Editing Rapier (section)

== History ==
{{See also|Chronology of bladed weapons}}

The ''espada ropera'' of the [[16th century]] was a cut-and-thrust civilian weapon for [[self-defense]] and the [[duel]], while earlier weapons were equally at home on the battlefield. Throughout the 16th century, a variety of new, single-handed civilian weapons were being developed. In 1570, the Italian master Rocco Bonetti first settled in England advocating the use of the rapier for thrusting as opposed to cutting or slashing when engaged in a duel.<ref name="Wilson">{{cite web |last1=Wilson |first1=William E. |title=Fencing Masters of the 16th & 17th Centuries |url=https://www2.nau.edu/~wew/fencing/masters.html |website=Elizabethan Fencing and the Art of Defence |access-date=23 November 2023}}</ref> Nevertheless, the English word "rapier" generally refers to a primarily thrusting weapon, developed by the year 1600 as a result of the geometrical theories of such masters as [[Camillo Agrippa]], [[Ridolfo Capo Ferro]], and [[Vincentio Saviolo]].<ref name="Wilson" />

The rapier became extremely fashionable throughout Europe with the wealthier classes, but was not without its detractors. Some people, such as [[George Silver]], disapproved of its technical potential and the dueling use to which it was put.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/paradoxes.html|title=Paradoxes of Defence, by George Silver (1599)|work=pbm.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.umass.edu/renaissance/lord/pdfs/Silver_1599.pdf |title=Paradoxes of Defence |access-date=2015-04-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629204633/http://www.umass.edu/renaissance/lord/pdfs/Silver_1599.pdf |archive-date=2017-06-29 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<gallery>
File:Rapiere-Negative0-19-19(1).jpg|Swept hilt, an Italian fashion
File:Rapiere-Negative0-18-18(1).jpg|Swept hilt, an Italian fashion
File:Rapiere-Negative0-17-17(1).jpg|[[Pappenheim-hilt rapier|Pappenheimer]], a German innovation
File:Rapiere-Negative0-20-20(1).jpg|Cup hilt, a later Spanish fashion created in the early 1600s
</gallery>

Allowing for fast reactions, and with a long reach, the rapier was well suited to civilian combat in the 16th and 17th centuries. As military-style cutting and thrusting swords continued to evolve to meet needs on the battlefield, the rapier continued to evolve to meet the needs of civilian combat and decorum, eventually becoming lighter, shorter and less cumbersome to wear. This is when the rapier began to give way to the [[colichemarde]], which was itself later superseded by the [[small sword]] which was later superseded by the [[épée]]. Noticeably, there were some "war rapiers" that feature a relatively wide blade mounted on a typical rapier hilt during this era. These hybrid swords were used in the military, even on the battlefield. The sword carried by King [[Gustavus Adolphus]] in the [[Thirty Years' War]] is a typical example of the "war rapier".

By the year 1715, the rapier had been largely replaced by the lighter small sword throughout most of Europe, although the former continued to be used, as evidenced by the treatises of Donald McBane (1728), P. J. F. Girard (1736) and Domenico Angelo (1787). The rapier is still used today by officers of the [[Swiss Guard]] of the pope.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lilipuz.de/typo3temp/pics/c1517e4de4.jpg |title=Startseite KiRaKa, Kinder, Kinderradio, WDR - Kinder |access-date=2012-06-30 |archive-date=2021-03-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310122605/https://kinder.wdr.de/radio/kiraka/index.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://schweizergarde.ch/paepstliche-schweizergarde/en/about-us/uniforms/ |title=Startseite Swiss Guard, Vatican City}}</ref>