HISTORICAL SMOOTH SABRE hussar

HISTORICAL SMOOTH SABRE hussar

Manufacturer: SPANISH DEPARTMENT armourers

Presented specimen is an exact replica of the original Polish Hussar sabre. Polish Hussar sabre is a common name of the sabres used in 17^th and 18^th century by the various types of cavalry, also by the hussars in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. It replaced used in the 16^th century Hungarian-Polish sabre ? Batorowka.

Specifications:

Length: 92 cm
Weight: 1,2 kg

This model has quite heavy, almost fully closed hilt, giving better control over the sabre. Extended cross-guard made of brass with moustache and richly ornamented offered greater resistance of the weapon by strengthening the joint between the blade and the hilt, and also protected the hand from the enemy blade. The pommel lightly moved forward covered by decorated, brass hood. The blade curved circular has smooth surface (without ornamentation) with a fuller on ? of blade?s length.

Historical sketch:

History of sabre in Polish military reaches the second half of the 15^th century. It appeared in Poland under the influence of the Hungarians, who maintained contacts with Turks.
Initially it was only weapon of light cavalry and infantry, but even knights, who used sword in the battle, willing to use the sabre while travelling, hunting and various festivals.
Above all, served them where they performed without armour, but wanted to have an effective weapon by side.
To the beginning of the 16^th century sabre gained a great popularity in Poland. Already in 1503, on the streets of Cracow people said, that no one wanted to buy swords, everyone preferred sabre.

So quick growth of popularity of sabre was related with military raids the Crimean Tatars into lands of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Tatars cavalry, armed with bows and sometimes also sabres were mostly highly mobile and uncatchable. They?re attacking  in a small groups called besh-bash (five heads). The reception of sabre into the polish army was necessity from the military point of view. An invasions of Crimean Khanate were especially often in 1474-1534 and in 1605-1633. Those raids, a lot of wars with Russia and also military alliance between Cossacks and Tatars (1648-1654) forced changes in the polish army, which extend beyond the armour modernization. After the reforms of polish parliament (sejm) in 1562 the vocational army called Permanent Defense (obrona potoczna) was replaced by quarter army (wojsko kwarciane) financed by a quarter of income from the regal land. Moreover at the beginnings of the 16^th century developed new military formation called Old Polish Unit (stare urządzenie polskie). Two strongest detachments set one after the other were supported on the flanks by three lines of smaller detachments. At the second half of the 16^th century to the unit included infantry and artillery.

The Polish Hussar, which at the beginning were light cavalry, at the half of the 16^th century took over the role of lancers. Armoured with a lance (only comrades), sabres, plate armour and helmets (often kettle hats), polish hussars were the base of polish army. From the 1630s the number of polish hussars were gradually reducing. Abandoned plate armour and replaced these with leopards and tigers skin leathers. They started to use pistols. In the 1690s, at the end of wars with Turks, the lances were replaced by muskets. The Polish Hussar proved to be the decisive factor in the spectacular wins in the following battles: battle of Curtea de Arges (1600), battle of Kircholm (1605), battle of Kłuszyn (1610), battle of Chocim (1621) and also battle of Vienna (1683). Polish Hussar existed to the half of the 18^th century.