Royal Navy cutlasses facts for kids
The Royal Navy, Great Britain's powerful navy, has used a special type of sword called a cutlass for a very long time. These short, wide-bladed swords have been around since the early 1700s. At first, they weren't all the same, but then the Navy started making standard designs.
The first official Navy cutlass was the 1804 Pattern. It was a bit blunt, probably meant for cutting ropes and sails rather than for stabbing enemies. Later, the 1845 Pattern came out with a cool bowl-shaped handguard for better protection. Its blade was longer, more curved, and sharper, making it better for thrusting attacks, which became important in Navy training.
Over the years, the 1845 Pattern was changed a few times, sometimes making the blades shorter and straighter, which also made them weaker. The 1889 Pattern had a straight, spear-pointed blade and a hilt (the handle part) that curved outwards to help block an opponent's sword. The 1900 Pattern was the last official Navy cutlass. It was similar to the 1889 version but had a groove called a fuller on the blade and a special cushion for the user's little finger.
The cutlass was officially stopped from being used in battles in 1936, but you can still see it today in special ceremonies. It's believed the last time a cutlass was used in a real fight was in 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion in China.
Besides the cutlass, the Royal Navy also made cutlass-style bayonets for some of its rifles in the mid-1800s. The first was in 1859 for the Pattern 1853 Enfield rifle. This bayonet could be held like a sword or attached to the rifle. However, it wasn't great for either job because its handle didn't protect the hand enough, and it made the rifle feel unbalanced. When the Martini-Henry rifle came along, a new 1871 Pattern cutlass bayonet was introduced. Many of these were made by cutting down older 1859 bayonets, which made them weaker. When the Navy started using the Lee–Metford rifle in 1888, they stopped making their own cutlass bayonets and just used the standard ones the army used.
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What is a Cutlass?
A cutlass is a short sword with a wide blade that usually has only one sharp edge and is often curved. In the Royal Navy, these swords were bought by the government and given to the ratings, who were the regular sailors (not officers). Officers had their own long swords, and midshipmen (officers in training) carried small daggers called dirks. Royal Marines, who were soldiers on ships, didn't get cutlasses; they used bayonets for their rifles.
When sailors would board an enemy ship, the first group of attackers often carried a cutlass and a pistol. The second group would have more defensive weapons, like boarding pikes (long spears).
The cutlass might have come from a sword called a "hanger," which was a short, curved sword used by the Royal Navy in the 1600s. The Navy never officially called a specific sword design a "cutlass." Instead, they used names like "Sword for Sea Service" or "Sword, Naval." But everyone, even in official documents, commonly called it a "cutlass." For example, the Navy's training manual talked about "cutlass" exercises.
Early Cutlasses
From the early 1700s, the cutlass became the main close-combat weapon for Navy sailors. The Board of Ordnance, which was in charge of supplying weapons, ordered many of these swords. However, it seems there wasn't a single design, and different manufacturers made their own styles.
Old cutlasses from this time usually had blades about 25 to 28.5 inches (63.5 to 72.4 cm) long, with a groove called a fuller along the back edge. The handles, or hilts, were sometimes made of brass and sometimes steel. Brass was cheaper and didn't rust as easily as steel, but it was heavier and could get damaged more easily. Many old brass hilts show damage to the handguard or the crossguard (the part that sticks out at the back of the grip).
By the mid-1700s, making steel became cheaper, so the Royal Navy started using steel hilts. These hilts were often painted black to stop them from rusting. Around the same time, the Board of Ordnance preferred a "double disc" or "figure of eight" hilt design. This design likely came from a supplier named Thomas Hollier, who sold 1,000 cutlasses in 1726. This hilt had one metal circle above the hand as a crossguard and another circle as a knuckle guard. While antler was used for grips before, the Board switched to a plain, tube-shaped steel grip, which was cheaper but could be slippery when wet.
The 1804 Pattern Cutlass
In 1804, the Board of Ordnance created its first standard cutlass design. They ordered 10,000 "Swords for Sea Service" in May of that year. By this time, large warships could carry hundreds of cutlasses.
The blade of the 1804 Pattern cutlass was almost straight and didn't have a fuller. It was about 27.8 to 29.2 inches (70.8 to 74.3 cm) long and 1.2 to 1.5 inches (3.2 to 3.8 cm) wide. Many old examples have a somewhat blunt point, and the blade wasn't very stiff, making it poor for thrusting. This might have been to save money, or because the sword was meant for cutting with its edge. One idea is that it was used for cutting ropes and canvas, where a heavy blade was helpful.
The 1804 Pattern cutlass had a double disc guard, but the crossguard was a small roll of steel. The smooth, tube-shaped grip was replaced with a cast-iron one, shaped to fit the hand with grooves (usually 18 around and six lengthwise) to improve grip. Like many 1700s cutlasses, it didn't have a pommel (the knob at the end of the hilt). A slot in the guard allowed for a sword knot (a loop to attach the sword to the wrist), possibly because the Board of Ordnance was used to army swords that had this feature. The Navy didn't seem to issue sword knots as standard, but there's evidence that sailors used rope in the slot to tie the sword to their wrist.
This cutlass came with a brown leather scabbard (sheath) with a brass tip. The scabbard didn't have a metal cap at the top and was attached to the user's belt with a hook directly through the leather. This was a weak attachment, and few hooks remain on old scabbards. The 1804 Pattern cutlass looks similar to early American cutlasses and the 1814 Pattern Norwegian cutlass, so it can sometimes be confused with them.
The 1845 Pattern Cutlass
After the Napoleonic Wars ended in 1815, the Royal Navy became much smaller. Even with fewer sailors, the Board of Ordnance tested six new cutlass designs in 1841. The next year, The Admiralty (the Navy's leadership) approved a design by George Lovell. The 1845 Pattern cutlass seems to be based on his ideas. It might have been used before 1845, but a fire at a storehouse made the records unclear. 1845 was the first year many of these cutlasses were given out.
The 1845 Pattern was very different from the 1804 Pattern. Its blade, at 29.5 inches (74.9 cm), was the longest of any Navy cutlass and much more curved. The knuckle-guard was a simple steel bowl, giving much better protection than the double disc design. The outside of the guard curved outwards for extra strength, a feature kept in later designs. The hilt didn't have a crossguard but still had the slot for a sword knot. This guard might have been inspired by the 1821 Pattern Heavy Cavalry Sword used by the army.
The 1845 Pattern still had a cast-iron grip, but it was simpler, with no lengthwise grooves and only 12 grooves around it. The grip was also less shaped to fit the hand, possibly to save money. The 1845 Pattern also added a small pommel (a knob) at the bottom of the hilt. The scabbard was similar to the 1804 Pattern, still without a metal cap at the top, which often caused the belt hook to pull out of the leather. The 1845 Pattern had a very sharp point, making it much better for thrusting than the older design. Thrusting attacks were now a big part of the Navy's training manuals.
Changes to the 1845 Pattern
The 1845 Pattern was changed many times, but the official records of these changes are lost. These changes would have been handled by the War Department (and later the War Office), which took over buying Navy weapons, including cutlasses, in 1854.
Around 1859, a change reduced the space between the grip and the inside of the knuckle guard from 2.75 inches (7 cm) to 2.375 inches (6 cm). The guard also became narrower where it met the pommel, and a washer was added between the guard and the grip. The top edge of the guard was also turned out slightly towards the blade. At the same time, the blade was shortened to 27 inches (68.6 cm) and made a bit narrower.
In the 1870s, the blades were shortened again, this time to 26 inches (66 cm). In the same decade, another set of changes straightened the blades. These straightened blades were not heated again, which made them weaker and likely to bend. After complaints, some were re-heated, and these were marked with an "R." In 1887, the blades were shortened even more.
The 1889 Pattern Cutlass
A new cutlass design was introduced in 1889, possibly because there weren't enough 1845 Pattern cutlasses left to modify. The 1889 Pattern cutlass was straight with a spear-shaped point. Its bowl-shaped hilt was based on the 1882 Pattern Cavalry Sword used by the army. The grip was made of cast iron and was almost cylindrical.
The 1889 Pattern had a very clever feature: the edge of the guard was rolled outwards. This made the guard stronger and also acted as a "stop rib" that could catch an opponent's sword point and push it away from the user. Some sword guards were bright steel, and others were painted black. It's likely that ceremonial swords were kept shiny, while those used in service were painted, either before being given out or by the ships themselves. The scabbard for the 1889 Pattern cutlass was black leather with two steel fittings, and for the first time in a Royal Navy design, it had a metal cap at the top.
The 1900 Pattern Cutlass
The 1900 Pattern was the last cutlass approved for Navy use. It kept the straight blade of the 1889 Pattern but added a fuller (groove) running one-third of the blade's length. The bowl-shaped hilt with the upturned rim was also kept, but a curved insert was added inside where the guard met the pommel. This helped cushion the user's little finger and came from the 1890 Pattern Cavalry Sword. Like the 1889 Pattern, grips exist in both shiny steel and black paint. The grip of the 1900 Pattern cutlass was more rectangular and had a knurled (textured) leather cover. The scabbard was the same as the one used for the 1889 Pattern.
In 1903, the Royal Navy received some British Army pioneer swords that were no longer being used, but there's not much proof that sailors ever used them. The 1900 Pattern cutlass was officially taken out of combat service on October 22, 1936. The order said that cutlasses should no longer be given to landing parties (sailors going ashore to fight) but should be kept for ceremonial use. Ships with more than 500 people could have up to 20 cutlasses, and smaller ships could have 10.
Some people claim the cutlass was used in combat during the 1940 Altmark incident or when HMS Armada was defended in 1952. However, experts Barton and McGrath (2013) doubt these stories. They believe the cutlass was last used in a real fight in 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion.
Until the mid-2010s, a drawn cutlass was carried by the escort for a prisoner at Royal Navy courts martial (military trials). Today, the cutlass is only carried by certain senior Navy members, like warrant officers first class, masters-at-arms, and chief petty officers, when they are escorting the White Ensign (the flag of the Royal Navy).
The 1859 Enfield Cutlass Sword Bayonet
In 1859, the Royal Navy received its first rifle, the .577 calibre Pattern 1853 Enfield. Before this, Navy muskets used the standard army bayonet. But for this new rifle, the Navy decided to have its own special bayonet that could also be used as a hand-held cutlass.
A bayonet based on the 1845 Pattern cutlass was created. It had a spear-pointed, flat blade about 27 inches (68.6 cm) long and slightly curved. The hilt had a steel guard 4.5 inches (11.4 cm) wide, narrowing to 0.625 inches (1.6 cm) where it met the pommel. The guard had a slot for a sword knot and, like the modified 1845 Pattern cutlass, turned outwards slightly for strength. The grip was made of wood covered in leather with six grooves around it. It also had a crossguard with a ring, 0.8125 inches (2.1 cm) wide inside, through which the muzzle of the Enfield rifle was placed when the bayonet was attached. A groove on the left side of the bayonet helped it fit onto the rifle, and it was held in place by a spring catch near the pommel. The bayonet weighed 2 pounds 5 ounces (1.05 kg), and when attached to the rifle, it allowed a sailor to reach a target 7 feet (2.1 m) away.
The design was finalized on April 18, 1859, but was changed on May 1 to use a textured leather grip, probably because the original design was too slippery. The scabbard was black leather with a steel cap and tip. The scabbard had a special "Verney's catch" to keep the bayonet in place when sailors were climbing into and out of ship's boats. From January 30, 1862, the scabbards were redesigned to include a spring instead of Verney's catch.
The cutlass bayonet wasn't ideal as either a cutlass or a bayonet. When held as a sword, the muzzle ring crossguard didn't protect the hand enough. When attached to the rifle, its weight made the rifle heavy at the front, affecting the sailor's aim. More than 80,000 of these 1859 Enfield Cutlass Sword Bayonets were made, and they were still used when the Enfields were changed into Snider–Enfield rifles starting in 1866.
The 1871 Martini-Henry Cutlass Sword Bayonet
The .450 calibre Martini-Henry rifle was tested from 1869 to replace the Snider–Enfield and was later adopted by the War Department. The War Department decided to keep making a separate cutlass bayonet for the Royal Navy. At first, they hoped to just modify the 1859 Pattern bayonet to fit the Martini-Henry by adding a bush to make the muzzle ring smaller. However, the 1859 cutlass bayonet was too heavy and made the Martini-Henry rifle too unbalanced.
After tests in 1869 and 1870, a new cutlass bayonet was developed, called the 1871 Pattern. This new weapon was shorter, at 25.5 inches (64.8 cm), and narrower, at 1.25 inches (3.2 cm) wide, making it lighter, weighing 1 pound 15 ounces (0.88 kg). The blade was straight, unlike the previous one. The scabbard was black leather with a steel tip and cap, just like before.
Some 1871 Pattern bayonets were newly made, but many seem to have been created by changing 1859 Pattern weapons. This process involved shortening and straightening the blade and making the hilt smaller. Between 1874 and 1880, about 50,711 1859 Pattern cutlasses were changed into the 1871 Pattern. The straightened weapons were not heated again, which made them weaker. There were complaints about the bayonets bending during training. In 1887, tests showed that 60% of the changed bayonets failed a strength test.
In 1888, the Royal Navy started using the Lee–Metford rifle and decided not to get a special cutlass bayonet. Instead, they used the standard bayonet that the British Army used.
Markings on Cutlasses
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Swords often have marks that show who made them and where they were used. For Royal Navy cutlasses, these marks changed over time. Before 1804, cutlasses usually only had the manufacturer's mark. From 1804 onwards, official Navy cutlasses were marked with the royal cypher (a symbol of the king or queen at the time) and sometimes an inspection mark, which was a crown with a number.
After 1804, the maker's mark was usually found on the back edge of the blade. We know of at least 30 different manufacturers of Royal Navy cutlasses from 1804 or later. The royal cyphers were later replaced by a crown with a letter showing where it was inspected (like "B" for Birmingham or "E" for Enfield) and a number for the individual government inspector. "S" for Solingen (in Germany) was added when the government needed blades from other countries, and "W" for Wilkinson Sword was used when that company was allowed to do testing for the government.
Before 1854, if a cutlass was owned by the government, it was marked "BO" for the Board of Ordnance. After that, "WD" or the broad arrow symbol of the War Department was used. When weapons were sold out of service, the mark was sometimes crossed out, or if it was the broad arrow, a second arrow was marked point-to-point with the first. Sometimes an "N" for Navy was marked. From the late 1800s, cutlasses were often stamped with the last two digits of the year they were made. If a weapon was changed, it was stamped "C/XX" with the last two digits showing the year of the change, and often a second inspection mark was added. The letter "R" meant a weapon was re-heated after being changed, and "X" meant the side was made curved during a strength test. Cutlasses were sometimes numbered to show their place in a weapon rack on a ship. The Enfield cutlass bayonets were not usually interchangeable, so they were numbered to match a specific rifle. Scabbards were also sometimes marked, especially for later ones, with the place of manufacture, "N" for Navy, and an inspection stamp.
Other Cutlasses
HM Coastguard came under the Navy's control in 1856 and sometimes acted like a helper navy service before it went back to civilian control in 1923. Since shortly after it was formed in 1822, Coastguard members were given a special Coastguard Pattern cutlass. This sword had a blade about 29.75 inches (75.6 cm) long and 1.4375 inches (3.7 cm) wide, with a strong curve. The guard was stirrup-shaped, with a clear crossguard and no pommel. The grip was shaped to fit the hand and had 19 spiral grooves. The scabbard was brown leather with a brass tip and belt hook. Soon after the Navy took over the Coastguard, these special cutlasses were removed, and standard Navy cutlasses were issued instead. The hilts of the Coastguard cutlasses were reused by the War Department; they were put on straight blades and given to soldiers of the Army Hospital Corps from 1857.
The Royal Naval Artillery Volunteers, a Navy reserve group from 1873 to 1892, also had their own cutlass design. This was a mix between a naval cutlass and a Navy officer's sword. It's not known if this weapon was given to regular sailors, warrant officers, or officers. Another group that worked on the water, the Thames River Police, also had its own cutlass. The Revenue Service, which was an earlier version of HM Coastguard, might also have had its own cutlass design.
Images for kids
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A depiction of a Royal Navy rating with cutlass in a boarding action
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Martini-Henry cutlass bayonets at the 1879 Battle of Gingindlovu
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