British WWI Trench Raiding Club Mace Original Items

New Made Item: This is a fantastic reproduction of a trench mace from the Great War. This British trench club was made by placing a flanged metal ring on a standard entrenching tool handle. While the First World War is strongly associated with the introduction of modern weaponry, primitive melee weapons still had a place in the close-quarters fighting encountered during trench raids. Decommissioned or broken heavy machinery was often re-purposed and you can see the cog-like head that looks as though this could have been a gear from a tank or other vehicle. There was no shortage of uses for parts.

We’ve come across Canadian and British versions of this style club. This durable and devastating weapon has a steel shim with the flanged ring over the top which is then pinned through. All of aged steel. Shaft is solid, stained hardwood. Measures 17 inches in overall length.

With the adoption of Trench Warfare in 1914 the stalemate became intolerable so the practice of “trench raids” was introduced. Taking place at night this involved a raining party crossing NO-MANS-LAND and entering into the enemy’s trench system to take a few prisoners for interrogation. Clearly these were covert operations and the use of firearms was impossible so the Army reverted to almost medieval tactics of using clubs and edged weapons.

Trench raiding clubs were homemade melee weapons used by both the Allies and the Central Powers during World War I. Clubs were used during nighttime trench raiding expeditions as a quiet and effective way of killing or wounding enemy soldiers. The clubs were usually made out of wood. It was common practice to fix a metal object at the striking end (e.g. an empty Mills bomb) in order to maximize the injury inflicted. Another common design comprised a simple stave with the end drilled out and a lead weight inserted, with rows of large hobnails hammered in around its circumference. Most designs had some form of cord or leather strap at the end to wrap around the user’s wrist. Bosnian soldiers serving in the Austro-Hungarian army were fond of using maces. They were also used by officers to finish enemy soldiers wounded by poison gas attacks.

Trench clubs were manufactured in bulk by units based behind the lines. Typically, regimental carpenters and metal workers would make large numbers of the same design of club.

They were generally used along with other “quiet” weapons such as trench knives, entrenching tools, bayonets, hatchets and pickaxe handles  backed up with revolvers and hand grenades.

At first they used spades and bayonets but then more effective weapons were distributed just as we offer here. The trench war went on, for the British, for four long years so most of these hand to hand weapons saw action. This example has a 15 wood shaft with a heavy cast iron head bearing six protruding knobs that could shatter a man’s skull with ease. Apart from the historical connection, ideal for home defense or to keep the kids in order.