Wolfmarch Hand Forged High Carbon Steel Two Handed Kriegsmesser | 44 Inch Overall with 33 Inch Blade | Medieval Collector Gift | RK-1299

The kriegsmesser is what happens when a knife keeps growing. By the second half of the fifteenth century German and Bohemian foot soldiers were carrying long knives with blades over thirty inches and grips long enough for both hands, and the sources call them war knives rather than swords. The Bohemian and Hungarian mercenaries who fought through the Hussite and Ottoman wars are the group most associated with them, and the type outlived the messer proper, surviving into the sixteenth century as a Landsknecht blade. What separates a kriegsmesser from a two handed sword is not size. It is the geometry. Single edge, straight or slightly curved spine, clipped point and a hilt built like a knife rather than a sword. For the difference between a display piece and a cutting one, read the display and battle ready split.

This kriegsmesser is forged and finished by hand in the Czech Republic. The blade is 1095 high carbon steel hardened and tempered to 54 to 58 HRC, broad, single edged and nearly straight with a clipped point. The hilt is a straight steel cross with a side lug, a long two hand grip in pinned hardwood scales and a steel cap pommel. It ships in a leather scabbard, and shipping inside the United States is free.

Specifications

Why the two hand grip changes everything

Adding a second hand to a sword does not mainly add power. It adds leverage, and leverage is what lets you control a heavy blade with a light touch. On an eleven inch grip your front hand is the pivot and your back hand is the lever, so a small movement at the pommel produces a large movement at the point. That is why a kriegsmesser of nearly four pounds can be handled with more precision than a one handed sword of two and a half.

It also changes what the blade can be. Once you have two hands on the hilt you can afford to put weight forward, which is why kriegsmesser blades stay wide most of their length and often carry a slight curve. The curve lengthens the cut, drawing the edge through the target rather than driving straight into it, and the width keeps the edge from rolling when alignment is imperfect. It is a design that trades away one handed carry for cutting power and reach, which is exactly the trade a foot soldier in a formation wants to make.

Why high carbon steel and not stainless

Only two steels are used at this forge. Plain blades are 1095 high carbon steel. Damascus blades are 1095 and 15N20 forge welded together. Nothing else comes through the shop.

At forty four inches overall, steel choice stops being a detail. A blade this long has to flex under a bad cut and come back straight, and it has to do that after being hardened all the way through a thick section. 1095 does exactly this. It quenches deep, tempers evenly, and at 54 to 58 HRC gives you an edge that holds without a body that snaps. Stainless steel achieves rust resistance with heavy chromium, and chromium carbides make a long blade brittle and stop the edge going fine. A stainless kriegsmesser would be a wall ornament with a real risk of breaking. The trade with carbon steel is honest maintenance. See Damascus versus stainless.

The two hand grip and steel furniture

The grip is a pair of hardwood scales pinned with steel rivets either side of the full length flat tang, long enough that both hands find their place without looking. A straight steel cross with a side lug sits at the front and a steel cap pommel closes the back, giving a counterweight that pulls the balance point back toward the hands and makes the sword feel far lighter than it weighs.

Wood on a long grip takes more handling than wood on a short one, so it wants a little more attention. Keep it out of direct sun and away from dry heat, and work a small amount of oil into it a couple of times a year. Our wooden handle care guide covers what to use.

Engraving, runes and your own design

Use the rune converter on this page to turn a name, a date or a short phrase into Elder Futhark and we will cut it into the steel or the handle. If you would rather have a Viking pattern than a rune line, choose your own design in the engraving option above the add to cart button and tell us whether it goes on the blade or the handle. Where a piece already carries an engraved design, your chosen engraving replaces it rather than sitting alongside it. A thirty three inch flat gives more room than any other blade in this range, so long inscriptions work well here. See the engraving page.

Care and sharpening

Wipe the blade down with an oiled cloth after handling, and store the kriegsmesser out of its scabbard if it is being put away, since leather holds damp against steel. On a blade this size it is worth oiling both flats properly rather than giving it a quick pass. Rust removal and storage advice is on our steel care page.

Sharpening a long single edge is a matter of patience rather than skill. Work in sections of six or eight inches at a time on a medium stone, keeping the existing bevel flat, then repeat the sections on a fine stone before removing the burr along the whole length. Lift the handle slightly through the clip. Full method on sharpening with a whetstone.

Made in the Czech Republic

This piece is made by hand in the Czech Republic, in a workshop that still works the old way. The steel is forged, ground, heat treated and finished by smiths who learned the trade from the people before them, and the wood, horn and leather are cut and fitted by hand rather than pressed out on a line. That is also why no two pieces come out exactly the same.

Ransack Viking is a United States company. We import these pieces ourselves, check every one when it lands and ship from our warehouse in Chicago, Illinois. Engraving is done here in the United States after the piece arrives, so your runes or your own design go on before it leaves for you.

A note on handmade variation

This kriegsmesser is hand forged. It is not machine made and it is not bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. Wood grain in the long grip, leather tone, the exact degree of curve in the blade and the way the polish runs down thirty three inches of steel all vary, because everything is worked by hand from natural materials. The dimensions, the steel and the build are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

Is the kriegsmesser sharp on arrival?

Yes, it ships with a full working edge. A blunt version is available for stage combat or public display, just ask in the order notes.

Is it too heavy to handle?

It weighs around three and three quarter pounds, which sounds like a lot until you pick it up with both hands on an eleven inch grip. The steel cap pommel pulls the balance back so it feels considerably lighter than the number suggests.

Can I have runes engraved on it?

Yes. Use the rune converter above for Elder Futhark or choose your own Viking pattern in the engraving option, and tell us whether you want it on the blade or the grip.

Will mine be identical to the photograph?

The length, width, steel and hardness will match. Wood grain, leather colour and the exact curve will be individual, because they are shaped by hand.

What is the difference between a kriegsmesser and a langes messer?

A langes messer is a one handed blade of about thirty to thirty two inches overall. A kriegsmesser is the two handed war version, longer in blade and hilt, heavier, and intended to be used with both hands from a formation rather than carried on a belt all day.

How does something this long ship?

In a purpose cut long box with the blade supported at both ends. Shipping is free within the United States and stock pieces arrive five to seven business days after dispatch.

What is in the box

• One hand forged 1095 high carbon steel kriegsmesser, 44 inches overall
• One leather scabbard
• Care card covering oiling, storage and sharpening a long blade
• Your Elder Futhark rune line or chosen pattern, if engraving was ordered
• Forged and finished in the Czech Republic

Explore the range

See the one handed messers, the falchions, the two handed bastard swords and the full sword range, or read the guides.

Close to this one

Closest to this in the range is the Ashenhold messer, 33 inches overall. If this one is not quite right, there is the Foldwarden messer, 32 inches overall. Also in this group is the Thornreave messer, 32 inches overall.

If you are putting a set together, the Duskwend sabre sits alongside it. Nothing here exactly right, build one to your own spec on the custom Viking sword page.

If you want to spar rather than display, the Skarnvald grosses messer is the blunt trainer built for it, and our HEMA messer range is worth a look.