Duel at the Battle of Waterloo: Smallsword vs Sabre
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- Опубликовано: 6 окт 2024
- An account from 1848 of an encounter between a French and a British officer which allegedly occurred at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. Whether it happened or not, it is at least an interesting view from 1848 of something that seemed plausible then.
I love that the one French guy was like: "I challenge thee!" and the highlander was like: "Put down your guns, men! I will cross swords with him!" That's some nice old school honor right there.
You see that officer from the 95th Rifles, He had a curved sword. Curved. Sword!
Crooked ;) Croooo-ked xD
XanderTuron I'm French, I'm a natural thruster
I could of sworn they carried straight swords
Ahahaha so funny
0:40 "Chinese Whipsers" is the British name for the game "Telephone" to all those potentially confused.
Daelin Dwin who calls it telephone? Never heard that before
p.s. I'm Australian
We Americans certainly do, the Canadians as well.
+readable95 I grew up hearing that so I think it's American
I am Canadian. I can confirm it's Telephone here.
You guys need to fix your telephones if the signal is that bad.
"Crooked sabre"?
Interesting. In German there is the composite word "Krummsäbel" made of the two words "krumm" and "Säbel", which *literally* translate to "crooked" and "sabre".
Might the "crooked sabre" have referred to a sword that had been bent, followed by an attempted straightening, which led to it breaking so easily?
Mr. Easton, I'm continually impressed by the depth and breadth of your knowledge. You just rattle it it as if it's second nature, well done and another informative and entertaining video. Thank you so much.
It's also interesting that, once again, smallsword is described as having the advantedge over sabre.
I don't find "molest" to be strange historically in English. It's not at all in other European languages....
Example:
"Molest" in Spanish yet means "harass," but even *MORE* mild!
_"Molestar"_ means *TO BOTHER/ANNOY.*
_"Mamá, Gaspar me está molestando!"_
"Mom, Gaspar is bothering me!!!"
_"Gaspar! Para de molestar a tu hermano!"_
"Gaspar! Stop bugging/bothering your brother!"
_"Las moscas me están molestando. Que miseria."_
"The flies are molesting(ANNOYING) me, what misery(DISCOMFORT)."
Not Pulverman because English is the most widely spoken language its words evolve and change in meaning and connotation far faster than other languages. Hence why molestation in current English carries a very different meaning to molest-based words in other languages which are closer to the meaning of 'molest' in the English of 100-200 years ago.
The term "molest" was used in english as a euphemism to refer to horrible sex crimes that people didn't want to be too specific about... but over time the term "molest" ended up only being used that way so that is was no longer a euphemism. This is known as the "euphemism treadmill".
Using the show Sharpe as a reference point for a video on The Battle of Waterloo? Now that’s soldiering
This is my favorite form of content from this channel. Even if sometimes it may be "Chinese Whispers".
Gabe the Babe all history is chinese whispers
Alistair Shaw Yes, as Mister Easton stated in the video and I echoed.
Gabe the Babe sure but its interesting how much of it is whispers.
As a professional historian I have to disagree with that generalized statement. Nevertheless, much of what is written under the guise of history truly is nothing more than "chinese whispers".
ColHoganGer90 sure, i was being over vague but almost all of it, even first hand accounts from people we existed from other accounts are still 'really?' Sometimes
Matt, you should do a 'bedtime stories with Matt Easton' section!
"...and I gave point, pushing my sword so far through the Frenchman's breast, that there I had to leave my blade. The End. Goodnight, sleep tight."
Laird Cummings
You think that's bad? I was raised on Beowulf.
In Gulliver's Travels, written in 1726, Gulliver defends himself with his ‘hanger’. This is in Part II: A Voyage to Brobdingnag (i.e. the land of giants). If I remember correctly he uses the hanger to fend off a pair of giant rats, killing one and wounding the other. Is this hanger similar to the one in this video?
Yes, exactly this kind of sword.
"In a future video"
Easton you tease.
One thing I want to know is how in the hell does the saber break against the rapier?
TheSchmeister just a guess but like ringing a bell the vibration of the blow a quick sharp rap ,I've dropped bearings in the shop and I've had them shatter
But surely sword on sword impact is different to dropped bearings? They couldn't have been that brittle, surely, especially when the impact goes into the hand.
well the quote did say "so badly was the blade tempered ..." so it seems like the sword was badly heat treated and was too brittle.
Light sabres of this time and substantial smallswords can actually weigh about the same.
TheSchmeister it could have been quenched but not tempered correctly so it would have been really brittle like glass
That's it, I buying that book to read to the kids at bedtime. Thx Mat
"the Latin races were better thrusters." priceless
sp00ky Dankmeme
Oddly true though, the with the gladius.
Germanic folk take more kindly to axes and spathae.
A strange but seemingly true note.
Considering population numbers, yeah thats about right.
@@mattaffenit9898 the brits and germans were more cut centric for a while as well, while the spanish and italians went more thrusty.(rennisance era).
@@mattaffenit9898 Not really, since ancient Germanic people were spear users.
@@45calibermedic
Yes, but everyone used spears in some capacity. Literally everyone. Including Romans. Especially late Romans. That's not unique.
And here I am wondering how poorly made a saber has to be to break against a glorified toothpick *braces for imminent shitstorm
TlsGrz I kno, hah! Seriously, that just means like a load of crap- that or the Sabre was a piece of crap.
TlsGrz Taylors sword
These light sabres can be no heavier than a smallsword. Some smallswords are actually pretty substantial.
Possibly the Sabre had a nick in the metal structure from repeated use, like a fatigue break. Not unheard of.
Maybe it was a Hanwei? :P
Only a true French man could loose to an unarmed opponent with a full sword.
Perhaps the rifle officer did, in fact, have a flank officer's sabre. I believe that some of the flank officer's sabres had blades that were even more curved than the 1796 light cavalry sabre. That might explain the reference to how "bent" the sword was. Perhaps a topic for a future video?
You've taught me a lot very quickly and peaked my interest to pursue some collecting myself. You have definitely earned a new sub. Well done sir.
Really interesting account. Thoroughly enjoyed that. Thanks
Are we not gonna talk about why it was and how the saber broke but not the smallsword??
Doppelsöldner
Nein, mein good landsknecht. Gott in Himmel, should ve do such things, the Empire vould surely collapse...
Vaht? It did already? Shieße...
Love how you cut straight out of that rant before it even had a chance to begin :P
Leave it to the French to be thrust centric
Monarchy or Death!
Thrust centric up the butt?
To paraphrase Matt Easton from the Scott Brown interview, "so your plan is to get run through?"
"I'm going to kill that swordsmith" t. Bloody Scottsman
I realize it was a bit of a throwaway line but the same concept does not apply to knives. No one gets stabbed once in a knife attack. Lots of modern video and written accounts to support that statement.
Vincent Chiu No, because knives don't usually get stuck in someone.
Vincent Chiu Why would a knife and a broken sabre be so different? Short blade, you get stabbed once and then close in to kill. Same concept of trapping the thrust sword in your body.
Viktor Bengtsson the smallsword was the blade that got stuck. A knife/broken sabre wouldn't get stuck. Matt's line was " the risk is thrusting weapons can get stuck....like smallsword and knives".
My comment is directed towards how knives do not get stuck. We are in agreement :p
Vincent Chiu Oh, I missed that comment. I heard something about using swords getting stuck in you and using it, even when you have a knife. I thought that was what you referred to.
Viktor Bengtsson yeah, it was a very brief mention about the 11minute mark that threw me off a bit.
Hey Matt, swung by to say the thumbnail kind of makes the guy in the treatise look like he's come down with a bad case of Pacman disease
Speaking of cut versus thrust, when will you do a video on Fairbairn-Sykes vs Bowie knives/fighting
Reminds me of this quote from one of the Wheel of Time books: "There will come a time when you must achieve a goal at all costs. It may come in attack or in defense. And the only way will be to allow the sword to be sheathed in your own body. ... when the price is worth the gain, and there is no other choice left to you. That is called Sheathing the Sword. Remember it."
-Lan Mandragoran
Sounds like advice from someone who has never been stabbed.
In Argentina, during our war of independece (1810-1825), officers and soldiers alike favoured the sabre, despite of the spanish heritage. They seem to have been "natural" cutters.
Same in Chile. I have never seen a thrust-centric sword in Chile.
Jarl Bregadan
That fucking avatar...
Maciejowski, I presume?
Gave me a laugh.
This is so badass !
I'm French and the French dude lost but he had honor and courage (standing against a full unit with rifles pointed at him wow) that dude makes me proud to be French !
Yes! Please do a video on Damascus Steel!
Mat - have you ever read a book called "A Boy In The Peninsular War" by Robert Blakeney (autobiography edited by Julian Sturgis)? Its a great first hand account written by a sublatern in the 28th Regiment.
I picked a copy up on EBay for a very reasonable price. Fascinating stuff with some detailed accounts of battles and skirmishes, as well as the little details of camp life, training etc.
The reference to the "very crooked sabre" sounds like a description of some of the "flank officers sabres" I have that are very curved and scimitar like. Ive read it was a sort of military fashion statement to have a very curved sabre. One I own (sold by S Brunn....it has a Runkel blade) is a real beauty and relatively straight with heavy blue and gilt and an ivory grip (standard sort of 1796 curve), but I have a couple of plainer "fighting" versions that are much more drastically curved. I have a couple of similar "radical" 1803 pattern swords as well, so it seems the fashion was one that lasted for some time.
God knows how effective they were.
The rifle officer in some of the Sharpe TV episodes (the one with the mangled face, dentures and wig) uses a really curved flank officers sabre.
Matt do u know of a british officer in WW2 called Jack Churchill or sumtimes referred to as Mad fighting Jack Churchill, he carried a claymore sword and bow and arrows and a set of bagpipes, i think he was the only person in the war to kill a German with an arrow, i have a book that was written about him just before he died in the late 90s, really interesting guy that led a very interesting life, its a very sort but very good book, if u want i can send u it, i think u would enjoy it...
He was famously quoted as asserting that any British officer who went to battle without his sword was improperly dressed.
There was a climatic duel in the science fiction anime Mobile Suit Gundam that pitted a sixteen year old pressed into service expediently, Amuro Ray, against his slightly older and more experienced archenemy, 25 year old Char Aznable, with smallswords in orbital microgravity. Char kicked off of a wall, committing himself to a thrust with his full mass behind it, but Amuro turned and took the thrust through his deltoid, where Char's sword broke off, and managed to pierce the face plate of Char's space helmet and scarring him across the bridge of his nose, a feature shown in subsequent related series following the story. Getting cut betwixt the eyes was too close for comfort, so Char disengaged and, with blood streaming down his face, swapped his helmet out for a subordinate's and proceeded to fulfill a family vendetta against his fleeing commanding officer.
I wonder if you could make a video about officer's weapons in the middle of the 18th century or particularly about British naval officer's weapons during the Seven Years War...?!
And maybe how the situation was in Germany (or the HRE or the German states or what ever) during that period (up to the Napoleonic Wars).
Was hoping I'd get to see an attempted recreation of a smallsword v sabre duel. Bummer :(
4:20 French "tiraillieuses" haha, it's written "tirailleurs" I nevertheless appreciate the effort made there, most people would just not try to pronounce it
Is it possible that the author of this account is doing a very poor job of trying to convey to us that the saber was damaged or broken? I know he says crooked, which I agree most likely means it is curved, but what if he means it was actually...crooked. Bent from use / fighting.
Would explain how it broke so easily. However, it did mention the sword was badly tempered.
Interesting that you describe Sharpe's heavy cavalry sword as inaccurate. Perhaps less of the detail comes through in the TV by the nature of the medium, but in the books, it's made absolutely clear that it's the wrong weapon for an officer in his position. I haven't read them in a while but I think I even vaguely remember that at one point he's told to get a "regulation" weapon by a superior (which in his usual way he ignores and trusts that the man won't follow up on it.)
It's also made much of, repeatedly, that it's "a yard of steel" and supposedly quite physically demanding to wield (how accurate is that?) - but Sharpe of course is big and he's hard and he's tough and he's uncouth and he doesn't give a damn about what's fashionable or expected. It's all very symbolic.
"During one of those LoL's which occur in all actions..." Did I hear that right ? :o
Lulls :)
Love the editing experimentation matt great video as always
Write down: Damascus steel for another video.
Interesting point made on thrusters vs cutters. I recall a comment made about a scuffle during JS Bach's time where he drew a rapier against an opponent. Interesting having reference to a thrust centric sword in Germany in the early 1700s, I'd be interested to learn more about swords common around Germany around this time. The source was a BBC documentary on JS Bach.
Sharpe doesnt get stabbed that often. Three times in ten years? He gets shot a few times too
Well compared to the average human being, that's pretty often :D
Gwenn Blei ahahahah i suppose
You’d want those embedded weapons to be in the central to lateral aspect, as the radial artery is in the medial arm and the femoral artery is in the medial thigh. Not happy places for slicey slice.
Hilariously, the Sharpe books frequently make a point of mentioning that Sharpe prefers the heavy cavalry's sword over the light infantry officer's sabre because the latter is "too light" for cutting for Sharpe's tastes iirc.
in another Bernard Cornwell saga, the Saxon Kings one, he metion often that Utred's sword is quite tip heavy
I would be much pleased were Matt to solely recount anecdotes of history's melees. Read on!
How can a sabre like this break in a fight against a smallsword?
I could only imagine it, hitting a helmet, if they were wearing them.
Potentially it could have been bound against the ground or some such? Otherwise, it may have been previously sustained some unseen damage and this was simply the proverbial straw on the camel's back. Curious, in any case.
Robert Parise I would never hit the ground with a sabre, though mit a bigger, heavier weapon it may accidentally occur. Hitting a tree seems more likely.
As stated it was very badly tempered, and in steel metallurgy hardening and tempering is faaaaar far far more important than type of steel. My guess is that is was tempered way too hard at the base making the steel brittle, forcing it to shatter at a hard impact. Maybe the smallsword user used a static block, or the saber used hit his opponents helmet or whatever. A faulty tempering can make a blade ridicuously easy to break. Source: I am a knife maker
Light sabres of this time and heavier examples of smallswords can actually weigh about the same as each other.
Maybe he kept hitting rocks because he was a clumsy idiot?
About ten years ago I saw a Highland baskethilt married to a 1796 sabre blade. I think it was from a auction, though I can't say for certain now.
Really interesting video! Any Sharpe reference gets an automatic thumbs up. How about some commentary on the Black Sails series? Some decent naval combat. Would be interesting to know your take on the close combat.
It's probably just the camera making an opticle illusion but i couldn't take my eyes off the wonky pictures on your wall.
It is the camera lens.
It's interesting how popular the flank officers sabres were, given that every account I've read of them being actually used includes at least one breaking.
I must admit, I have probably read as many negative accounts of them as of the spadroon.
What a treat! "Oooooh 1796 sabre, smallsword...sabre! More smallsword" YUM!
Would it be possible for you to explain he use if any he sword knot -- how it is put on the officer's sword -- was it used in combat as a strap to prevent weapons loss or is it decorative only.
Cheers
Scott
its for rentention forsure as well as decoration.
I am shocked a smallsword broke a sabre. Aren't smallswords like fencing foils (just kidding)
That's what confuses me as well.
Small swords are broader at the base, allowing a solid block if one must. If there was a serious flaw in the blade from a bad quench when it was hardened (the "ping" that often accompany such a fatal flaw is usually audible, but can be missed) it very easy could break from the impact of a steel on steel strike. If the French Officer took the parry very near to Steward's tip, the stress on a flaw near the base would be substantial. A lot of factors could lead to this, seemingly unlikely, event.
By corporal jones time they had changed to thrusting “they don’t like it up em”
The other reason for inaccuracy in a historical account could be that the observer didn't see as clearly as he believed or didn't interpret what he was seeing correctly.
There is also memory - it gets distorted, especially with time..
Yes, good point
But if that is the case, that the thrust has to kill the opponent outright or you are left defenseless, then the thrusting sword would seem to be horrendously bad to me. There are very few points in the body that actually cause an immediate fatality if pierced. The piercing strike would have to hit the brain, heart or the aorta. The lungs would definitely kill a man in time, and perhaps hamper him enough to stop him from fighting.
Why would they ever use a piercing blade if this were the case?
Maybe the tendency for sabres in the UK was because it's a more useful sword for naval use, boarding other ships in battle? The navy was traditionally more important for us.
When measuring a sabre (or any kind or curved cutting weapon), would you be measuring the length of the edge itself or the length of the blade from hilt to point? Forgive me if that sounds like a silly question, I've only just sparked an interest in historical study of european weaponry. Regardless, I absolutely love this channel, and hope more fascinating videos come about regarding this subject matter!
It seems almost too British to have really happened. French officer has all the refinement and good equipment but is simply not prepared for the over the top bloody mindedness of the British military.
Did he pronounce "tirailleurs" as "tirailleuses" ? XD
I dont know if he did it on purpose, but I nearly spilled my drink laughing ^_^
Hey Matt, I know this is somewhat unrelated, but I'd love to see a video of you comparing 19-20th century military sabres to European basket hilted swords. From what i've read, the straight bladed basket hilted swords were popular with people fighting on foot, whereas the curved military sabres seemed to be primarily intended for use on horseback. Yet we hear about infantry officers using 1796 light calvary sabres on foot well into the 19th century when there were almost straight bladed sabres available (as well as basket hilted swords available) It seems like the earlier 17-18th century basket hilted sword had wider, flattened cross section blades which lent to their cutting ability, whereas some of the 19th century infantry sabers seemed to have more of a narrow almost triangular cross section (which may have resulted in lack of cutting power) I don't understand why someone would choose a straight bladed 19th century military saber over a basket hilted sword if they were primarily fighting on foot. It seems as though the basket hilt sword would have better if not equal hand protection and that it would cut better
Do you think that that officers choosing these curved sabres perceived that they had better cutting ability than the straight bladed variants? Do you think that basket hilted swords cut better than a 19th century straight bladed military sabre while offering accurate thrust orientation? I wonder how much choice these soldiers had? Anyways thank you for all the superb quality of your videos and I hope this poses a interesting topic for a video, cheers!.
The Rifle Officer should have had some kind of dirk to block with. Especially given that skirmishing can often leave one a bit outnumbered.
That saber must have been of very very poor quality if it broke against a smallsword. Unfortunately there seems no detailed description on how exactly it happened.
Am I the only one who's wondering why, in a clash between that monster 'crooked sword' and the slender small sword, the big one broke?
Where can I find this book? I've been hunting like mad so my wife can get it for me for Christmas.
Shad, from shadiversity, suggested that in theory you could rate every sword in each element, cutting power, thrusting power, reach, weight etc and in doing so you could rank swords from best to worst.
It would be amazing if you teamed up and did something like this.
That premise is flawed, because different swords are better at cutting against different materials. One sword can be great at cutting through flesh, while another is better at cutting through clothing. etc.
Could that not be factored into the measure?
This is where Shad talks about it:
ruclips.net/video/I9yhrC0dzPg/видео.html
This is what I subscribed for! Thanks...
This shows that even a broken sabre is still deadly.
About the cultural preference for cutting swords over thrusting swords in Great Britain...
What do you think about George Silver's assessment of the short sword against the rapier? If the short sword really was superior to the rapier why didn't "Latin" countries go back to shorter more cut capable swords? Or did the small sword sufficiently address the issues with the rapier?
I am a bit doubtfull, It feels like a reaction on the large scale of killing in that battle. has that action being used in books before 1848? as individual acts of bravery.
A French architect/fencer also told how the body tissues will grab a sword blade as like the soil will hold a post hmmmm ''fencer?''
I find that weird considering my own unpleasant experience of having to defend myself against a gang and stabbing one of them in the thigh with a ~4inch knife down to the hilt. It posed so little resistance going both in and out that I remember thinking he must have had some baggy jeans and I must have somehow missed his leg and only going through his jeans. Also there was no blood on the blade, but surely enough it was confirmed he went down and ended up in the hospital with stitches. The way that smallsword is shaped I can't imagine it getting stuck in anything but bone.
matt, do you think the 'cutting culture' in germany, britain, vs the 'thrusting culture' in italy, france, spain can have something to do with earlier (16th century) street fighting laws? was thrusting not considered forbidden, or at least a sign of escalating to deadly violence, in street brawls in germany during meyer's time?
I think it goes further back than that - there are references to it even in the 14th/15th centuries.
scholagladiatoria Couldn't it also be tied to Roman heritage? Romans were noted for being about the only ones to field stabby swords and rigorously train a professional army to use them. Everybody else had pretty much cutting swords , used as side arms. The most "Latin" countries would have been Italy, Spain, Portugal and France.(though France a bit more of a mixed bag.) Those places should have plenty of descendants from roman veterans who used Gladii.The Romans started issuing more cutting oriented swords around the time they started recruiting Germanic people in the army. When stabbing swords started appearing later, in the Middle Ages, the people who popularized them (nobles/military officers)would have had knowledge of Roman history. They also started getting popular around the time of the Renaissance, when everything Roman was in vogue. At least subconsciously it might have had an effect.
Reminds me of Silver's dismissal of the Rapier ad Italian fencing masters and the supposed tale of the Queen of England threatening to have people break blades that were to long. I think it dismissal of the heightening Dueling culture in Italy and the Rapier and systems using seemed to be designed for the of dueling, which encourages rabble rousing, where as shorter broader weapon has more robustness for more defensive action and defensive fighting style.
Philip Dyer But, cutting swords promote caveman like bashing, while thrusting weapons promote discipline and training. So you can also look at it that way. It's pretty reasonable to assume people of the time made similar arguments :).
I wonder if the latin affinity for the thrust and the germanic affinity for the cut has any connection to bull fighting and bear baiting. Bull fighting was obviously popular in France and Spain and Bulls are dispatched with a thrust, and bear baiting was popular in England and Germany, but I don't know enough about bear pits to say if there is a correlation to cutting weapons.
didn't they fight with the bear were unarmed? and the bear had his fangs and claws removed
Karl Toth
Interesting theory, thanks for raising it, but no. Bulls and bears were typically finished with the same weapon - a spear.
Fabio Varrà
No, that was not the case - at least it wasn't usually the case.
I think Fabio is referring to wrestling a bear, there is also dancing with a trained bear. Bear baiting refers to setting 2 or 3 mastiffs against a chained, but otherwise fully functional bear. Another explanation may be that both England and Germany had large forested areas in the middle ages, while France and Spain had large open plains. That might explain both the preference for bears and chopping
Very interesting video Matt. Have you ever thought of annotating classic accounts?
I would be more interested in reading original sources with an expert corrections/interpretations.
Cheers,
Eh, Matt, surprised you didn't bring this up. What does this encounter tell us? 1. Distance management is important. 2. Grappling is important. Oh, oh... one more... 3. The Scots got issued crappy swords? Lol.
I think this french officer might be possible that this french officer had an actual rapier due to the fact that the rifle officers sword broke on his, even with a harder temper, would it really break on a small sword?
Hello, Matt and his fans! I need a bit of an expert's help.
I'm needing to do my second year of French to get my credit for high school, and I want to study some of the historical fencing sources. Is there a good French fencing manual that I can read to practice my French with? Even one done in a Sparknotes sorta way with English on one side and French on the other?
I preferably want something relatively recent; nothing earlier than 1800 please. I don't really care that much on what the weapon is. I'm sure I can either find a big enough stick or make something close out of wood (I have both plenty of wood and a father who is an absolute fan of woodworking). I did find one source called "Traité de l'art des armes: à l'usage des professeurs et des amateurs". However, after skimming through it, I could not find any diagrams showing how to hold the weapon, what the guards were, some techmiques, etc.
Anything you guys can find would be awesome. Thanks in advance! :D
It's a good one, Matt. Pretty entertaining too.
Could the Germanic cutting vs Latin thrusting tendency be traced to the Roman legions using a thrusting weapon while the vikings had a more slashing weapon?
I am intrested in the kriss like sword behind you....
HA dark souls' broken sword hilt for the win!
One is used in the Seven Deadly Sins anime
3:34 Matt Easton digressing too much, being rudely interrupted by himself OO'
Damascus-crucible steel with "crystal formations" from the manufacturing process.=)
Fuck it, I'm signing up for Patreon. This stuff is just too good.
Officers in the 18th century Swedish army used thrusting swords, despite their "Germanic" allegedly cutting culture.
How much was cut out at 3:34?
Perhaps it was just be a few seconds, but it might as well be a 2 hour rant about people who say rapier when they mean smallsword. =)
I dont understand how that little ass rapier broke the other guys "curved" sword. Are we sure it isnt the other way around??
Wouldn't the officers have tested out their swords b4 combat? Swords broke a lot I know but the first strike? That is really bad...
So basicly this is the final duel from Rob Roy?
Matt, at which kind of sword can we ascribe the 2 straight sword (first and second from the top) you have behind your back?
I'd prefer to carry and use a saber over a small sword or rapier in a war is swords were an option.
Anyone ever come across accounts of small sword or saber against common Native American weapons? Mr. Easton?
It's accounts like this that make me wonder why nobody carried a parrying dagger or other off-hand weapon/buckler when you expect to get into melee combat. Any word as to why this was not the case?
I'd carry a dozen pistols, all hidden xD
@scholagladiatoria what are those two swords at the top of the wall behind you?
I didn't quite understand why the British officer sword broke. Was it a poorly made sword?
But how? You surely will not parry the heavier sabre with the smallsword...?
sorry for this necro post but the top 2 swords in your wall behind you, what models are those?