Tulwar - the sabre of the Indian Mughals
The tulwar (also 'talwar' and other spellings) was a type of Indian sabre. I've handled a few and they vary quite a lot in feel. Mine is a heavy slasher, while others are far lighter.
Some more (quite old) videos on this kind of weapon:
• Pointing sabres
• Sabre trouble
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Пікірлер: 432
He really just exposed Indian hand sizes like that 🫣
@Cheesepuff8
11 ай бұрын
Indian people are definitely smaller noticeably smaller people
@deathbyastonishment7930
11 ай бұрын
@@Cheesepuff8It definitely varies depending on region and class, people from Kashmir were close to the height of contemporary Europeans for example
@bilbo_gamers6417
11 ай бұрын
you'd have to imagine, back when this was made, people in general had smaller hands because they didn't have as much food, so most people would just be smaller stature in general. so smaller hands is no big shock lol.
@Cleisthenes607
11 ай бұрын
People were smaller in the 18th century. Go visit dutch houses made in the 17th century, the ceilings are very low for modern dutch.
@SierraNovemberKilo
11 ай бұрын
@@Cheesepuff8The Lindy is well over 6ft himself he's hardly representative of a typical Indian. Its likely, even in tall Indians that their hands are slim too.
Matt Easton has a video about it. He said that those handles are made to size. There are big ones as well
@baylego
11 ай бұрын
So what you're saying is that Indians have tinny hands, right?
@clothar23
11 ай бұрын
If they're made to size why out of the hundreds of antique tulwars I have seen not one fits my hand. I may be a tall guy at 195cm but plenty of Indians I have met equal me in size. Hell a few surpassed me. So there are guys in India my size. So by that logic there should be an original tulwar that fits my hand. And yet the search goes on. And has gone on for decades at this point.
@casbot71
11 ай бұрын
@@clothar23There are guys _now_ who are your size, but historically with a purely traditional Indian diet there might have not been...
@blacktea9776
11 ай бұрын
@@clothar23 well to be fair the average male height in india TODAY is approximately is 5'6, and seems to be in decline. Given that the Tulwar we know has been produced since the 1500s I'm willing to bet that people were MUCH smaller in India throughout history, especially when you consider how far nutrition and food availability have come and how much that can impact a population's size. I don't know how big you are, but by the sounds of it the likelihood of someone your size both existing back then and also commissioning a tulwar to be made in a size that fits your hand is pretty low.
@clothar23
11 ай бұрын
@@casbot71 I fail to see why not. The Hindu faith doesn't ban meat entirely. And while the Sikh faith does they're a minority in India. Not to mention even a traditional Sikh diet with its vegan restrictions has just as much protein and calories as anything the modern world would possess. And being a trade hub even back in antiquity would mean access to foods from the world would be a thing. Let us not also forget in traditional Indian society a Warrior was part of a privileged caste . Beaten only by nobility and the priesthood. So they would have eaten better than most. Not to mention trained as rigorously as any modern soldier. And their parents would have as well. That's a recipe for a tall and well built person.
"Look out, that's not a tulwar, it's an odachi!" "What's the difference?" "Well a tulwar is of Indian descent while an odachi is Japanese. While both are primarily slashing weapons the tulwar was favoured by cavalrymen as opposed to an odachi which was mainly used for dick-measuring!"
@fohkens
11 ай бұрын
Ahh good, I knew this was gonna be here
@heliotaxis
11 ай бұрын
The point is that "a nodachi's a little bit longer than a talwar, so it'll have more reach and do a bit more damage".
@icebergo8571
11 ай бұрын
Thank god. I was going to lose hope
@clothar23
11 ай бұрын
Abridged Kirito , not the hero SAO wanted....but the one it deserved.
@Lattamonsteri
11 ай бұрын
From total war shogun 2 i remembered that odachi was a 2-handed weapon but now im confused
Notably used by Dick Sharpe to save Sir Arthur Wellesley at the battle of Assaye, an act that earned him a commission from the ranks and a swanky telescope.
@sticy5399
11 ай бұрын
A telescope later smashed by a short sighted french man.
@madsam7582
11 ай бұрын
@@sticy5399 Then boi lost his glasses. Justice!
@wangusbeef86
11 ай бұрын
haha "Dick Sharpe"!
Bro literally acquired a Tulwar the same week as me and explained my biggest complaint about it. I will say that the finger out feels incredibly intuitive, but would obviously be risky in combat
@bootsontheground4913
11 ай бұрын
He has YOUR Tulwar
@CodaMission
11 ай бұрын
@@bootsontheground4913 Mine is gold with red velvet because I buy gawdy things. Checkmate
@MrPanos2000
11 ай бұрын
@@CodaMissionuh oh, replica alert
@MrEmiosk
11 ай бұрын
Not really. By how you use 'em you have a lot more important problems then a risk of your finger. It is virtually impossible to get hit down at the guard, unless you use a static guard and intentionally present the grip to block a strike.
@CodaMission
11 ай бұрын
@@MrPanos2000 booo gatekeepers suck in any fandom
I actually have a tulwar at home. Don't know if it is an original. But I agree with everything you say, the handle is just painful to hold. Also as you said, putting your finger over can be done, put it really hurts and doesn't provide as much control as you want
@StuBoIsEpic
11 ай бұрын
That rules. Is it a family heirloom of sorts? My grandfather's katana is with my aunt's family. I secretly wish it was mine.
@1schwererziehbar1
11 ай бұрын
You have a Tulwar at home? Big deal. Who doesn't?
@Yomabo
11 ай бұрын
@@StuBoIsEpic not really, but I did inherite it from the uncle of my mother. I think he got it from someone he knew, because we have no idian or Indonesian family.
@Yomabo
11 ай бұрын
@@1schwererziehbar1 you?
@1schwererziehbar1
11 ай бұрын
@@Yomabo Okay you got me I don't. 😢
At that time every warrior used to have there own handsize customized ' Talwar ' accordingly to there hand size by Iron smiths (Lohars) 😭
There is a particular way to hold talwar most of kshtriya were of quite big stature you should ask asanta orwatch video of gurudev nidar singh in which he shows correct way
@crzahmed9707
9 ай бұрын
He's using the Mughal Tulwar so maybe it's a different use
@reshabraina9669
9 ай бұрын
@@crzahmed9707 you are saying right mughal sword have medium size discs to its easy than some talwar but still you have to use whole body i personally have tested both methods of handling the other way it much better you can easy change direction midway
Lindy is now my favourite sword KZreadr
Kinda funny how this channel has gone full circle back to the really short videos
I recall the steel that ‘Arnander’ was made from was said to be prone to rust. Maybe a video about how you maintain your swords?
@manticore117
11 ай бұрын
Most blades are prone to rust due to using high carbon steel. This is why swords and blades are oiled to create a barrier to prevent oxidation or any oils from your skin corroding the steel.
@qasimmir7117
11 ай бұрын
@@manticore117 Yeh I know but some of those steels are more prone to corrosion than others. I just wanted to see how he maintains his blades.
No proposition Euclid wrote No formulae the text-books know, Will turn the bullet from your coat, Or ward the tulwar's downward blow. Strike hard who cares - shoot straight who can The odds are on the cheaper man. -Kipling, "Arithmetic on the Frontier"
Idian hands aren't small, you're just a european Giant
@clothar23
11 ай бұрын
While Lloyd is big even by European standards the Indians aren't exactly a short race. Which alongside the facial hair makes them atypical of the rest of Asia. So it stands to reason something is up with most tulwars.
@user-ju9ii1hf3v
6 ай бұрын
That's a child's sword. Bullshiteing is easy on youtube these days
I could listen to Lindy talk about historical weapons for hours.
I would love to see more Indianarms being discussed on your channel.
Man i love your new shorts for these little bits of history
The way this guy holds the scabbard while pulling out blades... Guess heading for stitch job someday..
Awesome video! I love how you show off a lot of these underrated weapons from other cultures! Indian weapons especially have some really cool designs like the Urumi, Chakram, Bagh Nakh, and my personal favorite, the ancient Maduvu/Madu.
People in general were just smaller back in the day than we are now.
I used to watch you like 6 years ago I'm so happy i found you again friend! You look good in short form
Fellow indian here, That one is actually more of a show piece sword of kings Its not for the fighting thats why the handle is that small. Yes we have one in the house. And its used to cut a small/tiny branch of a tree in in desh-hera. To mark the beginning that festival in that town and allow the leaves of that tree to be taken.
@kontoru22
6 ай бұрын
If a straight blade is fitted into such handles, will the sword able to make thrusting motion ?
Love your videos
Lindybeige shorts are wild
I love that even though I didn't have my headset on to listen just yet, I could immediately read Lindys lips in perfect Lindy inflections as he said "This is a tulwar!"
seeing this i can appreciate cold steel's Talwar folding knife
tulwar (pronounced thal-waar) just means sword in hindi, urdu, and related languages. The word doesn't denote any specific style or type of sword. Similar to the word katana in Japanese.
@shermuhammadkhan3383
7 ай бұрын
I Disagree! native urdu speaker here and whilst yes talwaar is the generalisation we use in modern urdu/ hindi for sword , that's just because of how ubiquitous it has become, in my opinion talwaar is a type of sword, and there's other words to refer to other types of swords too, like the khanda, shamsheer and the firangi! Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong
@salilphansekar9557
7 ай бұрын
Talwar means tal - bottom n waar means slice/attack meaning slicing thru the bottom😊😊😊
@ali.k3846
6 ай бұрын
True
My god I can’t imagine how horrific battle was back in those days
Lindybeige in short form is wild. Used to listening to 2 hours of talking tweed.
He forgot mention that instead of a Frenchman passing by to be touch by that sabre it was a Englishman in this case.
hey man, just want to let you know that in the Gatka form of Tulwar combat, we utilize the small hilts/handles for control. instead of having to grip a large handle tightly for extended periods of time, we hold it with a slightly looser grip which allows us for more range of motion. most european sword styles depend on wrist movement, but the tulwar depends more on the shoulder joint, allowing us to grip a blade for longer with less fatigue.
@daleepdhami4558
6 күн бұрын
also in the “alternate grip” that you showed, the index and thumb fingers remain extended inside the handle, try that out for feel! we basically push on the inside of the entire grip to hold the sword.
Love these sword videos
I would imagine having your knuckles squeezed into it like that would give it additional stability
I own an antique tulwar .. and yes the grips are quite tight on those ones. Over the time i observed the traditional fighting style where they carry a Dhaal (small sheild) to parry. Perhaps the use of tight grips on these is they use the maneuvers of turning their wrists alot by getting closer to their encountering fighter. You can see some videos on that if you search. The style is indeed interesting.
"Ya got small hands...." -this guy, probably
That handle is small abd have a round disc at the end because Talwar was used a one hand weapon and it is heavier than european sabets so without these 2 things at the back used to save person from wrist dislocation
I can imagine this being a good cavalry or downward striking weapon as all energy is at the end making it more forceful travelling towards the earth
@Yomabo
11 ай бұрын
The handle really favors upwards strikes weirdly
@georgehh2574
11 ай бұрын
@@Yomabohich also makes sense for cavalry since you could let the sword hang until in contact with a foot soldier, then swing upwards to cut them. That way it is harder to miss them, as opposed to swinging downwards and timing the strike.
@lindybeige The handle size of 1-handed swords may be a good video topic. In the Met Armory, both European and Turkish swords seemed to have that very small handle. It seems especially odd considering they would be wearing gloves. It would seem that either the little finger wraps around the pommel, or that the thumb braces against the cross guard.
you telling me the White Scars been swinging indian swords around this whole time? that doesnt seem right
I heard that German blades were widely common. Not exactly because of good quality (people say they were sometimes a bit better or on equal level) but because Germany has somewhat perfected the process of sword smithing to a degree that they were able forge many blades in a short period of time. Therefore many bought blades from them because there were many and they were not too expensive.
@Zajuts149
9 ай бұрын
Yes, cost was definitely a factor. German blades of high quality were produced on an industrial scale in the 19th century. Though there were Indian blades of higher quality, they were more expensive, and not as quickly produced. High status people could afford an Indian Wootz blade for their tulwar, but they would use the affordable steel for the lower ranks of their regiments.
One of my favorite, more obscure swords. Although I think my absolute favorite is either the shotel or the khopesh. Sickle-Sword VS Axe-Sword.
@d.esanchez3351
11 ай бұрын
Oh I love Falx as 2 handed swords. Sickle swords are pretty awesome.
@kristofevarsson6903
11 ай бұрын
@@d.esanchez3351 Sica if you want a shield with that curvature. Or you can stick with the falx if you're aiming for the eyes of the guy behind the guy across from you.
Small grip was made to make the user hold it in a tight way where it requires the user to use drawing cut
Rumor has it the hilt was designed to encourage stop cuts basically slashier slashes.
The tulwar is fine but I like the shamshir simple but effective design.
Thnaks!
The thumb over the back guard. The knuckle guard looks like it has a provisional face for the fire and middle fingers to “ride up” the guard. Just a guess, give’r a go.
Tulwar gives me "cavalryman sword" vibes. The way you swing it, the way warfare was conducted in the north west part of South Asia, and the way the grip is constructed just makes it seem like you swing it from the top of a beast of war.
@harkarankhunkhun7544
11 ай бұрын
Infantryman used it as well but warfare in the Indian subcontinent was heavily cavalry based right up until the subcontinent was dominated by Britain.
@crzahmed9707
9 ай бұрын
I think the Mughals used it just for that purpose
Very cool original. Probably fits French hands well.
Amazing
Lindy Shorts! This has made me need to go back and catch up on your longer videos
That sword is awesome 😎
Father Noko was using a saber in actual war. Finnish cavalry inherited weapons from Russian hussars in 1918. So in 1939 they had swords and spurs, but horses were soon replaced with bicycles and all sabers were mystically lost.
Yes, you hold it differently: you keep your arms bent, and move it mostly with your upper arms and shoulder. The wrist is supposed to be stiff when using this--that's what the disk pommel is for.
Lack Of Knowledge..
Please do Stoke Mandeville again. I'm of the opinion that everything you've done is remarkable.
I have some Indian antiques, all have tiny grips I’ve always wondered about that
Tulwar is one of my favorite words to say.
That is a ceremonial tulwar Combat tulwars, at least in Nepal, do not have the weird pommel, but a handguard more in the style of a hand and a half sword with a US cavalry saber style guard, (or no guard at all) and a heavy front blade with a full tang and a very heavy blade at almost a third of an inch thick at the back end If you're interested I can show a pic of one used in combat
I don't know why but it feels almost wrong to see a Lindybeige "short"... Oh well, it is still Lindybeige so I'll smile and watch ;-)
Wonder if the sword in your hand has ever touched blood
I could see how it's useful for slapping around a lot of unarmored opponents maybe. Or maybe the weight of the blade could really impact armor on horseback.
Really cool sword!
I imagine it was primarily used by the calvary.
Yes! Indian Tulwars are just beautiful weapons. I own so many of these passed down in my family.
@crzahmed9707
9 ай бұрын
Especially the Mughal ones
You know what I love? Weird discrepancies between real life and game mechanics. For example, in Pathfinder 2e, the Talwar can be wielded two-handed and doing so increases its damage. I'm playing a character who fights with a Talwar, looked it up online, and realized that there is no way in hell you can use that sword two-handed lol
For over a thousand years, most armies in what is now India and Pakistan have had a lot of light cavalry. This remained true under the British with divisions having a cavalry brigade.
The dude is 6'3 telling someone who is 5'8 back then as having small hands. Ye, proportions.
One of my favorite swords
The way to cut is different from what I've seen in many Indian martial art videos
Did I see you at the Hoppings Fair in Newcastle? :)
Move your palm a little behind - hold the handle like you are holding a burger or a sandwich - you can put the shape and flexiblilty to use properly
I think you do hold it with the index over the guard. Like a sidesword. For great big swings having it there as a fulcrum gives you more control. Imo
A talwar guard is supposed to be perfectly snug. So that the weapon cant slide in your hand.... as a cavalry saber you can imagine the torque a sliding hild would put on your arm and wrist during combat... plus with the forms being designed for using the entire arm and a licked wrist to weild the blade it needs to aid that style.
Tool War? I could not said it better myself.
Come to Rajasthan and hariyana I will show the how big a Indian hand can be
If you havent already, would you mind doing a video on the kyu gunto
Could you do a video on a dacian falx?
Regarding the grip, my understanding is that it holds your hand instead of your hand holding it. The idea is not to use a firm hammer grip so much as you relax and open some of your grip so that your fingers push into the guard as opposed to squeezing the handle. Your middle and ring finger grip the handle but the other fingers are held more loosely.
Perhaps they had a loose grip on the index finger to aid in slashing?
Tbh our version existed way before the Sabre
classic british man, owning original indian historical items
Wait till you hear how tall Maharana Pratap was...
I beleive you are correct about it having a European Blade. Looks like an An series pattern to me.
They might have held it with pointer and middle maybe. Like how some ppl hold the battle axes. As it is blade heavy it makes sense to use it like that. Wouldn't need a lot of gripping too and its actually easier and more accurate to manuever that way dont you think
A fast run through the world of swords? Cool. What if the knucklebow's damaged?
Nice
the talwar is not the sabre of the Mughals, its the sabre or slashing weapon of the Rajputs of Indian origin. The Mogouls used a bit different variant of the sabre a bit smaller one and curved at the top edge & not a uniform curve.
The tulwar is a very cool weapon, pity about the handle being a bit small.
Behold my favorite Saber like sword
how much magic find u got on that bad boy
Okay 😅 you do know talwars were actually customised according to each individual n it might be possible that this talwar was made for a very young warrior cause before Independence of India learning sword fighting n weapon training was actually part of the Curriculum of Indian Gurukuls ( schools)
This is an Indian blade from what I could see
The hand size doesn’t correlate with the handle. Northern Indians have huge hands, you will find kirpans (daggers) with larger handles than khanda or tulwar.
Sabre is version of Talwar… Talwar is well documented in the Indian epics and also in vedas which are oldest texts in human history
Not european blade but some of our sword used europen imported material at that time. Indian talwar design is curved while european used straight blades.
Indian handle of sword is small because when you are moving your sword in battle field sword can be slipped from hand if handle is large
I have two of those at my ancestral home, but both of them have longer handles. Idk why this one doesn't, or maybe it's longer for me and you're a much taller person than I thought. Note: "Talwar" just means sword. It just so happens that the ones predominantly used here were also sabres.
Even considering the martial classes had a better diet than those who were exclusively vegetarian, their hands were probably quite small on average compared to Euro hands. I know some women who marry Indian men and move to India have noted that lots of bangles are too small to fit over their wrists.
Everyone was smaller back then it wouldn't be surprising if it was ment for someone with smaller hands
Tulwar didnt start during the Mughal but earlier. Around 1300s.
Its not only used by mughals but also by the other kingdoms in India