Bayonet - The "reach" Controversy

The "reach" Controversy

Prior to World War I, bayonet doctrine was largely centered around the concept of "reach"; that is, a soldier's theoretical ability, by use of an extremely long rifle and fixed bayonet, to bayonet an enemy soldier without having to approach within reach of his opponent's blade. A combined length of rifle and bayonet longer than that of the enemy infantryman's rifle and attached bayonet, like the infantryman's pike of bygone days, was thought to impart a definite tactical advantage on the battlefield, and military authorities engaged in endless discussions over the supposed advantages of longer rifle/bayonet combinations.

In 1886, the French Army introduced a 52 cm (20 in.)-long quadrangular épée spike for the bayonet of the Lebel Model 1886 rifle, the Épée-Baïonnette Modèle 1886, resulting in a rifle and bayonet with an overall length of six feet (1.83 m). German ordnance authorities responded by introducing a long sword bayonet for the Model 1898 Mauser rifle, which had a 29-inch barrel. The new bayonet, designated the Seitengewehr 98, had a 500mm (19.7-inch) blade. With an overall length of 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m), the German Army's rifle/bayonet combination was second only to the French Lebel for overall bayonet 'reach'.

After 1900, Switzerland, Britain, and the United States adopted rifles with barrel lengths shorter than that of a rifle, but longer than that of a carbine. These new rifles were intended for general use by both the infantry and cavalry. Because of the reduction in the barrel length, the overall "reach" of the new short rifles with attached bayonet was reduced. In the case of Britain, this occurred when the British Army adopted a shortened Lee-Enfield rifle, the SMLE, in 1904. As a consequence, the German M1898 Mauser rifle and attached sword bayonet was a full eight inches longer than the British SMLE and its P1903 bayonet, which used a twelve-inch blade. While the British P1903 and its similar predecessor, the P1888, had proved completely satisfactory in service, a storm of criticism soon arose regarding the effective reach of the new short rifles when equipped with fixed bayonet. One military writer of the day warned: "The German soldier has eight inches the better of the argument over the British soldier when it comes to crossing bayonets, and the extra eight inches easily turns the battle in favor of the longer, if both men are of equal skill."

In 1905 the German Army adopted a shortened (370mm or 14.6-inch) bayonet, the Seitengewehr 98/06 for engineer and pioneer troops, and in 1908, a short rifle as well, the Karabiner Model 1898AZ, which was produced in limited quantities for the cavalry, artillery, and other specialist troops. However, the long-barreled 98 Mauser rifle remained in service as the primary infantry small arm. Moreover, German military authorities continued to promote the idea of outreaching one's opponent on the battlefield by means of a longer rifle/bayonet combination, a concept prominently featured in its infantry bayonet training doctrines. These included the throw point or extended thrust-and-lunge attack. Using this tactic, the German soldier dropped into a half-crouch, with the rifle and fixed bayonet held close to the body. In this position the soldier next propelled his rifle forward, then dropped the supporting hand while taking a step forward with the right foot, simultaneously thrusting out the right arm full length with the extended rifle held in the grip of the right hand alone. With a maximum 'kill zone' of some eleven feet, the throw point bayonet attack gave an impressive increase in 'reach', and was later adopted by other military forces, including the U.S. Army

In response to criticism over the reduced reach of the SMLE rifle and bayonet, British ordnance authorities introduced the P1907 bayonet in 1908, which had an elongated blade of some seventeen inches to compensate for the reduced overall length of the SMLE rifle. U.S. authorities in turn adopted a long (16-in. blade) bayonet for the M1903 Springfield short rifle, the M1905 bayonet; later, a long sword bayonet was also provided for the M1917 Enfield rifle.

The experience of World War I saw a complete reversal in opinion on the relative value of long rifles and bayonets in typical combat infantry operations. Whether in the close confines of trench warfare, night time raiding and patrolling, or attacking across open ground, soldiers of both sides soon recognized the inherent limitations of a long and ungainly rifle and bayonet when used as a close-quarters battle weapon. Once Allied soldiers had been trained to expect the throw point or extended thrust-and-lunge attack, the method lost most of its tactical value on the World War I battlefield. It required a strong arm and wrist, was very slow to recover if the initial thrust missed its mark, and was easily parried by a soldier who was trained to expect it, thus exposing the German soldier to a return thrust which he could not easily block or parry. Instead of longer bayonets, infantry forces on both sides began experimenting with other weapons as auxiliary close-quarter arms, including the trench knife, pistol, hand grenade, and entrenching tool.

Soldiers soon began employing the bayonet as a knife as well as an attachment for the rifle, and bayonets were oftened shortened officially or unofficially to make them more versatile and easier to use as tools, or to maneuver in close quarters. During World War II, bayonets were further shortened into knife-sized weapons in order to give them additional utility as usable as fighting or utility knives. The vast majority of modern bayonets introduced since World War II are knife bayonets.