French Cavalry Officers' Sabre a l'Orientale - Thoughts?

[Radboud]

Having a soft spot for mamelukes, I've slipped out of my self-imposed collectors limits and purchased a French cavalry officers Sabre a l'Orientale. As many here will no doubt know, sabre a l'Orientale or 'mameluke' (in English) style sabres became all the fashion some time around the end of the 18th Century.





Many authors claim that this coincided with the French invasion of Egypt; and the bravery of the Mameluke warriors in their attacks against the French army. Others point to the British experience in India where Eastern influenced blades were often mounted on Indian handles.

Personally I'm inclinded to lean towards the Egyptian connection, if only because of the way European grips and crossbars mimic the originals.

Regardless of their origins, like hussar fashion, mameluke swords gained in popularity throughout Europe from the beginning to the middle of the 19th Centruy. With many officers and regiments adopting a variation as their dress sword.

Today the tradition continues in the form of the British 1831 Pattern General Officers, and the US Marine Corps dress swords which are direct copies of North African mameluke swords.

While local European and British manufacturers were quick to produce their own variations of the style, it was also common to mount Eastern produced blades on European hilts. My sword is likely one of these, the hilt proportions are very European to my eye, and it lacks the wire stitching on the scabbard. Also the scabbard drag looks like the French style.

The sword was sold as circa 1810 - 1830, although I personally lean on the later end, the grip scales are white horn, so cow or buffalo, but most interestingly it has a heavy 'Eastern' or shamshir blade.





The sword alone weighs 920 grams and the blade is 805mm long. What surprised me was how thick it remains for it's entire length, still 3.5mm in the last 50mm, but apparently this isn't uncommon for this style of blade.

I would welcome any additional thoughts and feedback on this sword as I don't have a lot of experience with them.

[fernando]

Very nice sword. Rather heavier than mine, which was discudsed HERE.

[Radboud]

Originally Posted by fernando

Very nice sword. Rather heavier than mine, which was discudsed HERE.

That is a lovely sword you have Fernando. A shame that there are no markings on the blade. It could be First Empire, just too difficult to be certain with these swords. All we can say with certainty is that your’s was European made, including the blade.

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Radboud

That is a lovely sword you have Fernando...

I should have said; i had !

[Victrix]

I believe shamsir blades originally had Persian origins (meaning “tail of the tiger”?) and were common all over the Ottoman empire. In Hungary and Eastern Europe, which were involved in a protracted centuries old conflict with the Ottoman empire, it was popular to use shamsir swords as trophies and family heirlooms. They became so fashionable that some “heirloom” blades were even engraved with pseudo Arabic to give the appearance of Ottoman origins. Mamelukes were an elite warrior caste in the Ottoman empire, whose origins were slaves who then took control from their masters, in Egypt. There’s an interesting book about them entitled “The Knights of Islam” (2007) by James Waterson well worth reading. “ The Mamluks were, at one distinct point in history, the greatest body of fighting men in the world and the quintessence of the mounted warrior – reaching near perfection in their skill with the bow, lance and sword.” No wonder there was a European fascination about them.