Pollaxe Pollaxe The pollaxe is a type of European polearm. It was widely used by medieval infantry. It is also known by the names poleaxe, pole-axe, pole axe, polax, and Hache (French meaning axe). The term has become synonymous with felling or striking down with delivery of a blow. Weapons such as the halberd, bardiche, and Danish axe are sometimes mistakenly called pollaxes as they are indeed axes mounted on poles, but many etymological authorities consider the "poll"- prefix historically unrelated to "pole", instead meaning "head". However, some etymologists, including Eric Partridge, believe that the word is derived from "pole". The
Operation Halberd vessels to be scuttled. The rest of the convoy arrived at Malta and discharged their cargo. Operation Halberd was at the time the largest Malta resupply effort of the war. Nine merchant ships carrying 81,000 tons of military equipment and supplies sailed from Liverpool on 16 September and from the Clyde on 17 September as part of convoy WS (Winston Specials) 11X, passing Gibraltar on 24 September 1941, with a close escort under the command of Rear-Admiral Harold Burrough. The nine ships were: Force H, under the command of Admiral James Somerville, accompanied the convoy as defence against Italian surface