Boarding sabers. What it is?

The article describes what boarding sabers are, why they are needed, what are their differences from sabers of a different kind and who they were used for.

Ancient times

In our time, residents of more or less developed countries have long been accustomed to the fact that with the acute need for distance can easily be overcome. Any of them can be quickly and even comfortably crossed by plane, train or ship. But our ancestors did not have such technologies, and for a long time only the ships remained the only way of communication between the continents or with the coastal zone.

To use them, people started back in time immemorial. Over time, their design changed for the better, which beneficially affected the speed, reliability and carrying capacity. When shipbuilding developed to the required level, battles often began to break out in the sea, and for a long time pirates were a thunderstorm of the seas and oceans. This continued until special forces of counteraction and naval flotillas were set up, which were engaged in the protection of peaceful ships or by the special capture of pirates. And probably, the most favorite weapon of criminals were boarding sabers. So what is it, what are they good and how were they applied? In this we will understand.

Definition

To begin with, let's look at the terminology. Saber is a melee weapon with a long and curved blade. And he has a cutting edge, which is what distinguishes him from the sword. For example, the Japanese katana is a saber, not a sword, as is commonly believed. The same applies to such weapons as boarding sabers.

Boarding is the rapprochement of two ships with the subsequent fixation of them relative to each other by ropes or other means and the collision of the manpower of the crew of both ships. Hence the well-known expression "to board", that is, to seize someone else's ship and to kill the crew. Boarding is rarely a long one, usually this is a fleeting encounter, where practically any weapon is used.

The most effective weapon over time was recognized as boarding sabers. Several factors served as the reason for this. First, their size: in the hustle and bustle of a battle with a long blade it is not always convenient, as well as too heavy, designed for open space. Secondly, the curved shape allowed to apply deep and strong chopping blows. And this was also helped by the massive weight of the saber. Thirdly, the hand of the fighter closed the guard and a special ledge, which not only protected the finiteness of a pirate or a soldier, but also allowed to deliver powerful blows in hand-to-hand combat in the manner of a knuckleburn.

It is for these reasons that such weapons quickly earned universal recognition. It was used by both pirates, and detachments of the Coast Guard or army sailors. So now we know what a boarding saber is.

Other weapons

Of course, only with sabers the armament of pirates and sailors did not end in ancient times. But if you consider the pirate, which is convenient during the battle when seizing a trade or other vessel, then in addition to boarding sabers, sword rapiers were also popular. True, they were preferred only by those who knew how to deal with them, since such weapons are not intended for chopping blows, but only for stabbing, which is not always convenient in combat.

Also popular were daggers and daggers. Well, in the Middle Ages, when firearms were invented with a flintlock, pirates were very fond of pistols. True, only as a weapon of the last chance. Sometimes one or two shots were fired from them, after which all went to cold steel.

Common daggers were also common, the narrow long blades of which allowed penetrating the defense of the enemy and causing deep wounds.

And by the way, Russian short boarding saber is often called a sword. This is partly true, since it has a constructive similarity with the latter. But still, piracy in our region was not as widespread as in other parts of the world.

Disappearing boarding

Gradually the role of such an attack diminished, and eventually was reduced to none. The reason for this was the development of firearms - guns, multi-shot rifles and machine guns. And later came into use a special anti-ship weaponry. And now, to board a ship, which carries a few machine guns or rocket launchers, it is simply impossible. True, in some remote parts of the world piracy exists to this day, for example in Somalia. But Somali pirates never attack heavily armed vessels and choose for these purposes trading, not having means of protection. And this, albeit with a stretch, but can be called boarding.

Conclusion

Boarding sabers are used only in direct boarding, when the speed, impact force and short blade are important for maneuver. At the same time on land, it is more profitable to use long swords, rapiers, swords or sabers.