This is a long one for the 100K thread, but you asked....
For Marine Officers:
Marine Corps lore states that a sword of this type was presented to Marine First Lieutenant Presley O'Bannon by the Turkish viceroy, Prince Hamet, on December 8, 1804, during the First Barbary War, as a gesture of respect and praise for attempting to return the prince to his throne. Upon his return to the United States, the state of Virginia presented him with a silver-hilted sword featuring an eaglehead hilt and a curved blade modeled after the original Mameluke sword given him by Hamet. Its blade is inscribed with his name and a commemoration of the Battle of Tripoli Harbor.
Perhaps due to the Marines' distinguished record during this campaign, including the capture of the Tripolitan city of Derna after a long and dangerous desert march, Marine Corps Commandant Archibald Henderson adopted the Mameluke sword in 1825 for wear by Marine officers. After initial distribution in 1826, Mameluke swords have been worn except for the years 1859-75 (when Marine officers were required to wear U.S. Model 1850 Army Foot Officers' Sword), and a brief period when swords were suspended during World War II. Since that time, Mameluke swords have been worn by Marine officers in a continuing tradition to the present day.
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For Marine Non-Commissioned Officers:
U.S. Marine officers and NCO's have carried swords since the American Revolutionary War. During the earliest years, the swords worn by Marine NCOs are believed to have been based on Army patterns, though not necessarily the exact swords used by Army NCOs. By approximately the mid-1820s, however, Marine NCOs began wearing distinctive short sabers with cast-brass eaglehead hilts and curved blades. About this same time, in 1826, Marine Corps officers also began wearing a distinctive new sword of the Mameluke style, similar to those worn today.
In 1859, a completely new sword pattern was introduced for Marine Corps officers, who were instructed to wear the same sword then worn by Army foot officers since 1850. In addition, in 1859 a similar sword was authorized for wear by Marine NCOs, so that the swords worn by Marine officers and NCOs appeared to share very nearly the same pattern and characteristics. The Marine NCO version, though similar to that worn by Marine officers, had several differences. Among the most noticeable, NCO swords had plain brass hilts and scabbard mounts, whereas officers’ hilts and scabbard mounts normally were gilt. In addition, the grips on NCO swords were wrapped with leather, whereas those for officers were usually covered with sharkskin. Finally, NCO scabbards had only two scabbard mounts, consisting of a top mount with frog stud and a scabbard tip, whereas officers’ scabbards bore three mounts, including upper and middle mounts fitted with carrying rings.
The sword worn by Marine NCOs since 1859 was also carried throughout the American Civil War. With only slight modifications since that time, it has maintained its distinctive and traditional appearance. Only the sword authorized in 1852 for United States Navy officers has a longer service life, and today the M1859 Marine NCO sword is among the oldest weapons still in U.S. inventory.
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I have been known to "play" around with my sword before but no real training. These swords today are strictly ceremonial; although I suppose you could kill someone with them if you wanted to run them through.
SMX, a Claymore would be cool to carry around for battle but I definitely wouldn't want to go through drill movements with one of those heavy sons of bitches.