Editing Bayonet (section)

==="Reach" controversy===
[[File:Bayonet team of "H" Company, 2nd Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment in the Imperial fortress colony of Gibraltar in 1913.jpg|thumb|Competitive bayonet team of "H" Company, 2nd Battalion, [[Royal Lincolnshire Regiment|Lincolnshire Regiment]], equipped with non-lethal dummy weapons, in the [[Imperial fortress]] colony of [[Gibraltar]] in 1913]]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 136-B1356, Kasernenhof - Fechten.jpg|thumb|German soldiers at bayonet practice in 1914]]
[[File:On Board the Battleship HMS Rodney. October 1940, Training on Board the Battleship. A1210.jpg|thumb|Six sailors with Lee–Enfield rifles, standing in the 'On Guard' position during rifle and bayonet drill on board the battleship {{HMS|Rodney|29|6}}. October 1940.]]
[[File:Border Security of the 50th parallel of north.JPG|thumb|From 1899 to 1945, the Japanese used the very long, 15.75 inches (40 cm), Type 30 sword-bladed bayonet on the already long [[Arisaka]] rifle.]]

Prior to World War I, bayonet doctrine was largely founded upon the concept of "reach"; that is, a soldier's theoretical ability, by use of an extremely long rifle and fixed bayonet, to stab an enemy soldier without having to approach within reach of his opponent's blade.<ref name="BRA"/><ref name="HUT">Hutton, Alfred, ''Fixed Bayonets: A Complete System of Fence for the British Magazine Rifle'', London: William Clowes & Sons (1890), pp. v, 125, 131–132</ref><ref name="BAR">Barrett, Ashley W., "Lessons to be Learned by Regimental Officers from the Russo-Japanese War", "Journal of the Military Service Institution of the United States", Volume 45, (March–April 1909), pp. 300–301.</ref> A combined length of rifle and bayonet longer than that of the enemy infantryman's rifle and attached bayonet, like the infantryman's pike of bygone days, was thought to impart a tactical advantage on the battlefield.<ref name="BRA"/><ref name="BAR"/><ref name="HOP">Hopkins, Albert A., ''Scientific American War Book: the Mechanism and Technique of Warfare'', New York: Munn & Co. (1915) p. 141</ref><ref name="PRA">''Praktische Bajonett-Fechtschule: auf Grund der Bajonettir-Vorschrift für die Infanterie'', Berlin: E. S. Mittler und Sohn (1889)</ref>

In 1886, the French army introduced a {{convert|52|cm|in|round=0.5|adj=mid|-long}} quadrangular [[épée]] spike for the bayonet of the [[Lebel Model 1886 rifle]], the ''Épée-Baïonnette Modèle 1886'', resulting in a rifle and bayonet with an overall length of {{convert|6|ft|m|spell=in}}. Germany responded by introducing a long sword bayonet for the [[Gewehr 98|Model 1898 Mauser]] rifle, which had a 29-inch barrel. The bayonet, the ''Seitengewehr 98'', had a 50&nbsp;cm (19.7-inch) blade.<ref name="HOP"/> With an overall length of {{convert|5|ft|9|in|m}}, the German army's rifle/bayonet combination was second only to the French Lebel for overall 'reach'.<ref name="HOP"/>

After 1900, Switzerland, Britain, and the United States adopted rifles with barrel lengths shorter than that of a rifled musket, but longer than that of a carbine.<ref name="BRA"/><ref name="SET">Seton-Karr, Henry (Sir), "Rifle", ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' (11th ed.), New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Co., Vol. 23 (''Ref–Sai'')(1911), p. 328</ref> These were intended for general use by infantry and cavalry.<ref name="SET"/> The "reach" of the new short rifles with attached bayonets was reduced.<ref name="BRA"/> Britain introduced the [[Lee–Enfield#Short Magazine Lee–Enfield Mk I|SMLE]] (Short, Magazine, Lee–Enfield), in 1904.<ref name="BRA"/><ref name="SET"/> The German M1898 Mauser rifle and attached sword bayonet was 20&nbsp;cm (eight inches) longer than the SMLE and its P1903 bayonet, which used a twelve-inch (30&nbsp;cm) blade.<ref name="BRA"/><ref name="PEG">Pegler, Martin and Chappell, Mike, ''Tommy 1914–18'' (Vol. 16), New York: Osprey Publishing Ltd., {{ISBN|978-1-85532-541-8}} (1996), p. 16</ref> While the British P1903 and its similar predecessor, the P1888, was satisfactory in service, criticism soon arose regarding the shortened reach.<ref name="BRA"/><ref name="HOP"/><ref name="SET"/><ref name="TIL">Tilson, John Q. (Hon.), ''Weapons of Aerial Warfare: Speech By Hon. John Q. Tilson, Delivered June 1, 1917'', United States House of Representatives, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office (1918), p. 84</ref> One military writer of the day warned: "The German soldier has eight inches the better of the argument over the British soldier when it comes to crossing bayonets, and the extra eight inches easily turns the battle in favour of the longer, if both men are of equal skill."<ref name="HOP"/>

In 1905, the German Army adopted a shortened {{convert|37|cm|in|round=0.5|adj=mid|-long}} bayonet, the ''Seitengewehr 98/05'' for engineer and pioneer troops, and in 1908, a short rifle as well, the ''Karabiner Model 1898AZ'', which was produced in limited quantities for the cavalry, artillery, and other specialist troops.<ref>James, Gary, "[http://archives.gunsandammo.com/content/germanys-karabiner-98az?page=1 Germany's Karabiner 98AZ] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130607012053/http://archives.gunsandammo.com/content/germanys-karabiner-98az?page=1 |date=7 June 2013 }}", ''Guns & Ammo'' (June 2010), retrieved 17 November 2011</ref> However, the long-barreled 98 Mauser rifle remained in service as the primary infantry small arm.<ref>Ezell, Edward C., ''Small Arms of the World: A Basic Manual of Small Arms'', Volume 11, p. 502</ref> Moreover, German military authorities continued to promote the idea of outreaching one's opponent on the battlefield by means of a longer rifle/bayonet combination, a concept prominently featured in its infantry bayonet training doctrines.<ref name="PRA"/> These included the ''throw point'' or ''extended thrust-and-lunge'' attack.<ref name="CRO">Crossman, Edward C., "The Rifle of the Hun", ''Popular Mechanics'', Vol. 30, No. 2 (1918), pp. 183–185.</ref> Using this tactic, the German soldier dropped into a half-crouch, with the rifle and fixed bayonet held close to the body.<ref name="CRO"/> In this position the soldier next propelled his rifle forward, then dropped the supporting hand while taking a step forward with the right foot, simultaneously thrusting out the right arm to full length with the extended rifle held in the grip of the right hand alone.<ref name="CRO"/> With a maximum 'kill zone' of some eleven feet, the ''throw point'' bayonet attack gave an impressive increase in 'reach', and was later adopted by other military forces, including the U.S. Army.<ref name="CRO"/><ref>Stacey, Cromwell (Capt.), "Training in Bayonet Fighting: Throw Point", ''U.S. Infantry Journal'', Vol. 10, No. 6 (1914) pp. 870–871.</ref>

In response to criticism over the reduced reach of the SMLE rifle and bayonet, British ordnance authorities introduced the P1907 bayonet in 1908, which had an elongated blade of some seventeen inches to compensate for the reduced overall length of the SMLE rifle.<ref name="BRA"/><ref name="BAR"/><ref name="SET"/><ref>'' Notes on Naval Progress, Section II: Small Arms'', General Information Series Volume 20, United States Office of Naval Intelligence, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office (July 1901), p. 198</ref><ref name="REG">Regan, Paula (ed.), ''Weapon: A Visual History of Arms and Armor'', London: Penguin Ltd.  {{ISBN|978-0-7566-4219-8}} (2006), p. 284.</ref> The 1907 bayonet was essentially a copy of the Japanese Type 30 bayonet, Britain having purchased a number of Japanese type 30 rifles for the Royal Navy during the preceding years.<ref name="royalarmories"/> U.S. authorities in turn adopted a long (16-in. blade) bayonet for the [[M1903 Springfield]] short rifle, the [[M1905 bayonet]]; later, a [[M1917 bayonet|long sword bayonet]] was also provided for the [[M1917 Enfield]] rifle.<ref name="TIL"/>