The Way We War

[davem]

Originally Posted by Kuruharan

This may come as a shock to some...but I'm not particularly up on my metalsmithing.

But it seems to me that an axe would be a lot easier to make than say a sword.

Kind of odd for a race that prides itself on its metalsmithery.

Depends on the kind of axe. If you look at the pic I linked to in my first post you'll see a number of variations. aside from the main blade you could have a hook or hammerhead on the back & a spike on the end (or both ends) of the haft.

A sword is an effective weapon against an unarmoured opponent, but its slashing effect is useless against mail, Brigandine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigandine or even a basic Jack http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gambeson. An axe has the advantage over a sword in that its heavier blade (as has been noted) will break bones or damage internal organs even when there is no penetration. And swords blunt (& bend) more easily than an axe or battle hammer. And we're talking actual combat here, so its all to do with effectiveness. A knight may have carried a sword for all kinds of symbolic reasons (it was the weapon of a knight, as I said, & the blade & hilts formed a nice 'Cross' shape for a Christian Knight) but on the field, particularly in the late medieval period when the development of plate armour had reached its apogee, it was fairly useless, & most knights would favour something with more weight & power like a poleaxe or battlehammer - remember, on the field you're not concerned with killing your opponents so much as with taking them out of the fight (they can be left to die, or despatched afterwards with a dagger). You'd go for something heavy which would do the job in as few blows as possible so that you could move on to the next guy.

[Eönwë]

Well, other than what has been said, I think that Tolkien preferred axes, or used them as a symbol of power.

I mean, the dwarves (after the first age Noldor and debatably during the time of the first age Noldor) were the best craftsmen around, so it would make sense that they would create the best weapons. After all, they created the best armour ever, and the best non-magical swords as well (not to mention the fact that Eöl learned his sword-making from the dwarves too). It would also follow that after such experience, they would make the best weapons possible for themselves.

Also Tuor, who was arguably one of the greatest Men of all time, wieled an axe.


Just some thoughts from your friendly neighbourhood Eönwë.