SABRE Hussar WZ 1750 NO SCABBARD "GOD HONOR HOMELAND"

SABRE Hussar WZ 1750 NO SCABBARD  "GOD HONOR HOMELAND"

Manufacturer: Spanish Armourers (WZ 1750)

Specifications:

Length: 92 cm
Weight: 1,2 kg

Polish Hussar saber is the common name of the saber used by Polish Hussar and other polish cavalry units in 17^th and 18^th century. It replaced Hungarian-Polish saber used in 16^th century.

Perfectly made hilt had number of utility functions. Fully closed hilt (105? between cross-guard) protected the hand and provide the right weight of the handle. The metal hood, covering the back of the hilt support the grip and gave additional stability. The cross-guard with moustache strengthened the weapon in its weakest  point, the joint between the blade and the hilt and also protected the hand. The thumb-ring allowed to better control during a skirmish. The blade, curved circular on the lower part, had center of mass on the 20-25 cm of blade length. Upper part (closer to handle) was blunt and used to defense. The tip of the blade, so called feather or yelmen was double-edged.

On the one side of the blade is engraved ?God Honor Homeland?, the other side was smooth.

This model is en exact replica of Polish Hussar saber.

Price doesn?t include the presented stand.

Historical sketch:

History of saber 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 saber while traveling, hunting and various festivals.
Above all, served them where they performed without armor, but wanted to have an effective weapon by side.
To the beginning of the 16^th century saber 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 saber.

So quick growth of popularity of saber was related with military raids the Crimean Tatars into lands of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Tatars cavalry, armed with bows and sometimes also sabers were mostly highly mobile and uncatchable. They?re attacking  in a small groups called besh-bash (five heads). The reception of saber 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 armor 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. Armored with a lance (only towarzysz), sabers, 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.