THE ROYAL NAVY CUTLASS.

[CutlassCollector]

Hi Ibrahiim,

Thanks for the link to John Carters article - I had not seen that before. It's a good summary of the British RN standard patterns with good photographs and even includes some of the less well known variants.
Regards, CC

[Victrix]

Interestingly some people are convinced that the animal represented on the pommel is a dolphin.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by Victrix

Interestingly some people are convinced that the animal represented on the pommel is a dolphin.

Salaams Victrix,
Yes it is ...On swords of The Confederate Navy Officers~ for which an excellent video exists at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2VY3_5P6IQ
These swords were made in England in two centres by Birmingham; Robert Mole and London Ferman and Sons..The importer was in Charleston which is stamped on the Forte. On the sword at video you will see the Wilkinson mark as a six pointed star and the Proof Slug in the centre. The second video in sequence deals with that mark. Essentially suggesting strength and Unbreakableness...

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by CutlassCollector

Hi Ibrahiim,

Thanks for the link to John Carters article - I had not seen that before. It's a good summary of the British RN standard patterns with good photographs and even includes some of the less well known variants.
Regards, CC

Salaams Cutlass Collector ...Welcome aboard the thread ~ Staying with John Carter I note the quantity of Swords/Cutlasses on board an RN Vessel Quote"~In an establishment of stores dated 11 October 1677 a ship of the line (1st rate between 60 &100 guns) was allowed 50 Swords and 70 Hangers. (not sure which of these would be cutlasses, probably the swords) This establishment works out to about one sword/hanger for every 5 or 6 men. Swords were stowed in locked racks, being unlocked when the ship cleared for action. Some are marked with their rack number on a disc attached to the hilt. One of mine is marked “Q.D.9” on a copper disc, meaning quarterdeck No9.
Prior to 1800 the cutlass hilt was in the
form of a figure of eight or double disc, the grip was a cylinder of wrapped steel, the blade plain and straight, (mine is grooved)
and stamped with a ‘Fleur de lis’mark,probably (T Hollier 1720-1740) length varied, but around 28 to 29 inches (71-74cm)"Unquote.

The last part of the paragraph is in itself a revelation as questions related to FDL (Fleur De Lys) crop up across the European Forum since the mark is French prior to the Revolution...and also thought to be a German mark... of course these could be imported blades we are looking at ...and refinished in England.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

So what was 100 Gun Ship of the Line like? Here is HMS ROYAL GEORGE.

HMS "Royal George", 100-guns first rate ship of the line launch at Woolwich in 1756.

In the armouries 50 swords and 70 hangars... By swords it meant probably Naval Swords since the term Cutlass had not yet been coined by the Royal Navy.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

We can observe a battle involving boarding and hand to hand fighting involving Cutlasses thus to study the devastating effects of this weapon!and its use in the Royal Navy.

More casualties occurred in this single action than to HMS Victory's crew in the Battle of Trafalgar.

The case study being seen on~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_USS_Chesapeake

As a pre-amble this is the historical note ~110...The Capture of USS Chesapeake, or the Battle of Boston Harbor, was fought on 1 June 1813, between the Royal Navy's frigate HMS Shannon and American frigate USS Chesapeake, as part of the War of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain. The Chesapeake was captured in a brief but intense action in which over 80 men were killed.

[CutlassCollector]

The Shannon v. Chesapeake duel is also well described by Gilkerson in 'Boarders Away'.
He also includes the casualty list from the Shannon which lists the frequency and the cause of each death and wound.

This makes for interesting reading.
First place is taken by small calibre ball wounds - 33, followed by larger calibre ie: grapeshot, 22. Cutlass wounds were surprisingly few at 5 with two more attributed to pike or bayonet. The remainder were wounds caused by splinters or impact damage.
Unfortunately the much lengthier list for the American ship has not survived but there were reportedly many more cutlass and pike wounds. Presumably, at least in part, due to the boarding action where the Brits were on the offensive.

CC

[cornelistromp]

Michiel de Ruyter 1667.
Ceylon (in 1972 called Sri Lanka)was a Dutch colony from1640-1796.

best,
Jasper

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Lovely artwork though is it a Cutlass? Certainly it shows the Lionhead potential for a Castane or Dutch derivative sword. The Dutch were there for a whole lot longer than that but as you point out these were the dates for their official period in Sri Lanka at the time. He has a Globe which looks like an Ortelius Dutch map / chartmaker.

This was one of the finest Dutch Admirals in History~ Please See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michiel_de_Ruyter

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by CutlassCollector

The Shannon v. Chesapeake duel is also well described by Gilkerson in 'Boarders Away'.
He also includes the casualty list from the Shannon which lists the frequency and the cause of each death and wound.

This makes for interesting reading.
First place is taken by small calibre ball wounds - 33, followed by larger calibre ie: grapeshot, 22. Cutlass wounds were surprisingly few at 5 with two more attributed to pike or bayonet. The remainder were wounds caused by splinters or impact damage.
Unfortunately the much lengthier list for the American ship has not survived but there were reportedly many more cutlass and pike wounds. Presumably, at least in part, due to the boarding action where the Brits were on the offensive.

CC

The excellence in gunnery by the Shannons skipper showed up well in contact. He was the innovator of several methods of coordinating and directing the guns. As you say the Brits were devastating at close range with the Cutlass and many casualties ensued. Arguably this was the fiercest engagement where boarding parties were used at sea in history! The Captain also introduced stick fighting in preparation for Cutlass training...A ploy that also seems to have worked. He also stopped a sword or cutlass with his head, unfortunately, but survived though he would be unable to command again. He was obviously an officer imbued with the right leadership spirit of Leadership from the Point of the Spear !!!

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

The excellence in gunnery by the Shannons skipper showed up well in contact. He was the innovator of several methods of coordinating and directing the guns. As you say the Brits were devastating at close range with the Cutlass and many casualties ensued. Arguably this was the fiercest engagement where boarding parties were used at sea in history! The Captain also introduced stick fighting in preparation for Cutlass training...A ploy that also seems to have worked. He also stopped a sword or cutlass with his head, unfortunately, but survived though he would be unable to command again. He was obviously an officer imbued with the right leadership spirit of Leadership from the Point of the Spear !!!

An account of this event with this captain is told in "British Naval Swords & Swordsmanship", (John McGrath and Mark Barton, 2013, p14)where there is an account titled 'Treatment of a Wound from a Sabre Cut' given.

Apparently Captain P.B.V. Broke of the Shannon while boarding the Cheasapeake, received a serious blow to the head with a sword which extended from top of his head across the left parietal bone to his ear. He was badly weakened from blood loss and underwent a period of recovery, and apparently as noted did not ever command a ship again, but was awarded a title of Baron for his valor and achievements.