The most commonly used weapons varied in their usage. For example, some swords were used in a thrusting motion, while some other swords were used in a striking motion. But swords were not the only weapons of this time. There were also bows and arrows, as well as the weapons that knights used in battle, and even some early firearms found their roots in the Elizabethan Era.

The swords of the Elizabethan Era were primarily of two types. The first type was with a thin, narrow, straight, and long blade, which was designed for stabbing in a thrusting motion. A classic example of a sword of this type was the rapier. T

Cannons were the first firearms fired at castle walls, and in the 1400s, the biggest cannons fired metal balls that weighed more than 220 pounds. The main disadvantage to the larger cannons was the fact that they were extremely heavy and were difficult to drag to different locations. This made lighter cannons more popular, because these cannons could be mounted on wagons which made them easier to move (Maynard 38-39).

There were two main types of a bow and arrow, the long bow and the crossbow. With advances in both machinery and archery the crossbow quickly became a deadly and accurate weapon. However, this weapon was flawed since its rate of fire was slower than the long bow. The long bow was an improved version of the bow and arrow. This weapon also had a flaw, for it was more expensive to make. The armies usually had both long bowmen and crossbowmen since both weapons were very effective (Knopf 18).

The second type of sword used in this period, the rapier, was first introduced into the Elizabethan Era about 1630. In the 1500s early predecessors of such thrusting swords became popular with civilians. Since they had relatively short grips, rapiers were almost impossible to hold with the entire hand. Therefore, rapiers had very decorative guards which protected the thumb and the forefinger by partially covering the fighter's own blade, adding to their function in protecting the fighter from his opponents blade. Fencing was indeed the art form of fighting with a rapier, but rapiers were also carried around for protection, for dueling, and as a dress sword especially by the aristocrats of this era (Knopf 42).

Kottenkamp,F., The History of Chivalry and Armor, New York: Portland House, 1988.

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