Ermakov's 8 inch bayonet

[JamesAPrattIII]

The bayonet Petr Ermakov used to stab OTMAA and the maid Anna if it was 8 inches long could have been for a Winchester model 1895 rifle. Most WW I bayonets are longer but the first bayonet used by the Model 1895 rifle of which the Russians recieved 293.000 or 299,000 of them was 210mm long. The Russians complained it was too short to penatrate great coats so later bayonets to this rifle were 400mm or 16 inches long. This rifle was designed by John Browning who also designed the 1911 and Browning pistols used to kill the IF.  some other points i must make:
It is sometimes rather hard to stab someone to death.
Ermakov it appears was clearly very wired up on hate/vodka/adrenilin when he went on his stabbing and shooting spree on the children. Being a ex-con who did 9 years in prison he know doubt had some skill as a fighter and possibly some experience at knive fighting.
OTMA and possibly Anna were wearing corsets
OTAA had jewelry sewn into their clothing
OTMAA all had amults around their necks containing a picture of Rasputin
We also don't know how sharp the bayonet was.  Many bayonets are hard to put a really sharp edge on.
So these are possibly the reasons Ermakov had such a hard time stabbing the above victims to death.
I hope this is of some interest or use to you all. i am new to this site.

[thelastimpofrussia]

Welcome! I have a question, what do you mean by "great coats"?

[Robert_Hall]

Great coats are heavy wool coats worn  by military personell, especially in wintertime. They are still used today, but I imagine much modified.

[thelastimpofrussia]

Thank you.

[Rodney_G.]

To see greatcoats, just look at virtually any military personnel of the WWI period . They're wearing long , heavy, usually dark coats. They're sturdy, warm, and fairly protective, even in battle .

[Robert_Hall]

I have 2,  can't wear them. They are too heavy and  large for me, as I am a relatively little  guy- 5'7" & 130lbs. Plus, it never really gets cold enough to wear them in SF

[aleksandr pavlovich]

I have 2,  can't wear them. They are too heavy and  large for me, as I am a relatively little  guy- 5'7" & 130lbs. Plus, it never really gets cold enough to wear them in SF

I have several and fortunately DO get a chance to wear them.  They do tend to be a bit heavy and can be bulky in travel, but incredibly warm!  Regards,  AP.

[Sunny]

The bayonet Petr Ermakov used to stab OTMAA and the maid Anna if it was 8 inches long could have been for a Winchester model 1895 rifle. Most WW I bayonets are longer but the first bayonet used by the Model 1895 rifle of which the Russians recieved 293.000 or 299,000 of them was 210mm long. The Russians complained it was too short to penatrate great coats so later bayonets to this rifle were 400mm or 16 inches long. This rifle was designed by John Browning who also designed the 1911 and Browning pistols used to kill the IF.  some other points i must make:
It is sometimes rather hard to stab someone to death.
Ermakov it appears was clearly very wired up on hate/vodka/adrenilin when he went on his stabbing and shooting spree on the children. Being a ex-con who did 9 years in prison he know doubt had some skill as a fighter and possibly some experience at knive fighting.
OTMA and possibly Anna were wearing corsets
OTAA had jewelry sewn into their clothing
OTMAA all had amults around their necks containing a picture of Rasputin
We also don't know how sharp the bayonet was.  Many bayonets are hard to put a really sharp edge on.
So these are possibly the reasons Ermakov had such a hard time stabbing the above victims to death.
I hope this is of some interest or use to you all. i am new to this site.

First of all, Thanks James. In my endless ignorance about weapons, i thought a bayonet is much longer than 8 inch (for those who uses metres, 8 inch are ca. 20 cm). Maybe i thought of something like a butcher's knife, LOL.
Does anyone have a pic of how it could be? I've loooked for pics of bayonets, but there are so many types but being, as i said, ignorance about weapon, i couldn't have a clu of which could be the right one. Can anyone help? Thanks!

[Kalafrana]

WW1-era bayonets were usually much longer than 8 inches, as James has already said. The bayonet used on the Lee Enfield rifle which was the standard British rifle of the day was about 18 inches (for some reason my grandmother had one in her coal shed - I was fascinated with it and used to disappear to the coal shed to examine it!) There was great emphasis on bayonets in British Army training at that time, but in fact they were very rarely used in battle by then.

Ann

[nena]

I have came across this:
http://averyand.tripod.com/transweapons.gif
Ermakov's Mauser and bayonet he used on that night.

[Robert_Hall]

Sorry, nena, I cannot get it to open.

[Sunny]

Sorry, nena, I cannot get it to open.

Me neither   i'd have liked to see it!!

WW1-era bayonets were usually much longer than 8 inches, as James has already said. The bayonet used on the Lee Enfield rifle which was the standard British rifle of the day was about 18 inches (for some reason my grandmother had one in her coal shed - I was fascinated with it and used to disappear to the coal shed to examine it!) There was great emphasis on bayonets in British Army training at that time, but in fact they were very rarely used in battle by then.

Ann

Thanks, ann! 18 inch. (=45 cm circa) is more or less the lenght i thought about! This sounds likely to me speaking about a knife to murder - not a knofe for bread!

[nena]

Here you go:



(Ermakov's. Medvedev's and Yurovsky's weapons). However, the pistol matches in the 1st and 3rd photo, it is Yurovsky's, according to the sources I have found.

[blessOTMA]

We know the bayonet was not working...as  they finally had to resort to bullets. Most likely the bayonet  was not effective because of the jeweled corsets, but even so, getting enough force to go though just a couple of layers  of clothes at such close quarters would be difficult. The weapon was made to be use when charging at the target. While the bayonets  were not piercing the children,  that doesn't mean they were not afflicting damage ....also the bullets that ricocheted off them

[Sunny]

Thanks Nena! Moreover i did not know that one could use bayonets fixed on a gun (and not on a rifle). My endless weapons ignorance...