your opponent, by hooking his blade and pulling it from his hands. Also every move in sword play exposes the person attacking to a counterstrike, so of course adam could counter it, if he was quick enough.
You believe everything you read, i take it you read every fight manual like the bible, plz, think logicaly about this, there are so many ways to counter this "murderstroke". by the time it takes the fighter to turn his blade, in the middle of combat, he would be dead. Not only that, the guard wont pull the blade from his hand, it would slide down the blade. this is a reenacters main problem, most believe every little thing they read
the murderstroke was a killing blow intended to puncture a helm. and i know it was a real technique but in the middle of a battle the last thing your going to do is reverse your blade.
Uh-oh, you would find it very difficult to do that even with a poleaxe. Against a crappy thin POS helmet, maybe, but someone wearing a helmet with said quality won't have money for the rest of the gear thus it'd be simpler to strike at the unarmoured areas.
The fight from highlander is less obviously choreographed. Hugh doesn't actually know how to really fight with a sword. Hes just an actor. Plus the idea of reversing your sword in the middle of a fight is ridiculous.
many of the fighting manuals mentioned r wrong, not my opinion, plz dont think im awkward, its fact. not once would the blade be held, when he attacks holding the blade, the guard hits adams blade, too easily could he hav pulled upwards, and the blade wud slip out his hands, and how usefull wud the blunt handle and guard really be against an oponents sharp edge. a really gd fight, i hav seen but 1 fight better.
I wasn't the one fighting, but I got a good look at the blades, and it didn't look too bad. A good blade should be able to stand up to a fight like that, but no blade is indestructible.
You wouldn't happen to have a link to their website, if one exists? I searched "Living History Scotland" but I don't think it brought up their company. The sites didn't seem like the right ones.
Stirling Castle. They're still there every Monday and Tuesday in August - as soon as they're back from the Fergus Festival in Canada on the 16th, that is. On Wednesdays and Thursdays they're in Edinburgh, and on the 18th and 19th they're in Ruthven Barracks and Fort George as Jacobites.
Awesome! Those two seem like fun blokes... way better than modern Olympic fencing, with the weenie electrical sensors... they actually parry! Great video.
They are! The spontaneous reactions to the audience they come up with in shows are hilarious. I've got videos of a few more of their shows uploaded, if you're interested. :-)
I am very interested in Scottish history. I have always found it almost beyond belief that the "highland broadsword" was ever actually used in combat. They seem so unwieldy as to be almost useless.
Sorry, but you might be confusing the short basket-hilted broadswords from later periods (Claymores) with the Claimh da Laimh, the long two handed sword. The swords in this video are German Zweihaenders, though, part of this performance depicting bodyguards of James III & IV (late 1400s).
The castle is Stirling. From there you can see the Wallace monument, Stirling Bridge, and the fields of Bannockburn (the last two being sites of critical battles for Scotland's freedom).
The castle is Stirling. From there you can see the Wallace monument, Stirling Bridge, and the fields of Bannockburn (the last two being sites of critical battles for Scotland's freedom).
Ok grate video I think it was very funny, it got a lot of laugh's out of me. I could tell they where not really putting there heart's into it, I could do better than what those jocks where doing any day, I have been using sword's for 3 year's now, and that was the work of some one that had only done it for 1 year or less in my eye's. But I am a almost pure Scottish, and have had a liking for swords for a long time. I still liked it and am going to rate it 5 for sure ^_^.
Umm... Adam has been doing this for six years now, in the main season pretty much every day of the week. He has studied dozens of fighting manuals from Talhoffer, Sutor, Liechtenauer, Marozzo, Capoferro, Dürer, Ott, Fiore de Liberi, the I 33 etc., and also specialised in rapiers, claymores (not to be confused with the claidheamh da lamh), messers, quarterstaffs and crossbows and is going to fight in big turneys this season.
... Both of them have been part in prestigeous TV productions and been invited to do shows overseas. Sorry, mate. I don't want to sound bitchy, seriously, but... you got that wrong there. Of course they have a set script and slightly slowed down motions at touristy places for educational reasons, but I hope I can get my hand on clips of other events in the coming season. But it's good to hear that you liked the humour; it's nice that the combination of education and fun works.
Sure it's the lowlands, and technically Adam is Kiwi, but I just decided to say highlanders. That way, if people were interested in the Highlander TV show, they would find this and discover what it's really about. Besides, notice I didn't call them highlanders in the description.
Technically, they're not Highlanders, but I agree on the rest! They have studied lots of old fighting manuals and fight at full force and speed. I'm a great fan of them, so thanks for uploading!
By the way, if anybody wants to see them: The new season starts in March and they'll be at Stirling castle and Edinburgh castle from Monday to Thursday. Also, there is more on my playlists. Thanks again and if this post should show up twice, I'm sorry!
@spartan4118 actually the Scot's made a point of fighting edge on edge as a matter of honour. There is an old quote which escapes me now- if I can remember it I'll post it. But it's basically referring to this practice. It is a reason you'll find a large number of antique scottish blades are hacked at the edges.
ibuchanan82 2 months ago
which swords are those at 3:04 ?
Thadrk1 1 year ago
HIGHLANDERS!
CanabisNationClan420 1 year ago
murder stroke
loosifur 1 year ago
lowland fags using the highland claymore
oo00infinity00oo 1 year ago
@oo00infinity00oo There isn't a claymore in sight in this video, there are greatswords to be sure, but the claymore is distinguished by unique quillions, which none of the swords in the video have. Greatswords were of course in use among Lowlanders, including the monstrous six foot specimen on display in the Wallace Monument purported to have been used by William himself, as he was after all a Lowlander.
Injektilo7 4 months ago
@Injektilo7 glad to hear you know what your talking about. i was just talking shit for the hell of it : )
oo00infinity00oo 4 months ago
@oo00infinity00oo Haha, well, sometimes I think that's what YouTube comments are really for after all. ;)
Injektilo7 4 months ago
ehh theyre alright...the skinny guy needs to wear gloves
mouthforwar17 1 year ago
it diddnt look like they were displacing or blocking with the flat of the blade..i couldnt tell. i was under the impression that that was proper practice.
spartan4118 1 year ago
@spartan4118 It would sort of be easier on the blade, but you can't get a good grip with that sort of parry. Thus, sword smiths design blades to take the hit with the edge anyway.
Egladhon 1 year ago
Awesome!
ericcoy1 1 year ago
Great video, some great sword skills there and its superb to see history being kept alive. Wielding Lowlanders as in this video is not as easy as it looks either, these guys just make it look easy. great stuff 10/10
depoty 1 year ago
Hey everyone. I really do enjoy the comments and discussion, but I'd like to ask everyone to keep the language civil. Thank you kindly, and enjoy!
Egladhon 1 year ago 2
holding the edges of the blade would mean the blade would have to be unsharpened which kind of defeats the purpose..right?
Eso1 1 year ago
@Eso1 Good question. Notice where they are holding the blades. It was actually common to only sharpen the lower portion of the blade. If you think about it, it makes sense since only the last foot or so was going to need to be sharp. If you look at many great swords sold today, you'll see a leather grip under the quillons (crossguard) where you can grab with your hand.
Egladhon 1 year ago
@Egladhon ahhh i see!
Eso1 1 year ago
Edge to edge contact is not intentional.
Parrying was done with the flat or guard.
These guys got it right, unlike Hollywood.
Conan568 1 year ago
@Conan568 Actually, these men did block with the edge when I saw them in person. And actually it's very difficult to make an effective parry with the edge hence why historical fencers will parry with the edge.
Egladhon 1 year ago
Ez de szar:D
LORDHEMISH 2 years ago
He forgot to mention that most of the Scottish army back them consisted mostly of local farmers, and badly equiped militias.
The most common weapon was the pike, or spear, while farmers usually had rakes, clubs and hacks...
Very small noumber of Scottish soldiers used swords, armor, axes, poleaxes or had propper training.
Nobles, kinghts and landlords were only who had permision to own and carry swords and other arms.
Excellent video thow, 5 stars...
KraljLazar 2 years ago
@KraljLazar Very true. And if I may say, it's actually amazing how intuitive a person can function with a spear. A commoner could actually do fairly well. Swords, not so much. They were a sign of nobility, and if a peasant did have one for a war, my understanding is it would be soon taken away afterward, but others more qualified could speak to that.
Egladhon 1 year ago
@Egladhon
I second that. In our local medieval fencing club we mostly used hand-and-half swords with two hands or one hand swords, studying some german medieval fencing manual. One day a guy brought a spear and only the best swordsman in the club could manage it.
I guess in a many-vs-many environment a one-hand sword and shield has the advantage that it's possible to block arrows with the shield over the spear.
Also theck out the "Deadliest Warrior" episode featuring William Wallace.
adamcrookedsmile 1 year ago
what the in the world are they doing oh who cares its funny. but no barrel chested men in here either I can honestly say that the romance books of sexy scotland warriors are totaly made up have not seen one in any of the clips i have seen here
highlandladymarian 2 years ago
scottish weans cant take anything seriously
snecko 2 years ago
Cause we know how to enjoy life. *Snort* Look at me calling myself a wean, I'm 18 fer christ sake lol
PsycoBhoy 1 year ago
Looks like fun guys! Well done!
KeithBrown51 2 years ago
Very cool:D
Been to a few medieval re enactment type shows on in England but mostly the Wars of the Roses. This seemed pretty neat though.
BritGBM 2 years ago
come on stab him
hutchie997 2 years ago
What are they doing with those? Claymore are beautiful Scottish swords.
Danhelll 2 years ago
Are those claymores?
Danhelll 2 years ago
No. They are actually closer to German greatswords.
Egladhon 2 years ago
Actually from the look of the blade the second man is using I would say its a lowlander vs. zweihander
PerfectChaos1212 2 years ago
nah lowlander is 6foot long, and the hand guard loops, the two hander the green guy is using is german though. The other is amost exactly like a claymore exept the hand guard is straight and not angled
ibuchanan82 2 years ago
From the shape of the german sword's blade, I thought it was a Flamberge at first glance, but then I saw it didnt have the wavy blade, it's defenitely a Zweihander.
That guy was defenitely not using a Claymore, or a Lowlander, I actually couldnt make that sword out, it's too generic looking for me to recognize.
HamsterPants522 2 years ago
@ibuchanan82 Early claymores had straight quillions. Mel Gibson's sword in Braveheart was an early claymore, it looked 12th C.
TempleOfSin 2 years ago
and..."Stirling is not in Scotland" wtf...yes it is, im not sorry to tell you. also I find it odd you are even arguing this with me you can just go and look it up and see it is officially in the highlands. its not a mater of opinion its just a fact. btw I lived in Stirling for the first 17 years of my life.
NorthShoreBiking 2 years ago
NorthShoreBiking,
Website like britainexpress list Stirling in central Scotland, not the Highlands. Doubtless some maps will say otherwise, and some will support my claim. Please do give it a rest. You have better things to do than gripe over this, I'm sure.
Egladhon 2 years ago
oh and i live in Canada now but i am Scottish..."a proud highland Scot" so i find it insulting that you an American tourist is trying to tell me where the highlands start in my country.
NorthShoreBiking 2 years ago
Well, you're the first Scot to tell me that the Stirling is the highlands. Everyone else when I was there told me that those are the start of the lowlands.
You can look at the discussion early on for this vid if you wish. It was because of those comments that I changed the name. Hence, you Scots can fight amongst yourselves about what are highlands and lowlands.
Egladhon 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
"Lowlanders? Stirling is in the highlands... in fact Im just down the road from Stirling right now"
You are not scottish, you probably moved to canada when you were very young, therefore you are not scottish. You are canadian.
Stirling is not in scotland and your ignorance of where it is situated goes to prove your not a scot.
kingdomofdalriada 2 years ago
I was down the road then because i was visiting my family in Scotland
and I only moved to Canada 2 years ago
NorthShoreBiking 2 years ago
it is officially in the highlands you can look it up if you like
NorthShoreBiking 2 years ago
Comment removed
d00ft 2 years ago
Very interesting. I'll have to remember the two hands on the blade of the longsword. can't do that very well with the katana (which is what I like to use, mostly in the form of battojutsu.)
AceVendetta 2 years ago
Lowlanders? Stirling is in the highlands... in fact Im just down the road from Stirling right now.
so...I dont know if its a typo in the title but these guys are highlanders.
NorthShoreBiking 2 years ago
Many Scots would dispute that Stirling is in the highlands. In fact, it's just around Stirling that you begin to see anything you could call "high". You have to go further north to see the real highlands.
Egladhon 2 years ago
Comment removed
kingdomofdalriada 2 years ago
o and one more thing im pretty sure if the lowlanders practiced it so did the highlanders along side of their own form
mouthforwar17 2 years ago
Well, there were certain similarities. Granted, I'm a fighter, not a historian, but Education in one sort of leads to the other.
AllmightyQustionMark 2 years ago
well highlanders are better...at least they didnt sell out to the english...and i do red books...i have books from the 1800s about my family from scotland so suck it
mouthforwar17 2 years ago
But the question is: Can ye fight, laddie? I have family from scotland as well, who happened to fight along side both Wallace and Robert De Bruce. Both highlanders and lowlanders fought for both the brits and the scots. Its a little more complicated than you think.
AceVendetta 2 years ago
Which clan? Im from the Kennedy and Bruce clans..just curious..
commanderNSO 2 years ago
who me?? im from clan leslie but the problem with my clan is were literally situated on the eastern highland/lowland border in aberdeenshire. ive read accounts that calls us lowlanders and highlanders so its kindof wierd...its moslty cuz my clan has more lands in fife near edinburgh than in the highlands..but still the origional land of my clan was on the border in the highlands..near the grampians..for me its more of what i like and i say highlanders.
mouthforwar17 2 years ago
its highlanders not lowlanders u fag
mouthforwar17 2 years ago
actually, the particular form you're watching WAS practiced primarily by the Lowlanders. You know, from the lowlands. Turn off the TV and read a book.
AllmightyQustionMark 2 years ago
I love how everyone on here running their mouth is a master of swords and techniques yet they probably are overweight bald basement dwelling virgins.
scatmanwfm 3 years ago
Lol im not check out my video "Verias vincit Fight display"
veriasvincit 3 years ago
This likely coming from an overweight bald basement dwelling virgin.
HitodamaKyrie 2 years ago
Not likely seeing how I'm not one of the many "online" sword experts that like to mindlessly argue and pick apart every little detail because I have wikipedia at my disposal, but good try trying to reverse my comment against me. Now return to your anime.
scatmanwfm 2 years ago
Neither am I. I merely felt that such a response to your trollish would increase my lulz level for the time being. And infact it did. Now return to your scat.
HitodamaKyrie 2 years ago
" response to your trollish would increase my lulz level"
Obviously you are using terms such as "lulz level" get back to your basement hentai and your "trollish"
scatmanwfm 2 years ago
Yeah, I did. Doesn't mean I own a basement. Your sterotype doesn't work on me, I'm afraid. I'm more of a gamer than an otaku. Infact I was watching this video because of interest generated by playing the game Medival 2: Total War. Fail troll.
HitodamaKyrie 2 years ago
Dude...why do all the anime geeks have that "my spinning dragon kick vs. your hidden crane strike" mentality?? And why do they all think they are master swordsmen? I taught Martial Arts for 8 years, and there was this one know it all snotty nosed anime worshipping kid who was trying to tell me how to use my katana in my own class! He tried to show me his "secret tricks" in my Judo class..and his gauranteed escapes in my Brazilian JiuJitsu class..needless to say I embarrassed him every time..
commanderNSO 2 years ago
Haha yeah all this is really cool stuff but i'll be the first to admit I don't know shit about it. It just pisses me off when there's an awsome video with sword techniques and guys who are actually really good at it and all the internet sword masters come out of the woodwork to take about their bad form etc.
scatmanwfm 2 years ago
@commanderNSO I know what you mean. I've been studying the longsword for a while now, and it seems like every time I bring it up some guy who watches anime wants to tell me two hundred bullet points about why he thinks I should be studying the katana instead. It's because of this that I've learned why all other HEMA guys I know hate anime.
Squeejee09 1 year ago
@commanderNSO I watch anime, but I find people like that absolutely ridiculous. You don't learn swordsmanship from fictional cartoons xD
zombiesite1 7 months ago
what were the second type of swords
spenceII 3 years ago
Single handed cut and thrust. If you want more specifics, I either don't remember or don't know.
Egladhon 3 years ago
the hiding guard he said right?
its like block #5 in epee. :p
Morhwal 3 years ago
Those swords are forged so that they would make that sound... gladiators used to forge them the same way... just for the **ting** sound.
Vecent311 3 years ago
Oh, I guess I should have read further down. Its not actually a longsword. A longsword is a single hand weapon of usually no more than thirty inches from cross-guard to tip. To me it looks like a Landsknecht Zweihänder or two handed sword.
gurumagoo 3 years ago
If they're real Scottish Lowlanders than why is the fat guy using a German mercenaries sword?
gurumagoo 3 years ago
well, there's a fairly long record of trade between the germans and most other nations in that period. Solingen in germany was a noted trade hub for steel, and large numbers of blades were shipped to england, scotland, france and sweeden (among others). That included fully-made swords, as well as unmounted blades which would be hilted in regional styles.
So the Germanic landschnecht's sword is actually pretty appropriate.
suzerain01 3 years ago
I knew that many mercenaries traveled internationally but I hadn't much considered the possibility of an international weapons market. I would have thought that under a feudal system, a weapons market would have been a threat to certain monarchs and systems of government, such as in the case of Scotland where privately owned weapons of war were illegal under English rule. In many places the system was sustained by the fact that the feudal lords had all the weapons.
gurumagoo 3 years ago
you'd be absolutely amazed at how widespread trade was back then - much more than people assume.
and it's not really a weapons market, in the sense that modern AK47's are shipped to the congo/iraq/wherever, and arms dealers, etc...
the weapons were'nt really regulated for that period, as the general peasant was armed with a bill hook or similar polearm, which was pretty much the same as used for farming. the english ban was much later, post-rebellion (1750s)
suzerain01 3 years ago
It's not a stretch of the imagination to see the feudal lords importing weapons that are seen to be superior.
The renaissance fashion of slashed sleeves etc made it to the far corners of the highlands so it's not hard to think that other renaissance items such as these swords did, even if it was only the design of them rather than the weapons themselves.
Cadbren 3 years ago
There is no evidence for weapons being outlawed here under English rule. Nor is there evidence of the system being sustained by feudal lords having all the weapons. As early as 1319, the Scottish Parliament had passed an act ordering men to equip themselves with a sword and polearm (spear). Before that, feudal lords who supported Edward I in Scotland would have had their own tenants pay for their weapons to reduce the costs of equipping an army.
Scotsgit 3 years ago
Was there not an attempt by the English kings to control or restrict the proliferation of weapons among the Scots?
Large swords like the Zweihänder or the Claymore function very different mechanically than other swords. They do not slash, cut, or bludgeon. They create a dynamic shearing force on impact. That is why Claymores are typically not kept perfectly sharp. In combat, these swords were swunge side to side and not overhand or overhand. That would be mechanically inefficient.
gurumagoo 3 years ago
No there wasn't - the nearest would be the restriction of weapons act of the 1750's, but that was passed by a British government after Scotland had joined the Act of Union. There was no attempt by any English king after one of the few successful invasions to remove any weapons anyone in Scotland.
Scotsgit 3 years ago
I think I mispoke. Correct me if I'm wrong, but was not it illegal to train and openly equip yourself with arms around the 11th century (around or before the time of Robert the Bruce and William Wallace? I had the impression that this problem was a source of what became known as the Highland Games, where men attempted to hone their martial prowess without openly bearing arms.
gurumagoo 3 years ago
There's no evidence for that at all. It sounds more like a Hollywood invention rather than anything remotely connected to Scottish history.
BTW, Bruce and Wallace were fighting in the 13th/14th century.
Scotsgit 3 years ago
Mercenaries DID travel for their contracts, but they would usually sell weapons and armour before they left to ensure that they had enough money to live on. The weapons they would take with them would be ones that would be easy to carry.
Scotsgit 3 years ago
I know that Flemish, Norman, and perhaps Danish mercenaries were present in the British Isles at different times, but were mercenaries from as far as Italy, Germany, Poland, and Bohemia common as well. There seems to have been much diplomatic interaction between Scotland and France. Were French mercenaries common?
gurumagoo 3 years ago
Depends at what time - and what constitutes a mercenary, for example just before Flodden, the French King sent instructors to Scotland to teach the army how to use the modern pike. But mercenaries from further afield would have been extremely rare.
Scotsgit 3 years ago
Egladhon..It is a rare person these days who is considerate enough to accomodate "criticism". I am pleased that you renamed this as all too often we get so caught up in the "Highland" issue that the Lowlanders get ignored too. I am pro - highland and despair of the misrepresentation of the history but the Lowland Scots were not "English" and their proud history is also worthy of remembrance. In this context, the video is now commendable for it's portrayal of medieval Lowland longsword. Thanks.
martialpiper 3 years ago
Sure thing. I only wish I could change the title within the vid (which still says "Real Scottish Highlanders"). I threw away the project long ago. Oh well.
Egladhon 3 years ago
Real Scottish Lowlanders would be a much better and more accurate title as in present form it is misleading over Gaelic history. The blades here are indeed blunt to allow for reenactment without damage but real ones were very sharp with the upper portion often left blunt enough to grip. Medieval swordsmen then wore gauntlets anyway and so could grip the blades. It is a good enough vid but this sort of mistake is confusing accuracy in Scottish history. Highland doesn't apply to all Scotland.
martialpiper 3 years ago 2
There you go. I guess I named it that because of the tv show/movies. Anyhow, I changed the name.
Egladhon 3 years ago
I'm sorry to be negative but this isn't Highland swordplay it is only a reenactment group showing choreographed Germanic Longsword in a style reminiscent of Anglo Saxon / Norman culture.. and transplanted into Lowland Scotland. To be fair, this was prevalent across Europe in the medieval period but really has almost nothing to do with the Gaelic culture of Northern Scotland with its influences from Dalriadan,Picto,Norse origins. The Highlanders were famed for their martial skill & this isn't it.
martialpiper 3 years ago
i agree, hughs not really the most gifted swordsman.
veriasvincit 3 years ago
It's fun taking him down...... ;)
Scotsgit 3 years ago
True. They're not even using claymores, and everyone knows that Stirling is not really the highlands. Still, I thought it a good title for the video. If you can think of a better one, feel free to suggest it.
Egladhon 3 years ago
is that filmed in the gardens under the princes tower?
scotsman5678 3 years ago
How many people in here know squat about this? Those blades are dull to BREAK BONE! Not to cut flesh. The blades were still sharp enough to penetrate, but the edges are dull enough to grip. Its a real technique. One of the more useful applications of it is to sweep the crossguard into their temple. And yes, that blade grapple could have easily been broken by an upward thrust. This is a real fight (except for when he got slapped on the bum with the flat side of the blade, lol)
Cretaal 3 years ago
The last foot of the blade might be sharpened before battle. Keep in mind, that's the part that would be cutting, and yes the area near the ricasso would be dull.
Egladhon 3 years ago
using the sword by the holding the blades a real technique. It's called the murderstroke and was designed for disarming your opponent, by hooking his blade and pulling it from his hands. Also every move in sword play exposes the person attacking to a counterstrike, so of course adam could counter it, if he was quick enough.
Grishnakhsalterego 3 years ago
You believe everything you read, i take it you read every fight manual like the bible, plz, think logicaly about this, there are so many ways to counter this "murderstroke". by the time it takes the fighter to turn his blade, in the middle of combat, he would be dead. Not only that, the guard wont pull the blade from his hand, it would slide down the blade. this is a reenacters main problem, most believe every little thing they read
historyalive1 3 years ago
the murderstroke was a killing blow intended to puncture a helm. and i know it was a real technique but in the middle of a battle the last thing your going to do is reverse your blade.
veriasvincit 3 years ago
"puncture a helm"
Uh-oh, you would find it very difficult to do that even with a poleaxe. Against a crappy thin POS helmet, maybe, but someone wearing a helmet with said quality won't have money for the rest of the gear thus it'd be simpler to strike at the unarmoured areas.
Soreth 3 years ago
If that's teh case, why are there pictures of swords and polearms puncturing helmets throught the medieval and renaissance periods?
Scotsgit 3 years ago
The fight from highlander is less obviously choreographed. Hugh doesn't actually know how to really fight with a sword. Hes just an actor. Plus the idea of reversing your sword in the middle of a fight is ridiculous.
veriasvincit 3 years ago
Perhaps, but they didn't make it up. It actually comes from martial arts manuscripts from the period.
ANAMEHASNOTBEENTAKE 3 years ago
many of the fighting manuals mentioned r wrong, not my opinion, plz dont think im awkward, its fact. not once would the blade be held, when he attacks holding the blade, the guard hits adams blade, too easily could he hav pulled upwards, and the blade wud slip out his hands, and how usefull wud the blunt handle and guard really be against an oponents sharp edge. a really gd fight, i hav seen but 1 fight better.
hawkstu 3 years ago
how badly did u damage your swords from parrying?
marineninga 4 years ago
I wasn't the one fighting, but I got a good look at the blades, and it didn't look too bad. A good blade should be able to stand up to a fight like that, but no blade is indestructible.
Egladhon 4 years ago
What are their names?
ZabKat 4 years ago
Their business is known as Living History Scotland. The slim, young, sexy one is called Adam. ;-)
Weinglasarien 4 years ago
You wouldn't happen to have a link to their website, if one exists? I searched "Living History Scotland" but I don't think it brought up their company. The sites didn't seem like the right ones.
ZabKat 4 years ago
I think the other one is named Hugo
clm131313 4 years ago
Fun fun... Btw, do ya know how much one of those bigger knives weight?
kaiseryuu 4 years ago
About 5-6 pound, if I remember correctly.
Weinglasarien 4 years ago
k thanks XB
kaiseryuu 4 years ago
fookin sweet mate.
where was this?
very nice towards the end.
abelkillick 4 years ago
Stirling Castle. They're still there every Monday and Tuesday in August - as soon as they're back from the Fergus Festival in Canada on the 16th, that is. On Wednesdays and Thursdays they're in Edinburgh, and on the 18th and 19th they're in Ruthven Barracks and Fort George as Jacobites.
Weinglasarien 4 years ago
Awesome! Those two seem like fun blokes... way better than modern Olympic fencing, with the weenie electrical sensors... they actually parry! Great video.
virginiacelt 4 years ago
They are! The spontaneous reactions to the audience they come up with in shows are hilarious. I've got videos of a few more of their shows uploaded, if you're interested. :-)
Weinglasarien 4 years ago
I am very interested in Scottish history. I have always found it almost beyond belief that the "highland broadsword" was ever actually used in combat. They seem so unwieldy as to be almost useless.
incongra 4 years ago
Sorry, but you might be confusing the short basket-hilted broadswords from later periods (Claymores) with the Claimh da Laimh, the long two handed sword. The swords in this video are German Zweihaenders, though, part of this performance depicting bodyguards of James III & IV (late 1400s).
Weinglasarien 4 years ago
wow those swords are as long as they are.,..
Mainie101 4 years ago
The castle is Stirling. From there you can see the Wallace monument, Stirling Bridge, and the fields of Bannockburn (the last two being sites of critical battles for Scotland's freedom).
Egladhon 5 years ago
The castle is Stirling. From there you can see the Wallace monument, Stirling Bridge, and the fields of Bannockburn (the last two being sites of critical battles for Scotland's freedom).
Egladhon 5 years ago
amazing man. wat castle is this mate?
LuStephen 5 years ago
Ok grate video I think it was very funny, it got a lot of laugh's out of me. I could tell they where not really putting there heart's into it, I could do better than what those jocks where doing any day, I have been using sword's for 3 year's now, and that was the work of some one that had only done it for 1 year or less in my eye's. But I am a almost pure Scottish, and have had a liking for swords for a long time. I still liked it and am going to rate it 5 for sure ^_^.
halishot 5 years ago
Umm... Adam has been doing this for six years now, in the main season pretty much every day of the week. He has studied dozens of fighting manuals from Talhoffer, Sutor, Liechtenauer, Marozzo, Capoferro, Dürer, Ott, Fiore de Liberi, the I 33 etc., and also specialised in rapiers, claymores (not to be confused with the claidheamh da lamh), messers, quarterstaffs and crossbows and is going to fight in big turneys this season.
Weinglasarien 4 years ago
... Both of them have been part in prestigeous TV productions and been invited to do shows overseas. Sorry, mate. I don't want to sound bitchy, seriously, but... you got that wrong there. Of course they have a set script and slightly slowed down motions at touristy places for educational reasons, but I hope I can get my hand on clips of other events in the coming season. But it's good to hear that you liked the humour; it's nice that the combination of education and fun works.
Weinglasarien 4 years ago
Sure it's the lowlands, and technically Adam is Kiwi, but I just decided to say highlanders. That way, if people were interested in the Highlander TV show, they would find this and discover what it's really about. Besides, notice I didn't call them highlanders in the description.
Thanks for the comment and extra info. Cheers!
Egladhon 5 years ago
Technically, they're not Highlanders, but I agree on the rest! They have studied lots of old fighting manuals and fight at full force and speed. I'm a great fan of them, so thanks for uploading!
By the way, if anybody wants to see them: The new season starts in March and they'll be at Stirling castle and Edinburgh castle from Monday to Thursday. Also, there is more on my playlists. Thanks again and if this post should show up twice, I'm sorry!
Weinglasarien 5 years ago
sick
rugged04270 5 years ago
I'm sorry. Is "sick" a compliment or an insult?
Egladhon 5 years ago
ha I agree what a shit word
abelkillick 4 years ago
nice sword and a good video about historical fencening..5 stars
Highlander90 5 years ago