VISIGODAS SWORDS

The archaeological objects, as they can be the swords visigodas, contribute true information to us on the life of our ancestors, their customs, works, wars, interments, etc.

One knows that the visigodos, along with their cousins the ostrogodos, arrived at the borders of the Roman Empire fleeing from the Hunos. A tragic Roman error gave the victory them in the battle of Adrianopolis and since then they comprised of the Roman world, helping with its soldiers Rome.

Thus, the period visigodo includes from Leovigildo (572-586), considered founding of the visigotica monarchy in Spain, until in 711 they are defeated by the Moors in the battle of the Guadalete. But we can judge by the little appearance of swords visigodas that was not a too warlike period. We know the wars visigodas with mastiff and the vandals. Between the arrianos and the Christians lasting these until Recaredo resigns to the arrianismo becoming to the Christianity, without being to him very difficult, since their laws and forms of life did not move away much.

This sword was used by the visigodos.

The arrival of the Visigoths, and with them of the sword visigoda, to the peninsula at the beginning of century V did not suppose a great rupture with forms them artistic of the hispanoromano, but in the course of the time its art was evolved until getting to have an own style, with defined personality that in architecture identifies by the use of the horseshoe arc and a somewhat coarse sculpture. The architecture visigoda corresponds to two different traditions, the one of paleocristiana type, until the s. VII, and the Hispanic-visigoda, from s. VII.

Although the existence is known swords visigodas, are not many those that today can be contemplated. Their dimensions were of 90 to 100 centimeters in length, and the wide one of its leaves oscillated between 4 or 5 centimeters. Some of these swords visigodas are in the Provincial Museum of Tarragona, and probably they belonged to king Eurico. Other three swords visigodas are in the National Archaeological Museum, of which which is said that to the being discovered in visigodos his properties they were without his grips, seems to indicate that they were disassembled before putting them in his tombs.

This makes think that the grips of those swords visigodas had been done of precious matters, reason why would be separated of the leaves before being buried. We could think that this action to disassemble to the sword visigoda before burying it with its owner, could be due to the continuity of the ibero ritual to make unusable the weapon that served in life the soldier with whom they buried it.

Blades of the visigodas swords of different models.

The armament of the germanic towns very simple but effective era: it sends of attack of about two meters in length with end and tip of iron, long sword type celta of iron (well-known like sword visigoda), flat shield with form made oval or rectangular of wood and like protection, Yelm and level of iron mesh. Like all the germanic and similar towns, the godos were not too in favor of the personal protection, also it influenced in which a mesh level was very expensive, and in fact few Roman units continued it using. Like particularity, the godos, like other germanic towns, used a throw able axe, famous "francisca".

La cavalry visigoda was, like in all the Germanic armies, a tactical complement, that in Adrianopolis was of great importance, but to the Romans they defeated the godos infants, not its riders who, in fact, ended up fighting disassembled. Typically Germanic thing, as it could not less be

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