Swords of Mexico and Spanish Colonial America
 
The espada ancha is a characteristically unique example of swords found in the northern frontiers of New Spain; the area that now comprises northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. 

Historians theorize that these swords evolved in the early 18th Century from 17th Century Spanish style civilian or hunting broadswords. Their 76 to 92 cm.(30 to 36 inch) blade length was subsequently reduced to lengths between 45 and 66 cm.(18 and 26 inches). 2

From the beginning, espada anchas were used both by the mounted militia, as well as the famed presidial lancers. They were also used by civilians, particularly those in mounted occupations such as traders, travelers and cattle ranchers . Regular soldiers were usually given standard issue military swords.3

Earlier espada anchas retained the characteristic hilt of their precursors: worn with a clam-shell guard langet on the display side of the hilt. A single knuckle bow guard flattened at one end to form a cap over the end of the hilt. This was secured by the tang of the blade and formed a forward-curved quillon tip at the opposite end. 

Iron usually makes up the metallic elements of the hilt and sometimes comes with locally applied silver decoration. In these earlier forms, the grip was of sandwich construction and riveted together.
The tang was as wide as the grip and formed a core to which the swordsmith attached horn or wood on both sides in an intermediate position. He placed these under two metallic plates that when seen in cross-section, formed the sides of what aproximated a square grip. 

The blades of earlier espada anchas tended to be double-edged and with a flattened hexagonal cross section. 

The blade in example 1 is typical of the usual patterns that possess two to four narrow, shallow fullers on each face of the blade. These are limited to the one-third to half of the blade nearest the hilt. A very short ricasso is also typical. 

Many divergent styles of blades were used. Espada anchas, as shown in example 2, have a single fuller blade. In the detail, shown at the left you can see that it is etched with sun, moon and stars figures on each side. Another common motif was the "arm with sword". 

Such blades were found in diverse settings throughout the world in the 17th through 19th centuries. Generic blades, usually of European manufacture, were locally mounted. 

Saharan Tuareg takoubas have been documented with similar European blades, such as the three-fullered variant as well as those engraved with astrological devices. 

Similarly, examples of a short sword blade with similar etched decoration to that in the second example have been seen mounted in an English basket hilt that is characteristic of early 17th Century swords. 

Engraved mottoes: No me saques sin razon (Do not draw me without reason) and No me embaines sin honor (Do not sheath me without honor) are commonly found on espada ancha blades. 

Beginning late in the 18th Century single edged variants of the espada ancha begin to appear and later to predominate. This trend increased until the early 19th Century.
example 3

The early double-edged espada anchas tended to be lightweight when compared with the slightly curved to straight single-edged variety. These possessed a broader, thicker blade similar to the all-purpose guard-less campesino's (peasant) machete. 4

While the earlier form had a well-made blade from a specialized workshop, these later forms often have fairly crude blades, most likely of local manufacture. 

In the 19th Century, cut-down, reused military saber blades were also seen in espada ancha mounts. Similarly, military style multi-branched guards become more common in the mid-19th Century mounted on typical broad, slightly curved single-edged blades. 

With continued evolution, the laminated, riveted hilt was supplanted by forms with narrower tangs entirely encircled by wood or horn. example 4

While the former double-edged sword was foremost a weapon and hunting accessory, the later single-edged form is clearly an all purpose tool equally useful as a weapon or for clearing brush and chopping wood. 

Thus, by the close of the 19th Century, the espada ancha has become essentially a machete with a guard. This along with handmade guardless machetes was supplanted by the commercially made machetes still in use in Mexican agriculture at the end of the 20th Century.
Sources

The information on this page was contributed by Lee A. Jones. 
From his website: Ethnographic Edged Weapons Resource Site . Used with his kind permission. 
Copyright ©1998, Lee A. Jones.

Adams, Bill, "The Unique Swords of Old Mexico," in Knives '85 (Northbrook, IL: D.B.I. Books, Inc., 1984) p. 21 - 24. 

Brinckerhoff, Sidney B. and Chamberlain, Pierce A., Spanish Military Weapons in Colonial America 1700 - 1821 (Harrisburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1972) p. 74 - 77. 

Hanson, Charles E. , Jr., "The Espada Ancha," Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly, Vol. 14, No. 1 (1978) p. 7 - 11. (Back issues may be purchased from the museum: 6321 Highway 20; Chadron, NE 69337.) 

Notes

1. Brinckerhoff, Sidney B. & Odie B. Faulk. Lancers for the King.
(Phoenix, AZ: Arizona Historical Foundation, c. 1965).

2. Brinckerhoff and Chamberlain (1972, p. 74 - 75)

3. (Hanson 1978, p.7 & 10)

4. Adams 1984, p. 22 - 23, gives representative measurements.

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