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Everyone Is Armed: Difference between revisions
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Well, yes, Italian is a Romance language. But it's very definitely *Italian*. Also, please note: you put spaces around parentheses, not jam them into the preceding and following words.
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Looney Toons (talk | contribs) m (Well, yes, Italian is a Romance language. But it's very definitely *Italian*. Also, please note: you put spaces around parentheses, not jam them into the preceding and following words.) |
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***It's somewhat a myth in some circles that the population was disarmed. In fact often they were just forbidden ''swords''. Or in other words it was a sumptuary law not an arms control one, and like all such laws not all that effective as a rich man could get a hold of a sword and a man who could prove noble ancestry(which was sometimes calculated rather ambiguously anyway to the effect of "daddy always said we were lords") in some places had a right to one even if he lived like a peasant. In any event, knives, polearms, bows, whatever were in the hands of everyone.
***There was often not even a prohibition of swords to commoners; that sort of thing depended on a multitude of regional idiosyncrasies (the sociology and politics of the Middle Ages was so labyrinthine that any time you say one thing someone else can always say, "What about..."). However swords were expensive as they required the highest bladesmithing technology available to handle the stress. While a sax or a falchion did its job good enough to defend against bandits or [[Feuding Families|fight local vendettas]] and no one would want to buy a sword unless they are going to soldier for a living or are just [[The Dandy|vain]].
***According to one account a Spanish King once mandated that everyone own a sword for militia service. So all the poor folks came around with their traditional Navajas (Spanish fighting knives) and the inspector effectively said, "close enough".
**In England the Cinque Ports (naval militia from a chosen number of royally favored ports, originally five -- "cinque" is
* Early Medieval Scandinavians even of fairly low status tended to have a sax(utility chopping knife), an ax(also useful for wood in the more mundane and less specialized form and thus something farmers might have), hunting weapons, the ever popular spear, and improvised equipment if nothing else suits. Some even had swords although those were rather expensive and you would probably only buy one if you thought there was a good chance you might use it. They would have all kinds of reasons for fighting from local feuds, to going on a raid, to defending against a raid(for vikings went a-viking against each other)to hiring out with some noble when he is going to war, to simply defending oneself when one travels.
* Sikh men are required by religious law to carry a knife with them at all times. These days it's usually a small, ceremonial knife.
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