Resist to the end. (K-31)

On this day in history (25 July 1940) the following order was given: Aggressively attack invaders; act on your own initiative; regard any surrender broadcast or announcement as enemy propaganda; resist to the end.
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These dire instructions came not from Stalin or the Japanese high command, but instead from General Henri Guisan and the Swiss government who understandably feared an imminent invasion from their belligerent Italian and German neighbors. This pronouncement was in addition to earlier instructions to fight to the last drop of blood and to the last cartridge.

The Swiss were uniquely situated, geographically, politically, and militarily, to make any invasion a bloodbath. Switzerland is an extremely mountainous country, making the efficient offensive use of armored formations difficult if not impossible. The defensive plan was to form a “National Redoubt” amongst fortified areas in central Switzerland.

It also was a bastion of democracy in mainland Europe, with its particular form of democracy being semi-direct and de-centralized. When coupled with the order to ignore any surrender edicts, no small group of elites or collaborators would have had the legal authority to order a surrender of Swiss military forces.

Militarily, the Swiss are famously fearsome, which is what has ensured their neutrality in the tinderbox that was (and still is?) Europe. The majority of their male population was able to be mobilized in short order, bringing their rifles from home and organizing for the common defense. A notable, although likely apocryphal, story goes as follows: Prior to WW1 a German official asks a Swiss official what they would do if the German Army invaded with a 2:1 superiority in numbers. The Swiss response? “Shoot twice and go home”.

The pictured rifle is one that was prepared to repulse the feared invasion of the Swiss homeland. Produced in 1936, this K31 carbine is a “straight-pull” weapon, meaning that instead of the shooter manually lifting the bolt before pulling it rearward, the marksman simply pulls the bolt rearward and cycles it straight forward to load a new cartridge. This design speeds and simplifies the firing drill, but makes the production of the rifle much more complicated (not that the Swiss have ever struggled with making precision parts).

The rifle fires the 7.5x55mm Swiss cartridge, and is loaded via a unique 6-round charging device made primarily out of cardboard. One particularly interesting thing about Swiss rifles is the frequent presence of “troop tags” under the butt plate. These tags indicate the last rifleman assigned this weapon before it was surplused out of service.

​So, this particular rifle belonged to Charles Vionnet, who was born in 1918, served in the 1st Company of the 215th Battalion, and lived in the village of Le Sentier during the time of his service. Pretty neat!