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Post by Weiss Draconis on Apr 29, 2008 9:04:12 GMT -5
The claymore is a term applicable to two types of sword that can be traced directly to the Scottish Isles. The first of these is the original, or Highland, claymore, (with the name claymore in both cases derived from the Scottish Gaelic term claidheamh mor, meaning great sword), and is in reference to a double-edged broadsword with a cross hilt, guard turned town, which was used by the Highlanders of Scotland, with the second being a single edged sword with a basket hilt, still visible today as the 'full dress' sword of all Highland regiments in the British army.
The former of these, the Highland claymore, was generally considered a two-handed weapon, and is most commonly documented as having been in consistent military use from 1500 to 1700, with the last battle in which Highland claymores were used en-masse being the Battle of Killiecrankie, in 1689. While still being longer than a standard sword, it was shorter than other two-handed sword of that era, such as the zweihander.
The Highland claymores were on average 140 cm in length, with the blade being 107 cm long and the grip being the remaining 33. These swords seem to have evolved from an earlier design of Scottish sword, in which a distinctive cross hilt with downsloping arms ending in spatulate swellings that were frequently made into a quarterfoil design. These blades are classified under Ewart Oakeshott's typology as class Xllla (read class 13a), generally referenced as the knightly greatsword, and in design were fairly uniform.
I'll conclude this tomorrow, as I need sleep.
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Post by Hikaru Uematsu on Apr 29, 2008 21:20:12 GMT -5
very well done, good research.
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Post by Weiss Draconis on Apr 30, 2008 21:23:09 GMT -5
Well, I still need to finish it off a bit. But thanks for the compliment. This is what i do instead of the study of the course I'm meant to be studying.
Another claymore design, similar to the Highland Claymore, is the lesser-known claymore of our times, the clamshell hilted claymore. It's relatively similar to the Highland claymore, and is also a two-handed sword, but the main distinction is that the crossguard consisted of two downward-curving arms and two large, round, concave plates that protected the foregrip. the clamshell hilted claymore is named due to these round plates, which resembe an open clam.
Now, the second type of claymore, the basket-hilted version. I know that I've referred to this as another type of claymore, along with the Highland claymore. That's because there's evidence that both have been referred to as such. Here the renowned sword historian, Claude Blair, has his research paraphrased.
The first usage of the word claymore in written form was after the beginning of the 1715 uprising, and entered a wider usage around the time on the uprising in 1745. Two-handed swords were not in use at this point in history, as the musket and the bayonet had superseded them, so it's most likely that the use of the word claymore in this time period was in reference to the basket hilted sword. The document that named basket hilted swords as claymores stated that men were armed with rifles, dirks, pistols, a targe, or shield, and "a sturdy claymore by his side." This document sounds like either an intelligence report or a documentation of armaments for a platoon.
To support this, there is a document dated 11th July, 1747, which describes the Prince's escape through the Highlands following the Battle of Culloden, wherein the terms broadsword and claymore are used synonymously. (Not concrete evidence with this sample, but listed as part of the information I've gathered.)
It's most likely that this later use of the term claymore referred to a shorter, one handed sword that became popular with Scottish soldiers and even some English officers from the 18th century onwards, even being used in limited combat during World War 2 by Lt. Col. "Fighting" Jack Churchill, (DSO, MC & BAR) who carried a "modern" claymore into combat. He was quoted as once saying "Any officer who goes into action without his sword is improperly dressed."
The basket on this "modern" claymore (the term referring to a Scottish basket hilted sword.) was designed to protect the hand during combat. The Scottish versions of the basket hilted sword were easily identifiable from others by the velvet liner on the basket, which was usually in red, occationally accompanied by some additional decorative tassels on the hilt or pommel.
The "modern" claymore, which is unrelated to the Highland and clamshell hilted versions, is still seen today in some forms. Firstly, some designs are used in some forms of what is considered at the present time to be Highland traditional dance (which stems correspondingly from the romanticism of the Highlands of Scotland in the Victorian era.), and is carried as the ceremonial swords of the Royal Regiment of Scotland in the British army, with it being part of that regiment's ceremonial dress. This is in contrast to the rest of the Army, who have short swords instead.
And that covers everything I have on the claymore. Not sure how accurate it is, but I've done my best. Any oversights on my part can be pointed out, and I will attempt to rectify them as the first possible option.
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Post by Hikaru Uematsu on Apr 30, 2008 21:37:51 GMT -5
That second part was one of the best articles on historical Scottish weapons i have seen. and there are quite a lot. well done.
i liked the point that the basket-hilt is still used as the dress sword of the British Army.
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Post by Weiss Draconis on May 1, 2008 2:36:50 GMT -5
All it takes is time to research and type. That's all that I did.
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