Description
WW1 era SA 1914 M1913 Cavalry Saber – aka Patton Sword; made by Springfield Arsenal; pined-on “US 2ND CAV 1918 FRANCE” brass plaque on the guard. Unaltered original canvass-covered scabbard; rare type in great overall condition, considering the age.
A scarce WW1 intact M1913 Cavalry Saber, typically referred to as the “Patton Sword” – excellent overall condition; original issue unit-marked scabbard included. This is an interesting specimen with a small brass plaque on the guard that reads US 2ND CAV 1918 FRANCE – an apparent reference to the US 2nd Cavalry Regiment (the link is curtesy of the official Second Dragoons page. The original M1913 Cavalry saber was developed by the now-famous General Patton prior to WW1. The sword was an excellent weapon but by the time the United States has actually entered WW1 the M1913 Saber was rendered useless by the advances in the modern warfare. There is a small chance that some of these Patton Swords saw the actual combat with the small detachment of the 15th Cavalry assigned as the protection detail for General Pershing in France, or with the 26th Cavalry Regiment (Philippine Scouts) during the 1941 Defense of the Philippines campaign. During the fighting retreat the 26th Cavalry engaged in the last cavalry charge in the history of the US Cavalry; it is entirely likely that the sabers were used during that charge but sadly no records or first-hand accounts survived the war.
In any event, the glory days of cavalry were over; after the Great War most of the M1913 sabers ended up collecting dust in the government arsenals. But the Second World War gave these old timers an unexpected new role in the modern warfare. During the first couple of years of WW2 the US servicemen had no standard-issue fighting knife and the military was desperately looking for a quick way to satisfy the demand for the much-needed fighting knives. Someone came up with the idea of re-purposing these old (and by than obsolete weapons anyway) info fighting knives and daggers. A huge quantity of M1913 Patton Swords were converted into somewhat crude, but very practical and effective fighting knives and trench daggers. Only a small portion of M1913 sabers survived WW2 intact, even fewer exist with the original-issue scabbard included – this is a great find, especially in such well-preserved original condition.
This huge saber is about 41-3/4” / 106 cm overall; the blade is about 35-1/45” / 89.5 cm; the edge has multiple edge nicks from sword practice (could be combat-related; who knows?). The blade is very sharp still, the tip is intact. No edge nicks or bumps; minor blade pitting is noted for accuracy; all rust has been cleaned off. The sword in the scabbard is about 43″ / 109.2 cm overall – this huge sidearm was designed to be strapped to a saddle, not to be carried on a hip belt. This M1913 Saber was manufactured by the famous Springfield Arsenal (SA on ricasso) in 1914. The ricasso is stamped SA / 1914 / “flaming bomb” US ordinance mark on one side, arsenal serial number 15997 / US on the other. The guard has a small brass plaque pinned on the inside that reads US 2ND CAV 1918 FRANCE; the opposite side has number 19 punched onto it. The original handle scales and tempered steel handguard are in excellent condition, considering the age.
The original canvass-over-wood scabbard in in great shape as well; all parts are tight. This scabbard has not been altered or repainted; one side has unit markings 9 A 42 in large black letters. The scabbard in is great shape, considering the age – all original metal parts are nice and tight; a few typical minor abrasion spots to the canvas cover are noted for accuracy. This original WW1 American SA 1914 M1913 Cavalry Saber and scabbard set in very good shape overall, considering the age; finding a complete and unaltered M1913 set is not easy nowadays. This is one of the best American edged weapons of the long-gone WW1 era; this sword has lot of character AND it’s in excellent shape – you will not be disappointed!
This original American WW1 era SA 1914 M1913 Cavalry Saber has not been cleaned or tampered with in any way, it is in 100% original “as is” condition. These are the actual photos; spent brass is not included with the lot 😉 I have several WW2 era fighting knives made from converted WW1 era Patton Swords, as well as some scarce WW1 and WW2 fighting daggers and trench knives available for sale – please take a look in the Militaria section.
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USPS PRIORITY MAIL SHIPPING WITHIN THE U.S. WILL BE $28 to 32 FOR THIS ITEM, SIGN-FOR DELIVERY CONFIRMATION INCLUDED
International shipping for this item will be $135 and up to most countries on our “ship-to” list.
