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Phillosoph

Why a Wakizashi?

Recently, I have been watching the “Rurouni Kenshin” series of movies. “Origins” was a little slow and melodramatic, but the main ones are great entertainment.
The lead character's gimmick is they use a sword with a sharpened back‑edge and a blunt main edge. He clubs enemies down with the main edge in an attempt to not take any more lives.
Close quarter combat with wakizashi
This reminded me of a passage in Don Cunningham's book “Taiho‑Jutsu”:
“For such situations, the machi-kata dōshin [samurai police official] carried a special long jutte, usually with a tapered six- or eight-sided shaft, as their primary weapon and arresting tool. They also only wore one short sword in their obi. The dōshin either grinded the ha (sharpened edge) off their wakizashi or carried special wakizashi forged with extra-thick dull blades. The short blunted wakizashi were considered more suitable for making arrests, especially within confined spaces. A resisting suspect could easily be stunned and immobilized with a strike from such a blade without risking a potentially lethal injury as with a sharpened sword.”
I will admit to being sceptical as to whether anyone ever ground the edge off a perfectly good and valuable wakizashi for such purposes. It seems easier and more effective to fit a suitable strip or billet of iron with sword furnishings.
That such blunted weapons were carried seems possible, since the feudal police seemed to have taken considerable lengths to take their suspect alive.
Why did the police officer have a blunted sword when he already had a jutte? Possibly to show that he had samurai rank. Why did he carry a wakizashi rather than a daishō? The following passages should shed some light on that.
Most readers will know that the samurai wore two swords, known as a “daishō”. It would become enshirned in law that a samurai on official business was required to wear two swords.
Daishō means “big and little” and reflects that the two swords were of differing lengths.
In earlier periods, the daishō might be a tachi and a long tanto. By the Edo period, both weapons were katana, which were worn edge up.
In modern usage “katana” is a term usually used to distinguish the long sword. Historically, the term could be used for either of the daishō, and to distinguish them the terms “uchi‑katana/uchigatana” were used for the longer sword (“daitō”) and “chisa‑katana/chisagatana”, ko‑dachi, kogusoku, ko‑katana, wakizashi or shotō for the shorter.
To avoid confusion, I will reserve the term katana for the longer sword, as is common modern practice.

Why Did The Samurai Carry Two Swords?

Part of the reason was probably symbolic. Two swords was the symbol of a samurai and if you were a samurai, you therefore wore two swords.
Practical explanations for the practice are less satisfying. The short sword was a backup for it the long sword was lost in battle. The short sword was for removing the heads of slain opponents. The short sword was for seppuku.
Other than length, the short and long swords are effectively the same in design. Why a short sword would be better at cutting heads from corpses than a longer variant flies in the face of basic physics. Taking heads was also a task attributed to the kubikiri/kubigiri, which is of a very different form to either of the daishō.
Was the wakizashi carried for seppuku? Most samurai movies seem to use the katana with a cloth or paper wrapped around the blade for grip.
George Cameron Stone's book, “A Glossary of the Construction, Decoration, and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times: Together with Some Closely Related Subjects” (p.658) claims the wakizashi was used for seppuku, but its use had declined in favour of a dagger in more recent periods.
Some samurai fought with a blade in each hand, and utilized their wakizashi in their left. This seems to have been an uncommon practice, however.
Some writers have dismissed the wakizashi as redundant and superfluous. And yet, the wakizashi or weapons like it were widely carried for at least six hundred years!

Safety in the Home

The samurai did not always wear both swords. Etiquette required the long sword not be worn indoors when visiting a superior or another samurai. Wearing the long sword in such a situation was disrespectful, if not outright suspicious and threatening.
In his own home, the long sword might be stored in a rack, or entrusted to a servant for cleaning and sharpening.
When indoors, the samurai only wore his wakizashi, or possibly just a tanto. If the wakizashi was not worn thrust through his sash, it would be within easy reach, such as beside him as he knelt on the floor.
If a samurai was attacked in his home, the wakizashi or tanto would be the weapon most likely to be available.
The wakizash/tanto were the weapons the samurai would have to rely on when he was in most need of a defensive weapon. Not surprisingly, there was a considerable body of training on how to use a wakizashi.
Indoor combat might be at close ranges, so the use of the wakizashi and other weapons was studied in conjunction with grappling techniques. Techniques that could be used while kneeling or seated were also studied. Some techniques involved hindering an attacker drawing their weapon, or taking their weapon and/or using it against them.
For example, as a kneeling attacker attempts to draw a wakizashi, a hand on his wrist may prevent him completing the action. The wrist hold and the other hand are used to unbalance and throw the attacker forward, possibly falling on the exposed edge of his own blade.
If he could afford it, a samurai would see that both swords of a daishō would have matching fittings and decoration. Ideally both were made by the same craftsmen. Stone suggests that the wakizashi would often be the more ornately decorated, since this is the sword that would be worn during indoor social occasions.
The wakizashi was also the one of the pair likely to mount accessories and implements such as the kogai and kozuka. This made these items available when the long sword was not being worn. This approach may have also prevented the possibility of the kogai and kozuka interfering with the draw of the long sword. Kogai and kozuka were sometimes used as expedient bo-shuriken, so having them with the wakizashi might have given the wearer another option if attacked indoors.

Something for the Ladies

Samurai women were expected to fight in defence of their homes and persons. The naginata was the usual weapon of choice, but instruction was given in the use of the wakizashi and dagger and include the kusarigama.
The naginata and kusarigama are relatively long‑ranged weapons. If an enemy got too close, or combat was indoors, the wakizashi or dagger were a useful alternative.

For Lord and Commoner

Only the samurai were permitted to wear the daishō. In addition, commoners (non‑samurai) were not allowed to have long swords.
What is not so commonly know is that commoners were permitted to have short swords.
Cunningham notes (p.22):
“While katana (long swords) were prohibited, chōnin [townspeople] and nōmin [farmers] were still allowed to carry tanto (daggers) as well as short swords known as wakizashi. For many years after the end of the Japanese civil wars, though, commoners did not always abide by the laws prohibiting swords. One reason was that the actual measurements used to define katana, wakizashi, and tanto were confusing and often inconsistently applied in many of these laws. Thus during the early part of the Edo period (early1600s), some chōnin, and especially yakuza, or criminal gang members, openly carried long wakizashi that were virtually equivalent to prohibited katana.”
It was not until 1645 that a law defined the maximum blade length of katana as 2 shaku 8 or 9 sun (33.5 to 34.5‑inches/85.5 to 87.5 cm) and wakizashi as 1 shaku 8 or 9 sun (21.5 to 22.5‑inches/55.5 to 57.5 cm). [figures and conversions from Cunningham]
In 1668, chōnin were restricted to carrying ko‑wakizashi of blade no longer than 1 shaku 5 sun (approximately 17.5 inches or 45.5 cm) without official permission. There was no restriction on a commoner wearing a ko‑wakizashi, but it was unlikely for the weapon to be worn when on day‑to‑day business.
Later amendments permitted the carrying of “full‑sized” wakizashi under certain circumstances, such as travel and fire.
A travelling commoner was allowed to carry a wakizashi as a defence against robbers.
Fires were common in feudal Japanese towns. Commoners forced from their homes by the threat of fire were permitted to carry wakizashi to protect what other possessions they had managed to carry with them.
Serge Moll, in “Classical Weaponry of Japan” (p.19) notes an alternate name for a short sword was “dochuzashi”: “Dochu literally means “while on the street” or “while on a journey,” so one could describe a dochuzashi as a short sword inserted in the sash while one was traveling.”
The characters commonly used to spell wakizashi may be read as meaning “insert at the side”. The practice of wearing the daishō was termed “nihonzashi” (“insert two (swords)”)
Moll also gives a definition of ko‑wakizashi as between 30 and 40 cm, and that longer ones (up to 60 centimetres) were called Owakizashi (“big wakizashi”)
Doubtless, a commoner would avail themselves of their wakizashi or ko‑wakizashi in the event of a burglary or home invasion.
The short swords owned by commoners were probably more utilitarian and lower priced than that owned by a prosperous samurai. For every famed Japanese swordsmith, there were probably scores of blacksmiths turning out commoners' blades.

What is in a Name?

Time I addressed the topic of terminology.
Some Wikipedia articles and other websites use very narrow definitions of some of the terms that have been used in this article. A wakazashi is this! A kodachi is a quite different thing and is this! And so on. There is little credible precedent for these narrow and exact definitions, and they may prove counterproductive to your actual understanding.
We are talking a considerable period of history, large geographical area, varying levels of education and often no centralized system of standardization.
The distinction between tantos, kodachi, wakizashi, shotō etc are in practice less distinct and more fuzzy than is represented by some modern writers. Often these terms were used interchangeably or with a degree of overlap.
Moll: “The meaning of the terms “long sword” and “short sword” changed over the centuries. Nowadays, all swords that are shorter than two shaku (approximately 60 centimeters)! but longer than one shaku (approximately 30 centimeters) are called shotō, or “short swords.””
This definition nicely encompasses all wakizashi, but also includes some tantos and other Japanese knives. Moll also notes some ryu define their kogusoku/kodachi techniques as being for tanto and short swords of “up to 36 cm length”. Other ryu consider kogusoku/kodachijutsu to be methods for tanto/knife and/or short sword and it is quite probable in some cases the latter refers to wakizashi.
Some of you will know the “‑to” part of the term tanto actually designates that the hilt has a sword‑type guard. You will see some sources refer to tanto as “short swords” or “swords”. Other identical forms and sizes of Japanese blade, fitted to different varieties of hilt, are never called a sword. This is confusing to a reader not aware of the word's origin, when the weapon is clearly a knife or dagger in form and function.
“Dagger” itself is a problematic term, since it has been misappropriated and misused by the legal systems of certain American states, creating the false impression that the term only applies to double‑edged weapons.
Cameron Stone observes the term seems to be applied to any variety of knife, save a clasp knife. (p.198)

Wakizashi in Combat

We have seen the wakizashi/shotō was used by samurai and commoner, and by both men and women. How effective a weapon is it?
If you have ever handled a real, full‑length sword, be it Japanese or otherwise, you may have been surprised. Length and mass add up to considerable inertia. Keeping such a sword under control needs strength, conditioning and considerable practise.
Fencing swords are a possible exception to the above statement, although it is debatable if those used as sporting equipment should be considered real swords.
A shorter blade, such as a wakizashi or machete, is another thing entirely. They are light and agile.
Moll (p.21) comments that the greater speed of a wakizashi made to more effective than a longer sword against fast attacks by longer weapons such as spear thrusts.
Long weapons such as spears and naginata, tend to have an optimum range within which they are most effective. If one can close within this distance, the advantage of the longer weapon is often lost and the user may be at a considerable disadvantage.
The speed of a wakizashi improved the chances of parrying an initial attack so that distance could be closed. The wakizashi's greater manoeuvrability was an advantage when distance was reduced, since it was easier to apply either the edge or point than with a longer and heavier sword.
If using a long weapon and an enemy attempted to close distance, the wakizashi was also a good choice for a backup weapon to deal with close range threats.
The combination of a long weapon and a shorter one may be seen in some other cultures. The German landsknecht, with his pike, halberd or zweihander wore a short sword called a katzbalger (“cabbage cutter”). The huntsman with a boar spear often wore a long wood knife or hanger.
The wakizashi is short enough to be used for the close‑range fighting techniques of kogusoku/kodachijutsu but long enough to use the daitō techniques taught in kenjutsu.
The lighter weight and reduced inertia made a wakizashi more responsive and effective than a longer sword if used in one hand. Its ability to be used one‑handed and shorter length allowed use of the wakizashi to be combined with strikes and grappling attacks from the other hand. The use of a wakizashi could be combined with weapons wielded in the other hand, such as a jutte, tessen (fan), tanto or manrikigusari.
The wakizashi was also a more practical weapon to use in one's weaker hand. Nitoken was often practiced with the wakizashi in the left hand and a katana in the right (all Japanese swordsmen were taught to fight with their right hand as primary). Figure 1-8 of Moll's book shows nitoken using a kodachi in each hand, an interesting variation with considerable potential, particularly if used with the principles of long har chuan.
Being shorter and lighter, a wakizashi may be drawn in less time than a longer sword. I suspect the wakizashi will often taste blood while the katana is still leaving the station. I have come across references to Japanese bodyguards wearing short blades in full‑length sheaths as a deception.
As we have seen, the wakizashi might be used for combat indoors, and seems well suited for the purpose. Using a katana indoors may not have been as practical and elegant as the movies make it seem. A traditional Japanese ceiling was only 220 to 240 cm high, which must have hindered some of the classic kenjutsu moves. How many samurai embedded their katana in a rafter and fell victim to a wakizashi, one wonders. Not all the walls were paper, so narrow corridors may also have hindered a swordsman too.
One begins to appreciate why the ninja favoured short blades for their ninjato.
This is doubtless the reason why the machi-kata dōshin described above carried a blunted wakizashi and not a katana. There was a good chance he might have to fight indoors, and a wakizashi‑length weapon was superior to a katana in such locations.
This more in‑depth look at the wakizashi has made me think about other warriors that used short weapons, such as the Egyptian with his kopesh, and the Roman with his gladius. The shorter gladius was obviously handier during the close press of massed combat. Did it also over an advantage parrying against spears and longer weapons? Shaka invented the short ilkwa, giving the Zulus a significant advantage over most of their enemies.
I have liked wakizashis from the first time I handled one. The above research and analysis shows my initial gut reaction was not off target.
I have also learnt they have a much broader and significant history than is generally known. It was an important weapon for commoner and noble alike.
The wakizashi is overshadowed by the katana. Short swords don't look as good up on the screen as long ones. The wakizashi is probably a much more practical choice, particularly those of use who do not have the necessary time needed to master the inertia of longer weapons.
I have a replica wakizashi that is of particular interest. It has a 20 inch blade and an eight and a half inch grip.
Not particularly long‑bladed for a wakizashi, but long enough for most tasks I might ask of it. It is longer than many machetes, for example. It only looks short if you put it alongside a full‑length katana. The shorter weapon handles much better.
The eight and a half inch handle is a nice feature. This is longer than is found on some wakizashi, and gives a shade more leverage when using two‑handed techniques.
The Japanese blade shape is widely recognized as an efficient design. There is good reason it changed little for hundreds of years. Slightly curved for a more effective cutting action, straight enough to allow the point to easily be brought into action.
I have a modernized “ninjato” of similar dimensions. Grip a shade longer, blade a little shorter. People who have handled this sword react very positively to it, often surprising themselves. It just feels right!
I have a better quality wakizashi, longer blade and shorter grip. The oval section of the handle is less sharp and more comfortable, but it is the 20+8 that feels right.
A typical single doorway is 28 inches wide. Unless, for some bizarre reason I hold my wakizashi sideways and horizontal, a doorway is little obstruction to me when holding a wakizashi.
If, by some freak of chance that I ever have enough money to have a sword custom made for me, I think I might actually opt for a 20 inch wakizashi with an eight and a half inch grip. It is probably a far more practical and versatile option than a longer weapon.
Many years ago, this blog looked at Marc MacYoung’s suggestion on using a sword for home defence. To the comments already made there, I will add that you pay special attention to length and inertia. The reasons for my saying so should be obvious by now.
In some parts of the world, pointless local laws may prevent you owning a katana unless you are rich enough to buy antiques. Some of these laws permit a blade of 50 cm or less, which ironically may result in you getting a more effective weapon!
Many years ago, I read an article where the author noted that if you did want to own a genuine antique Japanese blade, buying a wakizashi might be the better option, since prices were often more bearable.
Wakizashis are not your only choice, of course. Many of the benefits already described also apply to machetes, barongs, kindjal, goloks, hangers, falchion and kukris, to name just a few.
To finish, a rather nice video:

There are several things to note here.
Note how the wakizashi attacks and defences come from a low position. This will be familiar to some of you from the baton, entrenching tool and machete techniques in “Crash Combat”. This is much more useful than waving a weapon around over your head.
Note the wooden wakizashi is gripped a short distance below the guard, protecting the hand from any forceful blows the guard may take.
Also, note how the wakizashi allows one hand to shield the eyes against the sun while the polished surface of the blade would be used to reflect sunlight back at the attacker's eyes.
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Phillosoph

Stepping Back

Today I will look at another illustration from John Clements’ book on Medieval Swordsmanship.
This sequence shows how a downward strike is accompanied by a step forward with the right or rear foot, and the text describes how to resume the initial position (left). What I like about this is that if you view it right-to-left it equally illustrates a downward strike that follows stepping back with the left or lead leg. For example, an enemy targets your lead leg, so you step back to avoid the strike and simultaneously strike at his head. Striking low may have exposed the upper part of his body.
Medieval Sword and Shield describes a similar sequence, although this time the defender is in “half-shield” guard (above, left). Again, if the enemy strikes low, the targeted leg is brought back and the sword is brought down on the attacker.
Clements’ book makes a lot about the prevalence of leg wounds among the remains of the Battle of Visby. The above sequences suggest that attacking the legs was foolhardy, at least with shorter weapons such as swords. Some context helps us understand the discrepancy. The victorious Danish forces were mainly composed of professional soldiers and mercenaries. The Gutnish forces were primarily farmers, and only partially equipped with armour. It seems likely that professional fighters would readily exploit the defender’s lack of experience and equipment and target the legs. Whether such tactics were common in other battles against experienced fighters is open to debate.
The “step back while striking” drill has obvious applications to modern combat. If we do not hold a sword it can be adapted to other weapons or empty-handed techniques. In a previous post I have mentioned that the leg raising actions so typical of Scottish Highland dancing may have been training to take the leg out of the way of low strikes.
Many years ago I wrote about a very silly sequence that appears in some knife-fighting manuals. It should be apparent to readers that when an attacker threatens your leg, a more practical response will be to withdraw the leg and simultaneously strike at any target available, such as arm.
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Phillosoph

Shield and Buckler and Long Har Chuan

Recently, I read a very interesting book called “Medieval Sword and Shield” by Paul Wagner and Stephen Hand.
The generic title is a little misleading, since specifically the book covers the fighting system shown in I.33.
Royal Armouries Ms. I.33, which is the earliest known surviving European fechtbuch (combat manual) and addresses the use of the sword and buckler.
The book “The Medieval Art of Swordsmanship” by Jeffrey L Forgeng has a very nice reproduction and translation of I.33.
The above volumes sit side by side on my bookshelf.
I.33 is not an easy work to understand.
Medieval conventions on artwork make is uncertain as to the actual postures of the fighters, and the text is often less than clear and has some probable errors.
It has been suggested that the manuscript was written for readers already familiar with the system described.
Perhaps there was once an earlier “beginner’s course” manuscript, since lost to history.
If you read I.33, you will appreciate what a sterling job Paul Wagner and Stephen Hand have done in interpreting I.33 into a realistic fighting system.
Their book is comprehensive and logically laid out.
Nearly every technique described is illustrated by a photo sequence, and in most cases the text is on the same page as the photos.
As I know from personal experience, the latter is often much harder to achieve than one might think!

Stab-Knock and Shield-Knock

I.33 only deals with the use of sword and buckler, and the way these are used is distinctive.
The buckler is seldom used independently.
If the sword is held back in a cocked or charged position the buckler is advanced towards the foe.
When the sword is forward, the buckler is kept near the sword hand, and moved so that it is always between the sword hand and the likely approach of the enemy’s blade.
"Half-shield" counter and "Underarm" ward. Core techniques of I.33
Two of the core techniques of I.33 are “stab-knock/thrust-strike (stichslac)” and “shield-knock (schlitslac)”.
A stab-knock is made when the buckler contacts and controls the opposing blade.
Since the fighter is to keep sword and buckler together, the stab-knock is both an attack and defence in single time.
While the term thrust or stab is used, the attack may actually be a draw-cut or push-cut (aka “file”).
Contrary to the tired old myth that medieval swords were only swung, I.33 shows a number of thrusts.
Often the line of the sword obstructs the threat from the foe’s blade. This is reminiscent of the Long Har Chuan variant where an arm punches over an inward parry, simultaneously taking the parry over and striking.
Addressing another common myth: in I.33 a parry or bind with the blade often precedes the involvement of the buckler.
A stab-knock (or possibly a shield-knock and strike). Hands would be closer together at the beginning of a stab-knock.
Shield-knock generally refers to binding the foe’s bucker with your own. Ideally. this pins the opponent’s sword and buckler against his body, allowing the fighter’s sword to attack independently.
The latter assumes the enemy has his sword-hand and buckler close together, as recommended by I.33.
Shield-knock is sometimes seen applied to a buckler alone, or sometimes the sword-hand.
If the enemy has not protected the sword-hand with his buckler, then striking his arm with the buckler, preferably edge-on, is suggested.
Shield-knock differs from stab-knock in that the sword may be wielded independently when a shield-knock is used.
Right stays too long in fifth ward, so left shield-knocks his buckler and strikes. A strike in the other direction would inhibit right's sword-arm from making a late attack. Left probably stepped to right's weak side, but this is not shown by medieval art.
Right shield-knocks both buckler and sword. With no opposition to his blade he strikes the head.

Distance, Wards and Counters

I won’t attempt to discuss most of the techniques in Medieval Sword and Shield since they would be hard to understand outside the context provided by the book.
A useful concept that the book describes is that of close distance, wide distance and out of distance.
Close distance is when the fighters can strike each other without moving their feet.
Wide distance is that where a stepping movement is needed to move into striking distance.
Out of distance is where more than one stepping movement would be needed to reach striking range.
Such terminology is fairly common in sword fighting circles but often not so clearly and simply stated in other martial arts.
Another useful concept is the book clearly distinguishes between the terms “ward (custodiis)” and “counter (obsesseo)” as used by I.33.
A ward is a position you adopt before making an attack, while a counter is a position adopted in response to a ward.
It is stressed that one should not “lie” in a ward.
This echoes my own frequent comments about positions and stances not being static and being transitional.

Modern Applications

What can Medieval Sword and Shield teach the modern serviceman or prepper?
More than you might think!
For example, several of the core techniques show elements of Long Har Chuan, and I will deal with that topic further in a moment.
In Crash Combat, I advise the baton and machete user to become familiar with rising and horizontal strikes.
The two most versatile wards of I.33 are “underarm” and “priest’s special longpoint”.
The bucker is held in a similar position for that recommended for the unarmed “alive-hand”.
While we have machetes and other long blades, a buckler is unlikely to be used.
Some of the buckler techniques are not suited to larger shields such as a riot shield.
In two of my books I describe using a helmet of entrenching tool in the weak hand to defend from a blade.
The I.33 principle of keeping such a defence between your weapon-hand and the threat is directly applicable.
I.33 shows very few attacks to the hands or arms. The implication is that if the buckler techniques described are used such attacks are highly unlikely.
In combat without bucklers, the hands and forearms will often be targeted, whether a machete, baton or smaller blade is used.
This is why you must keep your hands and yourself moving.

Long Har Chuan and Weapons

As I mentioned already, we can see the core principles of Long Har Chuan being used in some of the fundamental techniques of I.33.
Long Har Chuan boils down to two ideas:
When we make an inward parry, we take over with an outward parry.
When we make an outward parry we simultaneously make an action with our other hand, either a strike or the beginning of another parry.
If we parry a foe’s right hand with an outward parry from our right hand we would move left and hit him with our left hand.
Using a machete or baton has some influence on how Long Har Chuan is applied.
If you have a long weapon in one hand you will likely favour its use.
In offence the weapon has more reach and inflicts more damage.
For defence it has more reach and is less vulnerable than your empty hand.
A bind. Note how bucklers cover the sword hand.
Suppose your enemy has a machete in his right hand, and you are configured the same.
Your first move will be to bind his blade.
“Bind” has a number of different meanings in blade fighting, and is used here to mean a sustained contact between blades, usually to exert control.
Contact his blade on the outside, with your own, remembering that the strongest part of a blade is near the hilt, so attempt to bind “forte to forte”.
Press his blade to your right and step in to your left. Make contact with his weapon arm with your left hand at the wrist, forearm or inner elbow.
This hand controls, checks and monitors his weapon arm.
This contact frees our weapon hand to unbind and strike at the foe’s neck.
Rather than a broad swing, this may the a thrusting action, resulting in a thrust, draw-cut or push-cut.
If we instead sensed his weapon arm reacting, we might instead strike down at it with our blade.
The procedure is similar for a bind on the inside of his blade, but in this instance his other hand is a potential threat and your should be ready to strike at this if necessary before attacking the neck.
As can be seen, both inward and outward parries/binds are taken over by the free hand to free the blade for use.