Mace (club) - History - Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe

Maces were very common in eastern Europe, especially medieval Poland, Ukraine and Russia. Eastern European maces often had pear shaped heads. These maces were also used by Moldavian king Stephen the Great who used the mace in some of his wars (see Bulawa).

The Pernach was a type flanged mace developed since the 12th century in the region of Kievan Rus', and later widely used throughout the whole of Europe. The name comes from the Russian word перо (pero) meaning feather, reflecting the form of pernach that resembled a fletched arrow. The most popular variety of pernach had six flanges and was thus called a shestopyor (from Russian shest' and pero; that is, six-feathered). Pernachs were the first form of the flanged mace to enjoy a wide usage. It was well suited to penetrate plate armour and chain mail. In the later times it was often used as a symbol of power by the military leaders in Eastern Europe.

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Famous quotes related to eastern europe:

    Should the German people lay down their arms, the Soviets ... would occupy all eastern and south-eastern Europe together with the greater part of the Reich. Over all this territory, which with the Soviet Union included, would be of enormous extent, an iron curtain would at once descend.
    Joseph Goebbels (1897–1945)