- Joined
- Nov 29, 2002
- Messages
- 3,229
One of the original versions of this thread is in the Cantina library. This is a new expanded & updated version.
The 20th Century British Military Gurkha Issue Kukri. Including both Official Pattern approved & unit issue types.
Within the fascinating history of the kukri, there are many interesting & indeed fascinating types, both civilian & military but the ones that brought them there fame were mostly those that were carried by the British army Gurkha's {Originating from Nepal}throughout the 20th century, particularly those used in WW1 & WW2 which they used with such devastating effect & bravery, winning many gallantry medals in the process..
With this current updating of the article. {Which I first published nearly 10 years ago. Bringing much previously then unknown information to light} I will cover the particular models that bought the kukri to fame & indeed for its enemy, infamy & fear.
Hopefully the article will help continue to answer some of the most frequent questions I see & hear about the main British Gurkha military pattern kukri & those used by various, units, regiments, & of course on occasion private purchases by many individual officers & men.
In all there have been 5 official military pattern kukri.
In number order Mk.1 at top.

The MKI Pattern Kukri, sometimes referred to as the Great War kukri.
The First official numbered British Indian Gurkha military kukri the mk.1 was in production by 1903 up until 1915.
It was a break from the traditional hidden partial tangs to a full length rat tail tang culminating in turn nut similar in design to a rifle stock fitting recessed into the walnut butt. The raised nut system is also seen in 19th century Afghan army kukri & many historical swords, But the sunken circular nut is a clear identifying feature for these kukri..

The mk.1 nuts.

Many of them are unmarked although some later 1915 models carry the manufactures armoury stamp Co. For Cossipore Armoury. Often FW marks on the spine occur which are the inspection & or issue marks from Fort William in Calcutta, The rarer QA & RP inspection marks also show up for Rawlpindi & Queta respectivly. Some pieces carry more than one inspection or issue mark. Many of these kukri were subcontracted to local civilian workshops. One of which was E.Boota Singh &sons, based at Rawlpindi.
The Co 1915 models seem to be heavy, badly balanced & clumsy in hand although well made, I have often wondered if that last batch of Co. kukris was the nail in the coffin for that design as a military piece.
There weights vary from 24oz to 35 oz {On those I have examined.} Blade lengths typically in the 13 1/4 to 14 inch range.
Although all mk.1s are rare, & most are short handled, as always with kukri variants do occur the lighter weight longer handled one is a one of the rarer variants. It may be a private purchase or regimentaly produced piece as it bears no inspection marks but it still comes with the rare Official issue mk.I scabbard, equipped with pockets loops & buttons. The only rarer Official issue scabbard known is that made by. A cooper of Birmingham in 1915,1916 & 1917, which features a rigid leather body with internal flat springs riveted into place to hold the kukri in position. {Illustrated below.} Mk.1,Mk2 & English made kukri of WW1 dates have all been found in these, although the scabbard seems designed for the Cossipore made mk.1 or fit all amalgamation of styles or perhaps an as yet unknown possibly indeed probably English made large bladed kukri variant.{My personal conjecture.}

.......................................................................................................................
The MKII Pattern Kukri
The mk.2 was in production by 1915 & was to stay in manufacture for the British army until at least 1944 so certainly they ran into production figures of many thousands.
All the pattern issue pieces have steel bolster & buttcap, brass was a restricted metal only to be used if superior to other metals for the job in question. {Such as arguably rivet surrounds & scabbard chapes.}
Those issue marked mk.2 kukri found with brass bolsters are sadly fakes that have been marketed in the west for several decades.. Although some late & post WW2 Private purchase pieces in the style of mk.2 kukri do have brass bolsters, buttcaps & often have buffalo horn or ivory hilts.Those marked tempered steel made in India seem to be from the time of Indian independence {1947.}
The mk.2 design was unusual for the era in being a riveted hilt design on to a full width & length tang, with a buttcap, both presumably to hopefully protect the wooden hilt from coming loose or being chipped & broken in use.
The issue mk.II kukri has been produced by many manufactures & armories over the years. Commercial private purchase version production continued after the war & fakes & replicas are still made today.
Blade lengths are usually 13 1/4 to 13 3/4 inches.There weights can vary from 20oz to 28oz .{On those I have examined.} On average WW2 era issue ones tend to be heavier most of the time than the WW1 era pieces.
The 3 WW1 manufactures most often seen are {with years of production runs that I know off so far.} :
- CO. 1915,1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920 The predominant maker by far, made at Cossipore arsenal more famous for its artilary pieces.
- DHW 1918, 1919
- GDB & Co. 1917, 1918
Rarer manufactures include,
- E.Boota Singh & sons, {Rawlpindi} 1917
- AS & Sons Ltd. A model of which only 3 very high quality piece are known all dating from 1916.
- RFI {Rifle Factory Ishapore.} are also known to have made a small high quality batch batches in 1926 & 1927.
- WW2 well known manufactures include:
- ATD, {Army Traders Dharan} 1942, 1943, 1944,
- M or MIL, {Military industries Ltd.} 1941, 1942, 1943,
- Pioneer, {Calcutta} 1942,1943,1944
- Queera Bros. 1942,1943, 1944
- JNB 1941, 1942, 1943, 1944
-Mat 1944,
-Mad,1944
& others.
One variant mk.2 often called the M.43 after the manufactures stamp found on it is identifiable by the mark & sunken rivets combined with an integrally welded tang , bolster join, but as these 2 later features can be found on other mk.2s the mark is the real key. {Although some occasionally appear to have escaped marking.}
Some people refer to this as a separate model in my opinion it is just a particular manufacturers interpretation of the design as none of the differences sited only occur on m.43s other than the stamp.] I have seen an early m.43 which has the original style handle of the early mk.2s, which helps show its ancestry.
There has been suggestions by some in the past that the M.43 mark proves manufacture by the English firm, Broadway Engineering Co. Ltd. who appear on lists as the user of the m.43 mark but to date research shows the company was just contracted to make small component parts for machine guns etc. & were not caple of all the manufacturing processes used in the manufacture of the m.43}
Here 3 mk. 2s a typical Co. made 1917 , at top, a Queeta Bros. mk.2 in the middle, and a m.43 at the bottom.

Heres typical WW1 Cossipore & WW2 era m.43 stamps.

RFI stamp.{Rifle Factory Ishapore.}

GBD stamp.

And an exceptionally high quality A.S & Sons piece in a traditional scabbard, , as was often worn by the 5th Gurkha Rifles as opposed to the usual Official pattern Cawnpore Armoury scabbard's usually found with mk.2 kukri. Complete with an with Officers Sam Browne style Frog.

..
Next we have the mk.3 kukri came into being in 1943 according to Indian sources & was certainly in mass production by 1944. It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as the K.45 design based on the date stamp present on some examples made in 1945.
It was still the most commonly issued kukri to the Indian armed forces including there Gorkha regiments into at least the 1980s and is still issued today for use, although many other kukri styles are also used, particularly for parades..
Thousands or probably even millions have been made, but the only Genuine military pieces are those that were actually purchased by the military forces. The others are just commercial copys even if made by the same companys.
It was designed for easy & fast production & was made by many companies.
Including. {With years of production runs that I have seen to date.}
Mil, 1945
WSC {Windlass steel Crafts} 1944, 1945,
K.1944, 1945,
CMW {Calcutta}, produced very high quality specimens that have many easily recognizable manufacturer & army inspection stamps.1944, 1945
Many MK.III were sadley rather badly stamped. Other manufactures include Chowdri & DKW who both produced during 1945 at least but most likely for the Indian army after Independence as well.
There are vast Numbers of other makers of these kukri in both WW2 & ever since. Once again those marked Allied Steel or Tempered Steel , Made in India are from around or after Indian independence in 1947.
Many of these kukris have been made to the present day & it has been used by many Indian army Gorkha units as well as commercially exported in lower quality versions to the USA & Europe for over 60 years.
It weights from 19 oz to 26 oz. {On those I have examined.}
1944 & 45 versions of the CMW mk.III kukri & detail of manufacturers stamp & army inspection marks.


The 20th Century British Military Gurkha Issue Kukri. Including both Official Pattern approved & unit issue types.
Within the fascinating history of the kukri, there are many interesting & indeed fascinating types, both civilian & military but the ones that brought them there fame were mostly those that were carried by the British army Gurkha's {Originating from Nepal}throughout the 20th century, particularly those used in WW1 & WW2 which they used with such devastating effect & bravery, winning many gallantry medals in the process..
With this current updating of the article. {Which I first published nearly 10 years ago. Bringing much previously then unknown information to light} I will cover the particular models that bought the kukri to fame & indeed for its enemy, infamy & fear.
Hopefully the article will help continue to answer some of the most frequent questions I see & hear about the main British Gurkha military pattern kukri & those used by various, units, regiments, & of course on occasion private purchases by many individual officers & men.
In all there have been 5 official military pattern kukri.
In number order Mk.1 at top.

The MKI Pattern Kukri, sometimes referred to as the Great War kukri.
The First official numbered British Indian Gurkha military kukri the mk.1 was in production by 1903 up until 1915.
It was a break from the traditional hidden partial tangs to a full length rat tail tang culminating in turn nut similar in design to a rifle stock fitting recessed into the walnut butt. The raised nut system is also seen in 19th century Afghan army kukri & many historical swords, But the sunken circular nut is a clear identifying feature for these kukri..

The mk.1 nuts.

Many of them are unmarked although some later 1915 models carry the manufactures armoury stamp Co. For Cossipore Armoury. Often FW marks on the spine occur which are the inspection & or issue marks from Fort William in Calcutta, The rarer QA & RP inspection marks also show up for Rawlpindi & Queta respectivly. Some pieces carry more than one inspection or issue mark. Many of these kukri were subcontracted to local civilian workshops. One of which was E.Boota Singh &sons, based at Rawlpindi.
The Co 1915 models seem to be heavy, badly balanced & clumsy in hand although well made, I have often wondered if that last batch of Co. kukris was the nail in the coffin for that design as a military piece.
There weights vary from 24oz to 35 oz {On those I have examined.} Blade lengths typically in the 13 1/4 to 14 inch range.
Although all mk.1s are rare, & most are short handled, as always with kukri variants do occur the lighter weight longer handled one is a one of the rarer variants. It may be a private purchase or regimentaly produced piece as it bears no inspection marks but it still comes with the rare Official issue mk.I scabbard, equipped with pockets loops & buttons. The only rarer Official issue scabbard known is that made by. A cooper of Birmingham in 1915,1916 & 1917, which features a rigid leather body with internal flat springs riveted into place to hold the kukri in position. {Illustrated below.} Mk.1,Mk2 & English made kukri of WW1 dates have all been found in these, although the scabbard seems designed for the Cossipore made mk.1 or fit all amalgamation of styles or perhaps an as yet unknown possibly indeed probably English made large bladed kukri variant.{My personal conjecture.}

.......................................................................................................................
The MKII Pattern Kukri
The mk.2 was in production by 1915 & was to stay in manufacture for the British army until at least 1944 so certainly they ran into production figures of many thousands.
All the pattern issue pieces have steel bolster & buttcap, brass was a restricted metal only to be used if superior to other metals for the job in question. {Such as arguably rivet surrounds & scabbard chapes.}
Those issue marked mk.2 kukri found with brass bolsters are sadly fakes that have been marketed in the west for several decades.. Although some late & post WW2 Private purchase pieces in the style of mk.2 kukri do have brass bolsters, buttcaps & often have buffalo horn or ivory hilts.Those marked tempered steel made in India seem to be from the time of Indian independence {1947.}
The mk.2 design was unusual for the era in being a riveted hilt design on to a full width & length tang, with a buttcap, both presumably to hopefully protect the wooden hilt from coming loose or being chipped & broken in use.
The issue mk.II kukri has been produced by many manufactures & armories over the years. Commercial private purchase version production continued after the war & fakes & replicas are still made today.
Blade lengths are usually 13 1/4 to 13 3/4 inches.There weights can vary from 20oz to 28oz .{On those I have examined.} On average WW2 era issue ones tend to be heavier most of the time than the WW1 era pieces.
The 3 WW1 manufactures most often seen are {with years of production runs that I know off so far.} :
- CO. 1915,1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920 The predominant maker by far, made at Cossipore arsenal more famous for its artilary pieces.
- DHW 1918, 1919
- GDB & Co. 1917, 1918
Rarer manufactures include,
- E.Boota Singh & sons, {Rawlpindi} 1917
- AS & Sons Ltd. A model of which only 3 very high quality piece are known all dating from 1916.
- RFI {Rifle Factory Ishapore.} are also known to have made a small high quality batch batches in 1926 & 1927.
- WW2 well known manufactures include:
- ATD, {Army Traders Dharan} 1942, 1943, 1944,
- M or MIL, {Military industries Ltd.} 1941, 1942, 1943,
- Pioneer, {Calcutta} 1942,1943,1944
- Queera Bros. 1942,1943, 1944
- JNB 1941, 1942, 1943, 1944
-Mat 1944,
-Mad,1944
& others.
One variant mk.2 often called the M.43 after the manufactures stamp found on it is identifiable by the mark & sunken rivets combined with an integrally welded tang , bolster join, but as these 2 later features can be found on other mk.2s the mark is the real key. {Although some occasionally appear to have escaped marking.}
Some people refer to this as a separate model in my opinion it is just a particular manufacturers interpretation of the design as none of the differences sited only occur on m.43s other than the stamp.] I have seen an early m.43 which has the original style handle of the early mk.2s, which helps show its ancestry.
There has been suggestions by some in the past that the M.43 mark proves manufacture by the English firm, Broadway Engineering Co. Ltd. who appear on lists as the user of the m.43 mark but to date research shows the company was just contracted to make small component parts for machine guns etc. & were not caple of all the manufacturing processes used in the manufacture of the m.43}
Here 3 mk. 2s a typical Co. made 1917 , at top, a Queeta Bros. mk.2 in the middle, and a m.43 at the bottom.

Heres typical WW1 Cossipore & WW2 era m.43 stamps.

RFI stamp.{Rifle Factory Ishapore.}

GBD stamp.

And an exceptionally high quality A.S & Sons piece in a traditional scabbard, , as was often worn by the 5th Gurkha Rifles as opposed to the usual Official pattern Cawnpore Armoury scabbard's usually found with mk.2 kukri. Complete with an with Officers Sam Browne style Frog.

..
Next we have the mk.3 kukri came into being in 1943 according to Indian sources & was certainly in mass production by 1944. It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as the K.45 design based on the date stamp present on some examples made in 1945.
It was still the most commonly issued kukri to the Indian armed forces including there Gorkha regiments into at least the 1980s and is still issued today for use, although many other kukri styles are also used, particularly for parades..
Thousands or probably even millions have been made, but the only Genuine military pieces are those that were actually purchased by the military forces. The others are just commercial copys even if made by the same companys.
It was designed for easy & fast production & was made by many companies.
Including. {With years of production runs that I have seen to date.}
Mil, 1945
WSC {Windlass steel Crafts} 1944, 1945,
K.1944, 1945,
CMW {Calcutta}, produced very high quality specimens that have many easily recognizable manufacturer & army inspection stamps.1944, 1945
Many MK.III were sadley rather badly stamped. Other manufactures include Chowdri & DKW who both produced during 1945 at least but most likely for the Indian army after Independence as well.
There are vast Numbers of other makers of these kukri in both WW2 & ever since. Once again those marked Allied Steel or Tempered Steel , Made in India are from around or after Indian independence in 1947.
Many of these kukris have been made to the present day & it has been used by many Indian army Gorkha units as well as commercially exported in lower quality versions to the USA & Europe for over 60 years.
It weights from 19 oz to 26 oz. {On those I have examined.}
1944 & 45 versions of the CMW mk.III kukri & detail of manufacturers stamp & army inspection marks.

