The dadao one of the varieties of dao

Dao (sword)

Daois a category of single-edge Chinese swords primarily used for slashing and chopping , often called a broadsword in English translation because some varieties have wide blades. In China, the dao is known as one of the four major weapons, along with the gun , qiang , and the jian , and referred...

 or Chinese saber, is also known as the Chinese great sword. Based on agricultural knives, dadao have broad blades generally between two and three feet long, long hilt

Hilt

The hilt of a sword is its handle, consisting of a guard,grip and pommel. The guard may contain a crossguard or quillons. A ricasso may also be present, but this is rarely the case...

s meant for "hand and a half" or two-handed use, and generally a weight-forward balance. Some were made for military use, but they were most commonly associated with civilian militias or revolutionaries. While not a particularly sophisticated sword, the weight and balance of the dadao gave it considerable slashing and chopping power, making it an effective close combat weapon for untrained troops; it was used in this role as late as the 1930s in the Second Sino-Japanese War

Second Sino-Japanese War

The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...

. During Operation Nekka the Chinese claim that whenever they had a chance for close engagement, the dadao was so deadly that they could cut off the heads of Japanese soldiers with ease. A military marching song, the Dadao March

Dadao March

The Dadao March is a patriotic song sung in China during the Second Sino-Japanese War when Japan invaded China in 1937. It is also commonly known as Cut the devil's head off with the Dadao , where the term devil commonly referred to the Japanese invaders...

, was composed to become the rally cry for Chinese troops throughout the Second Sino-Japanese war to glorify the use of dadao during battle with the invaders.

In origin, design, and use, the dadao is broadly comparable to the European "Großes Messer

Messer (weapon)

Messel during the German Late Middle Ages and Renaissance  was a term for the class of single-edged bladed weapons, deriving from the medieval falchion and preceding the modern sabre.Its hilt included a straight cross-guard and...

" and falchion

Falchion

A falchion is a one-handed, single-edged sword of European origin, whose design is reminiscent of the Persian scimitar and the Chinese dao....

.

See also

• Guandao
• Pudao
  Pudao
  The Chinese weapon known as the podao was originally an edged infantry weapon which is still used for training in many Chinese martial arts. The blade of a podao is shaped like a Chinese broadsword, but the weapon has a longer handle usually around one and a half to two meters which is circular...
  
  
• Defense of the Great Wall
  Defense of the Great Wall
  The Defense of the Great Wall was a campaign between the armies of Republic of China and Empire of Japan, which took place before the Second Sino-Japanese War officially commenced in 1937...
  
  , in which the dadao was famously used
• Chinese swords
  Chinese swords
  Swords have a long history in China. Stone swords were used in prehistoric times. Bronze swords have been traced back to the bronze daggers of the Shang period,. Bronze long swords suddenly appeared during the mid-third century BC. Later swords were made of iron or steel. These metals were...
  
  

External links

• Pictures of dadao in use in the early 20th century
• http://www.learn-chinese-martial-arts.com/martial-arts-swords.html