Items related to Saber Exercise 1914
Synopsis
Before George S. Patton Jr. led armies, he taught men how to fight with steel.
Written and illustrated by Patton himself, Saber Exercise 1914 was the official U.S. War Department training manual for swordsmanship—crafted at Fort Riley while Patton was still a young lieutenant and fencing instructor. This facsimile edition faithfully reproduces every detail: Patton’s precise instructions, original illustrations, and photographs capturing his personal demonstrations of mounted and dismounted saber technique.
But this is more than a military manual—it’s a window into the making of a battlefield legend.
Raised in a family of warriors, Patton inherited the sword not only by training but by blood. His grandfather fell in combat, saber in hand. Patton refined his own skill on the world stage, placing fifth in fencing at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, then studying under one of Europe’s most elite masters in Saumur, France. When he returned, he designed the revolutionary Patton Saber—an innovation that demanded a new system of cavalry training.
Inside this volume:
Complete training curriculum for saber use in combat, as approved by the U.S. War Department
Detailed illustrations and rare photographs of Patton in action
Personal insights from Patton on combat readiness, discipline, and warrior mindset
A companion to his lesser-known work, Diary of the Instructor in Swordsmanship at the Mounted Service School
Before tanks. Before glory. There was the saber...and a soldier named Patton. For military historians, swordsmanship enthusiasts, and Patton admirers, this manual is more than a relic—it is the steel-boned blueprint of a warrior becoming legend.
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Product Description
"Saber Exercise 1914" was written by the famous World War II General George S. Patton, Jr., while he was still a young lieutenant and fencing instructor at Fort Riley, Kansas. Patton's writing brings to life the searing intellect and precise methodology that would serve him so well in battle. His 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 Army 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 military skills at which he excelled, including horseback riding and fencing. After the Olympics Patton studied in France with the finest fencing master in Europe. When Patton returned to the states he designed the Patton Saber. The War Department ordered 20,000 of them in 1913. He was next assigned to the Mounted Service School at Fort Riley, where he was designated the "Master of the Sword," the first Army officer to receive this honor. This manual is an historical treasure. It also provides no-nonsense instruction useful to contemporary students wanting to learn this age-old martial art from the master himself, George Patton.
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