Estoc

[1] It is characterized by a cruciform hilt with a grip for two-handed use[citation needed] and a straight, edgeless, but sharply pointed blade around 36 to 52 in (91 to 132 cm) in length.

[1] This geometry leaves hardly any cutting capability as a sharpened edge could simply not be ground but allowed the weapon to be lengthy, stiff, and very acutely pointed.

[citation needed] During the English Civil Wars, General George Monck recommended that foot soldiers carry "a good stiff tuck, not very long" because they often broke regular swords by using them to chop firewood.

[7] In addition to being popular for use as a cavalry weapon, the estoc was frequently used during dismounted hand-to-hand combat at tournaments, its lack of a sharp edge reducing the risk of unintentional injury.

The estoc was useful for this purpose, being a long sword with a strong blade, able to take the shock of meeting with an animal without breaking, while also giving the necessary reach to attack from horseback.

Around 1500 AD, a solution was reached by replacing the thin point of the estoc with a standard leaf-shaped boar-spear head, in essence creating a one-handed short spear.

[citation needed] Estoc is also the name given for the sword used by a matador in the Spanish sport of bullfighting, also known as espada de matar toros ('sword for killing bulls').