48-753: The Lăncieri (" Lancers ", Romanian pronunciation: [lən.tʃi'erʲ] ) were a Romanian fascist paramilitary movement initially attached to the National-Christian Defense League , and following the merger on 16 July 1935 of the NCDL and the National Agrarian Party to form the National Christian Party , the Lăncieri became associated with the merged party. Members of the group adopted
96-505: A Turkic source. In a more recent suggestion, the Hungarian word may ultimately derive from a Tungusic source, via Kipchak Turkic selebe , with later metathesis (of l-b to b-l ) and apocope changed to *seble , which would have changed its vocalisation in Hungarian to the recorded sabla , perhaps under the influence of the Hungarian word szab- "to crop; cut (into shape)". Though single-edged cutting swords already existed in
144-645: A blue shirt uniform and contributed to the country's political street battles in the 1920s and 1930s, and were noted in the 1920s for their attacks on that party's main target, the Jews , as well as general disruption of university life. Following the merger that formed the National Christian Party, the Lăncieri continued their wild ways, rivalling the Iron Guard (with whom they frequently clashed) in their violence and mayhem. Between 1935 and 1937,
192-630: A key scene in Doctor Zhivago . The sabre was later phased out in favour of the baton , or nightstick, for both practical and humanitarian reasons. The Gendarmerie of Belgium used them until at least 1950, and the Swedish police forces until 1965. Swords with sabre blades remain a component of the dress uniforms worn by most national army, navy, air force, marine and coast guard officers . Some militaries also issue ceremonial swords to their highest-ranking non-commissioned officers ; this
240-595: A ready source of recruitment for several armies, willingly or unwillingly. Polish lancers served with distinction in the Austrian, Prussian, Russian, and French armies, most famously in Napoleon's French Imperial Guard as the 1er Regiment de Chevau-Legers-Lanciers de la Garde Impériale . At the Battle of Waterloo , French lances were "nearly 3 metres (9.8 ft) long, weighed around 3 kilograms (6.6 lb), and had
288-463: A slight curve, short, down-turned quillons , the grip facing the opposite direction to the blade and a sharp point with the top third of the reverse edge sharpened. The introduction of the sabre proper in Western Europe, along with the term sabre itself, dates to the 17th century, via the influence of the szabla type ultimately derived from these medieval backswords. The adoption of
336-485: A specific type of sabre-like melee weapon, the szabla , was used. Richly decorated sabres were popular among the Polish nobility , who considered it to be one of the most important pieces of men's traditional attire. With time, the design of the sabre greatly evolved in the commonwealth and gave birth to a variety of sabre-like weapons, intended for many tasks. In the following centuries, the ideology of Sarmatism as well as
384-453: A steel point on a wooden staff," according to historian Alessandro Barbero . He adds that they were "terrifyingly efficient." Commander of the French 1st Corps, 4th Division General Durutte , who saw the battle from the high ground in front of Papelotte , would write later, "I had never before realized the great superiority of the lance over the sword." Although having substantial impact in
432-720: A straight, single edged sword, and in the sixth century CE a longer, slightly curved cavalry variety of this weapon appeared in southern Siberia. This "proto-sabre" (the Turko-Mongol sabre ) had developed into the true cavalry sabre by the eight century CE, and by the ninth century, it had become the usual side arm on the Eurasian steppes. The sabre arrived in Europe with the Magyars and the Turkic expansion . These oldest sabres had
480-444: Is seen as an honour since, typically, non-commissioned, enlisted / other-rank military service members are instead issued a cutlass blade rather than a sabre. Swords in the modern military are no longer used as weapons, and serve only ornamental or ceremonial functions. One distinctive modern use of sabres is in the sabre arch , performed for servicemen or women getting married. The modern fencing sabre bears little resemblance to
528-550: The Confederate side—eventually abandoned the long, heavy weapons in favour of revolvers and carbines . The last sabre issued to US cavalry was the Patton saber of 1913, designed to be mounted to the cavalryman's saddle. The Patton saber is only a saber in name as it is a straight, thrust-centric sword. A US War Department circular dated 18 April 1934 announced that the saber would no longer be issued to cavalry, and that it
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#1732790139328576-560: The Lăncieri carried out more terrorist actions and pogroms throughout Romania than the Iron Guard. The 1937 general election campaign in particular was marred by clashes between the two fascist groups and not even the intervention of Alfred Rosenberg could unite the warring factions. Clashes between the two groups would continue, although the Lăncieri owed much of their organisation to the Iron Guard and indeed their continuing existence
624-476: The Thirty Years' War . Lighter sabres also became popular with infantry of the early 17th century. In the 19th century, models with less curving blades became common and were also used by heavy cavalry . The military sabre was used as a duelling weapon in academic fencing in the 19th century, giving rise to a discipline of modern sabre fencing (introduced in the 1896 Summer Olympics ) loosely based on
672-454: The charge , lancers could be more vulnerable to other cavalry units in close quarters combat , where the lance proved to be a clumsy and easily deflected weapon when employed against sabres in a mêlée. By the late 19th century, many cavalry regiments in Eurasian armies were composed of troopers with lances, as primary weapons, in the front rank and horsemen with sabres only in the second:
720-474: The 1920s and 1930s, the use of lances ceased for active service in most armies. The German cavalry retained the lance as a service weapon until 1927, as did the British cavalry until 1928. Some other armies retained lance-armed cavalry units for ceremonial purposes only. The Polish cavalry did not discard the lance as a weapon until 1934 or 1937 and continued to use it for training and ceremonial purposes until
768-481: The 1930s onward. Where horse-mounted cavalry survived into World War II it was generally as mounted infantry without sabres. However the sabre was still carried by German cavalry until after the Polish campaign of 1939, after which this historic weapon was put into storage in 1941. Romanian cavalry continued to carry their straight "thrusting" sabres on active service until at least 1941. Sabres were commonly used by
816-601: The Ancient world, such as the ancient Egyptian and Sumerian sickle swords , these (usually forward instead of backward curving) weapons were chopping weapons for foot soldiers. This type of weapon developed into such heavy chopping weapons as the Greek Machaira and Anatolian Drepanon, and it still survives as the heavy Kukri chopping knife of the Gurkhas . However, in ancient China foot soldiers and cavalry often used
864-466: The Austrians and Hungarians. Le Marchant also developed the first official British military sword exercise manual based on this experience, and his light cavalry sabre, and style of swordsmanship went on to heavily influence the training of the infantry and the navy. The 1796 light cavalry sword was known for its brutal cutting power, easily severing limbs, and leading to the (unsubstantiated) myth that
912-526: The British army in 1788 led to a brief departure from the sabre in infantry use (though not for light cavalry), in favour of the lighter and straight bladed spadroon . The spadroon was universally unpopular, and many officers began to unofficially purchase and carry sabres once more. In 1799, the army accepted this under regulation for some units, and in 1803, produced a dedicated pattern of sabre for certain infantry officers (flank, rifle and staff officers). The 1803 pattern quickly saw much more widespread use than
960-554: The British in the Napoleonic era for light cavalry and infantry officers, as well as others. The elegant but effective 1803 pattern sword that the British Government authorized for use by infantry officers during the wars against Napoleon featured a curved sabre blade which was often blued and engraved by the owner in accordance with his personal taste, and was based on the famously agile 1796 light cavalry sabre that
1008-600: The French put in an official complaint to the British about its ferocity. This sword also saw widespread use with mounted artillery units, and the numerous militia units established in Britain to protect against a potential invasion by Napoleon. Though the sabre had already become very popular in Britain, experience in Egypt did lead to a fashion trend for mameluke sword style blades, a type of Middle Eastern scimitar , by some infantry and cavalry officers. These blades differ from
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#17327901393281056-540: The Hungarian word to neighboring European languages took place in the context of the Ottoman wars in Europe of the 15th to 17th centuries. The spelling saber became common in American English in the second half of the 19th century. The origin of the Hungarian word is unclear. It may itself be a loan from South Slavic ( Serbo-Croatian sablja , Common Slavic *sabľa ), which would ultimately derive from
1104-525: The Ottoman prototype, their blades, even when an expanded yelman was incorporated, tended to be longer, narrower and less curved than those of the true kilij. In the American Civil War , the sabre was used infrequently as a weapon, but saw notable deployment in the Battle of Brandy Station and at East Cavalry Field at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863. Many cavalrymen—particularly on
1152-584: The Polish fascination with Oriental cultures, customs, cuisine and warfare resulted in the szabla becoming an indispensable part of traditional Polish culture. The sabre saw extensive military use in the early 19th century, particularly in the Napoleonic Wars , during which Napoleon used heavy cavalry charges to great effect against his enemies. Shorter versions of the sabre were also used as sidearms by dismounted units, although these were gradually replaced by fascine knives and sword bayonets as
1200-802: The United States ( National Lancers, Massachusetts Organized Militia ) Although not classified as lancers, the Brazilian Army 's Dragões da Independência (1st Guards Regiment) and the elite soldiers of the Colombian National Army are called Lanceros . The Portuguese National Republican Guard horse squadrons carry lances on mounted parades, as do many cavalry regiments in South America such as Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru. The modern Italian Regiment "Lancieri di Montebello" (8th) parade detachments armed with
1248-843: The United States Marine Corps; in this last capacity, it is still in such use at the present time. The American victory over the rebellious forces in the citadel of Tripoli in 1805, during the First Barbary War , led to the presentation of bejewelled examples of these swords to the senior officers of the US Marines . Officers of the US Marine Corps still use a mameluke-pattern dress sword. Although some genuine Turkish kilij sabres were used by Westerners, most "mameluke sabres" were manufactured in Europe; although their hilts were very similar in form to
1296-462: The cavalry sabre, having a thin, 88 cm (35 in) long straight blade. Rather, it is based upon the Italian dueling saber of classical fencing. One of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing , it is a very fast-paced weapon with bouts characterized by quick footwork and cutting with the edge. The valid target area is from the waist up excluding the hands. The concept of attacking above
1344-408: The century went on. Although there was extensive debate over the effectiveness of weapons such as the sabre and lance , the sabre remained the standard weapon of cavalry for mounted action in most armies until World War I and in a few armies until World War II . Thereafter it was gradually relegated to the status of a ceremonial weapon , and most horse cavalry was replaced by armoured cavalry from
1392-521: The characteristics of the historical weapon, although in Olympic fencing, only cuts are allowed. The English sabre is recorded from the 1670s, as a direct loan from French, where sabre is an alteration of sable , which was in turn loaned from German Säbel , Sabel in the 1630s. The German word is on record from the 15th century, loaned from Polish szabla , which was itself adopted from Hungarian szabla (14th century, later szablya ). The spread of
1440-402: The core of light cavalry formations created there. The Hungarian term szablya is ultimately traced to the northwestern Turkic selebe , with contamination from the Hungarian verb szab "to cut". The original type of sabre, or Polish szabla , was used as a cavalry weapon, possibly inspired by Hungarian or wider Turco-Mongol warfare. The karabela was a type of szabla popular in
1488-778: The improved range and accuracy of infantry muskets and rifles, the high profile presented by lancers with their conspicuous weapons became a problem. Lancers were trained to lower their lances when scouting on hilltops , to help avoid detection by enemy combatants . In 1914, lances were still being carried by regiments in the British , Indian , French , Prussian , Italian , Chilean , Portuguese , Japanese , Spanish , Ottoman , Belgian , Argentine , and Russian armies, among others. Almost all German cavalry branches (cuirassiers, hussars, dragoons, and uhlans) retained steel tube lances ( stahlrohrlanze ) 3.2 meters (10 ft) in length, as their primary weapon. As late as 1914, half of
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1536-409: The lances carried as combat weapons until 1920. Sabre A sabre or ( American English ) saber ( / ˈ s eɪ b ər / SAY -bər ) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the early modern and Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such as the hussars , the sabre became widespread in Western Europe during
1584-443: The lances for the initial shock and sabres for the ensuing mêlée . Lancers typically wore a double-breasted jacket ( kurtka ) with a coloured panel at the front ( plastron ), a coloured band of cloth ( sash ), and a square-topped cap ( czapka ). Their lance usually had a small swallow-tailed flag ( pennon ), just below the lance head. The pennons were normally removed or wrapped in a canvas cover during active service . With
1632-463: The last European units to abandon their armour. There was debate over the value of the lance in mounted combat during the 17th and 18th centuries, with most armies having very few lancer units by the beginning of the 19th century. However, during the Napoleonic Wars , lancers were to be seen in many of the combatant nations as their value in shock tactics became clear. During the wars, the Poles became
1680-444: The late 16th century, before its revival by light cavalry in the early 19th century. The lancer ( Polish : ułan , German: Ulan , French: uhlan ) had become a common sight in the majority of European, Ottoman, and Indian cavalry forces during this time, but, with the exception of the Ottoman troops, they increasingly discarded the heavy armour to give greater freedom of movement in combat. The Polish "winged" lancers were amongst
1728-591: The late 17th century, worn by the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth nobility class, the szlachta . While designed as a cavalry weapon, it also came to replace various types of straight-bladed swords used by infantry. The Swiss sabre originated as a regular sword with a single-edged blade in the early 16th century, but by the 17th century began to exhibit specialized hilt types. In the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (16th–18th century)
1776-666: The more effective armes blanche (i.e. mêlée weapons) for cavalry, but neither proved a match for modern firearms and/or artillery . Some armies continued to use lances throughout the war, but they seldom saw use on the Western Front after initial clashes in France and Belgium in 1914. On the Eastern Front , mounted cavalry still had a role and lances saw limited use by the Russian, German, and Austrian armies. During
1824-399: The more typical British ones in that they have more extreme curvatures, in that they are usually not fullered, and in that they taper to a finer point. Mameluke swords also gained some popularity in France as well. Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington , himself carried a mameluke-style sword. In 1831, the 'Mameluke' sword became the pattern sword for British generals, as well as officers of
1872-996: The outbreak of World War II . Some modern armored cavalry units are still designated as lancer regiments for historical and ceremonial reasons. There are examples in the armies of Spain (the King's Lancers Troop of the Royal Guard 's Escort Squadron and the Bourbon's Lancers Group of the 11th Cavalry Regiment), United Kingdom ( Royal Lancers ), India ( 2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse) and 20th Lancers ), Belgium ( 1/3rd Lancers Battalion ), Portugal ( 2nd Lancers Regiment ), Pakistan , Italy ( 5th Lancieri di Novara, 6th Lancieri di Aosta, 8th Lancieri di Montebello ), Australia ( 12th/16th Hunter River Lancers , 1st/15th Royal New South Wales Lancers ), Argentina (2nd Tank Cavalry Regiment "General Paz's Lancers"), Canada ( Lord Strathcona's Horse ), Chile (5th Cavalry Regiment "Lancers"), and
1920-437: The regulation intended due to its effectiveness in combat, and fashionable appeal. The most famous British sabre of the Napoleonic era is the 1796 light cavalry model, used by troopers and officers alike (officers versions can vary a little, but are much the same as the pattern troopers sword). It was in part designed by the famous John Le Marchant , who worked to improve on the previous (1788) design based on his experience with
1968-426: The sword and style of swordsmanship in British sources. The popularity of sabres had spread rapidly through Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries, and finally came to dominance as a military weapon in the British army in the 18th century, though straight blades remained in use by some, such as heavy cavalry units. (These were also replaced by sabres soon after the Napoleonic era.) The introduction of 'pattern' swords in
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2016-413: The term is connected to the employment of Hungarian hussar ( huszár ) cavalry by Western European armies at the time. Hungarian hussars were employed as light cavalry , with the role of harassing enemy skirmishers , overrunning artillery positions, and pursuing fleeing troops. In the late 17th and early 18th centuries, many Hungarian hussars fled to other Central and Western European countries and became
2064-545: The troopers in each Russian regular cavalry regiment (hussars, uhlans, and dragoons) carried lances on active service, as did all cossacks . The British cavalry lost the lance for all but ceremonial use in 1903, following the Second Boer War ; but a conservative revaluation led to its reintroduction as an active service weapon from 1909 to 1928. The French army did not have lancer regiments as such, but steel lances 2.97 meters (9.7 ft) in length were carried by
2112-532: The twenty-six dragoon regiments and some light cavalry units in 1914. The French had earlier tested the Indian bamboo lances used by the British cavalry, but had rated them as being too fragile for the shock of encounter. The six Italian lancieri regiments still in existence until 1920 carried the 1870 model of ashwood lance, noted for its balance and manageability. Prior to the outbreak of World War I , there had been controversy as to whether lances or sabres were
2160-494: The waist only is a 20th-century change to the sport; previously sabreurs used to pad their legs against cutting slashes from their opponents. The reason for the above waist rule is unknown, as the sport of sabre fencing is based on the use of infantry sabres, not cavalry sabres. In recent years, Saber fencing has been developing in Historical European Martial Arts , with blades that closely resemble
2208-610: Was as much an attempt to attract interest away from that group. Lancer A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance . Lances were used for mounted warfare in Assyria as early as 700 BC and subsequently by India, Egypt, China, Persia , Greece , and Rome . The weapon was widely used throughout Eurasia during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance by heavy cavalry , but fell out of general use by
2256-467: Was renowned for its brutal cutting power. Sabres were commonly used throughout this era by all armies, in much the same way that the British did. The popularity of the sabre had rapidly increased in Britain throughout the 18th century for both infantry and cavalry use. This influence was predominately from southern and eastern Europe, with the Hungarians and Austrians listed as sources of influence for
2304-407: Was to be completely discarded for use as a weapon. Only dress sabers, for use by officers only, and strictly as a badge of rank, were to be retained. During the 19th and into the early 20th century, sabres were also used by both mounted and dismounted personnel in some European police forces. When the sabre was used by mounted police against crowds, the results could be devastating, as portrayed in
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