Mole court-sword conundrum

[urbanspaceman]

I wanted a Mole sword to form the final gasp of the entire Shotley Bridge affair, but I was looking for something a little more flamboyant than one of the tens of thousands of munitions grade swords and bayonets they produced; then I came across this one.
I fitted the bill perfectly and the blade is as good as any out of Shotley Bridge or Solingen, except I have no idea what it was in aid of.
I wondered about The Tower Guard or perhaps Parliament, but these were just uninformed musings. Can anyone identify this sword please?

[Jim McDougall]

Keith, this is a beauty!! and you are really hittin' it with this shopping list!
The closest thing to this anomaly is in "Swords of the British Army" (Brian Rbson, 1975. plate 91) which is loosely similar, but a pattern 1814 sword for officers on Household Cavalry. In text on p.89 it is noted the plaque with lion and crown was for Household Cavalry.

Obviously with the royal cypher of Queen Victoria this sword is post 1837, and Robert Mole & Sons were not producing officers swords like this until later in 19th c.
Robson notes(op.cit.p.87) that "....the introduction in 1822 of printed dress regulations for officers specified a number of different patterns of sword for the Household Cavalry but the descriptions are notably lacking in precision and there are no illustrations. Hence precise identifications are difficult".

Officers swords in the 19th c. seem to have had patterns which remained in use for very long periods, and with the degree of latitude officers were allowed, especially in these elite units, it seems one off or very limited forms of hilt must have occurred,

This seems of course Household Cavalry, but I can only guess it must be of a VERY limited run pattern, possibly even one off.

Possibly some of the guys who are more specialized in key and well pedigreed British officers swords on 19th c. (Bryce & Radboud) might have seen another example.

[Radboud]

alas it is outside of my area, but I asked a collector / dealer friend that has a lot of British swords pass through their hands and they described it as a particularly nice example of a Victorian Yeoman Warders sword.

[urbanspaceman]

John of JC Militaria, who sold me the sword, suggested it may be from a Tower Guard.
Thanks Guys; much obliged as always.

[Will M]

Very nice sword and rare to have the diamond cross section blade type. Usually only some band swords have this type blade though I have one infantry sword with the same type.

[urbanspaceman]

As I said earlier, the blade is a masterpiece; I don't know about a hat - but, as someone said, it could definitely be a belt. Yet it is rigid enough to stab with, and also very sharp.
They took their duties very seriously back then, before mobile phones, cctv and laser fencing.
ps
I'm not saying they still don't... please forgive any unintended aspersions.

[Peter Hudson]

I was looking at https://www.antique-swords.co.uk/ant...ole-p162768233 and noted the similar blade style... I also note certain Canadian swords of Robert Mole as being similar...Peter Hudson.

[urbanspaceman]

Hello Peter. Thank-you, yes, a definite earlier incarnation.
I normally don't pay any attention to post 1800 swords as only Mole survived into that century... but how they survived!
Tens of thousands - if not hundreds of thousands of blades produced up until 1920 when WS merged with them. I have to assume there are a great number have survived and, given the size of our empire, can probably be found all over the world.
As I mentioned, I was looking for something a bit special and I certainly found it.

Incidentally, regarding the beginning and the end of the Shotley Bridge history:
'Bertram' was producing the finest steel in Europe and making sword-blades at his forge in Allensford nearly 20 years before the Solingen diaspora arrived in 1687, then the Wilsons were hilting and engraving them in the village.
So really, Bertram is the true beginning of the story; this is apposite because the Bertrams that moved back to Solingen, after making straight razors with a royal warrant from Victoria (we assume for Albert - but maybe not) in Sheffield, married into the poultry business in Solingen and started a company that would remain family run until the 1970s.
The Hen and Rooster Cutlery company were regarded by many as the finest producers of knives and cutlery in the world: pretty good going considering they were up against everyone in Sheffield and Solingen.

[urbanspaceman]

While I'm on the subject:
here is a straight razor from the late 1800s.
In case it is indiscernible, it says:
FINEST SHEFFIELD STEEL
FORGED AND REAL HOLLOW
GROUND IN GERMANY
They were sending Sheffield steel over to, presumably Solingen, and making razors for the British market.
Although I cannot link the example to Bertram, I am confident in suggesting there were Bertrams producing steel in Sheffield, then having razors made by the family in Solingen, then sending them back to the UK for sale.
As I said, Bertrams enjoyed the reputation of producing the finest steel in Europe.
At some point in the future I intend to establish this as fact.
BTW. Bertram is an Anglicised version of the Old High German Berhtraban: a Remscheid family.