Templar Accolade Sword

(About) To Thy Name Give Glory

The Templar sword has become emblematic of a notorious group of high-medieval knights, often contradictory and controversial: a group of men pledged to serve God with no reward of wealth or personal honour, which became a sprawling multi-national corporation with its own private army. The Templar Accolade Sword embodies the staggering martial effectiveness of the Templar Order.

The blade is hand-forged from EN45 steel, a high-carbon steel which is heat-treated to be resilient in contact with other blades. It is of Oakeshott Type XIII, the archetypal ‘Crusader’ sword: swords of this type developed in the late-13th-century CE, with long straight blades whose edges are usually almost parallel for the maximum possible cutting edge. Some are almost completely rounded at the tip, sacrificing piercing ability in favour of raw swinging power, but the Templar Accolade Sword has a shallow tapered point. The cross-section of the blade is lenticular (lens-shaped) to give the blade heft and weight, but it has a fuller to reduce bulk and keep the blade agile.

The hilt of the Templar Accolade Sword is a functional masterpiece. The crossguard is a minimalist mild-steel cross, as the originals would have been – Crusader swords developed from the Norman swords that were pioneered by the armies of William the Conqueror, and they were adapted with broad crossguards for fighting the curved sabres that Crusader knights faced in the Holy Land. The sword hilt is of full-tang construction, meaning that the ‘tail’ of the blade extends down through the grip and is securely riveted with the pommel so that it can withstand full-contact use in re-enactment and light combat. The handgrip is black artificial leather, providing a stable grip. Finally, the sword is finished with a large octagonal pommel for balance, into which is set an inscribed Templar Cross. It is also supplied with an attractive dark scabbard, also in artificial leather, with a metal chape and locket. In all, the Templar Accolade Sword is an unrivaled reproduction of all of the best features of the heyday of the sword, drawing the specific history of the Knights Templar together into an emblem that would suit an historical re-enactment just as well as a LARP outfit of a high-medieval paladin. Our Templar Accolade Sword is a peerless entry-level sword for the budding knight.

(Curiosities) The Sword on Crusade

The Crusades mark a high-point of the sword: before the development and wide-spread adoption of plate armor, the heavy Type XIII was a fearsome weapon, able to split mail and slice leather and cloth with ease.

Middle-Eastern blades were razor sharp and of extremely high-quality, Islamic armies having overland trading access to the cradle of steelmaking in South India, and a Crusader would need all the help they could get to neutralise the threat.

Technical Specifications:

• Total length: 42 1/4 Inches
  
• Blade Material: EN45 carbon steel
  
• Blade length: 34 Inches
  
• Guard and pommel materials: Mild steel
  
• Grip material: Artificial leather
  
• Weight: 3lbs (5 lbs with scabbard)