In fact, the closely related US Model 1913 Cavalry Saber was issued with only a saddle scabbard, as it was not considered to be of much use to a dismounted cavalryman.

Colonial troops, who could expect to engage in melee combat with opposing cavalry frequently carried cut and thrust swords either instead of, or in addition to, the P1908/1912.

[citation needed] By contrast, the 1908 pattern was designed from the outset purely to give point (thrust) from horseback.

The straight blade prevented the slicing action of a curved sabre and the concussive force would be compromised by the hilt-biased balance.

The length of the blade at just over 35 inches (890 mm) was said to be able to match the reach of the lance (still in use with some armies at the turn of the 20th century) or the bayonet with the sword arm fully extended.

King Edward VII described the sword as "hideous" when the pattern was submitted to him for formal approval, and had to be persuaded of its utility before eventually conceding the point.

However army regulations also stated that on the introduction of a new pattern an officer's sword need not be replaced until his existing one was no longer serviceable; use of the three-bar hilt thus continued well into the 20th century.

Although the 1908 and 1912 patterns can be seen as the penultimate expressions of the thrusting cavalry sword (the U.S. Army adopted its similar Patton saber in 1913), the debate over the relative virtues of the edge and the point remained.

John Gaspard le Marchant, the great trainer and leader of British cavalry at the turn of the 19th century, felt that the weapon employed in the charge was almost irrelevant, as the shock value stemmed from the momentum of the combined horse and rider.