Windlass – British 1796 Heavy Cavalry Sword

This reproduction of the famed British 1796 Heavy Cavalry Saber from Windlass is strongly constructed with a live and sharp blade ready for powerful cutting action. The blade has a thick spine for durability and to give it the mass needed to power through a cut – weight is reduced with the wide blade fuller and the blade itself is forged from 1065 high carbon steel which is well-tempered. The hilt is likewise crafted from mild steel and the wooden grip is bound in ribbed black leather. The sword is matched with a steel scabbard with steel hanging rings for wear.

Forged in the crucible of the Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars, the 1796 Heavy Cavalry Sword, immortalized as Sharpe’s Sword in the famed 1990s British television series, thundered across battlefields in the hands of Britain’s elite Lifeguards, Royal Horse Guards, Dragoon Guards, and Dragoons. A direct descendant of the Austrian Pallasch 1769, this formidable backsword was born from the keen observations of British cavalry officer John Le Marchant, who meticulously sketched Austrian weaponry during the Low Countries Campaign of 1793–95. His influence likely shaped the adoption of this pattern, a weapon that carved its legend at Salamanca and Waterloo.

This is no elegant duelist’s blade. The 1796 Heavy Cavalry Sword is a brutal instrument of war, its straight, single-edged blade reinforced with a thickened spine for devastating power, ts robust construction made it a favorite of mounted troops, who wielded its basket guard as a knuckle-duster in close quarters. The blade, tempered for battle, features a single broad fuller on each side, balancing weight and strength. Its ribbed leather grip ensures a steadfast hold, while the iconic basket hilt—crafted with a pierced disc guard adorned with two semicircular and six oval holes, a single knucklebow, and dual 2″ langets—locks securely to the tang, riveting hilt to blade with unyielding stability. The langets grip the scabbard’s throat, ensuring the sword remains sheathed until drawn for war.