British 1827 Pattern Naval Officer's Sword, Early 20th Century by Gieves
Single fullered, spear-pointed ‘Wilkinson’ type blade, 31¼ inches in length, 37 inches overall. Gilt brass half-basket hilt cast with a St Edward’s crown and fouled anchor within a cartouche, hinged folding inner guard, gilt brass backstrap with lion head pommel, ball tang button, white shagreen grip bound with wire, brass ferrule, blue & gold cord knot. Buff leather washer. Black leather scabbard with gilt brass throat, chape and middle pieces, hanging rings on the throat and middle.
The blade is etched at the ricasso on one side with a six-pointed star surrounding the stamped letters ‘PROVED’ – echoing the form of a traditional inset brass proof slug without actually adding one. It is etched at the ricasso on the other side with the retailer’s mark ‘GIEVE’S THE HARD PORTSMOUTH’. The blade is further etched with a fouled anchor, the royal coat of arms and foliate motifs.
The firm of Gieves was a successor to that of Joseph Galt, who had James Gieve as a partner from around 1863 until he took over the business in 1887 and renamed it James Gieve & Son, trading on 111 High Street, Portsmouth. Gieve brought in new partners Henry Matthews and Edwin Seagrove in 1907, the resulting firm trading at multiple addresses within Portsmouth.
In 1911 the partners consolidated all Portsmouth operations at one premises at 22 The Hard, with other shops located in London and Devonport. In 1916 the partnership was presumably dissolved as the firm reverted to ‘Gieves Ltd’ at the same premises. This allows this sword to be dated to the period from 1916 to 1956: after Elizabeth II took the throne in 1956 the crown used on the hilt was changed from the St Edward’s to the Tudor crown. This is admittedly quite a wide range. Based on its style and construction I think this sword lies on the earlier end and very likely predates WW2, but that is a matter of opinion.
Gieves appears to have retailed swords made by others – for instance the firm is listed as a trade customer in the records of the Wilkinson Sword Company – but did also produce them under its own roof. It was one of the very few British swordmakers to survive into the late 20th century, confirmed as of 1953 to still have a small workshop via a subsidiary company. Gieves merged with the fellow military outfitters Hawkes & Co in 1979 to form Gieves & Hawkes. This company still trades today as a military outfitter and bespoke tailor, although their swords are now supplied from outside sources.
Introduced to coincide with a major overhaul of naval officers’ uniforms, the 1827 Pattern sword was based upon the 1822 Pattern Infantry Officer’s sword then in use with the Army, especially in the hilt design, but with the gaps between the bars of its hilt filled in to create a solid half-basket. Early versions used a curved pipeback blade, which was superseded in 1846 by the new ‘Wilkinson’ type blade which was fullered and only slightly curved. These blades were considered a great improvement and were used on infantry, cavalry, artillery and naval officer’s swords at various times. The scabbard, sword knot and carrying slings went through some changes over time, but the 1827 Pattern sword carried by naval officers is not drastically different in form today than in 1846.
Some small spots of pitting to the corners of the spine of the blade, not impacting the crisp etching, and on the ricasso’s corners. The hilt retains a great deal of its original gilding, with wear in only a few spots such as the outside edge of the guard revealing patinated brass. The folding guard is fully functional and locks the sword into the scabbard. The shagreen grip is in good shape with no significant handling wear, its wire binding is all present and tight. No fray to the sword knot. The scabbard fittings have only a little gilding but all the exposed brass has only a light patina and is free of dents. The scabbard leather is excellent with no creasing or significant surface wear.
