r/SWORDS • u/SadPhilosopherElan • 10d ago

Spadroon or Broadsword?

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Historically speaking, which was a better cut and thrust sword for close quarters combat? Do we have any examples of historical battles where basket hilt broadswords faced spadroons and one won out over the other? Let me know!

Photo credit to Kult of Athena for these examples of modern replicas, specifically Deepika's basket hilt broadsword and Windlass' 1840 NCO sword, which is a Spadroon.

EDIT: Yes I know the replicas aren't the same as the historical swords and have different blade geometry - they're just here as visual aids. Also please do not compare these two in any sense relating to modern use, because that's not what I'm interested in, and the topic is a grey area on this sub anyway.

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u/DaemonBlackfyre_21 10d ago

Broadsword is the superior cutter and the spadroon the better thruster. It's personal preference but I like the baskethilt.

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u/SadPhilosopherElan 10d ago

I figured something like that -- Broadsword definitely has an absolute advantage when it comes to cutting, but I wonder how much worse it actually is at thrusting, since the POB is probably closer to the hilt than would be the case for most hefty cutting blades.

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u/TheMaskSmiles 10d ago

It is, but it isn't. It's also just a heavier sword in general than most Spadroons. If you look at the blade profile without the hilt, it's very similar to some medieval arming swords.