The “Bayonne dagger” or “bayonet” originated as a small hunting dagger in the late 1500s, well before it evolved into the arm as we know it, an edged weapon placed on the muzzle of a rifle. Modifying the Bayonne dagger to enable its insertion into the musket bore eliminated the need to also carry a spear when hunting with a firearm. The first bayonets were known as baïonnettes à manche (bayonets with handles). Today, we know them as “plug" bayonets. They were simply a hunting dagger, fitted with a round tapered grip, inserted into the musket barrel when required.
The first documented military use of the bayonet dates from the 1640s, during the Thirty Years War. In 1671, King Louis XIV of France was the first to formally introduce the bayonet into a major army, adopting it for the Fusiliers Regiment. Britain’s King Charles II followed Louis XIV's example, officially introducing the bayonet into the British Army in April 1672, in raising a regiment of Dragoons.
Once inserted into the muzzle, plug bayonets could be difficult to remove. In the late 1680s, French military engineering genius, Sébastien Le Prestre, Seigneur de Vauban (Sebastian the Swift, Lord of Vauban) made the long-sought breakthrough. His baïonnette à douille (socket bayonet) was simple; and enabled the musket to be both loaded and fired while in place.
Up to this time, the bayonet was thought of purely as a defensive weapon. It is difficult to pinpoint just when the first bayonet charge took place. It was not until the mid-1690s that the bayonet charge became commonplace. Realizing the bayonet’s full potential, sealed the pike’s fate. The pike was eliminated in all of the major European armies. The bayonet became a decisive arbiter of infantry battles for the next 150 years. The bayonet's preeminence did not begin to wane until the Minié rifle became standard equipment in the 1850s.
The bayonet has stood the test of time. It has changed far less than the firearm and its use has hardly changed at all since the mid-1600's. Despite the introduction of the machine-gun, the tank, jet aircraft, and computers to the modern battlefield, the bayonet is still seen as an essential piece of equipment.
The timeline below tracks the bayonet from its origin in the late 1500s to the present day. Including bayonet design, bayonet development, and the history of bayonet use. Read about the people, places, and events that tell the story of the bayonet and its impact on the world as we know it.
© Ralph E. Cobb 2010 All Rights Reserved
