SWORD LORE IIIA: AUSTRIAN M1861 CAVALRY SABER (OFFICER'S)

 

Closeup of the officer's standard version of the Austrian M1861 Cavalry Saber (note the engraved lines around the piercings on the guard).

Image from: Ortner, With Drawn Sword: Austro Hungarian Edged Weapons from 1848 to 1918; text in the author's collection.

Greetings, dear reader(s).  This post is a continuation of the Sword Lore III post on the Austrian M1861 Cavalry Saber (service version). I have both an officer's and a service version of that sword, and I had originally intended to cover both in that post (as per the post on the Prussian M1852 Cavalry Saber). However, the previous post turned out to be rather lengthy, and so I decided to produce a separate post on the officer's version. Thus, in this post, I won't repeat the history and details of the development of the M1861 saber: I would encourage anyone interested to follow the link above to that post. This study will focus on the general trends and context of officer's pattern swords, and then examine the actual sword in my collection. As usual, you may clix pix for BIG PIX in this post. 

A BIT OF CONTEXT AND BACKGROUND

Two volunteer Austrian hussar officers, circa 1866, sporting rather slim private purchase officer's sabers.

When it comes to non-service swords (ie, that are not army property issued to soldiers), the term "private purchase" is technically more correct than "officer's sword." Generally speaking, all officers in most armies did purchase their own swords (in addition to uniforms and other equipment). However, noncommissioned officers (in particular) and soldiers with other forms of status could do so as well.  For simplicity, though, we'll refer to these as "officer's swords" in this post. Although officer's swords could exhibit many variations based on the maker, and the preferences, means, and status of the purchaser, they nevertheless were still  required to conform to a basic regulation pattern for the army concerned (of course, the higher the rank and status of the officer, the broader the departures from the standard could be). 

Austrian enlisted dragoon trooper, circa 1866, posing with the beefy M1861 issue cavalry saber. 

Given these parameters, there are several points that hold true for most officer's cavalry sabers. The first and most persistent is that they are almost always lighter than their regulation counterparts. Compare the dragoon's sword (above) to the slimmer ones carried by the volunteer officer hussars in the opening picture (both the Austrian dragoons and hussars carried the same pattern M1861 sword).  Officer's sabers are also quite often embellished (particularly their blades), and would be more likely to be nickel plated--a  customization that was not only more attractive but protective, making for lower maintenance.  Officer's swords don't have the ordnance stamps and other standard markings of government service swords, making them more difficult to identify and date.  Speaking of collecting, officer's swords are generally more available than issue swords given that they remained with the individual after service (years later becoming the proverbial sword in the attic that one stumbles across when clearing out a house).  Finally, there is the question of whether these were "dress" swords or combat weapons. The answer is "both." There are no doubt some that were only worn about town, on parade, or in garrison as part of the uniform. But there were no doubt some that were also combat weapons: and there were some that would serve as both. Although the materials and construction could certainly be an indicator of whether a sword would be suitable to carry into action, without knowing the specific provenance of a weapon, it could be hard to tell. Enough of generalities. On to the specifics of the M1861 officer's sword and the actual sword in my collection

THE M1861 CAVARLY SABER OFFICER'S PATTERN

Above left: issue saber and officer's "standard" M1861 saber. Above right: private purchase non-standard officer's saber. 

There were regulations for the officer's version of the M1861 Cavalry Saber, specifically pertaining to the hilt. Superficially, the hilt was to have the same piercings as the issue saber, but with a wire-wrapped fish skin grip and the addition of geometric lines engraved around the piercings. There was an officer's saber known as a "standard" version which had the same parameters as the enlisted saber, only with the added hilt embellishments (this version was definitely a combat weapon)--the above left image is of such an officer's saber.  The above right image shows a non-"standard" M1861 officer's saber: the engravings are the same, as are the general lines, but the basked it slightly slimmer, the blade is lighter, and it is nickel plated. This would probably fall into the "dress" sword category. 

MY M1861 OFFICER'S SWORD  

As I have mentioned, I have both an issue and an officer's M1861 Cavalry Saber.

SIDE BY SIDE

 In comparison, you can see that this officer's sword (the lower one) is a lighter version of the issue (service version) M1861.

THE HILT

The hilt of my officer's sword has the regulation engravings around the piercings (and more). Side by side, nickel plating aside, you can see other minor variations in this particular officer's hilt. This is not a "standard" officer's version. Although we will be delving into the officer's blade separately, this picture illustrates one of the major departures between them. The service sword has the distinctive asymmetrical blade profile, with one side flat and the other fullered (shown by the yellow arrow).  The officer's version has a conventional symmetrical blade profile, with both sides fullered. 

Comparison of the grips. Above left: the officer's version, left, and the service version, right. Above right picture, a detail of the officer's version grip. As is often the case with officer's swords, the grips are of shark or fish skin (as this one is), and they almost always have fine, woven wire wraps. 

THE BLADE

As opposed to the heavy, asymmetrical blade of the service sword, this officer's sword has a slimmer blade with a stiff spine and a hybrid diamond shaped profile (meaning that it has a raised ridge running it's length). Additionally, the central third of the blade has two fullers: a narrow fuller just under the spine and a conventional larger fuller centered in the upper 1/2 of the blade. This larger fuller lightens and balances the blade, and the smaller (ridge) fuller provides structural strength, also making the blade stiffer--to compensate for its slimness (my conjecture).  In terms of handling, this is a very nimble weapon. I am not a practitioner of historical european martial arts, but I have dabbled in fencing years ago. This weapon would handle not unlike a contemporary fencing saber. 

As with most officer's swords, this blade is decorated. In this case, it is engraved (as opposed to etched like my 1852 Prussian Officer's sword), with ornaments running along 2/3 of the blade. 

Detail of the blade ornaments: in the upper right and lower left images you can see the blade profile more clearly, with the two fullers and the central ridge. 

DECODING (READING) THE SWORD

So far, we've seen that this sword conforms to what we would expect for an Austrian M1861 Officer's Cavalry Saber. Besides these general points, though, how do we "read" this sword, and what story does it tell?  (Hint: stick around for a "surprise" ending).

Unlike service swords, officer's swords lack standardized markings to help us with authentication.  Generally speaking, most will at least have a manufacturer's stamp, usually on the ricasso (the base of the blade next to the hilt). Fortunately, we have such a stamp on this sword: "F.H."

"Friedrich Horster Jr, of Solingen, Germany, 1825-1875. They had an office in London and also sold weapons to the North during the U.S. Civil War."

(Kinman, Steffan, European Makers of Edged Weapons, page 37).  

In the 19th Century, many (if not most) of the swords in Europe were produced by Solingen sword makers.  And if the sword was manufactured elsewhere, the chances were that the blade used was made in Solingen. As a matter of fact...

...this tradition in blade making continues to this day, with fine cutlery being produced in Solingen. Much like Krupp, who sold weapons to everyone (basically), nations at that time would contract with various Solingen manufacturers for their swords. And, of course, there was a parallel market for individual, private purchases. 

THE STORY OF THE SCABBARD 

Looking at the scabbard tells us more.  The Austrian M1861 service sword's scabbard (above left) exhibits a major design change that came into Austrian use with it. Specifically, they dropped the two flexible scabbard ring configuration and replaced it with a fixed (lower) scabbard ring and upper fixed bracket (if you look closely at the dragoon picture at the top of this post, you can see that his scabbard is configured like this). This configuration was unique to the Austrian army from that point onwards. Looking at the scabbard on this officer's sword (above right), you can see that it is a "universal" pattern that could fit any configuration. It has two flexible scabbard rings and a fixed upper bracket. Thus, a buyer could easily modify this scabbard to fit whatever regulations applied. For instance, as the century progressed, armies were discarding lower scabbard rings. If that were the case, the buyer could simply cut off the lower ring. If in Austrian service, he could cut off the upper ring and use the fixed bracket and remaining lower scabbard ring. 

WHAT WE CAN SAY ABOUT THIS SWORD?

Because know...

1)  that the sword conforms to the Austrian M1861 pattern

2) that the pattern was first introduced in 1861 (per its name).

3) that the manufacturer was in business from 1825-1871.

   We can conclude...

 ...that this sword dates from 1861 to 1867. 

WHAT CAN WE GUESS ABOUT USE?

We know...

1)  that the blade has not been service sharpened.

2)  that the quality of the blade is exceptional and it could be sharpened.

3)  that the blade is configured for added strength and is well balanced.

4)  that the blade is ornamented/ornamental. 

5) that the guard is as sturdy as the service version and would provide equal protection.

We can neither conclude or rule out...

...that this sword model was intended for--or could be used--in action.

We can conclude...

...that this particular sword was not actually carried in combat given that it was not service sharpened. 

THE SURPRISE ENDING

The Arms of Savoy

Although this is clearly an Austrian M1861 pattern officer's sword, it is marked with the arms of Savoy (on the hilt, above, and on the blade, below). The dating of this sword puts it in the timeframe of the Risorgimento, during which the house of Savoy (Piedmont-Sardinia) was aligned against Austria. Thus, this sword was most likely not used by an Austrian, but was most likely purchased by an officer in Italian service--and it could very well have been a standard model designed for sale to officers in that market. 

Excelsior!

CONVERSIONS FOR ONE HOUR SKIRMISH: FREIWILLIGER JAGERS & GRENZER NCO

 

Newly added contingent to my One Hour Skirmish  collection: Freiwilliger Jagers. It may come as no surprise to regular readers to this blog to hear that these are conversions.

Although they are not intended to represent any specific element, they are intended to represent any of the various volunteer and constabulary elements that were either raised to supplement forces during the continental conflicts of the era or that performed security/paramilitary operations in any number of frontier regions across Europe, particularly in the Hapbsburg dominions in the Balkans--and similar forces found under various flags across Southern & Eastern Europe. The above images from the New York Public Library Vikhuijzen Collection of Austrian Freiwilliger Jagers from the Temesvar Region provided the general model for these. Of course, nobody actually makes these figures (not quite, anyway)...

...but the Honved Infantry in Porge Kalap from the Keelman Miniatures Hungarian Revolt Line comes very close...

...and so, all that was needed to make them fit was to add the feather plume to the headgear.  I did so with a two step process. First I clipped small bits of lead foil to represent the feathers, then adhered them to the caps using dabs of J&B Kwik Weld (fast drying version). After that had set, I added more J & B Kwik Weld to the standing part of the lead foil to reinforce it against the handling that the figures would inevitably receive.  For those who are really curious, you can look at my April 7, 2019  post where I detail the same process for a set of unit-based figures.  Below, you can see the outcome of this latest project  (clix pix for BIG PIX)...

...the simple addition of the plume really transforms these figures (in my opinion) and was worth the effort.  In doing these, I aimed for the distinctive blue/gray color of the source images along with the black cording. It's not evident, but there are two shades of blue on these figures (an undercoat of Humbrol Azure Blue with a drybrush of Humbrol WWI blue, highlighted with a slight drybrush of light gray).  I went with black strapping given that this was a distinguishing feature of jagers and various and sundry volunteer/freikorps of the era. So far, we have accounted for the private soldiers, but what about the leaders?

For an officer, I used a Honved officer in shako (above right) from the aforementioned Keelman Miniatures Hungarian Revolt Line and a head swap from the Honved infantry in Porge Kalap (above left)...

The newly completed individually mounted converted officer (left) next to an earlier completed source figure (right) mounted on a unit base.

Detail of the completed conversion officer figure.

One Hour Skirmish is a very low level system, with small figure counts more akin to squad actions than platoons or higher. As such, officer figures can certainly be involved, but the more prevalent  "leader" figures at this level would be NCOs: soldier-leaders carrying rifles. Unfortunately, most leader figures (in pre-2oth Century lines, where I am focused) are of officers. So, to provide NCOS...  

...I used an actual era-specific NCO figure, a Keelman Miniatures German Legion NCO (above right) from the Hungarian Revolt line, with another head swap from a Honved Infantry in Porge Kalap...

...the resulting side-by-side comparison of the completed conversion (right) next to a completed source figure.

 

Detail of the NCO conversion.  I gave him yellow trim on his headgear as opposed to the officer's metallic gold, and his sleeve decorations (hungarian knots) are a bit more elaborate than those of the private soldiers (added using my "Home made Hungarian Knots" process). 

Especially attentive readers may have noted that the above German Legion NCO figure is not painted in accordance with the black-on-black scheme of that force (per the image of the German Legion taken from my October 2016 Post). 

I instead did this figure in an all-purpose scheme of brown jacket and blue trousers...

...one that will allow me to field him as a leader of Grenzers or any similar force in the era.

Excelsior!

CHOCOLATE BOX WARS RULES UPDATE

 

Chocolate Box Wars (CBW) Rules Version 2 

Greetings, dear reader(s).  The short version of the latest news is that the Chocolate Box Wars Resource Page has been updated. Specifically, a new version of the rules has been posted (V2) along with an updated player reference (version 25). The new version has a bright blue cover to help discriminate it from the previous version (v1, which had a red cover).  There are also two rules videos posted (illustrating the revised Rally and the Retire and Reform rule). If interested, please follow the link above to the resource page.  

Front side of Updated Player Reference (v25)

The header of the accompanying updated player reference is also bright blue.  This player reference replaces the interim player references that had been posted.  There is now only one player reference (v25). 

What's Different? 

Version 2 of the rules is not a major change. It incorporates the more permissive artillery Move and Fire action described in the December 19 Post and a more permissive version of the Rally rule that was revised to better reflect the base process found in the base 1914 rules.  The previous, more restrictive Rally is still available, but it is now in the optional rules (along with a brief rationale and an explanation of the different effects that both Rally versions have on play).

These rules changes and the updated player reference were proofed during the Chocolate Box Wars Tournament.  

The rules videos were produced to help illustrate the two unique "recovery" actions (Rally, and Retire and Reform) so that players would be able to manage these unique actions for themselves during the tournament. 

The State of the System

The system has now been proofed in a series of games that I've facilitated with a variety of players and in a series of tournament games that players have managed on their own.  The rules have proven to be stable, and the few modifications stemming from those experiences are reflected in this version, which should be final and definitive (in other words, barring some novel circumstance arising that we have not yet seen, I don't expect that there will be any further modifications). If interested, please see the CBW Resource Page for the updated materials. 

Excelsior!

MORE BALKAN BOYZ (PLUS) FOR ONE HOUR SKIRMISH

 

Caucasian Cossack image from the New York Public Library Vikhuizen  Uniform Collection. 

In this post, dear reader(s), I provide a report on some small additions made to my Balkan/Russo-Turkish War One Hour Skirmish collections. For anyone curious about the larger project, you can look back at my Dec 14 Blog post. The upshot is that it only takes a handful of figures to run a game in this system (and my variant focusing on the later 19th Century in particular)--and so also it only takes a few figures to add a handy contingent. In this post, I  cover two new contingents (plus a few specialty figs): dismounted Circassian/Caucasian cavalry (cossacks), and Reserve (2nd line) Grenzers.  As usual, you may clix pix for BIG PIX in this post. First, the Caucasian cavalry. 

Back when I was putting together my Russian Chocolate Box Wars army, I produced the above Caucasian Cossacks (the subject of my June 6, 2021 post) using the brown and orange scheme of the image at the top of this blog post.  These are Copplestone Castings Back of Beyond Caucasian Cavalry repurposed to represent Caucasian Cossacks, pre-turn of the century (same outfit, same lines). Of course, these warriors are not so much wearing a "uniform" as much as they are wearing their national costume (much like many of the other factions in the regions stretching from the Balkans to Afghanistan). When in the service of the Russians, these are often referred to as Caucasian Cossacks. When in the service of the Ottomans, they are referred to as Circassian or Caucasian cavalry.  In my reading of Quinton Barry's excellent, War in the East, (covering the Russo Turkish War of 1877-78), there are many battles that have OOBs with Caucasian Cossacks among the Russians and Circassian Cavalry among the Turks.  Of course, when fighting independently on their own in the "Back of Beyond" against Imperial/Colonial forces (be they British, Russian, or some other meddling power), these same warriors could be known simply as "Circassians," "Turkomans," or perhaps "Khivans." And of course, in the great cultural overlap zone of the Balkans, various factions of these types could be found on many sides, in many contexts: from military operations to bandit raids.  Now, back to the update. My One Hour Skirmish variant is infantry only, and I wanted to add some dismounted elements of these warriors to my force. 

I very much liked the lines of the Copplestone figures I had used previously, but they do not make a dismounted Caucasian cavalry figure.  However, given their headgear and long coats, I found that the Copplestone Bolshevik Siberian Rifle figures had very similar lines, and so...

...going with the same color scheme, I repurposed them to represent dismounted Caucasian cavalry/cossacks. The epaulettes and piping were not part of the sculpt, so I did my black underpainting lazy man's blacklining) to make them stand out...  

...this small batch of painting will provide plenty of "bang for the buck." These can be put on the table in a Russo Turkish War scenario (with either side), or in the context of any type of small unit action ranging from the Balkans to the Oxus. 

Speaking of the Balkans, I added another layer to my "Grenzer" contingent. 

I saw this image of a reserve Grenzer in my Ficthenbauer and Ornter A History of the Austrian Army  book, and thought to myself, "Self, that looks familiar..."

...that fellow looks very much like the Keelman Miniatures figure in the Imperial Austrian Army 1848-49 line." And, I think you can guess the rest... 

In the Austrian militarized border regions, all the male population, from 16 to 60, were subject to military service. As such, there were several levels of duty. The "enrolled" grenzers were akin to what we would today call "active duty" and would make up the rank and file of the standing grenzer battalions. Beyond those, there would be several levels of part time and paramilitary service, specific names and particulars would evolve and change over the years. These would be akin to what we would today refer to as "reserve" forces. The first tier of reserve grenzers were responsible for policing and local defense. These figures represent these fellows, who would be rotating in and out of duty in a constabulary role: law enforcement, security, and turning out to fend off bandits and other hostile incursions. The uniform would be applicable well beyond the 1848/49 timeframe. 

When I was shopping about for the grenzers, I saw this figure of a Hungarian Catholic Chaplain among the Keelman offerings. Again I said to myself, "Self, that looks familiar..."

...and so it was. I suspect that the inspiration might have come from this illustration in the excellent Gyozo Smogyi Honved Army 1848-49 book. And so I used it as a painting guide (the all white "demon eyes" are my own addition). In the absence of any others, he can work as a leader figure for the local lads. 

Speaking of leaders, I tossed in two command figures to the batch (also from Keelman miniatures: a Hungarian National Guard officer and a Hungarian--Honved-- officer in "slant cap"). These could work with any of my Austrian contingents in a One Hour Skirmish game set in the Balkans or in a Hungarian Revolt scenario pitting my Hungarians against my Austrians.

Excelsior!