A Study Of Wilkinson’s Knife Markings

By

Roy Shadbolt

Part 1

Introduction

If your motivation for starting to read this series of articles is driven by your own interests in the original Wilkinson Sword F-S Fighting Knife and more specifically, its myriad of factory applied markings, then don’t despair, as it is that very topic that has been the catalyst and motivation behind this project.

From its introduction late in 1940, through to war’s end and into the post-war years, Wilkinson adorned many (but not all) of its F-S knives with skillfully applied acid etched panels. From variations of company legends and special limited production runs, to elaborately-etched privately commissioned one-off knives, the variety is simply staggering. Such examples today affords the collector with a wonderful array of markings to study, collect and enjoy.

In some of my previous articles and when the subject matter required it, I have addressed certain aspects of Wilkinson’s knife markings, both on their F-S knives and on occasion even their antique knives. But even if one focuses solely on the wartime F-S, the study of Wilkinson’s factory applied markings is so broad that I have inevitably found my efforts constrained by the shear breadth of this topic. Further to these (self-imposed) restrictions and coupled by my own interests and understanding of Wilkinson’s long pre-F-S history of making ‘and’ marking their knives, it became clear that this topic would benefit from a dedicated and much broader project. Over the years as I have pondered such an endeavor and if I’m totally honest, I’ve been rather intimidated by the size and scope that would be needed to fully appreciate this topic. As the years have rolled on, I have realized that to do the subject matter justice and to give context and more fully understand and appreciate the ‘F-S’ story, one needs to view the wider canvas, exploring the history and origin of this company’s knife production and how it has approached marking its blades from their earliest known knife production through the 233 years of the companies existence.

With this new plan in mind, I felt the only realistic way of accomplishing this was to tackle it piecemeal, breaking it up into manageable parts so as to concentrate on one topic and/or period at a time. With this in mind, I would ask for your patience and indulgence, as writing does not come to me easy - more’s the pity! Now a plan has been hatched, I decided to start at the very beginning. With the origins of the company beginning in the late 18th Century, tracing their knife production from the earliest known examples up through its wartime F-S production and beyond to the final production in the early years of the 21st Century.

I appreciate that for the dedicated F-S Knife enthusiast, some patience may be required. But as I work through these earlier periods I will ask that you ‘hold fast’ and embrace this journey with me. I’m confident that not only will you learn something new but it will be thoroughly enjoyable. Studying and collecting the F-S Knife is a wonderful passion and can take a lifetime. Even if your own personal interest does not lean towards Wilkinson’s history or past knife production, I still feel confidence that exploring these other areas of related history, will be an enlightening and fun distraction.

Stay tuned for the next installment, where we trace the company back to its very beginning, its first weapons production and first government contracts.