This one is a little different to my other posts. The title basically explains it; this is a compilation of accounts of Roman legionaries fighting outside of their "usual" manner, which for most of their existence was by charging by throwing pila, and then closing with swords, with shields in hand.
Well, obviously no, but of course, something that is seen as needing to be "the default" as to how you must fight is necessarily seen as being almost required. And common knowledge says one must utilize the shortened sword as "the default" when in armor (and/or facing an armored opponent)! But is that actually true?
We very rarely see infantry in the 16th century with closed helmets; while this is likely not without reason, we do, however, read of them being commended in the military treatises of the time, particularly in the middle of the century.
Shortened lances feature a good amount in the 14th century, so I though it would be nice to compile the references to this practice that I have seen. The most detailed descriptions come from Jean Froissart, who is one of the few (I say few, but he is the only that I have seen) who actually describes their length, but other authors do give us some details that Froissart does not provide.
Anyone who has read Froissart has noted the quite frequent accounts of axes in the hands of men at arms. This is not just limited to Froissart, and many works that cover the second half of the 14th century will note just how common axes are used; and to be frank, this is quite strange. While you will find accounts of axes being used both prior and after this period, when compared to the status, frequency, and their use in this period, a stark difference can plainly be seen; and of these three, I will mostly focus on the last.
