1908 Patt WW1 British Cavalry Trooper’s
Sword (Sold) |
Good condition 1908 Pattern cavalry trooper's sabre, marked to
West Yorkshire Hussars, trooper's initials; abandoned in war time
France late 1917.
I bought this British 1908 Pattern cavalry troopers sabre from
France, near where the Germans managed to invade during their final
major offensive of World War 1 in the last part of 1917. The seller
said it had been abandoned / left behind by the soldier who "owned"
it.
The sword is marked at the top of the scabbard to "YYH",
the Yorkshire Yeomanry / Hussars. The blade shows an original issue
date of November 1912 and a reissue year of 1917. In August 1917
the Yorkshire Princess of Wales's Own Hussars were mostly disbanded
as a cavalry regiment and retrained as infantry; most men of which
were assigned to the 9th Battalion of The Prince of Wales's Own
Regiment of Yorkshire.
The grip of this sabre, as was normal, has the initials ("P
T") of the trooper scratched into it. I have searched the WW1
roll of honour database and can not find any serviceman with the
initials "PT" serving for either the 9th Battalion of
The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire or the Yorkshire
Yeomanry who perished in that conflict, so my presumption is he
was one of the lucky ones who made it home alive; although several
soldiers with the same initials serving in other battalions of the
The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire did get killed in
action, so my presumption is not 100%.
The scabbard and bowl guard have both the remnants of the "dark
khaki" paint used at that time for field service use; I removed
areas of the paint on the scabbard and small section of the bowl
guard to determine the regimental markings, etc. Generally in good
condition and with the blade both firm in the hilt and holding the
scabbard well, it is rare to get a sword with such a history.
Further pictures available upon request.
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