Plug Bayonet

Timeline

1. 1660–1665Paris and surrounding camps · Île-de-FranceThe French army experimented during infantry tactics reform with inserting short-hilted blades into the muzzle of muskets, allowing soldiers to thrust with the weapon during loading intervals and reducing reliance on independent pikemen.
2. 1666–1670Battlefields of the Low Countries and inland France · Low CountriesPlug bayonets were widely issued to infantry battalions in actual combat such as the Franco-Dutch War; soldiers fired in dense formations and then quickly fitted bayonets for close combat, becoming an important hallmark of early modern European infantry tactics.
3. 1668–1690Continental Europe · EuropeAfter observing French experience, the armies of England, Brandenburg-Prussia, and other states adopted similar plug bayonets, driving all of Europe's infantry to uniformly replace pikes with muskets and bayonets; however, the defect of blocking the muzzle also spurred subsequent ring-style designs.