William Wallace

The Athens Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Brian Kay, with Sarah Power (soprano), William Wallace (tenor) and Frederick Long (bass-baritone), perform Joseph Haydn's iconic oratorio "The Creation" 220 years after its first public performance at Vienna's old Burgtheater, at the Athens Concert Hall on Saturday, April 6.

History is filled with stories and legends involving swords. Often, the weapons in these stories do indeed have some grounding in fact, here are 10 of the greatest and most interesting swords to have been discovered.

The Sword In The Stone

First commissioned by King Edward I of England, the “Warwolf” is thought to be the largest trebuchet ever built.

The weapon was used during the siege of Stirling Castle in Scotland, an important event in the Scottish Wars of Independence.

(Scale model of Warwolf)

Every medieval English monarch had to decide how to deal with prisoners of war. Ruling over territory that sometimes ran from the highlands of Scotland to the south of France, their authority rested on violence. Fighting the French, Scots, Welsh, Irish, or their own nobility in a string of civil wars, they could not have kept their throne without victories on the battlefield.

When I checked into my London hotel Monday night, on Aug. 25, I was soaking wet. I had come to London for a few business meetings, but more importantly, to watch my beloved Beşiktaş against Arsenal in a heartbreaking loss in their Champions League qualifier.