Quote:
Originally Posted by breadcatcher101
Even the M1 carbine, a very short weapon had a bayonet and they did have a purpose. My uncle carried one in WW2 and he said they always used it when escorting prisoners.
As for combat, better than nothing I would think.
|
Yes, you are absolutely right; it was better than nothing. This was the guiding principle behind it's invention as well. It was designed during the advent of the modern era of warfare as a weapon of last resort for single-shot firearms, thus turning the rifle into an impromptu polearm. Of course, it suffererd from the same problem that all polearms do; they had limited range of motion and they functioned best when used in groups. This is why soldiers that carried these firearms, like the committed polearm soldiers, carried a sword until the firearm technology advanced to give soldiers a faster-loading weapon.