British Infantry Officers Battle Swords in the 19th C...and up to 1914

Peter Hudson · 25th October 2025, 03:28 AM

It has been said that the design of the Hilt on British Army Infantry Officers originated with the Scinde Irregular Cavalry in India. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_Horse_(Scinde_Horse) It appears to be a sort of rolled Indian floral design usually called Leaf pattern but it originated in Persia and gave rise to what we know in the UK as Paisley Tie Pattern or in India as Mirri Botteh... Leaf Pattern.
Indian metalworking craftsmen often cut patterns out on miniature brass boxes... I have a racing grasshopper box with incised design all over it... It seems probable that the style and design was taken as perfect for the Irregular Scinde Cavalry Hilts and the same design was the origin for the Paisley concept... which can be compared favourably on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paisley_(design)
View a good description on https://thelanesarmoury.co.uk/shop.php?code=25818 which shows the Leaf style and perhaps consider that the leaf pattern was a known Indian and Persian design and how it eventually influenced 19th Century British Sword Hilts... in Leaf Scroll or Leaf Pattern structuring...
Peter Hudson.

25th October 2025, 03:28 AM	#4
Peter Hudson Member Join Date: Jul 2020 Posts: 347	It has been said that the design of the Hilt on British Army Infantry Officers originated with the Scinde Irregular Cavalry in India. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_Horse_(Scinde_Horse) It appears to be a sort of rolled Indian floral design usually called Leaf pattern but it originated in Persia and gave rise to what we know in the UK as Paisley Tie Pattern or in India as Mirri Botteh... Leaf Pattern. Indian metalworking craftsmen often cut patterns out on miniature brass boxes... I have a racing grasshopper box with incised design all over it... It seems probable that the style and design was taken as perfect for the Irregular Scinde Cavalry Hilts and the same design was the origin for the Paisley concept... which can be compared favourably on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paisley_(design) View a good description on https://thelanesarmoury.co.uk/shop.php?code=25818 which shows the Leaf style and perhaps consider that the leaf pattern was a known Indian and Persian design and how it eventually influenced 19th Century British Sword Hilts... in Leaf Scroll or Leaf Pattern structuring... Peter Hudson. Last edited by Peter Hudson; 25th October 2025 at 04:08 AM.