The Albion Chevalier is named after the French term for knight (from the French cheval = horse; Old French chevalier; from Late Latin caballrius, horseman; Middle English chevaler; Modern English, cavalier.) A classic Medieval cruciform sword in design, with its long blade this would have excelled as a horseman's sword. The Chevalier is classified as an Oakeshott Type Xa. Oakeshott describes the typical Type Xa as a broad flat blade of medium length with a narrow fuller (narrower than a typical Type X, but not as narrow as a Type XI), running the entire length of the blade.
The Chevalier's blade is inspired by a beautiful sword in the Wallace Collection (London) with a hollow-ground cross-section. Scholars generally have dated this sword to the 14th century, but Oakeshott in Records of the Medieval Sword argues that it is probably much earlier — between 1050 and 1150 AD. The hilt design is inspired by the famous miniature by Matthew Paris (a Benedictine monk and chronicler), c 1250. The pommel is a scalloped wheel resembling a flower, the guard is a flattened diamond in cross-section. The grip is standard with a diamond-pattern strap overwrap secured with pins.
Though the point is narrow enough for thrusting, this is principally a cutting sword, designed for use against opponents in mail armour. This is a unique design for a Crusader era sword, elegant and yet still brutally functional.
The Albion Chevalier features a sharpened high carbon steel blade heat-treated to a fine temper in the Albion Forge Shop. The grip is of stabilized birch, wrapped with cord and covered with the highest grade vegetable-tanned calfskin. The guard is steel while the pommel is solid bronze.
When ordering please specify your color preference for both the under and over wrap on the grip. Options include combinations of Red, Black, Light Brown, Dark Brown & Oxblood.
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