Were officers in the American Revolution actually trained to use swords, spontoons, and even halberds in combat, or did they only use them to make it easier to distinguish their ranks on the field?

by NikKerk

I find it hard to believe that spontoons and halberds were not considered obsolete and still used in this era where muskets dominated the battlefield.

If officers were trained to use these weapons in combat, are there any records of any officers between 1775-83 using them to kill an enemy in combat?

TheHuscarl

When it comes to swords, almost all officers would have had some sort of minor schooling or access to fencing manuals. In his book, Exercise of Arms in the Continental Infantry, Ernest Peterkin notes that there was apparently no standardized training manual for usage of swords among Patriot officers, but that they would undoubtedly have had access to some of the more popular drill manuals of the day describing the use of swords. Regardless, there would not have been an incredibly formalized training system for the use of swords, but officers would most definitely have been expected to use them even if they had to teach themselves. Patrick Ferguson, the famous British Major in charge of the loyalist forces at King's Mountain, was once terribly wounded in his right arm and had to reteach himself swordsmanship with his left hand because it was expected that he would be able to wield a sword in close combat. Von Steuben's drill manual for Patriot forces notes that senior officers (who Von Steuben assumes will be operating from horseback) should be carrying sword and that junior officers (on foot) should be carrying both swords and spontoons. Swords and spontoons were most definitely put to use in close combat during fighting, especially given the penchant of the British to use coordinated shock bayonet charges, such as at the Battle of Paoli or at the Brandywine, to disrupt and cause panic among less-experienced Patriot forces. As junior officers would've been expected to join in on those charges, they would've been using close-combat weapons, namely swords or espontoons, in the fight.

In fact, spontoons were actually considered the more appropriate weapon for an officer. Like with swords, Peterkin notes that there does not seem to have been an official manual for the usage of an espontoon among Patriot forces (possibly there was one among British forces, but I haven't found anything about it). Instead, he assumes that Patriot officers using an espontoon would've made use of some older manuals prior to the war regarding wielding espontoons in combat. Certainly, George Washington heavily favored his officers using of espontoons. At Valley Forge, Washington ordered that his officers equipped themselves, "with a half-pike or spear, as soon as possible." Similarly, Washington dictated in 1779 that, "Such officers of the line whose duty it is to act on foot in time of an engagement and who are not already provided with Espontoons are to use their utmost exertions to get them." In Washington's mind, the espontoon served a triple purpose: it was a symbol of rank, an effective close-combat weapon that allowed an officer to fight a man armed with a bayonet, and kept the loading and aiming of a firearm from distracting officers. Other American generals seemed to agree with his assessment. In his notes on Von Steuben's manual, Lord Stirling notes that spontoons were necessary for officers because, "They are a good defensive Weapon, and are very useful in dressing the Ranks." Anthony Wayne was similarly in favor of the use of spontoons and is reported to have personally wielded one while leading his famous assault on Stony Point. Another famous spontoon story comes from the Battle of the Cowpens, when a Patriot officer named Anderson reportedly used his spontoon to pole vault to a British cannon and disperse its crew before it could be fired.There are also numerous accounts of officers either using espontoons in combat or soldiers being wounded by espontoons.

Overall, officers on both sides of the conflict would've used spontoons and swords in close-combat throughout the war.

Sources

Baron Von Steuben's Revolutionary War Drill Manual https://books.google.com/books/about/Baron_Von_Steuben_s_Revolutionary_War_Dr.html?id=njiwFoU3GFoC

Exercise of Arms in the Continental Infantry by Ernest Peterkin

https://allthingsliberty.com/2016/07/most-famous-weapon/

http://www.lewis-clark.org/article/2367

A Devil of a Whipping: The Battle of Cowpens by Lawrence E. Babits

“Use of Longarms by Commissioned Officers in Continental Army Rifle Units, 1775-1779,” Military Collector & Historian, by Tucker F. Hentz https://www.scribd.com/document/351332700/Tucker-F-Hentz-Use-of-Longarms-by-Commissioned-Officers-in-Continental-Army-Rifle-Units-1775-1779-Military-Collector-Historian-vol-61-no-1