Cutting Edges

[Jim McDougall]

Think I found it,
From "The Swords of George Washington". Goldstein, Mowbray & Hendelson, 2016,p,52;
."..these pierced hilts were all the rage in the last half of the 1760s and the one destined for George Washington was made by a London small worker-possibly Appalone Rudkins and was struck with sterling hallmarks for the year 1767. "



It is noted that Pall Mall, where Feesey was located, was a posh retail district, where industrial activity such as blade making would not be acceptable.

p.10;
"..though smiths in the British Midlands could make respectable blades, the best ones came from Germany. And thats exactly what Washingtons new sword mounted-a beautiful high quality colichemarde blade from Solingen".

It seems that "...conservatively figured, at least nine of Washingtons swords and one blade were at Mt.Vernon at the outset of the 19th c. If we read the documents in a less rigid way there could have been as many as sixteen swords and one blade in Washingtons possession at the time of his passing".

In my earlier entry, the silver hilt worker TB from another Feesey sword (1744) is not what we were looking for.....but this AR on the 1767 sword most likely the one sought.

While this does not directly provide an answer to the colichemarde question, it does imply that the military favor for these type blades had a certain bearing on choices for swords being commissioned. At the time Washington was ordering a sword from London, the cutlers there were typically getting blades from Solingen. As noted, the British blade makers were well qualified to produce these blades, but Solingen had long standing arrangements with cutlers there in London, and in many cases as seen, the cutlers were 'for the King'. The political issues of the still raw Jacobite matters perhaps inclined adherence to the established Solingen makers over British. This finally reached the boiling point with the Gill perpetuation of British blades over German c.1790.