Sabre 1796 – Wellington Blucher softened sabre for larp

Sabre 1796 is an iconic sabre for hussars created during the Napoleonic Wars.

This model of larp weapon is designed to stand up to any larp battle – including full force / full contact (in English, clogs and kekel). We mark the blade as A25. It has a very durable 10 x 15 mm core. The foam used is soft (about Shore A 25) – about the same as latex. Unlike latex, however, it does not suffer from any of its ills – it is maintenance-free, usable in any weather and contains no allergens. This foam is softer, but at the same time tougher against tearing than our first generation guns that use A35 blades. A polyamide flare is routed throughout the foam to stiffen it and prevent the tip from breaking off or spreading blade tip tears. To make the blade even more resistant to tearing, the surface is reinforced with a thin layer of special polyurethane.

The weapon is quite heavy – 650 g – and is close in weight and behaviour to its real-life predecessor. The centre of gravity of the sabre is about 20 cm from the root of the blade, so it goes behind the tip – which is typical and correct for sabres. We recommend at least a few lessons with a sabre to fighters who are used to a traditional sword and have no experience with a sabre, because a sabre behaves differently, holds differently and requires a specific fighting technique.

The 1796 sabre was designed by British Light Horse Major John Le Marchant. He was inspired by both the Polish Hussar sabre and the weapons of the Orient. The result was a weapon recognisable at first sight, with an excellent design and a superb blade. Nevertheless, he did not succeed at first with the generals and was allowed to introduce this sabre to his battalion. But then the Duke of Wellington saw it in action and was impressed by its features. The British Army then introduced it as an official model – the 1796 pattern. Only a short time later, the new sabre model was noticed by the Prussian General Blucher and promoted for Prussian cavalry as the Model 1811. The 1796 sabre was feared for its enormous effectiveness and there was even an amusing situation where France complained that this model of sabre should be banned as inhumane. The introduction of the pattern 1796 / 1811 sabre caused great changes in the training of soldiers and put a definite end to the use of all sabres, officer’s swords, pallets and similar older weapons.

With a little exaggeration one could say that it has been the weapon of the victors since Waterloo. A number of copies were made and introduced by various European armies, and in the second half of the 19th century a number of ornate officer derivatives were added. The last army to use the 1796/1811 model, or its own version, was the Wehrmacht during WW2, when it served as an officer’s sabre.