The Spatha is a straight, slashing sword, usually worn by cavalry officers and auxiliaries in later Roman armies.

Usually a longer version of the shorter, leaf-shaped gladius, the spatha is around 75 - 100 cm long (3 feet) but seldom reached a full metre.

Employed by both Roman cavalrymen and their German enemies, later Lombard spathae were actually more advanced than the wrought iron gladii, being constructed using a form of pattern welding employing layers of iron and steel: in effect, a composite material.

From German spathae probably stemmed most later kinds of straight, middle sized slashing blades.

A common name for such weapons is broad sword - although the term is more accurately referred to a mid 16th century slavic sword, the Schiavona.