Goedendag

Common card · No. 225623

A goedendag ([ɣudə(n)ˈdaːɣ] lit. 'good day' in Dutch; also rendered godendac, godendard, godendart, and sometimes conflated with the related plançon) was a weapon originally used by the militias of Medieval Flanders in the 14th century, notably during the Franco-Flemish War. The goedendag was essentially a combination of a club with a spear. Its body was a wooden staff roughly 90 cm to 150 cm (3 to 5 feet) long with a diameter of roughly 5 cm to 10 cm (2 to 4 inches). It was wider at one end, and at this end a sharp metal spike was inserted by a tang. The weapon was used to great effect by the guildsmen of Flanders' wealthy cities against the French knights at the Battle of the Golden Spurs near Kortrijk (Courtrai) on 11 July 1302. The goedendag is frequently seen in the hands of Flemish militia in contemporary depictions of the battle, such as the carvings on the Courtrai Chest, a 14th-century wooden chest. It is also seen on a paper copy of a lost fresco from the Leugemeete in Ghent.

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