Alright, so let me tell you about this little project I got myself into. It all started with Sir William Marshal. You know, the knight. Been reading a bit about him, and the guy was just incredible. Lived a long life, served a bunch of kings, real deal. And naturally, I got to thinking about his sword. What would a knight like that carry? That thought kinda stuck with me.
It wasn’t enough to just wonder, though. I’m the kind of person, I like to get my hands dirty, try things out. So, I figured, why not try to, you know, get a feel for what his sword might have been like? Not like I could find the original, obviously. That's long gone, I’m sure. But I wanted to do something more than just look at pictures of other swords from that time.
Getting Started - The Idea Takes Shape
First off, research. And let me tell you, finding specifics on his actual sword is a tough nut to crack. There are effigies, yeah, but those can be a bit… artistic. So I spent a good while looking at what swords were common for knights of his standing around the late 12th and early 13th centuries. Oakeshott Type XII, maybe? Something like that. A good, solid, no-nonsense fighting sword. That seemed to fit the man.
I wasn't aiming to forge a museum-quality replica from scratch using ancient techniques, mind you. I don't have a medieval smithy in my backyard! My goal was more about the shape, the feel, the process of making something with my own hands that felt connected to that idea. So I got myself a decent bar of steel. Nothing fancy, just something workable. I’ve got a few tools, a small forge I cobbled together a while back for other projects, hammers, an anvil – the basics.
The Hard Part - Fire and Steel
Then came the real work. Getting that bar of steel hot enough, that’s a start. You really feel the heat, even from a small forge. And then the hammering. Man, that’s work. You see it in movies, and it looks all heroic. In reality, it’s loud, it's sweaty, and you really gotta focus to get the metal to go where you want it. My first few attempts at drawing out the blade were… let’s just say, educational. More like a lumpy, slightly pointy bar than a sword blade.
- Getting the taper right was a pain.
- Keeping it straight? Even bigger pain.
- And don't even get me started on trying to imagine forming a fuller with basic tools. I decided to keep it simple.
There was this one evening, I remember, I’d been at it for hours. My arm was aching, I was covered in soot, and the piece of metal in front of me looked pretty sad. I almost just chucked it. But then I thought about Marshal, about the perseverance he must have had. Bit cheesy, I know, but it kept me going. I let it cool, took a break, and came back to it the next day with fresh eyes.
The Result, Sort Of
So, what did I end up with? Well, it’s not something you’d see in the Tower of London, that’s for sure. It’s rough. The lines aren’t perfectly straight, the balance is probably a bit off. I didn’t even get around to making a proper hilt for it yet, just shaped a basic tang. But it has the general form, the kind of heft I imagined a knight’s sword would have. It’s recognizable as a sword, an arming sword of that era, more or less.
It's a tangible thing. I took a lump of steel, and with fire and effort, I changed it. I shaped it into an idea I had. And honestly, that’s pretty cool. It’s not about historical accuracy down to the millimeter for me, not with this project. It was about the process, the learning, and connecting with a piece of history in my own way.
I learned a lot about steel, about heat, about how much sheer effort goes into making something like this, even a crude version. It gives you a whole new respect for the craftsmen of old who did this day in and day out with far fewer conveniences than I have. So yeah, my "Sir William Marshal sword" is more of a tribute, a personal experiment. And I’m pretty happy with that.
