Arms collecting and nostalgia

[Norman McCormick]

Hi Jim,
Some more 1950's childrens t.v. series on British screens that gave me the arms and armour bug. Interestingly in the series William Tell I noticed that some of the 'Swiss' daggers used are actually Axis dress daggers some of which were of course designed on real historical types. In the fifties of course loads of bringbacks from WW2 so no surprise some ended up in wardrobe departments. Some of the actors went on to do bigger things notably Roger Moore and Robert Shaw.
My Regards,
Norman.

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by Norman McCormick

Hi Jim,
Some more 1950's childrens t.v. series on British screens that gave me the arms and armour bug. Interestingly in the series William Tell I noticed that some of the 'Swiss' daggers used are actually Axis dress daggers some of which were of course designed on real historical types. In the fifties of course loads of bringbacks from WW2 so no surprise some ended up in wardrobe departments. Some of the actors went on to do bigger things notably Roger Moore and Robert Shaw.
My Regards,
Norman.

Excellent examples Norman!!! It is true many weapons brought back from WWII ended up in wardrobe departments of movie studios. In the 'MISC' forum is the thread on the numbers of actual antique arms used in films.
Those Swiss 'Holbein' daggers (for Hans Holbein who fashioned macabre decoration on the scabbard in 1521) were well known as prestigious dress daggers there until early 17th c. How they ended up as 'German axis' regalia is hard to explain, but it certainly tarnished their character IMO.

The William Tell legend was really popular back in the 50s but the topic seems to have waned later. I doubt if any young people these days would have any idea who William Tell was. However the other films with buccaneers remain known, but collectively as 'pirate' films.

[Ed]

Lathe swords and garbage can cover shields

I have nothing else to add.

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by Ed

Lathe swords and garbage can cover shields

I have nothing else to add.

Ed, you can say more in several words than I can in pages!
Of course, those items were ubiquitous in virtually most boys backyard epic battles!

[Ed]

Originally Posted by Jim McDougall

Ed, you can say more in several words than I can in pages!
Of course, those items were ubiquitous in virtually most boys backyard epic battles!

Particularly after bingeing on Ivanhoe and Robin Hood with the sainted Richard Greene.

I made a bicycle inner tube castle defense cross bow thing that fired a 3 foot plat stake. To this day I shudder at the thought of shooting it at another kid. I did BTW but somehow realized that it wasn't a great idea.

Let me rephrase that: it was a great idea, just not if aimed at other kids.

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by Ed

Particularly after bingeing on Ivanhoe and Robin Hood with the sainted Richard Greene.

I made a bicycle inner tube castle defense cross bow thing that fired a 3 foot plat stake. To this day I shudder at the thought of shooting it at another kid. I did BTW but somehow realized that it wasn't a great idea.

Let me rephrase that: it was a great idea, just not if aimed at other kids.

Yikes Ed! You must have been a formidable foe in these 'war games'. Most of the stuff was 'wild west' with the popularity of the western films, but the popping cap guns were pretty harmless. BUT, BB guns (the trusty Daisy and Red Ryder) rifles uh, ouch!

[Jim McDougall]

As a boy of about 9, I saw the movie "King of the Khyber Rifles" with Tyrone Power. My interest in the British in India was already raging with "Gunga Din" and "Lives of a Bengal Lancer". This movie, in color, was larger than life, and it seems there were caves and drama, intrigue which fascinated me. However, the title made a deep impression and I wondered in years to follow, 'just WHAT was a Khyber Rifle?
I did not recall or realize that the character in the movie was Capt, Alan King, played by Tyrone Power.
Years passed, and in the early 70s, I saw a newspaper article about the Khyber Pass titled something like 'still heading them off at the Khyber' and mentioned the 1953 film.......I was gone!!!

Years of research led me to the book "King of the Khyber Rifles" (Talbot Mundy, 1916) the basis for the movies..............then further I found that this was based on Sir Robert Burton titled "Eighteen Years in the Khyber" (1900) and told of his exploits commanding native units there in late 19th c.
Like in the Mundy book and movie, Warburton was both British and Afghan.

The 'Khyber Rifles' were a British army police levy comprised mostly of Afridi forces who were originally armed with their own tribal jezail long guns. These tribesmen were deadly snipers with these guns as told by Kipling in his famed poem "Frontier Arithmetic". ....and the book by Warburton has one of these on the cover (pictured).

In time the unit replaced the jezails with the modified Snider-Enfield rifle , a muzzle load musket converted to breech loading. A number of years later, these were replaced with the Martini-Henry rifle, also breech load.

So HERE were the KHYBER RIFLES, actually a British paramilitary unit in the Khyber Pass, and THESE were the types of rifles used.
The seeds of my curiosity planted in that movie seen as a young boy, and recalled two decades later, sent me on a quest researching this to the present day, and acquiring these rifles.
The badge was incredibly elusive and found one just two years ago.