Table of Contents

List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. The Mystical Blade
2. The Powerful Sword
3. The Falchion: A Case Study of Form, Function, and Symbolism
4. The Civilian Sword
5. Learning the Sword
6. Using the Sword
7. Recreating Medieval Swordsmanship
Conclusion
Glossary
Bibliography

About the Author

Robert W. Jones is Alumni Association Coordinator and tutor at Advanced Studies in England, an independent study abroad programme based in Bath, England. He is also a Visiting Scholar in History at Franklin and Marshall College, Pennsylvania, and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

Reviews

Jones' research does not rely on ostentatious statements but instead provides usually well-developed ideas that will be useful to sword scholars for years to come, making this book a great read for those with an interest in martial culture, swords, and European martial arts. A love letter to swords from a pioneering scholar that approaches them as a multifaceted subject and carries the reader with enthusiasm to explore and understand them even more.
*ARMS AND ARMOUR*

This reviewer came away feeling as though he was Jamie Lannister after a thorough and fun training session
with Bronn. There is so much in this book that it will be worth returning to again and again. Jones has shown
us that truly the sword is mightier than the pen.
*MEDIEVAL WORLD*

A fascinating and excellent study, full of wide-ranging historical, literary, and historiographical depth. A Cultural History of the Sword is a worthy text for any appropriate college or graduate classes that wish to see the Middle Ages with more clarity and enjoyment.
*STUDIES IN MEDIEVAL AND RENAISSANCE TEACHING (SMART)*

It should be on the bookshelf of anybody who claims to be interested in the importance of the sword in medieval life and thought and their cultural significance in the past - and present.
*Robert Woosnam-Savage*