Greatsword
The greatsword requires two hands to wield. It is the largest type of sword, considerably longer and heavier than a bastard sword or a longsword.
Appearances in the Novels
There are several famous greatswords forged of Valyrian steel. These include Ice, Heartsbane and Brightroar.
The champions of the Northern mountain clans wield huge two-handed greatswords.[1] Greatjon Umber is also described as using one.[2] Household troops of the Dreadfort wield greatswords along with other weaponry.[3]
Speculation about size
The Valyrian greatsword Ice is described as taller than an adolescent Robb Stark.[4] Based on this, an "educated guess" is that the sword is about 1.65 meters long (or 5 feet and 5 inches). However, as Valyrian steel is considerably lighter than common steel, Valyrian greatswords are likely larger in general.
A good estimate for the size of a typical greatsword would be 1.5 meters (about 5 feet). The size of the sword depends on the person wielding it though, so swords wielded by exceptionally large men may even exceed 1.8 meters (roughly 6 feet).
References and Notes
- ↑ A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 17, Jon IV.
- ↑ A Game of Thrones, Chapter 53, Bran VI.
- ↑ A Clash of Kings, Chapter 66, Theon VI.
- ↑ A Game of Thrones, Chapter 1, Bran I.