A Comparison: The British Pattern 1796 Heavy Cavalry Trooper’s Sword and the Austrian Model 1769 Heavy Cavalry Pallasch
The British P1796 Heavy Cavalry Trooper’s Sword is probably best known as the sword of Richard Sharpe from the popular book series by Bernard Cornwell. In 1796 both heavy and light cavalry adopted new sword patterns. John Gaspard Le Marchant is credited with the creation of these sword patterns, as well as producing a manual on the use of the cavalry sword. The light cavalry sword is a bit more original in its design than the heavy cavalry sword, as the heavy cavalry sword was based on the earlier Austrian M1769 HC Pallasch. The Austrian M1769 is rather rare, at least in my area of the world, so it is not often that one can see the British and Austrian swords side by side. Thank you to Ivan B. at Sword Forum International for allowing me to share photos of his swords!
