Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post - Question on British lance head, pattern 1846

Jim McDougall · 24th April 2017, 05:51 PM

You bet Ken, and you're right, the paucity of information on lances is pretty sad, and on line is worse because no matter how you word the query, it wanders off to almost unimaginable tangents using the name or term lance.

Trying to find anything on French lances is impossible unless it is in the Napoleonic spectrum. It is as if the entire French military universe revolves around that period, and promptly went into a vacuum after Waterloo.

Actually, after Napoleon's defeat The Bourbon royalty was restored with Louis XVIII ruling, in 1823 France invaded Spain to restore Bourbon rule there. In 1830, the Bourbons were overthrown and Louis Philippe of the Orleans dynasty in place.
The lance had gained tremendous importance in the Napoleonic campaigns and in 1816, the British converted a number of their light cavalry units to lancers. Clearly not only was it a viable weapon, but influenced other countries as well, and remained in use into the 20th century.

I was always fascinated with lances, especially the British 17th Lancers at the Charge of the Light Brigade, Balaklava, 1854 and the Bengal Lancers in India. I recall winning a pair of British lances in a London auction about 40 years ago, intact and with pennons. I was in California, and had to drive about 50 miles to Los Angeles airport to pick them up at air freight. After some dialogue with customs I finally got them released...........but in my exuberance had forgotten one small detail........uh, I was driving a '69 Corvette..and these things were over 8 feet long!!!

I did not want to 'alter' them, so took out the T tops and off I went.......the charge of the Corvette lancers down the 401 freeway in pure glory! I almost made it home, when my good friends of the Highway Patrol, astonished, interrupted my gallantry. After a few chuckles (thankfully) they let me go.

While British lances are not overly rare, but many from India are, and I have had the pig sticking/pegging versions in degree.......anything French seems very unusual. It seems lances did not survive as much as other weapons, so I think what you have there is quite unique and worthy of more research.

Thanks for sharing it with us!!!

24th April 2017, 05:51 PM	#4
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 9,757	You bet Ken, and you're right, the paucity of information on lances is pretty sad, and on line is worse because no matter how you word the query, it wanders off to almost unimaginable tangents using the name or term lance. Trying to find anything on French lances is impossible unless it is in the Napoleonic spectrum. It is as if the entire French military universe revolves around that period, and promptly went into a vacuum after Waterloo. Actually, after Napoleon's defeat The Bourbon royalty was restored with Louis XVIII ruling, in 1823 France invaded Spain to restore Bourbon rule there. In 1830, the Bourbons were overthrown and Louis Philippe of the Orleans dynasty in place. The lance had gained tremendous importance in the Napoleonic campaigns and in 1816, the British converted a number of their light cavalry units to lancers. Clearly not only was it a viable weapon, but influenced other countries as well, and remained in use into the 20th century. I was always fascinated with lances, especially the British 17th Lancers at the Charge of the Light Brigade, Balaklava, 1854 and the Bengal Lancers in India. I recall winning a pair of British lances in a London auction about 40 years ago, intact and with pennons. I was in California, and had to drive about 50 miles to Los Angeles airport to pick them up at air freight. After some dialogue with customs I finally got them released...........but in my exuberance had forgotten one small detail........uh, I was driving a '69 Corvette..and these things were over 8 feet long!!! I did not want to 'alter' them, so took out the T tops and off I went.......the charge of the Corvette lancers down the 401 freeway in pure glory! I almost made it home, when my good friends of the Highway Patrol, astonished, interrupted my gallantry. After a few chuckles (thankfully) they let me go. While British lances are not overly rare, but many from India are, and I have had the pig sticking/pegging versions in degree.......anything French seems very unusual. It seems lances did not survive as much as other weapons, so I think what you have there is quite unique and worthy of more research. Thanks for sharing it with us!!!