Overview

George S. Patton, Jr. authored this Army training manual, Saber Exercise 1914 while he was still a young lieutenant. The manual provides a system of training for both mounted and on-foot use of the saber. It is reprinted here in its entirety, including all original illustrations and graphics, although the original text has been converted to modern font for ease of reading. (An earlier version with JPG images of the original text is also available for those interested in seeing what the original manual looked like. The original manual has a cover picture of a mounted cavalryman with his saber pointed to the left. This later version has the saber pointed to the right.) Patton's affinity for swordsmanship came naturally. His grandfather, Confederate Colonel George Smith Patton, Sr., was mortally wounded at the Third Battle of Winchester while wielding a sword and leading his men into combat. Before writing this training manual, Patton had already achieved celebrity status, having placed fifth in the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden. His event was the Pentathlon, combining skills at which he excelled, including horseback riding and fencing. After the Olympics Patton studied in France with a fencing master reputed to be the finest in Europe. Patton also designed what came to be known as the Patton Sword. The War Department ordered 20,000 of them in 1913. Later the same year Patton was assigned as a student and Master of the Sword, the top instructor in a new course in swordsmanship, at the Mounted Service School in Fort Riley, Kansas. It was here he wrote Saber Exercise 1914, using easy-to-follow steps accompanied by detailed illustrations. The following year he wrote a more informal guide, Diary of the Instructor in Swordsmanship, with additional insights and recommendations. Both works are historical treasures as well as modern treatises on this age-old martial art, presented by the Master himself, George Patton.

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