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Originally Posted by josh stout
Below are are quotes taken from Peter's Mandarin Mansion site. The dadao was specifically made with the warfare of the 20th century in mind. It is designed to be effective against unarmored opponents, and also to be hefty enough that it can easily be turned out in large numbers without worry about small forging flaws or other small imperfections lowering its combat ability.
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Swords had their place in 20th cent. warfare even in Europe. The last recorded cavalry battle occurred at Komorov in the 1920s between Polish and Red Army mounted forces, and both sides carried sabers. The Soviet Red Cavalry kept the Imperial-issue System 1881 cossack style shashka in service until the end of World War II and some presumably saw use as Stalin's horsemen routed German forces in Ukraine in 1944. The Soviet-era weapon, with scabbard modified to take a Mod. 1891 spike bayonet, lacked the finesse and cunning balance of its Caucasus prototypes, but it was serviceable and more robust.