Sunday 23 October 2011

Pike & Bayonets

Pike
The pike by this point  a defensive weapon rather than an offensive one, there where exceptions notably the Swedish, with each company having  at most twenty to thirty per company of a hundred plus Musketeers.  It was used by most European armies as a deterrent to cavalry, with  the small group of pike being positioned centrally to the company and being advanced and lowered in the event of a possible cavalry charge.

Plug Bayonets
These are a spear head shaped dagger with a slim handle designed to fit down the bore of a musket and turn the musket form a fire arm to a short spear. This prevents the weapon form being loaded or fired.

Ring bayonets
These are similar to the above but feature a ring or rings which protrude from the hilt fitting  and fit over the barrel end allowing the spearhead shaped dagger like the plug bayonet to rest parallel to bore of the musket. This allows the musket to be loaded and fired with the bayonet fitted.
However the bayonet was heavy unbalanced the gun affecting the weapons accuracy and firing drills where ill adapted to loading a weapon with a fitted bayonet.

Thank you Steffano 

1 comment:

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