The terrible trench warfare of WW1 was so brutal that it gave rise to plenty of close-quarter battle oddments, including plenty of clubs, maces, submachine guns, flamethrowers, and knives. But did you know that the British developed a bayonet for their revolvers?
British Captain Arthur Pritchard developed the Pritchard-Greener Bayonet in 1916. The Greener company managed to manufacture examples from modified French Gras Bayonets, which was a smart move. The metal of any kind was, as in many wars, a strategic material, so recycling/repurposing of an existing surplus bayonet design was prudent.
Though the Hellenic Army was still using the Gras, and eventually fought on the side of the Allies in WWI, as of 1916 they were not a co-belligerent and the British were not, to my knowledge, issuing Gras rifles to any home guard units, nor did the French evidently need the surplus bayonets.
This was really interesting. I am glad I didn’t have to be the one using it.
Read the whole thing at TheFirearmBlog.com
https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/wheelgun-wednesday-a-wwi-bayonet-for-british-revolvers-44817625
Read the full article here
