Gallóglach and Redshank

The photo above is courtesy of the Claíomh blog, which is a very good site to visit to see how the various warriors from the 1450 AD through the 1600s really looked. In the photo above there is a Gallóglach on the left and a Redshank on the right. Redshank was an English term in wide use from the early 1500s onwards; in Gaelic speaking areas the Redshanks were called the Albainigh, which means literally 'Scots.' By the mid 1500s the pay of the Redshanks was on par with that of the elite Gallóglaigh. The two handed sword was a favoured weapon of the Redshanks. In Gaelic called simply a Claíomh mór.

Link of interest: Claíomh