History Main / BayonetYa

** The first bayonets were of the "plug" type: little more than knives with hilt that thins at the bottom, so as to plug it into the barrel. This had the advantage of requiring no modification to the muskets they were used in, and the fact that they couldn't be fired with the bayonet attached was less of a problem than you might think: matchlock and flintlock muskets of that era were so slow to load that in a situation where the bayonet was needed, you probably didn't have ''time'' to fire more than one shot. Eventually, these gave way to ring bayonets, which mount ''around'' the barrel, thus allowing for the gun to be fired while the bayonet is attached. However, the ring bayonet, like the plug bayonet, depended on a tight fit around the barrel to stay in place, meaning it was sometimes lost when stuck in something. This paved the way for the socket bayonet, which uses an "L"-shaped socket and a lug on the barrel to attach it. This is still the standard way of attaching a bayonet.[[note]]Unlike the plug bayonet, the inventor of of the socket type is known to history: Sébastien, Marquis de Vauban introduced them in 1688.[[/note]] Some of these have knife-like blades, while others are simple spikes for thrusting attacks only. The next improvement was the sword bayonet, which effectively turned the rifle into a [[BladeOnAStick halberd]] as it enabled not only thrusting, but slashing as well. It also could be used like a short sword when not attached to the rifle. A sword bayonet could do terrible wounds, and a soldier hit with a sword bayonet, such as the German ''Schlachtmesser'' was not likely to survive. The trench warfare of World War I showed that these were too unwieldy for modern combat in close quarters, so they were superseded by the knife bayonet, which has the advantage of being usable not only as a combat knife when detached from the rifle, but also as a [[SwissArmyWeapon utility tool]]. A few rifles have also been designed with permanently attached folding bayonets. Today, almost every bayonet still in service is of the knife type, though some modern knife bayonets are ''also'' socket bayonets, having a socket that can function as a hilt when not attached to a rifle. Modern bayonets also often have a scabbard with tool functions, the most common being a post that when stuck through a hole in the bayonet's blade combines them into a wire cutter.

** A rare infantry weapon, the Mauser laser/grenade launcher combo, has a mounted bayonet. Not unusual, except that it has attached rockets, so that it can be ''fired at the enemy'' to kill them a little further than normal stabbing would allow. Recover the bayonet, fix it again, and it's ready to continue the slaughter.

* ''Series/DadsArmy'': Corporal Jones was always advocating the use of the bayonet -- see the page quote. PlayedforLaughs when they tried to adapt his van (working as a makeshift armoured car) to run on literal gas, stored in a bag attached the roof. And the order was given to point the guns upwards through the openings in said roof...

* Used to be a UsefulNotes/WW2 movie cliche -- the scene where the Nazi guards would be shoving their bayonets into a hay bale where the hero was hiding.

* ''Anime/FinalFantasyVIIAdventChildren]]: Yazoo and Loz's [[MixAndMatchWeapon gunblades]], the Velvet Nightmares, use the "molded onto the barrel" form of this trope. Unusually for this variation, they're still used in the manner of proper bayonets: firing is their primary function, the blade is for when [[LightningBruiser Cloud]] gets too close.

* In ''VideoGame/LightningReturnsFinalFantasyXIII'' the Secutors from the Order of Light have ''submachine gun'' bayonets.

* It is important to know that while they certainly look dangerous, bayonets were never a major cause of casualties during war (even as early as the Napoleonic Wars, less than 2% of all wounds were caused by bayonets). Instead, their effectiveness stems from psychological reasons: the possibility of being speared by a bunch of guys running at you with blades and screaming for blood is ''pants-shittingly terrifying'', much more so than getting hit by bullets you can't see.

* In 2010 the U.S. Army dropped the bayonet training to meet the demands of "future warfare". However, the [[SemperFi U.S. Marine Corps]] still trains with bayonets. They also insist on higher-quality bayonets than the Army (the blade is slightly longer, and more importantly thicker and sturdier).
** Famously used in UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar by the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry under Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. During the battle of Gettysburg, Chamberlain's troops were suffering heavy casualties and running out of ammo, and he knew they would be unable to defend their vital position on Little Round Top against the approaching Confederate army. So, in a complete badass move, he ordered a bayonet charge, which even at the time was considered an old-school textbook maneuver, but which Chamberlain realized could be used as a simultaneous frontal attack and flanking maneuver. The Confederates were utterly cowed and the 20th Maine [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome won the day]]. Chamberlain himself received a Medal of Honor for it.
** The last American bayonet charge was performed during the Korean War on February 7, 1951, when the 27th Infantry Regiment, led by Lewis L. Millett, successfully captured an enemy position.

* The Russian Field Marshal [[AFatherToHisMen Alexander Suvorov]] said, to paraphrase, that the bullet is a fool and the bayonet is wise. He never lost a single battle in his entire military career. It worked well during Suvorov's time, when many armies were primarily composed of infantry drilled to march in formation and fire massed volleys, and little else. When the Napoleonic Wars came about however, this attitude had to be shaken off, as it was virtually suicidal in the face of Napoleon's comprehensively-trained soldiers and combined arms tactics.

** The [[AmazonBrigade Adepta Sororitas]] have the Sarissa[[note]]a weapon from the 3rd Edition rules[[/note]], a vicious spiked blade that Sororitas attach to their bolt weapons to turn them into effective close combat weapons. In game terms these combat blades gave the wielder a re-roll to wound when they charged.

* Quite common in ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000''.
** They even had [[ChainsawGood chainsaw]] bayonets before ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar'' did.

** [[TheFairFolk Dark Eldar]] warriors have mono molecular ones at the ends of their splinter rifles.

** Bayonets can be very effective in combat for two psychological reasons: First, soldiers who are prepared to fight with bayonets will often be trained to go into a [[TheBerserker certain mindset]], which is traditionally ingrained into them in Basic Training in some armed forces such as the Russian VDV. Second, and perhaps much more relevant: Having a bunch of guys running at you with improvised spears and screaming for blood is ''pants-shittingly terrifying''.
** In 2010 the U.S. Army dropped the bayonet training to meet the demands of "future warfare". However, the [[SemperFi U.S. Marine Corps]] still trains with bayonets. They also insist on higher-quality bayonets than the Army (the blade is slightly longer, and more importantly thicker and sturdier).

** Giuseppe Garibaldi once said "The rifle is no more than the grip of the bayonet."
** The Russian Field Marshal [[AFatherToHisMen Alexander Suvorov]] said, to paraphrase, that the bullet is a fool and the bayonet is wise. He never lost a single battle in his entire military career. It worked well during Suvorov's time, when many armies were primarily composed of infantry drilled to march in formation and fire massed volleys, and little else. When the Napoleonic Wars came about however, this attitude had to be shaken off, as it was virtually suicidal in the face of Napoleon's comprehensively-trained soldiers and combined arms tactics.
*** Russian tactical doctrine has long placed a high importance on the bayonet, in part because of Russia's traditionally large (and varied) pool of manpower, and the resultant difficulties associated with ensuring consistent levels of training. Furthermore, to be well-practiced with any firearm requires a lot of ammunition, and Russia was often short of the latter, well into the 20th century. During World War II, you'd never hear a Soviet officer saying the Russian equivalent of "fix bayonets"... because the bayonets were ''always'' fixed. The Red Army didn't even issue scabbards for their bayonets, because the place to store them was on the rifle's muzzle, and they were also big fans of the permanently-attached folding bayonet. It was the same for the Imperial Russian Army of World War I. It wasn't until the introduction of assault rifles (in the form of the AK-47) that the bayonet ceased to have a primary role Russian/Soviet doctrine. Indeed, in its initial form the AK-47 didn't ''have'' a bayonet, though this was quickly realized to be a mistake and a bayonet was promptly designed for it.
*** Chinese have since taken up the torch by producing an AK-47 copy (known as Type 56) with a permanently attached folding spike bayonet similar to that on the Chinese SKS.
*** Unlike most other weapons, Mosin-Nagant rifle was traditionally zeroed with bayonet fixed. Ditto for the SKS carbine, which actually ''couldn't'' be zeroed without one, as it is this aforementioned weapon that has a permanently attached folding bayonet.
* Famously used in UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar by the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry under Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. During the battle of Gettysburg, Chamberlain's troops were suffering heavy casualties and running out of ammo, and he knew they would be unable to defend their vital position on Little Round Top against the approaching Confederate army. So, in a complete badass move, he ordered a bayonet charge, which even at the time was considered an old-school textbook maneuver, but which Chamberlain realized could be used as a simultaneous frontal attack and flanking maneuver. The Confederates were utterly cowed and the 20th Maine [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome won the day]]. Chamberlain himself received a Medal of Honor for it.

* Also features in a climactic moment in ''Film/{{Gettysburg}}'', in a MomentOfAwesome tactical thinking by Col. Chamberlain.

* Early [[SpaceMarine Marine]] designs for ''VideoGame/StarCraftIIWingsOfLiberty'' had bayonets attached to their gauss rifles. The community [[FanDumb did not approve]]. Cut to the ''A Card To Play'' cinematic in the shipped game, where BadAssNormal General Warfield is ambushed by the Zerg and runs out of ammo. He brings out the bayonet and... [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome the rest is history]]. TakeThat indeed.

* Famously used in UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar by the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry under Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. During the battle of Gettysburg, Chamberlain's troops were suffering heavy casualties and running out of ammo, and he knew they would be unable to defend their vital position on Little Round Top against the approaching Confederate army. So, in a complete badass move, he ordered a bayonet charge, which even at the time was considered an old-school textbook maneuver, but which Chamberlain realized could be used as a simultaneous frontal attack and flanking maneuver. The Confederates were utterly cowed and the 20th Maine [[MomentOfAwesome won the day]]. Chamberlain himself received a Medal of Honor for it.

* Seen in the ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' episode "Blood Oath". Jadzia and the Klingon swordmasters Kor, Kang, and Koloth attack the stronghold of a crime lord who killed the Klingons' firstborn, one of whom was also the godson of the Dax symbiont's previous host. They use technobabble to disable the {{mooks}}' energy weapons, and the crime boss orders them to mount bayonets. [[spoiler:The defense proves lethal to Kang and Koloth.]]

* In ''FanFic/WeightOfTheWorld'', America's [[SwissArmyWeapon pump-action shotgun-bat]] has a retractable bayonet. Prussia uses a sniper rifle with one attached as well.

* Considering ThePowderMageTrilogy is set in a time period roughly corresponding to 18th century Europe, it's hardly surprising that this trope crops up. Muskets with bayonets are the standard weapon for the armies in the setting and are used with gruesome efficiency. When massed, they even prove effective even against [[EliteMook Wardens]], which are nigh-unstoppable, sorcery-warped supersoldiers, specifically designed to combat the titular Powder Mages.

* ''Series/DadsArmy'': Corporal Jones was always advocating the use of the bayonet - see the page quote.
** PlayedforLaughs when they tried to adapt his van (working as a makeshift armoured car) to run on literal gas, stored in a bag attached the roof. And the order was given to point the guns upwards through the openings in said roof...

* Seen occasionally in ''{{Sharpe}}''. The elite Rifles use longer bayonets for their weapons, which [[InsistentTerminology must be referred]] to when deployed as "fix swords!" rather than "fix bayonets!" as for the musket-wielding regulars.[[note]]The Baker rifle was shorter than the standard-issue British muskets of the time. Rifle units were issued longer sword bayonets so that the length of their weapons matched that of regular infantry muskets so that the two different units could work together in formations[[/note]]
** TruthInTelevision: In the British Army, Rifle regiments to this day use that command, despite their bayonets no longer being any different in length than other units'. They're big on tradition, hence the term "Rifle regiment" still existing despite the fact that it's been centuries since any British Army unit has issued non-rifled weapons.

* Quite common in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''. They even had [[ChainsawGood chainsaw]] bayonets before ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar'' did.

[[folder: Web Original]]
* [[http://pimpmygun.doctornoob.com/ Pimp My Gun]] allows you to fit your [[OffTheShelfFX kitbashed]] guns with bayonets.

* In ''WebVideo/HellsingUltimateAbridged'' a Nazi vampire [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] Father Anderson's choice of weapon:
--> '''Nazi:''' "[[TooDumbToLive Ve're not scared of you]]! Look at you, you [[TemptingFate don't even know how to use a bayonet]]! It goes on ze gun, [[WhatAnIdiot idiot]]!"

[[folder: Real Life ]]

*** In 2010 the U.S. Army dropped the bayonet training to meet the demands of "future warfare". However, the [[SemperFi U.S. Marine Corps]] still trains with bayonets. They also insist on higher-quality bayonets than the Army (the blade is slightly longer, and more importantly thicker and sturdier).
* The French Army uses bayonets for both ceremonial and combat purpose, which served them will during the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Vrbanja_Bridge battle of Vrbanja Bridge]] during the [[UsefulNotes/TheYugoslavWars Bosnian war]] where a bayonet charge allowed French UN peacekeepers to win the battle against the Serbs. "Baïonnette au canon" [[note]]"Bayonet to cannon[[/note]] indeed.
* [[http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2007/10/04/cz-pistol-with-bayonet-and-breech-teeth/ Bayonets]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORARB2uidp8 for pistols.]]
** The British had bayonets for their Webley revolvers in [[OlderThanTheyThink World War I]]. Not as an issue item, though; some officers bought them with their own money. Then again, they also bought their own revolvers; in those days it was an officer's responsibility to arm himself.

* In ''FanFic/WeightOfTheWorld'' America's [[SwissArmyWeapon pump-action shotgun-bat]] has a retractable bayonet. Prussia uses a sniper rifle with one attached as well.

CoolGuns are great ... until you run out of ammo. Thankfully, you won't be lugging around dead weight when you attach a sharp blade on it, allowing the empty gun to improvise as a BladeOnAStick. Even better when you can detach it and use it as is.

* Father Anderson in ''Manga/{{Hellsing}}'' uses ''unlimited supplies'' of blessed bayonets as weapons. No guns, just the bayonets. And oddly enough for somebody who uses bayonets as regular knives, they're all ''socket bayonets''.

A SubTrope of GunAccessories. See also KnifeNut, SwissArmyWeapon, EmergencyWeapon, and BladeOnAStick. Do not [[IThoughtItMeant confuse]] with ''VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}''.

->''"The bullet is a fool, the bayonet is a fine chap."''
-->--'''Alexander Suvorov'''

** Though the Medal of Honor back then wasn't just the highest commendation a soldier could receive. It was the only one. Around 800 soldiers received the Medal of Honor for just enlisting in a division.