Last traditional European sword

[Radboud]

Originally Posted by Yvain

My apologies, I guess my question was not properly worded.

I was wondering what was the last sword used by Europeans / Europeans descent that was NOT a military weapon (ie : regulated / issued).

I know that swords were used in European armies up to WW1 and are still part of some dress uniforms, but I'm actually curious about the civilian side of sword ownership.

From our previous discussion, it seemed to me that the espada ancha / machete could be considered as one of the last non-military sword used by Europeans or Europeans descent, but I'm wondering if there is others, perhaps used more recently.

If you are referring to a sword carried for the purpose of self-defence (honour or person) where the wielder likely has some ability with the weapon, then you're probably looking at smallswords of the late 18th and early 19th Century. After that, firearms became more prevalent as they were easier to carry, effective and simpler to use.

The other consideration is sword canes, which I believe were carried into the 20th Century.

Similarly, many Eastern European cultures have their own cultural knives / short swords that were likely openly carried well into the early 20th Century, but I am less familiar with those.