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WWI Trophy German Bayonet...


Len S
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I picked this bayonet over the weekend at a gun show. It's a German Model 1898/05aA commonly referred to as a "butcher blade". This one came equipped with a saw back for use by the "pioniers" and other specialist troops. It was made by the cutlery firm "Alex Coppel / Solingen" in 1913 for the Bavarian Army. An American sailor on board the USS Lake Helen acquired it and acid etched it with his name and his ship's along with other particulars. Here are some pics.

 

Len

 

 

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This bayonet I'm pretty convinced belonged to a Sergeant in Grenadier-Regiment Königin Olga (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 119, see the O with Crown, apart from Pioneere this type of bayonet was sometimes carried by NCOs, I gather in Infantry Regiments.

 

 

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The Cypher of the Gren Regt Nr 119, the O stands as you guessed, for OLGA.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olga_Nikolaevna_of_Russia

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  • 1 month later...
littlewilly

Infantry NCO's did carry these. The French had a tendency to summarily execute any German soldier captured carrying one of these. That is why so many are found with the saw tooth edge ground away. MHJ

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Brian Keith

It appears that the sailor used the acid etching process on the blade the way they made the USN "dog" tags a the time, really COOL!

Thanks for posting it.

BKW

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  • 1 month later...

I picked this bayonet over the weekend at a gun show. It's a German Model 1898/05aA commonly referred to as a "butcher blade". This one came equipped with a saw back for use by the "pioniers" and other specialist troops. It was made by the cutlery firm "Alex Coppel / Solingen" in 1913 for the Bavarian Army. An American sailor on board the USS Lake Helen acquired it and acid etched it with his name and his ship's along with other particulars. Here are some pics.

 

Len

 

 

 

I also have a nice WWI "Butcher Blade" "sawback" bayonet. It was a multi-purpose weapon and a handy tool for wood cutting or whatever. Sometimes that "whatever" happened to be the Germans sometimes used it in part killing British, French and later American soldiers.

 

It was so hated and feared by the Allies, Germany was officially informed of the Allies' policy regarding use of this bayonet in combat. The policy was that any German soldier possessing this type of bayonet would not be taken prisoner but shot and killed. It had a chilling effort on the German trench soldiers and had some success in reduction of it being used.

 

After WW1 ended at one of the post war Allied conferences, this particular bayonet type was banned for use in any future military conflict. Since Germany lost the war I don't they were given a vote on the subject.

 

Interestingly, none of the German forces in WW2 used a version of this bayonet.

 

John.

 

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