The Sword

1290 AD, a woman with a sword
from the Royal Armouries Manuscript 

For a long time I have been focusing on the medieval bride, but with every bride comes a groom, and certainly he must have had some influence on such a theme. So an entry on a primarily male accessory, the sword is in order. And although it was the exception rather than the rule, women did at times carry arms as well.

The middle ages weres a time of war, and so there was numerous weapons in the average arsenal. War is among the great motivaters for new technology. Professional armies ermerged i the Middle Ages, much like the effecient romans a 1000 years earlier.

The sword came in many variations in medieval times.
Such as the broad sword, that had 2 edges meant for cutting as oposed to stabing. It was the tool of the knights and very expensive. They can be made both for one and two hands.
The falchion sword wich was short and with a single edge. It was a cheap and low quality sword, meant for cutting and slicing.
The great sword is huge and also with two edges. It was meant to be wielded with two hands and could weigh around 4,5 kg / 10 pounds. It required a great amount of training to wield properly.
Longswords had an incredible reach and thrusting capacity and was also meant for two hands.

Broadsword

Falchion sword

Greatsword

A sword were (and is) not a cheap choice for a groom, but it does gives a man a certain something. In the Bronze Age a warship could be bought with 10 bronze swords so you can understand the value of this weapon. If you are having the wedding at a medieval festival or reenactment museum, you might be able to borrow one. And once again I will remind you that you need a permission to carry that kind of weapon.

(Source: Middle-ages.org.uk)