Be it in the hands of a Ninja or a Knight, there is no doubt that the sword is probably
the most graceful weapon ever!
When wielded well,
the sword and the person holding it look like partners in an intimate and beautiful dance.
And as much as swords have made many men and women famous,
there are some swords which
have gained fame for themselves.
Let’s take a look at some of them.
14.
Joyeuse.
One of the most influential names
who is credited with bringing much of Europe under a single rule at one point of time,
Charlemagne was a legendary leader.
And his sword was no less.
He called his sword Joyeuse and legends say that it was forged from the same materials
as Curtana and Durendal, two other famous swords.
Charlemagne used Joyeuse to behead the Saracen commander
and there is even a town named after it!
The sword was lost in battle once, but was recovered by one of his knights.
Charlemagne was so attached to his sword that he gave the knight an appanage!
Joyeuse can today be found at the Louvre
and was even used in the coronation of French Kings.
13.
Excalibur.
Perhaps the most fabled and renowned sword ever,
the Excalibur has many tales attached to it.
It belonged to the legendary King Arthur of England, whose exploits at the round table
will be talked about for a very very long time!
A huge part of King Arthur’s fame is attached with the Excalibur,
his sword which is supposed to have special powers.
It is said that the sword was buried in stone
and no one had been able to pull it out before Arthur came along.
And, after achieving many victories with Excalibur in hand, Arthur asked his Knights to throw
it in the lake where the Lady of the Lake caught it.
Many believe that Arthur is just resting and will wake up to claim his sword again when
England needs him the most.
Wonder if Brexit was his cue though!
12.
Napoleon’s Sword.
Napoleon Bonaparte was the military and political leader of France
and there is no doubt that he will remain one of the strongest leaders ever!
And according to stories, the only thing he carried on a battlefield were a pistol and a sword.
And the weapons he used were of the finest make.
Which is why he gave his sword to his brother as a wedding gift and it has been passed down
in the napoleon family for generations.
That is, until the gold encrusted sword was declared a national treasure in France in 1978
and came up for an auction where it was sold anonymously for a sum of 6.4 million dollars!
11.
Durendal.
This one is another sword associated with Charlemagne.
Apparently, it was once his own sword but passed into Saracen hands before one of his
most trusted knights, Roland, got it back from the enemy.
Wayland the Smith is said to have forged this blade
with which Roland won much acclaim in the battlefield.
Durendal was supposedly given to Charlemagne by an angel and he then gave it to Roland.
Durendal is supposed to contain a tooth of Saint Peter, blood of the basil of Caesarea,
hair of Saint Denis and a piece of the raiment of Mother Mary!
All that while being supposedly capable of cutting down a boulder with a single strike!
And even though Roland threw it in a vat of poison, many believe that it still exists,
stuck in stone in France!
10.
Wallace’s Sword.
William Wallace was a Scottish knight in the 13th century
who earned much fame for his brave deeds.
They included many feats including leading the charge against the English during the
Scottish war for Independence.
It was wielded by Wallace in the Battle of Stirling
and the Battle of Falkirk to create terror among his enemies.
What makes the sword so special is that it was enormous, and experts believe that Wallace
must have been at least 7 feet tall to be able to wield it so effectively.
9.
Ulysses S Grant’s Civil War Presentation Sword.
When in 1864, Ulesses S Grant became the General in chief of the US army,
he was presented with an intricately worked sword.
It made the use of 26 diamonds to spell out the initial USG on the sword
and was at the time the most expensive sword ever made in the US.
It was presented to him by the citizens of Kentucky as the position he commanded had
only belonged to George Washington previously.
The sword was made of pure silver and gold and has the Goddess Victory etched on it and
the American Eagle spreading its wings over her head.
In 2007, the sword fetched a price of 1.6 million dollars during an auction!
8.
Colada and Tizona.
These swords belonged to a nobleman and a military leader in medieval Spain,
El Cid Campeador.
It is said that he won the Colada in combat from the count of Barcelona
and Tizona from the king of Valencia.
The swords exemplified his virtues of strong, loyal, just, brave, sensible and educated.
He later presented these swords to his son-in-laws
but when he found out that they were beating his daughters,
he took it from them and gave Colada to one of his knights.
It is believed that the sword is still preserved in the Royal palace of Madrid.
7.
Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi.
When you visit Japan and see their Imperial Regalia,
you will notice that one of the three is actually a sword.
It is the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, which translates into Grass cutting sword.
The sword is revered by the Japanese and there is a fascinating story behind it.
It says that once there was an 8 headed snake
which who had killed 7 of the 8 daughters in a family.
And when he was coming for the 8th, the God Susanoo had an idea and placed 8 vats of sake
behind a fence with 8 gates.
As the serpent put each of its head into the gates, he closed them and proceeded to cut
off the heads of the snakes and then the tails.
When he cut the 4th tail, he discovered a great sword.
That sword came to be known as Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi.
6.
Seven Branched Sword.
The Baekje dynasty was an ancient one in Korea
which controlled a lot of lands ranging from Korea to China.
And when in 372, they paid tribute to the Eastern Jin, they gave a specially made 7
branched sword to the King as a sign of praise.
The sword in itself is fascinating having 6 branch like protrusions along the central blade.
It was not meant for battle and there were many inscriptions on the sword.
One of them says that it was made of 100 times hardened steel to repel 100 enemy soldiers!
And many of the markings also refer to other Kings which suggests that a relationship did
exist between the different Kings in East Asian countries.
It is currently housed in the Isonokami shrine in Japan, but is not up for public viewing.
5.
Shah Jahan’s personal dagger.
While strictly not a sword, it is one of the most renowned blades ever.
Shah Jahan’s taste for expensive and fine things is pretty apparent from his buildings
and weapons.
But one of the most treasured possessions he had was his dagger which had his name,
title and place of manufacture encrypted on it.
The dagger is a beautiful weapon with gold decorations and inscriptions.
And there is no wonder really that it is a much sought after relic,
having been sold 5 times so far, with the highest amount being 3.3 million dollars.
4.
Curved saber of San Martin.
Jose de San martin was an important Argentine general who was the primary leader of the
southern part of South America’s struggle for independence from Spain.
One of his most famed possessions was his sword,
a curved saber which he thought was easily manoeuvrable and ideal for battle.
The importance of the sword can be gauged from the fact that he mentioned it in his will
as the sword that accompanied him throughout the struggle for South America’s independence!
It is on display today at the National historical museum in Buenos Aires, though not peacefully
as it was stolen twice during the 60s!
3.
Goujian.
There are many legends in China and this sword features among them.
It is said that the sword belonged to Goujian, the king of Yue state.
Well, there can be little doubt about that
because the inscriptions on the sword pretty much say so!
And even though Goujian was defeated in battle and lost his Kingdom,
he rallied to victory 10 years later with this sword in hand.
The sword was then lost, but was found again in 1965 when it was unearthed in China.
And such was the mastery of the craftsmen,
or maybe some magic was involved,
but the sword was sharp as ever even though it had been buried for nearly 2000 years!
2.
The cursed Muramasas.
One of the legendary sword makers from Japan is Muramasa.
Apparently, he prayed to the Gods that his swords be great destroyers.
And since his work was extremely good, the Gods decided to grant his wish and imbued
a bloodthirsty spirit in the sword.
And if the sword was not getting enough blood in battle,
it was said that it would drive its wielders to murder or suicide.
Such was a notoriety of the sword that it was finally banned
because it was considered cursed.
The ban was put in place after most members of the family of Shogun Togukawa Ieyasu were
killed at the hands of the sword, including his wife and adopted children.
So if you were come across the Muramasa sword, be sure to stay away!
1.
Honjo Masamune.
Masamune was a Japanese sword smith
and he is widely regarded as one of the greatest metallurgists of all time!
No wonder his swords are known for their superior beauty and quality.
But since he never marred any of his works by his signature,
it is quite difficult to identify the originals from the fake.
But one that is undoubtedly his is the Honjo Masamune
which represented the Shogunate during the Edo period of Japan.
It was passed down in the family till it was declared a national treasure in Japan in 1939
and in 1946 it was handed over a US sergeant but was later lost.
It still remains one of the most important historical artefacts to have disappeared because of the World War.
Have you ever come across a famous sword?
Or seen any of these in real life?
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