Confederate D-Guard Knife

Crude but eliminatory this D-Handle Knife would have been carried by a Southern soldier. It would have been the perfect utilitarian tool around camp as well a fine fighting blade. Due to its size and weight the Knife would have been used to cut there way through corn fields, clear small branches off trees and the perfect tool for eating and protecting yourself if necessary.

D-Guard Knife
D-Guard Knife

Measuring an overall length of 18.5” this D-Guard knife would have been an easy blade to handle and carry on those long marches not weighing down the user. It’s documented in many letters, diaries and dispatches that Southerners would toss there knives to the side of the road due to them being bulky in size and heavy in weight.

This unmarked clip point D-Guard was probably made by a blacksmith who used a rasp as the blade. There are still impressions of the rasp/file on portions of the center ridge spine of the blade. The handle is 5.5” and the blade is 13” long, it has a ferrule at the base of the grip and a finely shaped quillon.

Unlike most D-Guards that have a large rounded knucklebow or guard this knives guard is very close to the wood grip handle barely allowing room for your fingers. The D-Guard knife is extremely well balanced which is a credit to the makers skill. It does have a false edge and it’s sharpened on both top and bottom. It was designed to kill.

There are remnants of gold paint around the deep crevasses near the ferrule, ricasso, and tang suggesting that this may have been a war trophy brought North after the war and displayed at a GAR Hall, which is not uncommon for Confederate weapons.

Hope you’ve enjoy viewing my knife as much as I do owning it. If you have any questions about this D-Guard knife or any of the other items in my arsenal feel free to contact me at civilwararsenal@yahoo.com attn: Gene West.
I’m always looking to grow my Civil War collection if you have any Southern weapons and are looking to sell them give me a shout maybe we can make a deal.

Kenansville D-Guard Artillery Short Sword

The following Confederate Short Sword is attributed to Louis Froelich of Wilmington North Carolina. Mr. Froelich born 1817 in Bavaria (Germany), he and his family soon traveled to Liverpool England where he worked as a mechanic/machinist. June of 1860 he and his family leave Liverpool for New York. By the spring of 1861 he and his family are living in Wilmington North Carolina.

At the start of the War Of Northern Aggression, Wilmington was North Carolina’s busiest seaport and largest city with a thriving German community and probably the reason Froelich chooses it for his home. He takes a job working at the Wilmington Button Manufactory where he is soon promoted as “Director” but the factory closes in the summer of 1861.

Not one to sit idle the highly skilled Froelich recognizes the need for arms and equipment the new Southern Government would need. He soon starts manufacturing quality edged weapons, such as Bowie Knifes, Swords, Pikes, and D-Handles. In September 1861 he partners with a Hungarian immigrant named Bela Estvan and they name there weapons manufacturing firm “Wilmington Sword Factory”. Although the circumstances surrounding their business connection remain unclear, Froelich apparently planned to produce the weapons while Estvan would handle sales and distribution.

Soon after opening the Wilmington Sword Factory they change the name to C.S.A. Arms Factory. The change perhaps reflects the owners concern that potential customers might mistakenly believe the Wilmington Sword Factory was limited to the manufacture of only swords. The change also reflected there devotion to the Confederate States of America. There loyalty apparently impressed the government in Richmond and led to a lucrative arms contract.

During the morning hours of February 1863 the Confederate States Armory catches fire and destroys the industrial complex. Shortly after he dissolves his partnership with Bela Estvan and relocates his armory in Kenansville, North Carolina.

In July 1863 the Union Army storms the town and burns the factory. Not one for giving up so quickly Froelich rebuilds and by November 1863 is producing edged weapons, knapsacks and accoutrements. He is financially troubled at this point due to relocation and fires but he continues to do whatever he can for the Southern Government.

After the war Froelich and his family become farmers, planting orchards of apples trees, pear trees, peach trees, plum, apricot and fig trees. Records show that the family had profits of $2663.25 from their agricultural pursuits in 1870. He must have been as good as a farmer as he was a businessman. Louis Froelich dies of consumption (tuberculosis) in Halifax County N.C. October 27,1873 at the age of 56.

Louis Froelich’s legacy as an arms maker to the Confederacy survives today. The Bavarian craftsman immigrated to America seeking a new life, only to find himself situated in the South as war breaks out. He took advantage of the opportunity to provide for his growing family by manufacturing the much needed weapons and equipment for North Carolina and Confederate Troops.

His skills as an industrial craftsman are evident in examples of his now scarce swords, sabers, bayonets, pikes and Bowie Knives. They were all of high quality and were widely used by the Army of Northern Virginia. For the duration of the war North Carolina armed and supplied its 125,000 troops more effectively than any other Southern State, in large part because of the efforts of independent industrialists like Louis Froelich.

So is everybody still with me? I’m hoping that you haven’t zoned out by now,lol…..

I have the pleasure of introducing the newest member of the Civil War Arsenal, which is a Artillery Short Sword sometimes referred to as a Kenansville D-Handle or D-Guard. It’s overall length is 21” long, the blade measures 15 ¾”. The spear point blade is about ¼” thick towards the center of the oval shaped cross section. The grip handle is made of walnut and the guards are of steel stock. The grip is basically round in shape except for a flattened area on either side running up about 3 ¼” up from the guard.

Scabbards are extremely rare especially ones with the leather throat belt loop still in tact. The example that we see here is far from complete but it is a survivor with probably about 65% of it intact. The leather they used for these knifes was usually poor quality which became brittle and cracked easy. The design flaw to this scabbard was the leather belt loop would rub against the D-Handle guard. Over time this would tear though the leather loop dropping it from the belt it was attached too hindering it useless.

So that just about does it for now, I hope you enjoy the photos and if you have any questions about this Knife or any of the other weapons in the Civil War Arsenal feel free to contact me.
Attn: Gene West civilwararsenal@yahoo.com

CS Star, Confederate Artillery Short Sword

Even though considered scarce this type Short Sword is one of the more common Confederate edged weapons.

These Short Sword are often reproduced so the buyer needs to beware, however there are many ways of identifying an authentic sword versus a reproduction. If you look closely at the handle you will clearly see the casting flaws. The star at the top of the pommel rarely has the five points you would normally see if it were perfect and even if one side did the other side wouldn’t. The CS on the guard at the base of the handle are barely readable. The handle is hollow and many have holes in them, some were even filled with lead. You’ll also see where the mechanics filed the rough edges.

The brass handles have a high copper content that’s often very noticeable. The blades are crude but cleaner in appearance then the handles, but all still have there flaws. There is a single nonstop fuller that’s about 13” long which is never straight. Believed by many to have been manufactured in Selma Alabama or Macon Georgia.

So that brings me to the next example in the Civil War Arsenal. The overall length of this Short Sword is 24 ½” long with a handle of 5 ½” and blade 19”. It weighs 2 ¾ lbs which would make it cumbersome to carry, especially on a long march with all the gear a foot soldier would have to carry.

Typical of many Confederate weapons you will never find two alike, but I believe that’s the beauty in them. Thanks for stopping by and if you have any questions about this Short Sword or any of the other weapons in the Civil War Arsenal email me at civilwararsenal@yahoo.com attn: Gene West

Clip Point D Guard Bowie Knife

Here’s a Confederate D Handle knife that’s been in my collection for quiet some time. It doesn’t get as much respect as some of the other D-handle knives due to its size, but it would have been the perfect knife for a foot soldier to carry since it was small and lighter in weight then most of the heavy and clumsy D-Handles.
The overall size of the knife is 15 ½” long, with the handle measuring 5” and the blade measuring 10 ½”. This Clip point Knife has a 2 ¾” false edge and the blade is 1 ½” wide. The Blacksmith kept the natural sweep of the blade which occurs when the edge is forged.
It’s my guess this knife was made from an old file, even though there are no teeth marks on the blade. It’s pretty simplistic in nature but still very well made. The Guard is thick at the pommel where it’s fastened to the handle (about 1/8”) but the area of the quillon where the blade meets the handle is very thin, measuring about 1/16” or thinner. Proof that the D-Handle was crafted with a hammer by a blacksmith or mechanic.
The blade and the guard both have a nice blackened patina to them however the ferrule at the base of the handle appears to be pewter, which may be the neatest feature of the knife. The scabbard is long gone to time but it’s my opinion it would have been leather or pigs hide.
Well there you have it another Confederate D-Handle Bowie Knife. If you have any questions about this knife or any of the other weapons in the Civil War Arsenal feel free to email me at civilwararsenal@yahoo.com attn: Gene West

Confederate, Joseph Brown Georgia Pike

The outbreak of the war left the the Southern states without much of the resources there Northern counterparts had. Rifles, pistols, swords, uniforms and least we forget people were just some of the needs lacking to fight a war. Because of this the ingenuity of the Southern war machine, i.e. politicians, blacksmiths, mechanics and farmers would have to think outside the box.

In February of 1862, Georgia Governor Joseph Brown gave an address to mechanics throughout the state.

Executive Department,
Milledgeville, Georgia,
February 20th, 1862.

To the Mechanics of Georgia:

The late reverses which have attended our arms, show the absolute necessity of renewed energy and determination on our part. We are left to choose between freedom at the end of a desperate and heroic struggle and submission to tyranny, followed by the most abject and degraded slavery to which a patriotic and generous people were ever exposed. Surely we can not hesitate. Independence or death should be the watchword and reply of every freeborn son of the South. Our enemies have vastly superior numbers and greatly the advantage in the quantity and quality of their arms. Including those, however, which have and will be imported, in spite of the blockade, we have guns enough in the Confederacy to arm a very large force, but not enough for all the troops which have been and must be called to the field. What shall be done in this emergency? I answer: Use the “Georgia Pike” with six feet staff, and the side knife eighteen inches blade, weighing about three pounds.

Let every army have a large reserve, armed with a good pike, and a long heavy side knife, to be brought upon the field, with a shout for victory, when the contending forced are much exhausted, or when the time comes for the charge of bayonets. When the advancing columns come within reach of the balls, let them move in double quick time and rush with terrible impetuosity into the lines of the enemy. Hand to hand, the pike has vastly the advantage of the bayonet, and those having the bayonet, which is itself but a crooked pike, with shorter staff, must retreat before it. When the retreat commences, let the pursuit be rapid, and if the enemy throw down their guns and are likely to outrun us, if need be, throw down the pike and keep close at their heels with the knife, till each man has hewed down, at least, one of his adversaries.

Had five thousand reserves thus armed and well trained to the use of these terrible weapons been brought to the charge at the proper time, who can say that the victory would not have been ours at Fort Donaldson?

But it was probably important that I state here the use to be made of that which I wish you to manufacture. I have already a considerable number of these pikes and knives, but I desire, within the next month, ten thousand more of each. I must have them; and I appeal to you, as one of the most patriotic classes of our fellow citizens, to make them for me immediately. I trust every mechanic, who has the means of turning them out rapidly, and the owner of every machine shop in this State, will at once lay aside, as far as possible, all other business and appropriate a month or two to the relief of the country in this emergency. Each workman who has the means of turning them out in large numbers without delay will be supplied with a proper pattern by application at the Ordinance Office at Milledgeville.

Appealing to your patriotism as a class and to your interest as citizens, whose all is at stake in the great contest in which we are engaged, I ask an immediate response.

In ancient times, that nation, it is said, usually extended its conquests furthest whose arms were shortest. Long range guns sometimes fail to fire and waste an hundred balls to one that takes effect; but the short range pike and the terrible knife, when brought within their proper range, ( as they can be almost in a moment) and wielded by a stalwart patriot’s arm, never fail to fire and never waste a single load.

I am, very respectfully, your fellow citizen,

After reading such a decree you can better understand the sentiment and feelings of the Southerner at the time of the war. The institutions have dumbed down the facts since the War of Northern Aggression with political correctness. But it’s obvious that the Southerner was defending his freedoms, they were fighting the second revolution the same fight there Grandfathers had fought some 80 years earlier against the British.

Calling for mechanics throughout the state to make six foot staffs with eighteen inch blades shows just how desperate the Southern war machine was. Still thinking in terms of a Napoleonic type war, where armies lined up in open fields with smooth bore rifles and blades of all types believing a Divine Spirit was on there side and would protect them the sorrows of death.

There Northern counterparts were manufacturing state of the art breech loading repeating carbines and rifles, rifled cannons that could launch explosive projectiles accurately for miles, building the largest wartime Navy the world had ever seen.

Seems hard to believe that these two countries/armies could have been fighting against each other with such a difference in the types of weapons they hoped would bring them victory. It’s a credit to the South that the war lasted as long as it did, just goes to show how difficult it is to strip someone of there freedom without them fighting back like a caged rabbit dog, after all they were willing to use pikes against men with guns, sounds crazy too me.

Which brings me to the next weapon in the Civil War Arsenal. This Joseph Brown Georgia Pike has a spear point blade that measures 12 ¼” long, the overall length of the pike is 8’ & ¼” from the butt to the point of the blade. It has no cracks in the wood shaft and no makers marks, which is not uncommon for these pikes. The brass butt collar at the base of the shaft is still in place, which is generally lost on most examples. The wood shaft has what appears to be the markings ( indentations ) of rope that was once wrapped around it. I’ve seen this before on other pikes and it’s my opinion that the shaft was wrapped with rope to better grasp for lungeing forward. However I’ve never seen a pike with the rope still in place. This pike was purchased from Sam, at the Horse Soldiers store in Gettysburg Pa. I’m guessing due to its great condition it was a war souvenir shipped north after the war and displayed at a G.A.R hall, just an educated guess.

So there you have it another fine example of a Southern Edged Weapon in the ever growing Civil War Arsenal, a Confederate Georgia Pike. If you have any questions about this weapon feel free to contact me. And if you have a civil war weapon that you’d like know more about or perhaps you’d like to sell feel free to contact me at civilwararsenal@yahoo.com , attn: Eugene West. Thanks for stopping by.

Confederate D Handle Bowie Knife

It’s a Saturday afternoon and I’m sitting around the house bored so I’ve decided to write about one of the many weapons in the Civil War Arsenal.

A year or two ago I was at a Civil War show with my wife walking around looking at all the neat stuff laid out amongst all the tables not really seeing anything that jumped out at me and said buy me NOW. After one complete pass at the show that must have taken about 2 hours to complete I started my second pass knowing I must have missed at least one neat item.

I came across a fellow who had about 4 or 5 confederate knifes, and there it was the D Handle that said LOOK AT ME. This knife was stunning it had all the features I look for when purchasing confederate knifes, minus the scabbard.

Beautiful hardwood handle with knots in it, blackened metal blade, sturdy well made knife with a wonderful rasp/file blade that is just a work of art in itself. I must have spent an hour looking at this knife trying to walk away but it wouldn’t let me. It’s like the knife was talking to me saying take me home.

So I finally pulled myself away from the table only to be brought back time after time. It was like a magical spell had been put on me. Earlier I spoke to the fellow who was selling the knife (unfortunately I forgot his name) and he told me the price, which was a fair price but these days I tend to be more of a value shopper when making big purchases.
So I made him what I thought was a fair offer and after going back and forth with him for about ten minutes we finally agreed on a price.

This spear point D Handle has an overall length of 19” with a 14 ½” blade and a 4 ½”handle the blade is 2 1/4” wide at its widest point and it weighs 1 ½ pounds. The blacksmith or mechanic that made this knife was extremely skilled. The knife 150 years later is straight as an arrow, very sturdy and the D Handle doesn’t move like so many D Handle Knives I’ve handle over the years.

It’s my opinion this knife had a leather scabbard that probably rotted to the point that someone tossed it thinking there was no value in salvaging it, bummer I wish it was saved. Based on my research this knife was assembled in the Carolinas or Georgia but I’m sure that others may challenge that opinion. Either way this is a neat knife and I hope you enjoy the photos. Any questions about this knife please contact me at civilwararsenal@yahoo.com attn: Gene West

Confederate Bowie Knife and Tin Scabbard

The Civil War Arsenal is proud to introduce to its ever growing collection this early version of a Confederate D Handle Bowie Knife with Tin Scabbard. More than likely manufactured early in the war probably 1861 or 1862 this is a fine example of what a Southern soldier would have carried to defend against the Northern aggressors.

When war broke out in 1861 the South was woefully ill equipped to fight against the industrious North so many of the Southern soldiers armed themselves with fighting knives made by capable craftsman. Blacksmiths, carriage makers and tin smiths were just a few of the professions that answered the call to arm the Southern army. While some of these knives were functional, some were poorly constructed and not very aesthetically pleasing. That is not the case with this knife.

This knife was made by a skilled craftsman. There are many flaws throughout the blade but that only adds to the character of the knife. The blade is well executed and the knife balances properly. Many of the knives this size were heavy with thick blades and were a chore to carry on long marches. This blade while heavy enough to serve its purpose wouldn’t wear the soldier out during long marches.

It has a simple turned wood handle made of hardwood, probably walnut. The tang is peened over the D guard and is undisturbed. The overall length is 20 ¾”, blade length is 16 ¼” and blade width is 1 ¾”.

Scabbards for Confederate knives are quite rare since most were made out of leather and didn’t far well over the past 150 years. This scabbard is made of tin which is scarcer than a leather scabbard.

Construction of this scabbard is a work of art. The lead soldier on the seams is evident and holds well to this day. Made of two pieces of tin, front and back with the tip added to the body probably because the maker didn’t have a single piece long enough to cover the knife. The belt loop is still in place, which is quite rare as well.

This D handle was in the private collection of Lee Hadaway who is the author of “The Updated Confederate Bowie Knife Guide”. He is the leading expert on Confederate D handle Bowie knives and side knives.

I am proud to have this Confederate D Handle Bowie Knife as one of the many center pieces of my ever growing Civil War collection.

Enjoy the photos.