Scottish Highland Regiments’ Basket-hilted Broadswords of the 18th Century

AFTER THE DEFEAT AT CULLODEN (1746), the Scottish Highlander was forbidden from carrying any weapons and this resulted in many basket hilts either being destroyed or hidden.  Scotland was now fully secured to the British Crown and resolute attempts were made in the following years to form a permanent and substantial military presence.  In the years 1745-1780, nineteen regular regiments of Highland infantry were established.  They were uniformed and armed in a similar fashion to the 42nd Royal Highland Regiment of Foot (Black Watch), who had been formed in 1739. 

By the 1750’s, the British Board of Ordnance was supplying weapons directly to these regiments.  Each man received an all-metal pistol, basket-hilted sword, musket and bayonet, either paid for by the Ordnance or supplied by the regimental Colonel, who was later reimbursed by the Crown.  Swords were purchased by regimental Colonels through a system of “off-reckonings” (deductions made from a soldier’s pay).  The cost for each of these swords was around eight shillings and sixpence.  Private soldiers could also carry their own swords and dirks.  Officers were responsible for their own arms, including sword, pistol and dirk. 

Prior to this period, there was no specific pattern of sword for either soldier or officer but from the 1750’s, Birmingham made swords of a similar hilt style began to appear and were subsequently carried by enlisted soldiers in Highland regiments.  They were a far cry from the finely wrought broadswords carried by their former enemies, the Highlanders, and tended to be of sometimes indifferent quality.  The sword hilt was made from sheet metal and followed a simplified style based on previous incarnations of English and Scottish basket hilts.  The blade was usually English in manufacture rather than the previously favoured, German.  Most examples of this sword are maker stamped on the blade to either Drury & Son of London (Drury were based in London but the swords were likely to have been manufactured in Birmingham) or Ief(f)ris (nee Jeffreys/Jeffries) of London.  Jeffreys was succeeded by Drury in 1780.  Nathaniel Jeffreys is thought to have started his business in 1763, and these British Army basket hilts were probably one of his first commissions. 

The hilt design was rather basic with cut-outs made in the hilt panels to form a pattern of hearts and roundels.  Pommels were distinctly cone-shaped, with grips constructed from wood, wrapped in leather and bound with brass twistwire and Turk’s heads’ ferrules.

© Harvey Withers Military Publishing, 2024

Taken from The British Sword – From 1600 to the Present Day – An Illustrated History by Harvey J S Withers – 12,000 full colour photographs – 884 pages

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