club
Sign in to saveshort staff or stick, usually made of wood, wielded as a weapon
AI overview
A club is a simple weapon made from a short wooden stick or staff that a person holds and swings to strike someone or something. It matters historically because clubs were among the earliest weapons humans used, making them significant to understanding how people defended themselves and fought before more complex weapons were developed.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Article
An assortment of club weapons from the Wujing Zongyao from left to right: flail, metal bat, double flail, truncheon, mace, barbed mace A club (also known as a cudgel, baton, bludgeon, truncheon, cosh, nightstick, or impact weapon) is a short staff or stick, usually made of wood, wielded as a weapon or tool since prehistory. There are several examples of blunt-force trauma caused by clubs in the past, including at the site of Nataruk in Turkana, Kenya, described as the scene of a prehistoric conflict between bands of hunter-gatherers 10,000 years ago.
Most clubs are small enough to be swung with one hand, although larger clubs may require the use of two to be effective. Various specialized clubs are used in martial arts and other fields, including the law-enforcement baton. The military mace is a more sophisticated descendant of the club, typically made of metal and featuring a spiked, knobbed, or flanged head attached to a shaft.