There is something distinctly chilling about the use of bayonets in battle. They seem even more terrible than the swords and axes of earlier ages. While they have became a symbol of WW1 and seem to be referred to frequently in WW2 my belief is that this overstates their actual use in combat. I have read several hundred memoirs by soldiers from these wars, principally the later, and first hand accounts of bayonet use are infrequent. This may be partly accounted for by reticence on behalf of the writers to relive this extremely intimate form of killing but the numbers still persuade that it was unusual. Where it is mentioned, it is usually in relation to fighting the Japanese in the Pacific war. Generally then, references to bayonet charges and use are of the lurid ‘hand to hand’ style meant to imply very bitter fighting.
The relatively few bayonet casualties in field hospitals support this. It seems to me this was a particularly fatal encounter. If someone got close enough to wound you, they invariably finished you off. The one exception in those many memoirs was US marine Harry A. Pearce writing in 'Star Shells, Condoms & KaBars' who survived a bayonet thrust on Iwo Jima. Actor Charles Durning survived eight stabs in the Battle of the Bulge. The only other I can think of was my former chiropractor’s father who received a Turkish bayonet to the face on Galipolli and survived because he didn’t give the Turk a chance at a second go. The battle for 42nd Street however provides a rare exception where their use was virtually first and foremost.
It seems that almost every writer about WW2 battles seeks to convey their topic as one of the most brutal battles of the war. It’s hard to disagree when you think about Stalingrad or Iwo Jima. Here however, the focus is an obscure fight, in a largely forgotten battle, remembered only for being Hitler’s last use of his paratroop force. This though points to why it was so savage. The paratroops landed on top of the New Zealand and Australian defenders and close quarters combat was the unavoidable outcome. The brutal opening set the scene for the subsequent clashes. Also, the thrashing the Allies had received in Greece, followed by the unrelenting Luftwaffe attacks on the evacuated survivors on Crete, had contributed to an Allied force that was raging to hit back. The planets therefore all lined up, as it were, along 42nd Street.
This book outlines the pre-battle situation. The forces of both sides are examined, including the commanders down to battalion level. There are a host of first-person accounts, including those given in interviews to the author. Some of this material is remarkably graphic. There is some content that is not for the squeamish. I think too of the deeds of New Zealand VC winner Alfred Hulme, who killed over 30 German snipers – many while disguised in German gear. What he did saved Allied lives but I can see how it has been described as controversial. How would anyone feel if their relative was killed by an enemy using such a method? Again, it was a very brutal battle.
Most combat is fought at a distance, indeed modern weapons have been designed to do the killing from as great a distance as possible. This fascinating book looks at what combat is like when the opposing forces are truly face to face – it makes for very brutal combat. Highly recommended 4 ½ stars
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