About: Alehouse dagger

The Alehouse dagger or bum dagger (also occasionally a swapping dagger, close-hilted dagger, and ale dagger) is a type of long, heavy English dagger or shortsword. It was the standard form of dagger in England from the sixteenth to the mid eighteenth centuries, and consisted of a long, broad, straight blade, with a large, heavy basket hilt which was used as a knuckle duster. They generally weighed two or three pounds, and were worn on the lower back (hence the term bum dagger). They were common civilian weapons, effective against swords and polearms, and short enough to be used easily in the confines of a crowded pub.