The Hand-and-half, or Bastard Sword, illustrated in Fig. 439, dates from 1490, and may be claimed as belonging to the two-handed variety. It came into vogue in England during the Camail and Jupon Period, but was used much earlier in Germany; the blade is forty inches long, but in some examples it is nearly fifty. It could be wielded with one hand, but to give extra effect to a blow, if desired, the left hand could be brought into action near the pommel, where the grip is smaller. This type of sword was in use during the whole of the fifteenth century. _The Dagger._--This weapon has been described where necessary in preceding chapters up to and including the Camail and Jupon Period, when the misericorde with its triangular blade was so much in evidence. In the reign of Richard II. the wearing of a dagger of some kind was universal, even the ladies having a small baselard attached to their girdles. Shortly afterwards a long poniard of Continental origin superseded the previous weapon, which, like the sword, had a thumb-guard attached in the form of a ring. The cinquedea, which may be looked upon as a dagger, has been dealt with on p. 334. An example of the military dagger of the fourteenth century is in the Wallace Collection, dating from 1440, with a fifteen-inch blade, and is of the greatest rarity, although illustrations in missals, &c., are numerous. A specimen of the “Kidney” dagger, so called from the shape of the base of the grip, is also preserved there, dating from 1480; it was in common use in England until the time of Charles I. [Illustration: PLATE XXIX* 1. Sword of Hernando Cortes. 2. Sword of Philip II. 3. Sword of Gonsalvo de Cordoba, late Fifteenth Century. _A. F. Calvert_] The main-gauche, or left-handed dagger, was of Continental origin, and enjoyed an immense popularity in England during the sixteenth century. It was held in the left hand to ward off blows and entangle the point of the adversary’s weapon, while the long rapier was being used in the right hand. CHAPTER XVII PROJECTILE-THROWING ENGINES No evidence is extant respecting the inventor of the first machine for missile throwing, but we know that they have existed from the earliest ages, and have been used by all the great nations of antiquity. Under the Greeks and Romans, but especially the former, they attained a remarkable degree of excellence, and many accounts of their extraordinary efficiency have come down to us. The Romans took their ideas from the Greeks as a basis to work upon; among their best authorities Vitruvius may be classed. The principles involved in these engines were not altogether lost, but descended to the mediæval ages, and probably during that period more elaborate, powerful, and gigantic machines were constructed than at any previous time. [Illustration: PLATE XXX* Armour of Charles V., from Augsburg or Nuremberg _A. F. Calvert_]