Every soldier North and South needed a knife when they marched off to war, and in the South, it was fashionable, if not practical to carry a large fighting knife, the bigger the better judging from war era photographs. These knives were brought from home or were made at Confederate arsenals, by private cutlers, blacksmiths and mechanically oriented entrepreneurs. Some of these were practical, some were cumbersome and some were just plain absurd.

The D-Guard shown here is the longest that I have ever seen; and I do not think it is a cut down sword. I think it was made, as you see it now. The blade alone is twenty three and a half inches long; the full length including the grip is an incredible twenty-nine inches. The blade is single edged, and measures a whopping quarter of an inch thick at the ricasso. The blade’s tang passes through a heavy forged iron D-guard, which has a crack in the iron on one side at the ricasso. This was from someone wrenching the blade sideways, as this was a natural weak point when stressed in that direction. The slab grips are morticed to enclose the tang completely and is secured by two iron rivets with iron washers on one side, and a brass inscription panel on the other. There are too many letters, and scratches all over the plaque to make out any name. The hilt and grip remain as tight as the day the knife was made.

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