What Is a Halberd? History, Anatomy, Halberd vs Poleaxe and the Other Polearms

The halberd is the polearm most people can picture and fewest can define. It is the weapon of the Swiss Guard at the Vatican, of the Swiss pike squares that broke Burgundy in the 1470s, and of every castle guard in every film, and it is also the answer to a question people ask search engines constantly: what do you call a spear with an axe on it. This guide covers what a halberd is, where it came from, how the parts of the head work, how it differs from the poleaxe and the other polearms it gets confused with, and what to look for in a modern one.

What is a halberd?

A halberd is a two-handed polearm with three things on the end of a shaft of roughly five to seven feet: an axe blade on one side, a hook or fluke on the back, and a spear point on top. The axe cut, the hook pulled a rider from the saddle or a shield out of line, and the point kept a horseman at a distance. The name comes from the German Halm, staff, and Barte, axe. It appeared in the Swiss cantons in the late 13th and 14th centuries, grew out of agricultural tools and the earlier Swiss vouge, and by the 15th century was the standard weapon of Swiss and German infantry. It stayed in military use into the 17th century and survives as a ceremonial weapon today.

Anatomy of a halberd

Spear point. The top spike, usually four-sided or leaf-shaped, from six inches to over a foot long on later examples.

Axe blade. Convex or crescent-shaped on early halberds, flatter and more decorated on later ones. The blade is what separates a halberd from a spear or a bill.

Back hook or fluke. A curved spike opposite the axe blade, for hooking.

Langets. Iron straps running down the shaft from the head, riveted through, so the shaft could not be cut through below the head.

Shaft. Ash or another straight-grained hardwood, five to seven feet, sometimes with a butt spike or ferrule.

Early Swiss halberds were shorter and plainer; 16th century German and Italian examples grew longer, with pierced and etched blades, as the weapon shifted toward parade and guard duty.

Why the halberd was the foot soldier's weapon

A halberd head needed a fraction of the steel a sword did and could be forged by a village smith from patterns that already existed as tools. It needed little training: a man who could swing a woodcutter's axe and hold a line could use one. And it answered the problem of the armoured horseman better than anything a peasant levy had carried before. The Swiss victories over the Burgundian knights at Grandson, Morat and Nancy in 1476 and 1477 were won by halberdiers and pikemen in dense formations, and after that every army in Europe wanted them. In a formation the pikes held the horsemen off and the halberdiers cut into whatever got through.

Halberd versus poleaxe

This is the most common confusion. Both put an axe, a spike and a hook on a shaft. The halberd is longer, five to seven feet, with a broad axe blade, and it was an infantry weapon for use in formation by soldiers of ordinary rank. The poleaxe is shorter, four to five feet, with a smaller axe blade or a hammer head and a heavier spike, and it was the weapon of armoured knights fighting on foot, in the judicial duel and the tournament as much as on the battlefield. If it is long with a big blade, it is a halberd; if it is short and heavy with a hammer, it is a poleaxe. Our poleaxe versus halberd article goes deeper.

Halberd versus the other polearms

Polearms fall into three families: those built for reach and the thrust, those built for leverage against armour, and those built to be thrown. The halberd is in the second group. The others you will see named:

Spear and pike. A point on a shaft. The pike is a spear of ten feet or more for formation use.

Bill. The English cousin of the halberd, with a hooked cutting blade descended from the agricultural billhook and a spike; the weapon of the English levies into the 16th century.

Glaive. A single-edged sword-like blade on a shaft. This is the weapon people mean when they ask about a spear with a sword on the end. The Japanese naginata is the same idea.

Bardiche. An Eastern European and Russian polearm with a very long axe blade attached to the shaft at two points, and no spear point.

Guandao. The Chinese heavy curved blade on a long shaft; covered in the Chinese polearms guide.

Lance. A cavalry spear, not an infantry polearm.

The polearms buying guide compares the whole family side by side.

From battlefield to palace guard

By the late 16th century the pike and the musket had taken over the battlefield, and the halberd retreated to the role it still holds: the weapon of sergeants, bodyguards and palace guards, a mark of authority more than a tool of war. Officers carried them into the 18th century, and the Papal Swiss Guard carries them today. In fiction it is the castle guard's weapon in every medieval film, and in games it is the standard heavy polearm. That is why the silhouette is so familiar and why it makes such a striking display piece.

Choosing a modern halberd

A halberd is the one weapon that can be too big for the house. Full-size pieces run 74 to 84 inches, taller than a door; a 43 inch short halberd gives the shape at a scale that fits a smaller wall. The head should be forged steel, 1095 high carbon or pattern-welded Damascus for a functional piece, or stainless for a display piece that will hang untouched, and it should be fixed to the shaft with langets or a socket and pins, not glue. The shaft should be straight-grained hardwood. A horizontal wall mount needs its head-end hook into a stud, because the head is where the weight is. Our halberds and poleaxes collection holds the range, from the 84 inch halberd down, and the wider shafted family is in polearms.

Maintenance

A high carbon head wants the same care as a sword: wipe after handling, a light coat of oil, dry storage. Check the langet rivets and the head fit once or twice a year; a shaft that has dried and shrunk lets the head work loose. Stainless heads need only dusting.

Frequently asked questions

What is a halberd?
A two-handed polearm with an axe blade, a spear point and a back hook on a shaft of five to seven feet, used by European infantry from the 14th to the 17th century and carried ceremonially since.

What is the difference between a halberd and a poleaxe?
The halberd is longer with a broad axe blade and was an infantry formation weapon. The poleaxe is shorter with a hammer or small axe head and was the armoured knight's weapon on foot.

What is a spear with a sword blade on the end called?
A glaive in Europe, a naginata in Japan. A halberd has an axe blade, not a sword blade.

How long is a halberd?
Five to seven feet overall. Early Swiss halberds were at the short end; later ceremonial ones at the long end. Modern reproductions run 43 to 84 inches.

Are halberds still used?
Ceremonially, by the Papal Swiss Guard and some other guard units. Otherwise in reenactment, historical fencing study and collections.

Is a modern halberd functional?
If the head is forged high carbon steel, hardened, and fixed to the shaft with langets or a pinned socket, yes. Stainless versions are for display.

About the author
Owen Juarbal is Director of Marketing and head writer at Battling Blades. He has been with the company since 2021 and writes or reviews every guide the team publishes. Read more about Battling Blades.