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Lochaber axe

A Scottish poleaxe with a large crescent blade and a rear hook on a pole about 1.5 m long, first recorded in 1501.

Lochaber axe
Lochaber axe WABUKAN illustration

Also known as

Lochaber axe; tuagh-chatha (Gaelic)

Origin and history

The Lochaber axe was used almost exclusively in Scotland. It is first recorded in 1501 as an “old Scottish batale ax of Lochaber fasoun”. It was a cheap weapon a blacksmith could make easily, so it armed men who had no broadsword or firearm: hundreds were made in haste for the Earl of Mar’s levies in the Jacobite rising of 1715, and a few were still carried early in the rising of 1745. The city guards of Edinburgh also carried it.

Martial arts that use it

Seen in traditional practice, historical reenactment and demonstrations; no art page on WABUKAN yet.

Construction

A shaft of about 1.5 to 1.8 m and a blade of about 46 cm, shaped like a bardiche or voulge and often fixed at two points. A hook (cleek) at the back of the blade, a butt spike as counterweight and langets down the sides of the shaft to stop the head being cut off.

Basic techniques

Training

Axe training starts with grip, stance and footwork, then the basic cutting lines practised slowly in the air or on a padded target with a wooden or rubber trainer. The hooking and blocking uses of the head and the haft come next, in paired drills at controlled speed.

Safety

Use wooden or rubber trainers for partner work and keep live axes for solo cutting under supervision. Check that the head sits tight on the haft before every session, keep a clear space of at least two weapon lengths and never swing towards people.

Legality (general information)

Swords, knives and other edged weapons are regulated very differently from country to country (and sometimes from region to region): owning one at home is often allowed, while carrying it in public, buying it under a certain age or importing it may be restricted or banned. Practitioners usually transport them cased, out of reach and straight between home and dojo. This is general information, not legal advice: check the law where you live.

Did you know?

On the Edinburgh city guard axes the hook sits almost level with the top of the staff, so it may have been used just to hang the weapons in the guard room.

More weapons

Poleaxe Francisca Bardiche Dane axe Tomahawk Tabar (tabarzin)

Sources

Original WABUKAN text, written from these cross-checked sources (facts, not sentences).

  1. Wikipedia — Lochaber axe
  2. Wikipedia — Bardiche