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The excerpt represents the core issue or deciding factor on which you must meditate, and is drawn from Men of Iron by Howard Pyle: breadth, and riveted to a stout handle of wood three feet long.
The usual lance had not been included in the list of arms, the
hand-gisarm being substituted in its place. It was a fearful and
murderous weapon, though cumbersome, Unhandy, and ill adapted for
quick or dexterous stroke; nevertheless, the Earl of Alban had
petitioned the King to have it included in the list, and in
answer to the King's expressed desire the Court had adopted it in
the stead of the lance, yielding thus much to the royal wishes.
Nor was it a small concession. The hand-gisarm had been a weapon
very much in vogue in King Richard's day, and was now nearly if
not entirely out of fashion with the younger generation of
Men of Iron |
