POTD: The M1917 Bayonet – “Now This is a Knife”
Sam.S 03.30.21
Welcome to today’s POTD (Photo of the Day)! Today we have a picture borrowed from Curious Relics #006 The M1917 Bayonet – An Extra 17″ in the Trenches. For those of you who may not know, bayonets were once much more of a necessity than they are today. In a world that evolved from swords and archers to black powder firearms, there were a few hundred years where reloading your weapon in battle may not be the best decision and it was much easier to use it as a spear.
The US M1917 Bayonet was the result of the war of attrition known as World War I. When Allied powers could no longer make everything themselves they looked to other powers with sympathy. Many of them were neutral countries such as the United States at the time. The US had been manufacturing arms and accessories and much more for allied powers and when the US entered the war it was very apparent they lacked a lot of their own. The US M1917 Bayonet was derived from the P14 rifle bayonet (called the P13 bayonet). Winchester, Remington, and Eddystone would manufacture these bayonets that would be in use for decades.
The M1917 Bayonet sported a 17-inch blade, wood grips on the handle, and was intended to be mounted on the US Enfield Rifle. Quickly trench shotguns would also be modified to hold this awesome sword-style bayonet and get an extra 17 inches in the trenches! For more reading on the M1917 Bayonet check out: Curious Relics #006: The M1917 Bayonet.
