A Presentation Sword for a Spanish Officer.
May 11, 2019 16:46:05 GMT
Post by Uhlan on May 11, 2019 16:46:05 GMT
This Part 4 in my Spanish series.
It started with Part 5: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/57155/spanish-toledo-silver-presentation-sword
Yes we're going back in time. Enjoy!
,,A sword for an Officer, in the style of a Spanish M1825 HC Troopers pallasch'' may be an alternative and more accurate title.
It is one of those outliers that always will attract Ulahns attention.
Like we have the ( in )famous ,, Cat Lady '', always busy to save one more stray feline, we have Ulahn, always on the lookout for swords that do not conform to the regulations of any Army known to man in this here Universe. So what did he dig up now?
To answer this question we must first examine the sword by looking at it as any bystander at the time this sword was carried would have seen it in passing.
Obviously it should resemble a pallasch in the French style, something akin the French AN IX Dragoon for instance. The problem here is that we on Spanish territory, so I would say that the Spanish M1814 HC Officers pallasch would be a good example. It was made in the French style, had a leather scabbard with furniture like the one shown here and was an Officers sword, so, like the one we talk about, a Troopers Light.
M1814 Cavalry Officers sword.
Now we can have a look at it in detail and here it gets interesting.
Lets look at the scabbard first. It was broken at one time. The period repair job can be seen about 20 cm up from the drag. As this is a leather over a wood core scabbard it was not broken through and through but severely cracked anyway. There is still a dent to show for it. The drag with a punched 138 and the chape with a punched number 43 belong to the scabbard I think, but the middle fitting clearly does not.
It was made from a brass alloy which has a slightly different colour.
Also the sheet material is thinner than the sheet of drag and chape. It was added when the scabbard got the rings and ring holders, as on close examination the brazing with copper is the same as the braze work on the hilt. Also, when I cleaned the chape a bit, I discovered evidence that there once was a belt hook brazed on. There was this dark, round spot. Large enough to be the imprint of the stem of such a feature. The hook was most probably removed when it was decided the scabbard should have the full ring furniture treatment. I soldered another one on in the same spot. In my box with antique fittings a found one large enough and with the good colour.
I had to use low temperature solder as did not want to set fire to the scabbard.
Of course it should not be there, but it makes it easier now to see what this scabbard looked like originally.
And now we are up to the mouth piece. The cover plate. It belongs to the chape. It was never changed. This is important. We now know that the scabbard was made originally for a backsword type blade of ample dimensions. I measure a blade of about 9 mm thick at the spine near the guard, with a width of about 36 mm accounting for a little play to be able to sheat it. As the numbers represent the ricasso of the old inhabitant of the scabbard, that blade had a flat spine and at the other end of its ricasso was rounded. Luckily the blade of the ,, new '' and smaller inhabitant does not rattle about.
Based on what is still to be discovered I'd say the old blade could have been the blade from an Epee Forte. By the time the M1825 HC was up and about the Epee Forte model would already have been antique.
The hilt was made with the idea it should resemble the French style hilts of Spanish HC pallasch line. It even sports a pommel cap that comes close to those models. But it has two side bars, not the usual three. The side bars were brazed on with copper in the same way as it was done with the scabbard furniture. It was a professional who did this, but not an armourer, I think.
An armourer would have access to all kinds of complete hilts, scabbards and blades.
I suspect the job was done by someone who made and repaired copper house hold gear, like the pots and pans everybody used at the time. This pure speculation of course, but it looks like it.
This kind of small time professional one could find in any small town all over Spain and Europe for that matter.
The side bars.
By the looks of them I have the impression these were salvaged from a Napoleonic wars light Cavalry sabre wrack. The curves are spot on, as is the thickness and the width. It just doesn't look like an amateur made them.
The knuckle bow and the plateau.
The Knuckle bow and plateau belong together. The knuckle bow has at its top a special place for securing the sword knot, as it should. The ensemble comes from an old Cavalry Officers Epee Forte. No doubt about that. Its build is somewhat lighter than the Troopers version, but therefore it is from an Officers Epee. I have tried to find that funny guillon amongst French and Spanish examples, but I could not find another.
The blade.
It is an Officers version of the M1825 HC Troopers pallasch.
Looking at the presentation sword the first time you think it must be very scaled down from the Troopers sword. Wrong! It differs only in some cm here or a mm there.
For what it is worth, one could have easily just taken the Troopers blade.
It would only have been marginally heavier and longer and fitted the scabbard too. Behold the magic of the Toledo smiths were a pallasch is just 8 mm thick instead of the 10-11 mm from Chatellerault. The result is a much more nimble double edged sword ready to stab and cut.
Here are the numbers of both:
Barbadillo sword...................... Troopers M1825 pallasch
Blade length = 90.5 cm. .......... Blade length = 94 cm.
Blade width = 30 mm. ..............Blade width = 35 mm.
Thickness = 7 mm. ...................Thickness = 8 mm.
Colonial Dragoon.
Eugenio Barbadillo.
Pino PMed me with the message that he had found an Eugenio Barbadillo in a book titled: ,, Historia de Guerra Civil '' which contains amongst others the names of Regiments and their Officers. His Eugenio Barbadillo was a Coronel Commandante of the Third Lancer Regiment during the Carlist War of 1833 - 1840, who fought on the side of the King. This can easily be our Barbadillo. The name is not very common and even the first name is right. His rank could have given him permission to carry an old Epee Forte as his personal side arm if he so desired, most surely if it was a heirloom piece from a (Iberian war ) veteran family member. Whether he or the donors of the blade were responsible for the redesign of the Epee Forte hilt cannot be answered.
Scroll down to see some beauty shots and the notes.
To see the sword in it initial state and the work that was done to get it cleaned up a bit again, see:https://sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/57217/spanish-m1825-style-presentation-update
Notes.
Spanish Cavalry Regiments: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anexo:Regimientos_de_Caballer%C3%ADa_de_Espa%C3%B1a
All Spanish Cavalry swords in PDF: vicentetoledo.es/es/espadas/espadas-militares
The Spanish M1825 Cavalry pallasch: hoploteca.blogspot.com/search/label/Caballer%C3%ADa
The tiny village of Barbadillo: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbadillo
Swords and sabres for Spanish Cavalry Troopers Part 1: perso.wanadoo.es/jjperez222/tropacab_e.htm
Swords and sabres for Spanish Cavalry Troopers Part 2: perso.wanadoo.es/jjperez222/tropacab2_e.htm
It started with Part 5: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/57155/spanish-toledo-silver-presentation-sword
Yes we're going back in time. Enjoy!
,,A sword for an Officer, in the style of a Spanish M1825 HC Troopers pallasch'' may be an alternative and more accurate title.
It is one of those outliers that always will attract Ulahns attention.
Like we have the ( in )famous ,, Cat Lady '', always busy to save one more stray feline, we have Ulahn, always on the lookout for swords that do not conform to the regulations of any Army known to man in this here Universe. So what did he dig up now?
To answer this question we must first examine the sword by looking at it as any bystander at the time this sword was carried would have seen it in passing.
Obviously it should resemble a pallasch in the French style, something akin the French AN IX Dragoon for instance. The problem here is that we on Spanish territory, so I would say that the Spanish M1814 HC Officers pallasch would be a good example. It was made in the French style, had a leather scabbard with furniture like the one shown here and was an Officers sword, so, like the one we talk about, a Troopers Light.
M1814 Cavalry Officers sword.
Now we can have a look at it in detail and here it gets interesting.
Lets look at the scabbard first. It was broken at one time. The period repair job can be seen about 20 cm up from the drag. As this is a leather over a wood core scabbard it was not broken through and through but severely cracked anyway. There is still a dent to show for it. The drag with a punched 138 and the chape with a punched number 43 belong to the scabbard I think, but the middle fitting clearly does not.
It was made from a brass alloy which has a slightly different colour.
Also the sheet material is thinner than the sheet of drag and chape. It was added when the scabbard got the rings and ring holders, as on close examination the brazing with copper is the same as the braze work on the hilt. Also, when I cleaned the chape a bit, I discovered evidence that there once was a belt hook brazed on. There was this dark, round spot. Large enough to be the imprint of the stem of such a feature. The hook was most probably removed when it was decided the scabbard should have the full ring furniture treatment. I soldered another one on in the same spot. In my box with antique fittings a found one large enough and with the good colour.
I had to use low temperature solder as did not want to set fire to the scabbard.
Of course it should not be there, but it makes it easier now to see what this scabbard looked like originally.
And now we are up to the mouth piece. The cover plate. It belongs to the chape. It was never changed. This is important. We now know that the scabbard was made originally for a backsword type blade of ample dimensions. I measure a blade of about 9 mm thick at the spine near the guard, with a width of about 36 mm accounting for a little play to be able to sheat it. As the numbers represent the ricasso of the old inhabitant of the scabbard, that blade had a flat spine and at the other end of its ricasso was rounded. Luckily the blade of the ,, new '' and smaller inhabitant does not rattle about.
Based on what is still to be discovered I'd say the old blade could have been the blade from an Epee Forte. By the time the M1825 HC was up and about the Epee Forte model would already have been antique.
The hilt was made with the idea it should resemble the French style hilts of Spanish HC pallasch line. It even sports a pommel cap that comes close to those models. But it has two side bars, not the usual three. The side bars were brazed on with copper in the same way as it was done with the scabbard furniture. It was a professional who did this, but not an armourer, I think.
An armourer would have access to all kinds of complete hilts, scabbards and blades.
I suspect the job was done by someone who made and repaired copper house hold gear, like the pots and pans everybody used at the time. This pure speculation of course, but it looks like it.
This kind of small time professional one could find in any small town all over Spain and Europe for that matter.
The side bars.
By the looks of them I have the impression these were salvaged from a Napoleonic wars light Cavalry sabre wrack. The curves are spot on, as is the thickness and the width. It just doesn't look like an amateur made them.
The knuckle bow and the plateau.
The Knuckle bow and plateau belong together. The knuckle bow has at its top a special place for securing the sword knot, as it should. The ensemble comes from an old Cavalry Officers Epee Forte. No doubt about that. Its build is somewhat lighter than the Troopers version, but therefore it is from an Officers Epee. I have tried to find that funny guillon amongst French and Spanish examples, but I could not find another.
The blade.
It is an Officers version of the M1825 HC Troopers pallasch.
Looking at the presentation sword the first time you think it must be very scaled down from the Troopers sword. Wrong! It differs only in some cm here or a mm there.
For what it is worth, one could have easily just taken the Troopers blade.
It would only have been marginally heavier and longer and fitted the scabbard too. Behold the magic of the Toledo smiths were a pallasch is just 8 mm thick instead of the 10-11 mm from Chatellerault. The result is a much more nimble double edged sword ready to stab and cut.
Here are the numbers of both:
Barbadillo sword...................... Troopers M1825 pallasch
Blade length = 90.5 cm. .......... Blade length = 94 cm.
Blade width = 30 mm. ..............Blade width = 35 mm.
Thickness = 7 mm. ...................Thickness = 8 mm.
Colonial Dragoon.
Eugenio Barbadillo.
Pino PMed me with the message that he had found an Eugenio Barbadillo in a book titled: ,, Historia de Guerra Civil '' which contains amongst others the names of Regiments and their Officers. His Eugenio Barbadillo was a Coronel Commandante of the Third Lancer Regiment during the Carlist War of 1833 - 1840, who fought on the side of the King. This can easily be our Barbadillo. The name is not very common and even the first name is right. His rank could have given him permission to carry an old Epee Forte as his personal side arm if he so desired, most surely if it was a heirloom piece from a (Iberian war ) veteran family member. Whether he or the donors of the blade were responsible for the redesign of the Epee Forte hilt cannot be answered.
Scroll down to see some beauty shots and the notes.
To see the sword in it initial state and the work that was done to get it cleaned up a bit again, see:https://sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/57217/spanish-m1825-style-presentation-update
Notes.
Spanish Cavalry Regiments: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anexo:Regimientos_de_Caballer%C3%ADa_de_Espa%C3%B1a
All Spanish Cavalry swords in PDF: vicentetoledo.es/es/espadas/espadas-militares
The Spanish M1825 Cavalry pallasch: hoploteca.blogspot.com/search/label/Caballer%C3%ADa
The tiny village of Barbadillo: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbadillo
Swords and sabres for Spanish Cavalry Troopers Part 1: perso.wanadoo.es/jjperez222/tropacab_e.htm
Swords and sabres for Spanish Cavalry Troopers Part 2: perso.wanadoo.es/jjperez222/tropacab2_e.htm