NOW SOLD A Simply Stunning, Late Victorian, Wilkinson Sword Contract, Royal Naval Issue Cutlass. In Such Pristine Condition It Could Likely Not Be Improved Upon

A better example you could not find of this eponymous sailor's combat cutlass of the Royal Navy manufactured by Wilkinson Sword. Ordnance stamps proliferate throughout the blade and hilt, and a prime example of a Victorian Naval Cutlass, to add to, or create a great collection of original combat service swords of the British armed forces. Used in the late Victorian period in and from the 1900's from the days of sail and dreadnoughts, up to the battleships of WW2..

Traditional steel bowl with rolled edge, regulation chequered leather grip held in place with 5 rivets, Wilkinson stamped blade, with numerous ordnance inspection stamps at the ricasso and back spine of the blade. A mix of bright steel and black-painted sword guards seem to have been used on board ship. It is likely that ceremonial weapons were kept in bright steel and service weapons were painted, either before being issued or on an ad hoc basis on ships.

The cutlass is a short sword with a wide single-edged blade that is often curved. In the Royal Navy it was a sword purchased by the government and issued to ratings, the enlisted men. Officers carried privately purchased swords and midshipmen dirks. Seaborne soldiers of the Royal Marines were not issued cutlasses and instead carried bayonets for their longarms. When carrying out a boarding action the first wave of sailors would often be issued a cutlass and pistol for offensive action while the second wave were armed with more defensive weapons such as the boarding pike.

The cutlass may have had its origins in the hanger, a short curved sword that was used by the Royal Navy in the 17th century. The term "cutlass" was never used by the navy as the designation for an individual weapon pattern; the official terms used were "Sword for Sea Service" or "Sword, Naval". However, the weapon was commonly referred to as such in unofficial and official situations, for example the navy drill manual describes "cutlass" exercises.

The final cutlass approved for naval use was the 1900 Pattern. This retained the straight blade of the 1889 Pattern, but introduced a fuller running one-third of the blade length. The bowl-type hilt with upturned rim was also retained, though a concave insert was added to the inside where the guard joins the pommel. This helped to cushion the user's little finger and was derived from the 1890 Pattern Cavalry Sword. The grip of the 1900 Pattern cutlass was more rectangular in section than its predecessor and had a knurled leather cover. The scabbard was identical to that used for the 1889 Pattern.

The 1900 Pattern cutlass was officially withdrawn by the Admiralty from combat service on 22 October 1936, under fleet order number 4572, however, it was still retained on board many combat service vessels in WW2. The order noted that the cutlass was no longer to be issued for use by landing parties but was to be retained for ceremonial use, with numbers being limited to 20 for each ship with more than 500 personnel and 10 for ships with fewer personnel. There are claims that this cutlass was used in combat during the 1940 Altmark incident, and that it was issued to a boarding party aboard HMS Armada in 1952. The cutlass last saw major landing party combat service was in 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion in China.

We had a restorer many years ago that served in the Royal Navy in the 1950's and 60's and he was convinced, as were many of his shipmates and officer's, that the removal from service of the cutlass by the Admiralty was simply madness. For, anti-pirate patrols became more prolific than ever, as they still are today, especially in the South China Seas, and pirate ship boarding parties and repel became almost a weekly occurrence, and as the penalty on the non-British local mainland, especially China, was execution for piracy, thus the pirates fought like devils.
On his ship the crew often had to dash to the galley and find the cook's knives, cleavers, hatchets, and even broom handles, as guns we often not always issued in time on board ship, and the pirates showed no quarter!, and even if the guns were issued, the British sailors hesitated to use them, for if they did, and it ended in the fatality of a pirate, who was intent on killing the British matelot, the British sailor would face a courts marshal, and even, possibly, imprisonment,... madness indeed!

Code: 25151