Army sword said to have belonged to Vice-Admiral Lord Collingwood (1750-1810). The hilt is a steel, stirrup type with plain pommel and back-piece and plain, semi-circular langets. The black leather covered grip is bound by two plain and one twisted copper wire at 1/2 in. intervals. There is a small steel ferrule, a trailing quillon slightly up-turned and the knuckle-guard is pierced near the pommel to take a sword knot.

The blade is very curved, flat backed with a (curved length) 14 in. long flase edge, wide at the shoulder, it narrows soon to maintain near uniform width until the point is reached, and is blued and gilt for about 11 inches. The obverse is engraved with a gilded oakleaf on a striated ground bound by a scalloped arc; a foliated scroll engraved, "WARRANTED"; a knot of flowers (roses?); the Royal Arms of George III (1801-1816) with their supporters below instead of on either side; and foliage. On the reverse is engraved a gilded oakleaf on a striated ground bounded by scalloped arc foliage; the cypher GR (not entirely correct but obviously pertaining to one of the first three Georges): an incorrect but clearly Georgian pattern crown; foliage knot surmounting a lion's head; and foliage. The scabbard is black leather with two steel lockets, with rings and a steel shape with a lightweight shoe. The steel parts have deep, bottle shaped indentations each outlined by four engraved lines. Further decoration is provided by groups of four lines placed horizontally, two on each locket & one on the chape.

Although this sword closely resembles the light cavalry sabre of 1796, the tang securing arrangements and the Royal Arms invalidate such a claim. The portrait of an officer of the 95th regiment, (the Rifle Corpe) of 1812 in W.Y. Carman's "British Military Uniforms from contemporary pictures", shows a weapon, the scabbard of which closely resembles this one with its bottle-shaped indentations. The Royal Arms are those adopted by George III in 1801 at the Union with Ireland and abandoned by him when Hanover became a kingdom in 1816. From these two indications, it may be tentatively assumed that the weapon is indeed that of the Rifle Corps in 1812 and this is the basis on which it is identified.

There seems to be no justification for the assumed ownership to Lord Collingwood as he died in 1810 and is not likely to have owned an Army pattern sword. It may, however have belonged to the Caldwell family and have been given to the Royal United Services Institute by them when they presented Collingwood's swords.