Stick and Pole Weapons by George Hernandez

Sticks (and stones) are probably the earliest weapons used by man. A stick or pole weapon is usually made from wood but can also be made from other materials like vine, bone, metal. Introducing elements like reenforcing bands or counterbalances do not change the nature of a stick or pole weapon much, but introducing elements like blades, hammers, or spikes significantly changes the nature of a stick or pole weapon.

The transition from stick to pole is roughly at 90 cm ~ 3 feet. Regarding pole arms, George Silver recommended two particular lengths for pole arms: (1) long pole weapons ("short staff, half pike, forest bill, partisan, and gleve") should be roughly as high as you can reach plus the width of your grip, which comes to ~ 240 cm ~ 8 feet to ~ 280 cm ~ 9 feet. (2) medium pole weapons ("battle axe, halberd, or black bill") should be roughly man height.

Sticks differ from clubs in that the latter are usually heavy and rely on bashing, while the former can bash but can also do more agile work.

Wikipedia
- Club (weapon)
- Pole weapon
  - Staff (stick). A pole. A staff can block as well as swing or thrust.
    - Chinese: gun = gùn = 棍.
    - German: halm; stock.
    - Quarterstaff. The English quarterstaff was hardwood and sometime reinforced with metal. The most common length was 180 cm = 6 feet, but long staves got as long as 5.4 m = 18 feet.
    - Bâton français. French stick fighting uses a 120 cm = 4 foot staff.
    - La canne. French cane fighting uses a cane or walking stick which are ~ 90 cm ~ 3 feet.
    - The Japanese have a variety of sticks and staffs that they name.
      - Yawara. Aka Pasak; Dulodulo; Kubotan (if a keychain). ~ 15 cm ~ 6 inches or just wider than a fist.
      - Tambo (weapon) = 短棒 = tanbo = tanjo. ~60 cm ~ 2 feet ~ 2 shaku.
      - Hanbo = 三棒. ~90 cm ~ 3 feet ~ 3 shaku.
      - Tsue = zue = cane. ~90 cm ~ 3 feet ~ 3 shaku.
      - Jo (weapon) = 杖. ~120 cm ~ 4 feet ~ 4 shaku. Officially, a jo is 4 shaku 2 sun 1 bu = 127.56 cm = 4'4.25" = 50.25". For a personal fit, a jo come to just under your armpit. Roughly the length of a two-handed sword. The only person who ever beat the legendary Miyamoto Musashi in a match was Muso Gonnosuke with his jo. Jojdo or Jojutsu uses the jo.
      - Goshaku Bo is 5 shaku = 1.5151 m = 59.651 inches.
      - Bo (weapon) = 棒. ~180 cm ~ 6 feet = 6 shaku. Aka Rokkushaku Bo or Cho Bo. 6 shaku = 1.8182 m = 71.582 inches.
    - Jogo do Pau. The staff or vara of Portuguese stick fighting is ~150 cm ~ 5 feet, or up to your chin.
    - Juego del Palo. The stick fencing of the Canary Islands, Spain uses a variety of lengths for their palillos.
    - Silambam. The staff of this southern India style is up to the user's nose.
    - Bata (martial arts). Irish stick fighting uses sticks of a variety of lengths but they are most famous for their bata siúil éille (shillelagh) which is commonly a ~ 120 cm ~ 4 foot stick shod with iron on both ends.
  - Spearedia.org/wiki/Spear">Spear. A point on a pole. Inexpensive and easy to make. Spears can be used like staffs but can also be thrown or planted. Latin for spear: hasta (hastae plural). The pilum (pila plura) was a throwing spear.
    - Qiang (spear). qiāng = 槍. The common Chinese spear had a leaf shaped blade and had red-horse hair tassles below the blade. Then length varied from 2 m ~ 6.5 feet to 4 m ~ 13 feet.
    - German: stange.
    - Yari. 槍. A Japanese thrusting spear with a straight double edged blade. The pole ranged from 1 m ~ 3 feet to 6 m ~ 20 feet. The blade ranged from 10 cm ~ 4 inches to 1 m ~ 1 yard. The two major categories of yari were Su Yari (素槍, simple spear) and Kama Yari (鎌槍, sickled spear).
    - Trident. A three-pronged spear. Used by gladiators and also as a cultural symbol.
  - Guisarme. A hook on a pole.
  - Bec_de_Corbin (crow's beak). A curved spike on a pole.
  - Lance. A thrusting spear used from horseback.
    - French: lance.
    - Italian: germoglio, lanza.
    - Portuguese: lança.
    - Spanish: lanza.
  - Pollaxe. From Old English "head axe". A "short-staff" (man-height pole) with a head that was a triple-weapon combination: axe (taillant), hammer (maillet; mail), and spear or spike point (dague dessus; point de dessus). Sometimes a curved spike or bec de faucon (falcon's beak) would replace the axe. The staff would often also be reinforced with metal straps (languets). The butt end (bout d'embas; queue; dague d'embas; dague dessoubz; point d'embas) could be plain or also have a spike. The preceding terms are from Le Jeu de la Hache (The Art of Axeplay), a period manual on the pollaxe.
    - Italian: azza.
- Some cutting pole weapons, all of which had variations which included thrusting point or guisarme or both.
  - Bardiche. Aka long poleaxe. A large blade attached to the pole by two sockets. The pole was usually less than 150 cm ~ 5 feet.
    - Lochaber axe. Aka Jeddart axe. A Scottish bardiche with a distinctive hook that could also be used to scale walls.
  - Bill (weapon). Aka English Bill, Brown Bill. Longer versions aka Forest Bills. Shorter versions aka Black Bills. Bill pole weapons are based upon the agricultural billhook, which has a distinctive recurved blade.
    [armor.com/pole030.html]
  - Glaive. A smaller blade attached to the pole by a socket.
  - Guan_dao. Aka kwan dao = 關刀 = guān dāo; Yanyue dao = 偃月刀 = reclining moon blade. A heavy and curved blade mounted on a 150 cm ~ 5 foot to 180 cm ~ 6 foot pole that had a metal counter weight on the other end.
    - Japanese: Bisento
  - Ji (halberd) = 戟. A Chinese spear with one or two additional blades attached to the head. There are gaps in the head that can be used to trap weapon.
  - Halberd. A long, two-handed pole weapon that had an axe, spike, and guisarme.
  - Naginata.なぎなた, 長刀 or 薙刀. A Japanese cutting pole weapon where the blade is attached via its tang. Compare:
    - A daito blade is roughly 60-110 cm = 2-2.5 feet/shaku, with a handle roughly 30 cm = 1 foot/shaku.
    - A nagamaki blade is roughly 60-120 cm = 2-4 feet/shaku, with a handle roughly 60-90 cm = 2-3 feet/shaku.
    - A naginata blade is roughly 30-90 cm = 1-3 feet/shaku, with a handle roughly 180- cm = 6-9 feet/shaku.
  - Voulge. Aka pole cleaver. A medium blade attached to the pole by the lower two thirds of the blade. A broad blade meant more for hacking than slicing. Many had pointed tip.
- Some thrusted or planted pole weapons.
  - Pike (weapon). A long weapon often used in phalanxes against cavalry. 3 m ~ 10 feet to 6 m ~ 20 feet in length.
    - Italian: pica.
  - Sarissa. Aka sarisa. A long Macedonian pike (up to 7 m ~ 23 feet) that was often planted.
  - Ahlspiess. Aka awl pike. A short pike that ranged from 1.8 m ~ 6 feet to 2.5 m ~ 8 feet in overall length, with the thin long tip occupying half the length.
- More decorative spears:
  - Spetum. A spear with two projections at the base of the head.
  - Partisan (weapon). A spear with a double-headed ax at the base.
Bata
- Bataireacht: The Art of Irish Stick-Fighting [thewildgeese.com/pages/facfight.html]
- Comhraiceoir Bata [Geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/4933/shillelagh.html]. 'Irish, Ireland, Faction Fighting, shillelagh, stick fighting, bata, Dublin, Irish Brigade, Collar and Elbow wrestling, Coraiocht, Fianna, CuChulainn, Connacht, Ulster, Meath, Leinster, Munster, Famine, blackthorn, boxing, John L Sullivan, Shanavests, Caravats
- Geocities.com/Glendoyle/bata/
  - 'Uisce Beatha Bata Rince (Whiskey Stick Dancing) An Irish Stick Fighting Style'
  - Good explanations and pictures.
- John Whurley [johnwhurley.com]
Jogo do Pau
- Jogo do Pau: Origins and Evolution [ejmas.com/jmanly/articles/2003/jmanlyart_wolfcosta_0203.htm]
- Jogo do Pau [home.dbio.uevora.pt/~oliveira/Jogo_Pau/J_Pau.htm]
- Jogo do Pau [arscives.com/jogodopau/default.htm]. A kata in photos and text.
- Jogo do Pau [jogodopau.de]. In German but it has some videos.
Jojutsu
Juego del Palo
- JUEGO DEL PALO - Stick Fencing of the Canary Islands [ejmas.com/jwma/articles/2000/jwmaart_wolf_0500.html]
Le Canne
- Cane Masters [canemasters.com]
  - 'Our goal is to build a powerful resource for the rapidly growing community of folks who are interested in learning to use the cane for self-defense and exercise.'
  - Of course, they also sell canes, videos, books, etc.
- French Cane Fighting [cambridgemartialarts.freeserve.co.uk/fred.htm]
- Self-defence with a Walking-stick: The Different Methods of Defending Oneself with a Walking-Stick or Umbrella when Attacked under Unequal Conditions (PartI) [ejmas.com/jnc/jncart_barton-wright_0200.htm]
Silambam
- silambam.com. Some nice videos too.
- Kalari World [kalariworld.com]
Spears
- Spearheads I: The Anglo-Saxon Spearhead [anvilfire.com/iForge/tutor/atli_spear/top_index.htm]
- Spearheads II: Alternative Methods of Making Spearheads [anvilfire.com/iForge/tutor/atli_spear/top_index2.htm]
Stick Grappling
- StickGrappler.tripod.com. 'Stickgrappler's Martial Arts Archive'
Miscellany
- Axe Forum [AxeForum.com]. 'Where fellow Axe, Pole arm, Fire-arm and sword collectors alike can visit and enjoy the hobby most of us have come to love. We are home to smiths of various weapons that are very accomplished in metallurgy and other aspects of weapons fabrication so if you have any technical questions don't hesitate to ask.'
- Quarterstaff.org
  - 'The British Quartstaff Association'
  - They also tell you the size of a quarterstaff and how to make your own.

2007-10-16 20:08:25Z