German Daggers of World War Two

BACKGROUND: The Sword/Saber is an age old military tradition, that evolved from a functional weapon into an item of uniform dress ornamentation by the start of WWI. This strong tradition continues in many armies and navies to this day as a symbol of strength and power. After Hitler rise to power in January 1933 and the reintroduction of conscription in March 1935 a wide variety of new sword and saber designs were introduced to outfit the rapidly growing Wehrmacht. This revival in sword/saber production resulted in the numerous blade manufacturers, mainly located in Solingen, to develop a wide variety of ornate designs in an attempt to compete for the lucrative manufacturing contracts which resulted in over one hundred different patterns of the army sword/saber being produced during the Third Reich era. The Kriegsmarine Officer saber can trace its origins back to 1848 with the establishment of the Imperial Prussian Navy composed of a fleet from the un-unified, German states. This fledgling navy was abolished in 1852 as result of disagreements amongst the independent states, but the sabre pattern was retained by the K霵igliche Marine, (Royal Prussian Navy). Although the German army introduced numerous patterns of swords/sabers during the Third Reich era the Navy maintained its traditional saber which remained virtually unchanged with minor variations. Dress regulations for Officers and senior NCO prescribed wear of side arms as a component of particular forms of dress. Officer and certain senior NCO ranks were responsible for purchasing their own uniforms, including side arms, and as a result were allotted a clothing allowance through the Navy Offizierkleiderkasse, (Officer Clothing Account), system. Although enlisted personnel were issued their side arms from government supplies they were also permitted to purchase privately manufactured side arms although the price may have been restrictive. When worn the saber was accompanied by a portepee and specific hangers. Originally designed as a functional item to secure the blade sidearm to the holders wrist the portepee evolved into a purely decorative accessory and was to be worn with all Kriegsmarine Officers saber. Regulations of May 7TH 1943 discontinued further manufacture of the portepee although those already issued continued to be utilized. Issue sabers were marked with the Navy ordnance acceptance marks and property control marks while privately purchased side arms were not. Interestingly regulations of February 25TH 1944 discontinued wear of the dagger to be replaced with a pistol until the successful conclusion of the war although the saber was not mention in the order and presumably continued to be worn through-out the war.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Roughly, 33 1/2" long, slightly curved nickel/silver plated, drop forged steel construction blade features roughly, 22 1/2" long fullers and an acid etched design to each side featuring ships, fouled anchors, crossed oars, tridents and an ornate foliage pattern. The spine of the blade also has an ornate acid etched foliage pattern. The blade is in overall good, clean, condition with some minor surface spotting. The obverse ricasso is well marked with the deeply stamped manufacturers logo and initials consisting of the profile of a medieval style helmet positioned above the initials, "WKC", indicating manufacture by Weyersberg, Kirschbaum & Co. Waffenfabrik Solingen-Wald. The saber has die cast, gilt plated, brass, hilt fittings consisting of an obverse, swivel hinged clam shell cross guard, a reverse, swivel hinged tab, a ferrule, a "D", knuckle bow, a back-strap and a nicely detailed, pronounced lion head pommel. The obverse, swivel hinged, clam shell cross guard can be set in a fold back or forward position as desired and features a high relief, embossed, vertical fouled anchor within a vertically oval border with an irregular pebbled background field, flanked by oak-leaves and acorns. The reverse of the cross guard has a small, half-moon shaped, swivel hinged tab with an embossed oak-leaf pattern to the obverse and a plain reverse with a central drilled hole. The reverse tab may be set in the downward position and the top scabbard fitting has a corresponding, small, horizontally extended dowel which slides into the hole on the tab securing the saber in the scabbard when required. The cross guard has one down swept arm and a plain bottom edge. The ferrule has a low relief, embossed oak-leaf and acorn pattern. The "D", knuckle bow has a high relief, embossed oak-leaf and acorn pattern on an irregular pebbled background field and extends from one side of the cross guard up to the lion head pommels mouth. The back-strap features a central, small, plain, scalloped panel, and an ornate, embossed foliage design that extends upwards into the flowing mane of the lion head pommel. The lion head pommel has a nicely detailed mane and pronounced snout with inset red, (Port), and green, (Starboard), glass eyes. The tang end of the blade has been skillfully hidden in the lions mane and is not visible. The saber has a contoured, white celluloid grip with a central bulge, and triple, twisted, horizontally repeating, brass wire wrap all intact. All the hilt fittings are still quite clean and bright. The saber comes with a woven silver/aluminum portepee which is tied in the correct manner. The portepee consists of an interwoven silver/aluminum cord with an interwoven silver/aluminum slide and stem and a twisted silver/aluminum braid crown and ball mounted on a wooden template base. The crown features horizontally laid braiding while the ball has vertical braiding. The bottom of the ball has a circular recess with an inset silver wire dot. The portepee shows small areas of light fraying to the cord and moderate to heavy age tarnish through-out giving it a coppery toned appearance. The saber comes with its original blackened leather scabbard with a vertical stitched seam to the reverse and three gilt plated brass fittings. The leather shows moderate to heavy surface cracking through-out resulting in some small spots of the top layer having flaked away. All three fittings feature scalloped edges, ornate impressed stylized swirl patterns and horizontal stripes and are secured to the scabbard by large staple like clips on the reverse. The bottom fitting features an extended "drag", while the central and top fittings both have extended securing loops and the hanger suspension rings intact. The scabbard fittings are all still clean and bright. Of Note: A photographic example of this pattern, (WKC #40), can be seen in J.R. Angolia book, Swords of Germany 1900/1945, on the bottom of page 165.