The Civilian Saber is a true personal Renaissance sword.  It was light, practical and had a certain sense of austerity about it.

The Military version was long, heavy with a large hand guard and most suitable for wearing whilst on horseback.  Noblemen and aristocracy, although appreciating the efficiency and practicality of such a sword, thought of is as too cumbersome for everyday wear around the city or mansion.

A compromise had to be sought and after much deliberation, the Civilian Saber was the result.  It was basically a military saber that had been scaled down to more comfortable proportions in that it could be worn and indeed wielded with a lot less effort.  The thrusting efficiency however, was not compromised.

New Weight: 1 lb 6 ounces. New Blade Thickness: ¼ inch.  New Blade Length: 31½ inches.  New Handle Length: 4 inches.  Overall: 35 ½ inches

It appears to be heavily based  on the British Royal Navy  1827 pattern  saber which is similar  to the 1805 pattern saber, often referred to as 'The Nelson Trafalgar Sword' and is pictured below.

This example of the saber was worn and indeed used by Admiral Horatio Nelson, during the Battle of Trafalgar on October 21st 1805. Trafalgar of course was one of the more decisive naval battles of the Napoleonic Wars for Great Britain.

The Civilian Saber had the popular rapier style narrow 30 inch blade, except that it had a slight "saberesque" curve  that widened out slightly towards the tip.  This was so that some of the military saber's characteristics of delivering a good slashing point was not lost in the new design.  The blade also sported an extra thick ridge with a unique pipe like cross section that ran the full length of the blade, it was also quite sturdy and not as flexible as a rapier blade.

The high carbon spring steel blade was light and straight  enough to allow fencing in similar manner to that of the rapier, epee and foil in the fencing schools of the time.  Because this sword was now a lot lighter it did not mean that it had lost any of its usefulness in combat, in fact the Civilian Saber could in many instances swirl around heavier blades and deliver a lethal and deep strike through the opponents defence's.

The Civilian saber also saw some modifications to the hilt and handle, with a  reduction in size and a single knuckle-bow instead of the usual three heavy bars.   Also the advent of a new spring assisted folding mechanism that locked the sword into the scabbard for safety and efficiency.

Overall the Civilian Saber gained praise and plaudits from all that used it, either for self defence, duelling or even as a sign of importance within the community.  The military also liked this sword and it was adopted as a dress sword and also served in some ceremonial capacities and still does to this day.  Pictured below is Prince Harry of the UK (on left)  holding a ceremonial saber whilst on parade.

The particular civilian saber as featured at the top of this web page is yet another brilliant Coldsteel Inc production, it features a highly detailed British lion motif on the hilt with the handle being made of rich black leather, bound with high polished brass wire.  The scabbard is created from quality thick leather which is heavily reinforced and decorated with brass fixtures, such as chape, throat and hanging rings.

DUELLING SABER

Below is a very handsome nickel-silver plated English Hutton duelling saber from 1912.  This type of duelling saber was developed in Italy and very closely resembles the civilian saber.

Late 19th century, Italian style saber fencing is gaining in popularity within historic fencing societies.  Saber fencing originated from sword masters who originally trained the cavalry in the effective use of the heavy and light military saber.  The fencing master from Milano, Guiseppe Radaelli, started the development of saber fencing, while Salvatore Pecoraro made changes and refinements which resulted in the technique finally adopted for saber at the Military Masters School in Rome.

Radaelli and Pecoraro made vast changes to the original military saber including the design of the hilt and a smaller, narrower and straighter blade that was good for slashing but centered more on thrusting and was favored as the best duelling sword of the time.
 
The hilt designs developed by Radaelli and Pecoraro have today been reproduced in replica fencing saber's, with stainless steel guards and wire wrapped sharkskin pattern grips.  The high carbon flex tempered steel blades of the “Hutton” saber are closer to the style of the true military saber.

The saber is still specifically used in fencing today by practitioners who are called Sabreurs.  As long as the art of fencing is still with us then rest assured that the saber will also remain.