and that's without even taking into consideration the best saber of them all, the lightsaber.

I'd go for the sabre. Being one handed gives you a huge advantage in terms mobility.

In a one on one duel the sabre is superior and more versatile in combat, that's why most nations adopted the sabre.Both great weapons.

This last weekend I got invited to a fascinating sparing event at Schola St George where a small Koryu school showed up. It was a lot of fun and as far as Katana vs Longsword, the biggest difference I saw was in the cross guard. I fought one of their students with a side sword, and I'll say that your observations are absolutely correct. I couldn't bind with him, but could strike from a ton of angles. Great fights and it was very interesting to see the different styles working against each other. Especially considering this Koryu school does't spar as part of it's training, they all performed very well.

Sabre. Its decisively nimbler.

If I was fighting for my life, I'd take a saber, every time. Reach, just as fast, can still deliver cuts, although not as well as a katana, yet is superior in thrust, by FAR.

As a layman, and admirer of the katana, it appears that the sabre makes the better fighting sword. The Katana has always caught my eye though, so beautiful.

It's an interesting comparison between the two, but one thing that I notice whenever anyone compares katana to any other sword, is they often compare them to swords used in war, when the most common sword used in war in Japan were tachi, as opposed to katana. There was some overlap that started in the 15-16th centuries, but most samurai would have taken a tachi as their sidearm to battle, whereas a katana was generally worn as a means of self defense when not at war. Tachi are generally longer (30 inch+ blades), have more acute tips for thrusting (and tachi manuals often emphasized thrusting), and are balanced to be used one handed predominantly. I think it would be more appropriate to compare a tachi with a sabre.

Sabers definitely fought katanas... but these are Mongol, Chinese, Vietnamese sabers... Japanese wokou and ronin penetrated far south of Japan.. but with such a wide variety of sabers from Europe to East Asia, from the edge of Siberia to the southern tip of India, hard to generalize with so many styles..

Sabre, no doubt.

The best sabres were made in Poland for winged hussars. I would like to see comparing british one to this :D

Firstly, as always, I applaud your fair and informed appraisal and comparison of both swords. The Russo-Japanese War is one of the best sources for instances of sabre and katana being crossed in anger. There were many embedded foreign observers, probably most famously was Sir Ian Hamilton, representative of the British army, who spent time with a Japanese unit (Japan was an ally of GB at the time). Many foreign journalists were also present. The kyugunto used by many Japanese soldiers had a blade that was essentially katana-like in geometry (on the shorter end of the spectrum) and weight, including the two-handed grip, but the hand protection was a hybrid of Japanese and Western, consisting of a very small elliptical disk with a long knucklebow to protect the fingers of both hands. Japanese cavalry had swords were closer in design to European sabres, in that they were one-handed and offered a bit more hand protection. There are some reports of Japanese soldiers bringing ancestral swords to the battlefield as well. On the Russian side, most officers and cavalry were carrying European sabres typical of the era (I have not found many details in text, but there are many photographs), but there are accounts of that Cossacks used their traditional sword, which lacks hand protection. The newspapers and magazines of the era, reported several instances of officers challenging each other to sword duels at the start of battles to boost the morale of their men. Surprisingly, on these rare occasions, the soldiers were content to just wait there and let one officer kill the other before charging. I have found several English-language newspaper articles and magazines referring to such duels, typically fought on foot and with the Japanese officer winning (although not always unwounded), but these do not name the combatants and the level of swordsmanship of the Russian officers is unknown. There is an officer duel that took place on horseback, where the Russian soldier, a Montenegrin volunteer named Aleksandar Lekso Saičić, was the victor. The original newspaper sources were in Russian, and so the improved documentation in this instance might have been the use of this event to improve morale back in Russian. It should be reiterated that these duels were a rare occurrence and most swordsmanship happened during the charges, where the Japanese swords, when used properly, proved that they had as much use on the battlefield as the Western sabres.

If I'm ever fortunate enough to live in Britain, I would love to train with you guys, and the other great HEMA enthusiasts on KZfaq, it's something I've loved most of my life (like Britain itself) and it'd be incredible to do it personally. :)

Will you ever do a video discussing other eastern swords such as dao or jian? Or is this (current) mostly based off of the prevalence of there being similar sword applications (I.e. HEMA and kendo)?

Another helpful video. Thank you. I'd love to see a longsword vs rapier review.

Hello.I am planning on starting hema on my own for now, and I was wondering if you could give a suggestion as to what I should choose when it comes to what weapon i should choose to start with. Keeping in mind amount of source material, general prices, and ease of learning for a beginner. Thanks!

Where do I get one of those katanas with a sabre hilt?

how were the combats in the XIX century? did men charged like crazy and colide each other like madmen? Or did aproached carefully to engage with their swords/bayonetts?

My question is will you be doing clerks 3?

Where could I get the gothic hilt saber?

I am a bit late to the discussion, but does your opinion on sabre vs katana also extends to cavalry sabres, which tend to be on the heavier side but also have longer blades? Does say an 1821 light cavalry sabre still have the advantage for combat on foot against a katana? Thanks

I love all swords but tbh if my life was on the line I think I would choose a sabre. for me personally as a fencer it suits my fencing style.

They defiantly clashed during the Boshin War (japanese civil war late 1800s). Or at least were going on opposite sides. That was mostly a shooting war however.

I'd use my US 1860 Lt Cavalry Sabre or possibly my 1840 Heavy Cavalry Sabre. Not only do I love those swords, good hand protection, etc. I am used to them. But A big part of sword work in a fight, etc is one's experience with his sword and how comfortable he feels with it.

Great explanation

The fastest cuts are done from the wrist. The sholuder rotational cuts are the slowest.

great video dude! A comarision katana vs sabre is in my opinion the most interesting from all swords

If you compare katana with shorter saber like cutlass,cutlass is actually lighter?

Does anyone know the name of the Katana with the sabre hilt?

In WW2 imperial Japanese units fought American units using American made Dutch klewangs, which were curved heavy sabers with clip points, I've read that the Japanese adapted them on the small scale after finding a shipment of them and simply removed most of the guard so it simulated the disc guard of a katana.

One thing you forgot to mention is a scenario in which neither side has a sword drawn. A saber was typically worn spine-up, edge-down at the hip, while the katana was worn spine-down, edge-up. Where a saber wielder would have to draw the sword up and across their body, and then arch it around above their head for the initial strike, a katana wielder can simply grip around the latter end of the hilt, and whip it straight out across the belly. More often than not, this was the entirety of a duel between samurai, going down similar to one in the wild west where the winner was simply the quicker draw.

Polish szabla husarska FTW!

Thanks for sharing .

hi academy, i am a brasilian and I love your work, your videos very short, only half bad that I can not understand everything you say, but still short enough, congratulations to channel

damn! that gothic hilted sword is beautiful. know of any available reproductions? o.o

i'm your 11 112 subscriber ^^

I have always liked the US 1860 Lt Cav sabre. Just curved enough to be a good cutter, but also just straight enough to be good for thrusting. I also really like my Windless Scimitar. Very light, quick and fast.

Is a saber good against armor? actual question here

Please, which saber he says that one is? "British infantry officer's saber 1803 pattern"? Couldn't hear too well... Now I need one of those; as soon as I saw it got shivers and goosebumps all over my neck and arms! :D

While I value your opinion as an expert, I found it interesting how you continue to compare the katana to many different iterations of the sabre. My understanding is that there are many different iterations of the katana.

Is there such a design of a Katana/Sabre sword? Mix of Hilt design, mix of blade profile?

Shortly after the Russo-Japanese war, many Japanese acts of valor were compiled in English in the three volume book titled "The Russo-Japanese War, Fully Illustrated." Although, these anecdotes are geared toward actual warfare (not duels), the use of the sword can be found in many accounts, where it is used against sabres, bayonets, lances, and guns. One of the most fascinating cases described in that book is that of 22 year old Lieutenant Yoshii (sometimes spelled Yoshi), described by Sir Ian Hamilton as "a singularly weak-looking youth," which was a remark made to indicate his surprise that Yoshii's chipped sword (probably a kyugunto) had supposedly already cut down 8 Russians at the time of their first meeting. Hamilton, an embedded British Army observer, was also present when Yoshii's most celebrated acts occurred. An excerpt of Yoshii's story from the book is as follows: "On the 4th, he [Yoshii] and his men were suddenly attacked by a couple of battalions of Russians, and though there were but 30 of them in all immediately opened fire, hoping that the resistance they could offer would give the Grand Piquet time to come up and drive back the advance of the Russians. It was a dark night, and the little band was soon surrounded by Russians, so that the fighting had to be done at close quarters, with white arms. After a hopeless but desperate resistance had been offered for some time, a resistance which cost the Russians very dearly, Lieut. Yoshii ordered his men to retreat as best they could, and make their way to the Grand Piquet. Only four men were left to obey his orders, and while the little band was making its way toward an eminence which seemed to afford them a chance of shelter and escape, the Russians came one again, and the Lieutenant alone succeeded in reaching the hill. Here he contemplated suicide, but reflecting that if he did so there would be none to make a report to the battalion, determined to take his chance, and fight on till succour [sic] came. Fortunately for him, the sounds of fighting had been heard, a half company came hurrying up to the rescue, and though that was not enough the turn the fortunes of the day, other reinforcements were on their way, and the Russians were eventually beaten back. Strange to say, Yoshii was absolutely unwounded, though his uniform was torn and his cap pierced through by a bayonet thrust. His sword was hacked and broken in several places and was dripping with blood. After the fight was over it was found that there were almost no bullet wounds on the bodies of the dead and wounded. Almost all had fallen from sword-cuts or bayonet thrusts, so fierce and close had been the encounter." Hence, although it is not explicitly mentioned, it is very possible, considering the number of opponents he faced, that Lieutenant Yoshii crossed swords with a sabre-wielding Russian officer in his protracted melee, in addition to the many bayonets he must have encountered. Both the sabre and the katana proved effective in the Russo-Japanese war, in both single combat and open battle, which is surprising considering the reach, hand protection, and potential speed advantage of the sabre.

Well the scenario you picked was one that the sabre was designed for so that isnt really an unbiased opinion - how about a list of different likely scenarios that were likely in the setting of either (and I mean 'either' not both) sword and then for each one of those scenarios you say which is better? Also - you mentioned the extra grip length of a katana getting in the way when used one handed = how? I ask because my wrist doesnt bend far enough for the grip to ever contact my forearm.

When you're talking about the Katana's leverage, it's not just to have more effective "reach forward and cut", it allows minimum movement to generate power. Most importantly it allows a quicker change of direction. It doesn't need to rotate to strike or to get back to guard. A quick, experienced and skilled user can take advantage while the saber is in rotation

One thing you didn't mention which I have heard from other sources is that the center of balance on the katana is proportionally further away from the grip, as compared to the sabre. Also, something I've noticed about one-handed weapons is that they seem to provide a greater effective reach, since you can hold the weapon further away from your body. That's not from any experience, but something I picked up from watching longsword vs. rapier videos, so maybe you know better.

Where did you source what looks like a Japanese cavalry sabre?

i have a question for you. a friend of mine thinks that using two handed swords such as katanas or longswords are always superior to single handed swords bar none. while i agree there are advantages and disadvantages to each. any idea why single handed swords became popular at the end of the middle ages and continued up until swords left use as weapons? you seem to be very level headed and well informed. thanks.

There's a certain charm about your no-nonsense, to the point style of presentation.

I can't remember where I read this but apparently during the boshin wars the conscripts using a sabre were often overwhelmed in close combat by their opponents who were using a katana. This can of course be partially explained by the fact that the conscripts would not have had the same amount of training and experience as the samurai who had often been training from the time they were little lads. I guess it really comes down to the individual level of skill unless we are talking about some silly scenarios like a sword vs. a spoon.

I vaguely remember reading something about a Russian and Japanese officer dueling one another in front of their respective troops, think it was around the time of the Russo-Japanese war. From what I remember reading the Russian officer was dispatched fairly quickly but I don't know remember what weapon the Japanese officer was using - given it was during a period of time where Japan was adopting Western style dress and weaponry.

Very nice material, but one small suggestion if You talk about Sabre, in My opinion the peak period of development was Polish hussar saber (XVII century). In both aspects quality and fighting technique.

A big advantage of any one-handed sword is that you can reach out further than, if you hold it in two hands. Having a two-handed grip allows you on the other hand to win from overpowering binds and doing drawcuts, where you are so close that only with two hands you can generate enough pressure. AFAIK, Japanese never capitalised on the prior as they avoided getting into binds like many Asian martial arts do. The only exception is probably parrying against spears or muskets, where you're in a really bad position with an 800g sabre...

I think that the saber is a much more attractive weapon aesthetically speaking.

Polish saber is better

ive never heard of a 7 person saber please tell me more lol

I love both swords equally.

You forgot to mention one (I believe) important aspect in favor of the saber. It's double edged, and it can deliver very effective cuts with the back edge too. There is this surprising hook-like cut to the wrist, or this pretty much wrapshot from SCA. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/Z79yn8mmuNu6dY0.html Finally, I just want to mention that nobody ever adopted katana as their main sword for any army apart from Japan. Yet they did adopt sabers... ;-)

I used to think that katana was a superior melee weapon until I've read about saber. Saber is lighter, more flexible, has double edge and is designed to attack from any angle without making it difficult to the fighter; fighting style of saber is much more flexible and quicker. Katana fighters usually after bringing out one or two hits go back to their original position, with saber fighters just continue to attack, no matter what position you are at, you always have multiple choices of attack. Katana fighters are much less mobile than saber fighters. What can I say; in my eyes saber just owes katana.

4:53 The saber handle would have no effect on the protection. The katana cut is not focused on the fingers or the palm. It is focused on cutting off the hand behind the wrist where the handle will not help.

what’s the point of a short 2 handed sword

The saber has changed over the course of history - at one point a round thumb strap was added called a toe - it worked like a lever and added strength to the cuts, allowed for various special techniques and protected your thumb - your sabers does't have it. I'm sorry that movie is in polish language but it explain how it works... kzfaq.info/get/bejne/otmWZNGjsZuxZoU.html&ab_channel=szablot%C5%82ukpolski

Completely agree with you :)

I don't think that it is fair to compare a katana with a saber, katana is more likely a self defense tools in peaceful time(e.g. EDO period) for the samurai. Tachi or Nodachi are swords that samurai brought for war. Can you please considering making a video comparing Tachi or Nodachi with European swords?

good clip thank you but one thing i cant agree with you , polish sabres where made similar way as katana if comes to steel mix of two types of steel soft and hard sometimes as damascus sometimes as laminat with soft core and hard steel on the outside

Very good film. In this scenario the winer is the swordsman who has more skill :)

Get yourself a better mic man. Otherwise - superb. Subscribed.

Katana can be used one handed. It can also be dual wielded with a wakizashi or a tanto. Musashi's school or ryu, specializes in dual wielding. Also Japanese Katana style swords are as varied as saber designs. A naginata is a katana pollearm. There is the o-dachi or no-dachi which is much longer than the sabers. A katana is an Asian saber by definition. According to Britannica, a "Sabre, also spelled saber, heavy military sword with a long cutting edge and, often, a curved blade. Most commonly a cavalry weapon, the sabre was derived from a Hungarian cavalry sword introduced from the Orient in the 18th century; also a light fencing weapon developed in Italy in the 19th century for duelling." And the saber originated in Asia, not Hungary. Maybe, one iteration, widely copied, is from Hungary.

I disagree the rotational cut gives it massive speed. your just attacking from a shorter distance thus you have less distance to tavel. also I would like to know the difference in power from a wrist cut compared to a elbow cut or shoulder. I assume the others will have to travel a longer distance will take longer but still be at the same speed.

Asking if saber is Polish or Turkish or whatever is like asking the same about rifle or canone. It was used everywhere in Eurasia for a long period. The word "saber" is from Hungarian "szablya" means "cutter". The word was spread by hussars from the 17th c. Hussars used a light cavalry warfare originated in the nomadic past of Hungarians and was developed to fight against the Ottomans, became popular during the Napoleon wars.

Sabre vs katakana like happen before and during the Meiji period of japan but I would like to see more movies of different swords fighting. We barely got anything from the last samurai.

Hi. I've got polish sabre model 1924. Best technic is polish crossing technic.

depends on materials, skill levels, etc.

Great video! There could be examples of Katanas going up against Sabres in the Satsuma rebellion in 1877 with for example with the Battle of Shiroyama where when the Samurai ran out of ammo used traditional Samurai weapons (including Katanas) to fight with Imperial Japanese soldiers who could have been issued Sabres as I've seen pictures of the rebel Samurai with Katanas and Imperial Japanese Army officers with sabres. There's also the Russo-Japanese War in 1904-5 where there would have been Japanese officers armed with Katanas against Russian Cavalry, Cossacks and Officers with Sabres.

One of my favourite swords from history is actually that weird bastard child of the sabre and katana - The shin-gunto of WWII infamy. I know that most katana fanatics tend to dislike them and dismiss them as "not real katanas" but personally, I love them. They're a great representation of the state of Japan during the second world war, the traditional shape of an older katana, displaying the Japanese pride in their heritage and culture. But the rough-hewn, mass-produced (and towards the end of the war, desperate) materials and construction more typical of a post-mechanised warfare era. It's largely the underdog of the sword world, but that just endears them to me.

I would use a shamshir because I could be able to wield two at the same time

The katana was the best that could be done with the raw materials and knowledge base available. It's a beautiful sword, and the traditional katana were created in a time-intensive laborious process. They have very nice cutting edges and handle exceptionally well. They are, however, largely iron, and, if bent, usually keep the bend, while European swords, made from steel throughout, usually spring back to shape. Hollywood and legends have taken the katana into fantasy land, which, I think, takes away from the incredible and rich history of the sword.

from personal experience: -> I could use saber better due to reach advantage for all sort of strikes and cuts -> If you use the katana offensively it has advantages due to the stability of two-hands and a bit more weight. All in all, I had more consistency with the sabre, while individual cuts were less damaging (all sorts of hand exposure). The katana hurt my opponents more if I managed to overcome the distance - but that happened less consistent and I took damage to thrusts or cuts more often.

there were also those odd katana w saber guards, kinda a two handed saber... here's a link to a replica www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=USS118&name=Russo-Japanese+Kyu+Gunto+Army+Sword+

Hi Nick, I thought I'd pass this anecdote along as you mentioned the overlap between japanese swords in the western style (kyu gunto) overlapping in use with the more traditional nihonto style blades. This excerpt was stolen from the following thread (www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/13731-kyu-gunto-in-combat/) and discusses why there was a push to return to the more classic 'katana' design. Note: I do not suggest this directly contributes to the discussion above, merely an interesting factoid about japanese sword use in the early 20th century. "JSS/US Vol.26 number 6. An article by Phillip M Goody, "Kai Gunto, Its Introduction and Rationale" "With the outbreak of the Sino - Japanese war in 1937, however, Officers (sic) of the Special Naval Landing Forces suggested that the sword be changed to a Japanese style swords so that it could be used effectively as a weapon. This suggestion had in fact already been made at the time of the North China incident, but met with a cool response as the landing forces at that time were not engaged in a large amount of hand-to-hand fighting and the change was not deemed necessary. The complaint about the existing Kyu-gunto style was that the hilt was swollen in the middle and the binding on the handle wound downwards, like a vine, from top to bottom. Apparently this made the sword have a tendency to tilt to either the right or the left when cutting down with either one, or two hands and also gave it a tendency to tilt when swung above the head. It was difficult to grip the hilt with both hands because of the western style hand guard. In other words when it came to using the sword in actual fighting, the western style sabre was clumsy." And a little later n the article, "At the time of this change," (from Kyu to Kaigunto), "the Navy submitted a paper to the Japanese cabinet concerning the motivation for changing to a Japanese style tachi. An excerpt is as follows, " Existing official long sword is not appropriate for practical usage..." "

It depends on person using it, and quality of a weapon.

I wanted to point out something, but please correct me if I'm wrong as I'm no expert, as far as I know the katana is the only sword which has the capability of unsheathing and cutting in a single movement, the iai, not even the tachi is capable of this. With any other sword you have to do three things(theoretically): Unsheathe, put in position for cut(as you can't cut from any position, it is not physically possible)), and then cut, whereas with the katana you only have to do one movement: unsheathe and cut at the same time. Personally the katana has always been my favourite sword(and weapon in general) and as a sword I think it is perfect, maybe not the best but deffinitely has a perfect design, and the fact that it enables the wielder to do something such as iai must be taken into account.

I just formulated a rating and grading system for swords when used in 1v1 duels, let me go and run the sabre and katana through it and see which is better. I'll edit this comment and update the result. Search 'SRS sword rating system' if you want to use it. Edit : Scores. Sabre 11 Katana 8 These are the results scored by the SRS criteria, I used an 1845 pattern infantry officers sabre to represent sabres. And a katana that is average weight and length if you took a medium of size variants of models. These results would be different if you used a curved cavalry sabre instead of a straighter officers sabre. Specifically in the thrust results and P.O.B liveliness. 1: Katana / sabre 2: Sabre (if weapons are used traditionally) 3: Sabre 4: katana 5: sabre 6: katana/ sabre 7: katana / sabre 8: sabre 9: katana 10: sabre 11: sabre / katana 12: sabre 13: katana 14: sabre / katana 1. Contemporary opinions of warriors who wielded the sword, and enemies who faced off against it. 2. Reach. 3. Hand protection, defensive benefits of the weapon. 4. Hardness of the blade edge. 5. Toughness of the blade edge 6. Hilt and tang construction, stability and integrety of the overall design. 7. Grip ergonomics, and range of mobility the handle allows in technique execution. 8. Effectiveness in the thrust. 9. Effectiveness in the cut. 10. Ability to perform false edge cuts, or being true double edged. 11. Livelyness of the blade in hand, P.O.B, weight. 12. Ease of access, speed it takes to draw and cut. 13. Power and authority in opposition when engaged, effectiveness of the bind. 14. Overall geometry, free from design defects (eg piped back sabre)

This is like comparing a long sword to a wakizashi

both are exquisite weapons there is no best they were made to fight wars

What I am kind of missing - in the Katana vs Saber showcase vid, too - was the Katana's advantage in short range - if you manage to get close, you can still do halfway decent cuts with a two-handed curved sword, while a one-handed sword (with a long blade) can't really apply sufficient force. I believe I saw you rushing your opponent after deflecting the first blow twice, and both times you got a nice cut without him having much chance of defending. As far as I can tell, the sabre is superior when one manages to keep distance, but if the katana manages to get close it's a done deal. Then again, I have barely any real experience in a duel with european weapons, so perhaps this is just an uninformed opinion.

I find it a bit odd you think the saber grip allows you to move it in ways the katana can't since from my perspective it seems more like the katana grip allows you to use the katana in ways the saber can't. The short grip of a saber in an enclosed hilt seems to restrict the way you can grip the sword and by extension restricts how you can use it. The long unenclosed grip of a katana doesn't seem restrictive at all and allows you to grip it in a variety of ways both one-handed and two-handed across the entire length of the grip. Can you elaborate on why you think that?

katanna was a one handed sword with one in each hand... miyomoto Musashi had no issue with this

I still perfer the US 1860 Light Cavalry sabre. It is just curved enough for a good cut, and just staight enough for a good thrust. I like the hand guard. It protects the hand but it and the pommel can also be used as a weapon in itself when and if up close.

id say the Katana is the better cutter in the end because it is used 2 handed, has a longer lever (handle) and thus can create much more force. Theoretically in a combat situation you wont be able to do full force swings but id say in tests the Katana is better since it creates more force than the sabre.However the sabre is thinner and thus doesnt need to push aside as much material when cutting deep into the target which may equal it out on really really deep cuts

Those two weapons are kind of uncomparable since Katana is a two handed weapon while sabres are usually one handed weapons , some sabres are thicker and do need two hands and more brute force but I am not sure if they are called sabres in english ( not my native language)

Nagamaki will always be my favorite Japanese sword.

Saw this story on Quora, thought you might be interested as the Klewang is a sabre. 'During the second world war there has been a direct duel between a trained Japanese Samurai and a trained European swordsman. This took place in a Japanese POW camp between a Dutch KNIL officer armed with a Klewang and a highly trained Japanese Samurai officer armed with a katana. The Japanese forced the Dutch officer into a duel to prove the superiority of Samurai swordsmanship. The result was shocking for the Japanese, as the Samurai did not stand a chance against the KNIL officer. The Katana and the way it was used proved to be way too slow for the quick and nimble flip-of-a-wrist one tempo tactics used in Klewang fighting that had evolved from fencing techniques. The Dutch officer was an official Klewang instructor. The Klewang has been called the ultimate soldiers sword and best allround classic sword model ever designed and was heavily used by almost all KNIL soldiers, the Dutch colonial troops in Indonesia. Their standard armament used to be a Klewang and a carbine. The carbine was also used as a kind of shield against sword blows when using the Klewang in close combat. It was designed for close-combat. Both duelists survived the duel. If you are interested in the history of the Klewang (and can read dutch…) there is a great boek on the subject by Piet Puype, titled ‘Klewang’ ISBN 9789051668360'

Watching your guys fight. the Sabre appears to have a reach advantage greater than the blade length would imply because it one handed. and it was a greater ability like you said to come at various angles and attack the unprotected hands. the Katana seems to have a power advantage because of being two handed it can go right through weak parries and get really solid hits. but like you said the Sabre seem as bit better general 7xout of 10 with evenly match opponents no or light armor saber would win.

Sabers existed as early as the 10th century, If I'm not mistaken. They were introduced to europe by Aisan tribes like the Huns and Mongols.

The katana is a hand and a half sword like the longsword, it is not a sabre.

The big difference between the Katana and European swords, is that the Katana shape has never changed drastically, just its weight focus, curve and length, while European swords evolved with tactics, always adapting and changing to suit the army of the day. European swords have adaptability on their side, and metal quality. Japan did well with the poor iron that they had to work with, while the Europeans had better raw materials to work with.

sabre vs katana sabre has big advantage. it is more agile and has longer reach. Katana has longer lever and greater initial acceleration. but usualy won't overcome the reach and mobility of the sabre. Sometimes you can use Katana like a Sabre, holding at the end of the handle and extent the length over the sabre. but that trick only work as element of surprise, once your opponent notice the telegraph it won't work.

There was a battle between these two. It happened in a duel during Russian-Japanese war 1904-5. Though you see samurai didnt exist at this period. It is said that that a ''samurai'' ( probably a soldier of samurai heritage) faced a Montenegrin soldier in one on one fight. There is a folklore song that talks about this fight. Where he, Lekso Saicic defeated him in a fair battle. He was one of the best saber fighter in whole Montenegro. They fought alongside Russia in this war.

Why do you compare swords in the end it's the swordsman who makes the sword and if you want to be a good swordsman you need to be able to uses all swords

the kyu gunto and shin gunto