During the succeeding centuries the design of the sword changed, characteristically becoming shorter, single-edged and lacking a thrusting point, designed purely to make a cut (although the Hallstatt era sword had also been primarily a slashing weapon) and greater regional variation in swords appeared: in Britain and Ireland even the longer sword designs were shorter and thinner than their Continental counterparts.
Durante os séculos seguintes o deseño da espada cambiou, volvéndose máis curta, dun só gume e sen punto de empuxe, deseñado puramente para facer cortes (a espada de Hallstatt era principalmente unha arma cortante) e produciuse unha gran variación rexional de espadas: en Britania e Irlanda os deseños de espada xa eran máis curtos e delgados que os continentais.