British Cutlass – 24” Blade – Universal Swords

The Cutlass; the iconic sword of the seaman. Simple and effective, its robust design was used by Western navies for centuries. It was short for the close quarters of ship fighting, yet not so long as to be tangled in rigging or disadvantaged belowdecks. British, American and Australian navies were still doing routine cutlass drills for their sailors into the early years of the 20th century. It was not until 1936 that the Royal Navy officially relegated the cutlass to a ceremonial weapon.

There have been numerous accounts of enthusiastic boarding crews ably armed with cutlasses that have overwhelmed larger ships that would have outgunned them in a ranged fight. Such as the 1801 action between the British 14-gun Speedy and the Spanish 32-gun Gamo. A crew of 40 British sailors subdued a frigate three times their number by climbing over their railings, cutlasses in hand and calling for reinforcements that did not exist! The frightened Spanish soon surrendered.

This cutlass, made by Universal Swords of India, features a tempered high carbon blade that has been blackened. The hilt is of steel with a grip of brown painted wood sandwiched over the riveted tang. It comes with a leather and riveted scabbard with a brass chape.