1796 light cavalry saber
 

Hello,

Could somebody help me with the marks meaning on this 1796 light cavalry saber?

tks!

Best Regards,

BV

First: Proof Mark
Second: Stamp of Thomas Hadley of Birmingham

Hello,

Tks for the information!

Regards,

BV

BV,
A very nice example of these cavalry sabres which are getting to be harder to find.
If you collect British cavalry swords you might consider "Swords of the British Army" by Brian Robson which was first out in 1975 but now a revised version is on Amazon.
While Thomas Hadley is listed in Birmingham 1767-1781, he is also listed as a gunmaker in London 1780-89 and a Gilbert Hadley again listed in London c. 1825.

In these times, gunmakers also assembled swords and acquired the blades from other makers. Since this is a 1796 pattern which was not widely produced until just after that, we may presume that this sword, apparently an early version, was probably assembled in London around 1800 by Hadley and inspected at the Tower.

These swords were in use from these times until they began being replaced by the M1821 pattern swords but continued in use beyond that and further when issued to yeomanry units. Many were sold to other countries as well.
Odd that there are no regiment markings as typically seen.

After 1788 swords made by contractors for the government Board of Ordnance were inspected and tested (proof) to ensure quality standards were adequate. On passing this inspection a mark was applied, which was a crown over a number. So your sabre is a military issue sabre. Under the crown would be a number, though on your example it looks a bit mangled through wear/polishing I guess.

Given that these sabres were arming British troops sent to join Portuguese forces during the Peninsular War, it might be that this example ended up in Portugal in that period.
Eventually this Cavalry model was also produced in Portugal at a later stage.

Hello,

Once again tks all for the information!

Best Regards,

BV