Elector of Saxony Dagger is one of our most popular parrying daggers. It is an iconic style of dagger that can be seen in many collections and museums around the world. This type of dagger was most popular in the last few decades of the 16th century in Europe in countries north of the Alps.
The style is often grouped in reference to the guard of the Elector of Saxony who were one of the first military groups to start wearing matching weapons as symbols of their unit and status in society.
The daggers are characterized by shorter or swept forward cross guards, decorative grips and pommels usually of a vase form with narrow bases swelling to a mid-point then tapering or curving back to the center point. The area above the midpoint is often decorated with engraved detail or plates and the lower portion left smooth and clear of detail.
The blades are often sturdy with multiple fullers. Some of the more elaborate versions having piercings in the fullers.
Our reproduction is based on a piece we saw in an auction many years ago. We do not know where the original ended its journey, but we have seen sister daggers in collections. The Elector of Saxony armouries have left this style of weapon, in dagger and sword form, across multiple regions as its height of use was at the turn of the 16th to 17th century and though its peak was in the decades just before the Thirty Years War it was a time of strife and many of these munitions were used across Europe in that intense conflict.
Custom Saxony style sword from Arms & Armor
This dagger is often purchased with our fancy parrying dagger scabbard which makes a smart set for the belt of any soldier/gentleman of the period.
It is also contemporary with our Saxon Military Sword, Gustav Vasa Rapier, Musketeer Rapier and Town Guard Sword.
Nathan Clough, Ph.D. is Vice President of Arms and Armor and a member of the governing board of The Oakeshott Institute. He is a historical martial artist and a former university professor of cultural geography. He has given presentations on historical arms at events including Longpoint and Combatcon, and presented scholarly papers at, among others, The International Congress on Medieval Studies.
Craig Johnson is the Production Manager of Arms and Armor and Secretary of The Oakeshott Institute. He has taught and published on the history of arms, armor and western martial arts for over 30 years. He has lectured at several schools and Universities, WMAW, HEMAC, 4W, and ICMS at Kalamazoo. His experiences include iron smelting, jousting, theatrical combat instruction and choreography, historical research, European martial arts and crafting weapons and armor since 1985.