United States Marine Raider Stiletto

U.S. Marine Raider stiletto
Type	Dagger
Place of origin	United States
Service history
Wars	World War II

The U.S. Marine Raider stiletto was a stiletto and combat knife issued to the Marine Raiders and 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion during World War II.

At the start of World War II, the Mark I Trench Knife was the only knife issued to Marines. It was introduced during World War I for trench warfare, but its "knuckle duster" hilt was cumbersome and contained nearly 1 pound (0.45 kg) of brass, making the knife expensive to produce. In addition, the Mark I could not be held in the "fencing-grip" position, the preferred position for the thrust. The Marine Corps began issuing the KA-BAR, a combination fighting/utility knife, in 1942 due to the inadequacies of the Mark I. The Marine Raiders, however, desired a dagger designed solely for knife fighting, but none were available that met the requirements.

The history of the U.S. Marine Raider Stiletto began at the Commando Training Centre in Achnacarry, Scotland. The stiletto was patterned after the Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife, which was in use at the centre before the arrival of the Marine Raiders.

The U.S. Marine Raider Stiletto was the first knife in United States Marine Corps history to be designed by a U.S. Marine Corps officer, the then Lieutenant Colonel Clifford H. Shuey, who retired as a brigadier general and was formerly in charge of the Engineer Division at Headquarters Marine Corps. Shuey largely copied the F-S knife pattern, but changed the material specifications of some components (notably the handle) to reduce the need for high-priority strategic materials. These changes would eventually result in durability problems for the Raider stiletto. The knife was designed in 1942 and officially issued on a selective basis to the Marines, with priority to elite units such as the Raiders.

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