Quote Originally Posted by William F. Owen View Post
Based on a few years of research, I have found very few truthful accounts of men actually using bayonets in combat.
This debate has been going on for years. Histories of the American Civil War mention many charges with bayonets, but paradoically casualty records of the U.S. Army Medical Department for that war list few casualties from edged weapons. The truth may be somewhere in between, with many assualts with the weapon but few guys hurt by it. I think the answer is that the main power of the bayonet is psychologcal--guys run away when faced with cold steel. I personally don't think the bayonet has much use in modern warfare, unless it's an all-purpose knife and bayonet, like the one for the old M1 Carbine.