In the late 1820's the Russian army adopted a new flintlock musket known as the M-1828 pattern.  It followed the usual Russian practice of the day in being a copy of a French design - in this case, the Mle. 1822 pattern bayonet.<2>  The bayonet which was to be manufactured for use with this new weapon took the form of a three sided blade with fullers running down the length of the outer two sides (farthest from the musket).  The side closest to the musket would be stamped with a single Cyrillic character.  In all other respects the weapon was a typical socket bayonet with a locking ring like most of the period.  Additional bayonets for training were made with rounded edges in 1829 and 1830. <1>

As time went on, the Russian army began to see the advantage of the percussion cap system and sought to convert many of their flintlock weapons to this new standard.  The M-1828 bayonet would continue to be used with these new converted muskets.  Among the first of these were the infantry and dragoon's M-1839 percussion conversion, which being of the same barrel diameter were able to fit the old bayonet with no problem.  The Russian army also manufactured a shorter version of the M-1828 during the 1830's.  This bayonet was used with the obsolete M-1808 flintlock musket. <1>

By the mid-1840's the M-1828 would be used on two other muskets: the M-1828/44 percussion conversion and the purpose built percussion M-1845 musket.  Two years later it was issued to the dragoon's M-1847 musket.  It was on these weapons that the bayonet would see service during the Crimean War.

It was the poor Russian performance during that conflict that would lead to its obsolescence.  The dominance of British rifles illustrated that the future lay in rifled arms.  Russian military planners attempted to fix this deficiency first by converting several weapons into rifles - the M-1845 musket was reworked in 1854 as but one example.  This allowed the M-1828 bayonet to serve for another decade, but as the Russian army began purchasing new rifles the old bayonet was phased out along with the older converted muskets.

Tactical Use and Limitations

The M-1828 bayonet was a fairly typical weapon for its period.  When not in use, the weapon was worn in a scabbard.  In combat, the weapon was affixed to the soldier's musket as he marched in dense columns reminiscent of the Napoleonic wars.  Tactical doctrine of the day placed heavy emphasis on the bayonet charge.  This meant that the infantry formation would form up some one to two hundred yards from its opponent, discharge a few volleys of fire, then charge into melee combat.  In this respect the bayonet was quite serviceable; but with the advent of rifled weapons that could dramatically outrange Russian muskets, the bayonet was unable to fulfill its designed purpose.  In the end, the weapon was not phased out due to any particular deficiency, but rather because the weapons that it was affixed to had proved to be inadequate to the changing times.

Deployment Chronology

The 1828 bayonet was a fairly conventional weapon designed to accommodate a variety of weapons over its service period.  Though initially designed for the M-1828 pattern flintlock musket, the weapon would later be used on percussion cap weapons and early rifles.  In the end, the bayonet was replaced not due to any deficiency on its part, but because the new rifles being developed after the Crimean War could no longer fit the weapon due to their smaller calibers.  Below, you can read more about the bayonets that the M-1828 replaced as well as the weapons that eventually replaced it.

Sources Cited

Here are some of the most informative sources that we have used in compiling this information for you.  We hope you can find them as useful as we have.

• Kulinsky, A.N, Russian Edged Weapons, Polearms, and Bayonets 18th-20th centuries vol 2, Atlant: St. Petersburg, 2001. Print.

• Brayley, Martin J., Bayonets: An Illustrated History, Chartwell Books: New York, NY, 2013. Print.