This unique sword type, with its long narrow diamond-shaped blade and even more narrow ricasso, was quite common in Denmark — with many surviving examples that are either Danish in origin or possibly Italian. Albions Dane is based on Peter Johnsson’s documentation of originals of this type. They are visually imposing, yet still light and swift enough to deliver terrible blows and piercing thrusts. This is a dedicated thruster, but as with many of these thick, stiff and pointy swords, the cutting performance should not be underestimated. This is a sword made for armoured fighting. It is like a great long and sharp-edged awl with a positive massive feel. Not sluggish. Very stiff, nasty and aggressive.
The thickness of the blade and ricasso is striking. When used in half swording, it could almost qualify as a kind of short pole arm: its thick, stiff blade and tremendous awl point would have been devastating when the swordsman put the full momentum of his body behind a thrust. They give a strong impression of being made for battlefield use. They have the mass, heft and agility to be reliable no nonsense killing tools. A trained swordsman in full armour equipped with a sword of this type must have been truly terrifying. Perhaps these swords could also have served well on horseback. The long grip, stout guard and strong ricasso makes it possible to couch the sword like a lance, resting the guard across the armpit and breastplate. The reach is not long, but in some situations this might have been a good thing. The use of swords as lances is described in some medieval texts.
The Dane has a hand ground high carbon steel blade that is tempered for flexibility and edge retention. The crossguard and pommel are cast from mild steel. The grip is stabilized birch wood, fitted over with tight leather and sectioned by bands of wrapped wire.
The sword grip comes in a selection of colors, please select an option below.
Archimedes –
Beautiful, Elegant, Powerful. I recently purchased this sword to be the first Albion of my collection, and I’m in awe at how it feels in the hands and performs while cutting. The design of this blade might deceive some into thinking this blade is a dedicated thruster with comparatively poor performance to the cut, but that is absolutely not the case. This blade wants to cut. And it does it remarkably well.
One of the most common complaints I’ve heard about Albion swords is that they don’t come sharp enough. This sword is no exception. On arrival I would have described it as being barely sharp. I didn’t do any test cuts with the out-of-the-box sharpening because I could tell that it would have been a hindrance to the cutting performance. Fortunately I would able to put an edge on the sword fairly easily, requiring approximately 40 minutes of work with my DC4 sharpening stone, due to the edge being very slightly sharp and nearly perfectly straight due to the method by which Albion makes their swords (through grinding, as opposed to forging). Now it has a edge that glides through paper and bites into the skin of your finger even with the softest touch.
The geometry of the blade catches the eye like few other swords can. The lines are clean and elegant, and combined with the metal and leather finish, create a breathtaking effect. One thing I don’t like about the finish is the wire wrapping, there appears to be some kind of antiquing wax on the wire aimed at giving it a more aged look, but I found that it rubbed off rather easily and ended up looking like dirt and grime rather than the patina effect it was intended to be.
If the geometry and handling of this sword weren’t already the defining features, then the leather grip would be. The grip is very nicely put together and the leather has incredible character. Many sword manufacturers use monotone leather that lacks interest entirely, but this sword breaks the mold in that regard with its gorgeous, multi-hued leather wrapping.
In the hand this sword feels commanding and powerful, yet still nimble and even light. The fact that this sword weighs a full pound heavier than a some of the heaviest longswords comes at no encumbrance to the wielder, thanks to its elongated grip. It’s the danish equivalent of a claymore. It takes the intimidation and power of a two-hander and combines it with the agility of a traditional hand-and-a-half sword, to create something distinctly different from both. While it definitely requires two hands for proper use, it isn’t what I would consider to be a proper two-hander. It lacks the blade length, and even a little bit of weight to have the presence that a normal two-hander possesses. Spadones/montantes/zweihanders/greatswords/bidenhanders/two-handers–whatever you call them–were notable for the way their inertia required them to be used in great sweeping cuts, and were particularly useful against multiple opponents. This hybrid of a longsword and greatsword, doesn’t quite have the length to fend off opponents with the same capacity that a six foot sword would have, and thus it falls more into the category of a longsword, even though it looks very much like a greatsword. There are certainly some greatsword techniques which would prove useful with this weapon, however much of what is taught in historical treatises about two-handers relies on the intimidation power and protection afforded by a longer blade, as it makes one’s enemy or enemies less likely to choose to close the distance with their shorter weapons. This makes a true two-hander as much shield as it is a sword, while The Dane is mostly just a sword.
The guard on this sword is also distinct from other two-handers. If measured from the inside concave line (i.e. the side of the guard an opponent’s blade would meet after sliding down the length of this blade) it comes out to be around six and a half inches. This is effectively the usable length of the guard. The total width of the guard comes out to eight inches, but one and a half of those inches, as can be seen from the pictures, are taken up by metal which wouldn’t be able to catch an opposing weapon. In fact, the guard, while striking visually, is only the size of the guards found on many one-handed swords and would do little to protect the back hand, since an opponent could very easily go around it and hit the exposed back hand.
In conclusion, this sword is possesses an interesting design if nothing else, handles and performs beautifully, and comes with nicely finished metal and leather. 5/5 from me.