Like all things, this must start at the beginning.
The "Swiss dagger" was a staple of the Swiss mercenary troops of the 16th century. Evolving from the basler short sword, this narrow, flat blade was between 10 and 16 inches long, and characterized by its crescent handle and pommel, giving it a distinct and highly identifiable shape among European blades of the day.
Worn on the belt, usually on the dominant side of the wearer, the weapon first began to appear in Switzerland in the mid 13th century, and largely remained in that region for the duration of its life. The cross section was diamond, and the edge was always double sided. A well made blade would be expected to slice and stab equally well.
By the 17th century, the dagger had become a highly ornamental weapon, with fine jewel work and detailed paintings on the scabbard and hilt. This was soon part of the opulence and conspicuous consumption of the 18th century gentry and wealthy merchants, who donned the weapon as part of highly detailed, and expensive outfits in Germany, and the German military.
Two centuries later, fall of 1933 specifically, the Nationalist, Socialist Party of Germany presented its Schutzstaffel officers with the honor dagger, modeled off of the classic Swiss dagger, with the crescent hilt and pommel and sturdy grip. A precisely machined 33cm long, and adorned with the then iconic NAZI emblems, and engraved with "Meine Ehre heißt Treue" (My honor is loyalty), the weapon was part of the SS officer's dress uniform.
His Lordship Ivo Blackhawk
Kingdom of Ansteorra
"Long Live the King!"
By the 17th century, the dagger had become a highly ornamental weapon, with fine jewel work and detailed paintings on the scabbard and hilt. This was soon part of the opulence and conspicuous consumption of the 18th century gentry and wealthy merchants, who donned the weapon as part of highly detailed, and expensive outfits in Germany, and the German military.
Two centuries later, fall of 1933 specifically, the Nationalist, Socialist Party of Germany presented its Schutzstaffel officers with the honor dagger, modeled off of the classic Swiss dagger, with the crescent hilt and pommel and sturdy grip. A precisely machined 33cm long, and adorned with the then iconic NAZI emblems, and engraved with "Meine Ehre heißt Treue" (My honor is loyalty), the weapon was part of the SS officer's dress uniform.
Concurrent with this, starting in 1943, a very similar type of dagger was issued to the the Swiss military, called the ordnance dagger. The similarities here are not coincidental. the Swiss Air Force of the 1940 was fully equipped by German made ME-109 fighters, and their army was using a huge portion of German made, or designed rifles and vehicles.
In the years following the war, the daggers were collectors' items for trophy hunters among the American GIs who fought in the war, and later who occupied West Germany.
In the 80s, however, the daggers took on new meaning as a resurgent american NAZI party started to take hold in the footsteps of the unrest and social upset begun by the KKK in the 60s and 70s. People upset with the Klan's re-branded, mainstream look of the 80s looked to the harder lined, more openly violent appeal of the NeoNazi's and their ultraviolet Skinhead offshoots. The daggers became borderline icons, and quasi-religious relics to the new movement, and were valued items among the hate groups during their gatherings and ceremonies.
In order to conceal the weapon's true identity during public conversation, they were sometimes referred to as 'Swiss daggers', or 'German type Swiss daggers'. In reality, the true nature of the weapons didn't come into larger public knowledge until the internet made such specific knowledge widely available on demand.
Today, the Honor dagger is widely recognized as intrinsically linked with the NAZI regime, and inseparable from the crimes they were guilty of. Many historians are largely split as to if they should even consider the modern ceremonial weapon as part of the actual Swiss dagger's linage or not, some seeing the taint of the Third Reich as possibly bleeding backwards onto the centuries old blade and its rich history. Others, however, are more pragmatic, noting that the Honor dagger was only produced for 11 years, and the true Swiss dagger existed for over 400.
And this, especially in light of modern and current events, is why I refer to this weapon irreverently as the Corrupted Swiss Dagger.
In the years following the war, the daggers were collectors' items for trophy hunters among the American GIs who fought in the war, and later who occupied West Germany.
In the 80s, however, the daggers took on new meaning as a resurgent american NAZI party started to take hold in the footsteps of the unrest and social upset begun by the KKK in the 60s and 70s. People upset with the Klan's re-branded, mainstream look of the 80s looked to the harder lined, more openly violent appeal of the NeoNazi's and their ultraviolet Skinhead offshoots. The daggers became borderline icons, and quasi-religious relics to the new movement, and were valued items among the hate groups during their gatherings and ceremonies.
In order to conceal the weapon's true identity during public conversation, they were sometimes referred to as 'Swiss daggers', or 'German type Swiss daggers'. In reality, the true nature of the weapons didn't come into larger public knowledge until the internet made such specific knowledge widely available on demand.
Today, the Honor dagger is widely recognized as intrinsically linked with the NAZI regime, and inseparable from the crimes they were guilty of. Many historians are largely split as to if they should even consider the modern ceremonial weapon as part of the actual Swiss dagger's linage or not, some seeing the taint of the Third Reich as possibly bleeding backwards onto the centuries old blade and its rich history. Others, however, are more pragmatic, noting that the Honor dagger was only produced for 11 years, and the true Swiss dagger existed for over 400.
And this, especially in light of modern and current events, is why I refer to this weapon irreverently as the Corrupted Swiss Dagger.
His Lordship Ivo Blackhawk
Kingdom of Ansteorra
"Long Live the King!"
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