Editing Poleaxe (section)

== Fighting with poleaxe ==
The poleaxe was used by [[knight]]s and other men-at-arms (both noble and non-noble) in chivalric duels for prestige, to settle disputes in judicial duels, and of course on the battlefield.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Deluz |first=Vincent |date=May 2017 |title=Le Jeu de la Hache: A Critical edition and dating discussion |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316529945 |journal=Acta Periodica Duellatorum |via=ResearchGate}}</ref> It was a close range weapon that required ones full body strength and both hands to wield effectively.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Price |first=Brian |date=August 2021 |title=THE MARTIAL ARTS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1041248442 |journal=University of North Texas ProQuest Dissertations & Theses |pages=169 |id={{ProQuest|1041248442}} }}</ref><ref name=":1" /> The poleaxe has a sophisticated fighting technique, which is based on [[quarterstaff]] fighting. The blade of the poleaxe can be used, not only for simply hacking down the opponent, but also for tripping him, disarming him and blocking his blows. Both the head spike and butt spike can be used for thrusting attacks. The shaft itself is also a central part of the weapon, able to block the enemy's blows (the langets helping to reinforce the shaft), hit and push with the shaft held in both hands, or trip the opponent. The poleaxe's devastating efficiency is the origin of the term “to be poleaxed”, which dates from the 15th century when captives were often slain using poleaxe-blows to the head, and is now used to describe one being attacked or beat down in a brutal way, as if with a poleaxe.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Definition of POLEAX |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/poleax |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":0"/>

Many treatises on poleaxe fighting survive from the 15th and 16th centuries. Poleaxe fighting techniques have been rediscovered with the increasing interest in [[historical European martial arts]].

Today the poleaxe is a weapon of choice of many medieval re-enactors. Rubber poleaxe heads designed for safe combat are available commercially.