TL:DR: Look for Cavalry officers who saw lots of action, or infantry officers who engaged in close-combat raids or ambushes. Also check out foreign fighters like the German Auxiliaries and Foreign-born American officers. Also is this about dueling or combat? Because fencing =/= combat.
​
Most officers in the American Revolution carried swords. Most cavalry in the American Revolution carried swords. Some light infantry in the American Revolution (including some militia and the German light infantry), and nearly all French and German Infantry carried swords in the American Revolution. (notably, English-speaking armies had largely phased out infantry swords by this time for several reasons).
However, your instincts that sword use was in sharp decline is correct. In most cases, if a soldier was going to fight in a war, he wanted the weapon that would best support him, and a firearm gave better range, firepower, and with a bayonet a better close-combat effect especially when fighting in a close formation.
However, some men certainly became good with a sword to the extent they were known, though generally the men who are well known are officers, and generally they are cavalry officers since they fought in the front much more often, and saw more hand-to-hand combat.
Here is where I would ask a question of my own though. Are you looking for a "fencing master" or someone who was good with a sword in combat?
Those are vastly different things. Duels certainly existed and happened, two German Auxiliary officers had a sword duel on the voyage to America and one killed the other in the duel. But they were generally illegal in most militaries and deeply frowned upon. Which is probably the biggest blow to your research if you're looking for "fencing masters" since being one in the classic sense of one-on-one combat generally got you court martialed when you showed your skill.
For general combat though, swords were absolutely used, but the combat techniques were not about finesse, but about coordination with other soldiers, momentum on cavalry, or shock tactics. In these cases you would rarely see sword-on-sword fights, and if the other guy was prepared for you and had swords, just shoot him instead. Usually swords were used by officers and men who lacked muskets and bayonets when they ambushed enemies or assaulted their forts/camps in secret.
I should also point out that throughout the war the American army, despite have little tactical use for swords generally and primarily giving them to particular officers and NCO's as symbols of rank, the army still had a massive shortage of swords of all kinds up to the end of the war.
As a final note, infantry and cavalry swords are generally top heavy and good slashing swords and are balanced as such. Cavalry sabers are ridiculously long and none of them would be a "fencing sword" as people in the modern day imagine it. Generally if you had a well proportioned, well balanced, well made sword good for cuts and thrusts then you were a wealthy officer and purchased it for yourself.
P.S: as a funny/sad addendum I would bet, from the diaries, journals, court martials, and other documents I've read, that the average American infantry officer/NCO who had a sword was more likely to have hit one of his own men with the flat of the blade as punishment than an enemy with the sharp end. (but that's just a speculation about the average)
TreeRatWaltz t1_j29jc81 wrote
Reply to Fencing or swordsmanship during the during the American revolution by Unable-Anybody-2285
TL:DR: Look for Cavalry officers who saw lots of action, or infantry officers who engaged in close-combat raids or ambushes. Also check out foreign fighters like the German Auxiliaries and Foreign-born American officers. Also is this about dueling or combat? Because fencing =/= combat.
​
Most officers in the American Revolution carried swords. Most cavalry in the American Revolution carried swords. Some light infantry in the American Revolution (including some militia and the German light infantry), and nearly all French and German Infantry carried swords in the American Revolution. (notably, English-speaking armies had largely phased out infantry swords by this time for several reasons).
However, your instincts that sword use was in sharp decline is correct. In most cases, if a soldier was going to fight in a war, he wanted the weapon that would best support him, and a firearm gave better range, firepower, and with a bayonet a better close-combat effect especially when fighting in a close formation.
However, some men certainly became good with a sword to the extent they were known, though generally the men who are well known are officers, and generally they are cavalry officers since they fought in the front much more often, and saw more hand-to-hand combat.
Here is where I would ask a question of my own though. Are you looking for a "fencing master" or someone who was good with a sword in combat?
Those are vastly different things. Duels certainly existed and happened, two German Auxiliary officers had a sword duel on the voyage to America and one killed the other in the duel. But they were generally illegal in most militaries and deeply frowned upon. Which is probably the biggest blow to your research if you're looking for "fencing masters" since being one in the classic sense of one-on-one combat generally got you court martialed when you showed your skill.
For general combat though, swords were absolutely used, but the combat techniques were not about finesse, but about coordination with other soldiers, momentum on cavalry, or shock tactics. In these cases you would rarely see sword-on-sword fights, and if the other guy was prepared for you and had swords, just shoot him instead. Usually swords were used by officers and men who lacked muskets and bayonets when they ambushed enemies or assaulted their forts/camps in secret.
I should also point out that throughout the war the American army, despite have little tactical use for swords generally and primarily giving them to particular officers and NCO's as symbols of rank, the army still had a massive shortage of swords of all kinds up to the end of the war.
As a final note, infantry and cavalry swords are generally top heavy and good slashing swords and are balanced as such. Cavalry sabers are ridiculously long and none of them would be a "fencing sword" as people in the modern day imagine it. Generally if you had a well proportioned, well balanced, well made sword good for cuts and thrusts then you were a wealthy officer and purchased it for yourself.
P.S: as a funny/sad addendum I would bet, from the diaries, journals, court martials, and other documents I've read, that the average American infantry officer/NCO who had a sword was more likely to have hit one of his own men with the flat of the blade as punishment than an enemy with the sharp end. (but that's just a speculation about the average)