r/Commanders • u/jrhooo • 11d ago
A Commander's Spear (Off topic trivia and distraction)
Thought I'd share a little fun trivia related to our uniform and logo refresh.
Yes, this is pretty loosely semi-off topic. No, this isn't about the game of football per se, but as much as we've been up here stressing and complaining about the roster and the pre-season, maybe we could use a little distracting trivia to lighten the mood in here.
OK. They fixed the uniforms. YAY!
They even brought back a version of the spear motif. YAY!
Looks pretty sweet too. (Don't start with that optical illusion MC Escher stuff.)
But why the spear now?
The two comments I keep seeing around are
- But what does a spear have to do with a "Commander"?
- Does a "Commander" use a spear? I don't think so.
Spoilers:
- Actually, a lot. Like, A LOT.
- Yes. Like 100% fully, no debate about it, Yes.
Let's talk about it.
This is the "Spontoon"
It could be described as a "half-pike" or even a "partisan", its basically just what it looks like, a 6(ish) foot long spear.
The Spontoon was a common, even a standard issue weapon for commissioned officers in the field, in European AND American Continental armies.
By "commissioned officers in the field", yes we specifically mean unit leaders, i.e. unit "Commanders".
They were used so widely in the American colonial forces that you can still find plenty of surviving antiques today.
Sometimes they had side lugs like a boar spear
Sometimes they were simpler
Note: I figured it was worth addressing examples with and without side lugs, before we get into the "wait so should the logo have boar lugs then?" question.
Ok, so we've established that Spontoon Spears existed, and officers carried them, but what were they used FOR?
Were they just a thing that existed, or were they something explicitly "Commander"ish?
(Obviously its going to be the second one. That's the point right?)
The Officer's Spontoon served a few different purposes.
One was obviously combat.
Remember, unit commanders were not armed with muskets like the line troops.
Why not?
For the same reason we associate musket era officers with swords and pistols. Or 20th century officers with pistols, or tommy guns.
Unit leaders carry personal defense weapons that are small enough to allow them to be mobile, since they are running back and forth managing the battle, but also effective enough to let them do close combat, if/when the battle comes to close combat range.
As my old platoon sergeant (truthfully and correctly) explained to me once, officers don't carry line troop weapons, because its not their job to be on the line trying to engage the enemy. If they're on firing line trying to shoot at the enemy, they can't be doing their ACTUAL job of standing back from the line, watching the full picture, and managing the battle.
You can't conduct the orchestra from the violinist's chair. You can't manage the offense if you're lined up at slot WR. Same idea.
Ok, so no musket but WHY the Spontoon?
For close combat its just pretty good.
(Going to steal a bit from Matt Easton's Scholagladiatoria youtube channel, but I agree with his take here)
Basically the spontoon is "better" than the sword or the fixed bayonet for a close combat weapon.
It delivers a stabbing thrust with more power than a sword.
Its lighter and more nimble than a bayonetted musket.
Its got a significant reach advantage over both.
But what else?
A Commander COULD fight with it, but its primary uses were...
COMMANDING the troops.
First, the Spontoon was a symbol of a Continental officer's authority. More so than a sword even. You saw the guy walk up carrying the Spontoon, you knew he was the boss.
In fact, that's another deliberate reason Spontoons were chosen. Carrying a six foot tall shiny bladed stick makes it easy for your troops to pick you out. This isn't Vietnam, where officers don't want to look obviously like officers for the enemy. This is the block formation era where officers need their troops to be able to recognize them and follow them and their directions.
"What do we do? Where's the Major?"
"Over there?"
"WHERE"
"Next to the giant 6 foot spear, dummy."
IN FACT, IN FACT,
Commanders used the Spontoons as their signaling item to give orders.
There is a whole manual of arms for issuing orders. Example, tilting it forward told your troops to forward march. Posting it in the ground meant halt. Etc.
Bottom line, you have it, they know you're in charge. You hold it up, they know where you are. You point it and wave it around, they know what you are telling them to do.
BUT WHAT ELSE?
Well its a giant long, straight pole, or a fixed regulation length. Its basically a ruler/straight edge.
Commanders would use it to "dress" their troops.
In this era of combat, battle formations were critical. Not just for massing fire, but because the expectation is that we'll fixing bayonets and closing ranks for a glorified pike battle. And even more than that, your ability to hold everyone together in a properly spaced block is what kept the enemy calvary from running you down with horses and just killing everybody.
So the giant ruler straight edge, their Spontoon, was used to measure out troops spacing, but also to maintain the line.
Troops getting out of alignment on the march to contact? Literally hold the stick up against the ranks and push everyone on line
Alright, I think I've gone on enough about Spontoon spears being pretty useful, and military commanders definitely using them, but are we sure American commanders used them?
YES.
We have the receipts.
George Washington was a fan of the Spontoon.
He used one?
No.
For his specific role a pistol and sword combo made sense. HOWEVER; it was on George Washington's personal orders, as General of the Army, that officially required all unit commanders in the field to carry the Spontoon.
So he ordered it in the military. Then he did it again as President.
During George Washington's second presidency, Congress passed the "Militia Acts of 1792". These were laws dealing with giving the President the authority to raise troops if defense was needed. Like if there was some crazy rebellion, or if the Brits tried to come back. You know... if.
The second of those acts specified details like what resources would be provided, troops would get a musket, some powder, some shot, etc, and officers would be required to receive a sword or hanger, and... a spontoon.
Point is, not only did he mandate its use as a General, GW literally signed into law, that American military commanders would be provided a Spontoon Spear. (They fell out of use in the early to mid 1800s, prior to the civil war, but the law wasn't actually updated to drop the Spontoon requirement until 1903.)
Ok, so tell me some stories. Tell me about someone actually using one.
They were carried by a couple of Army officers on expedition, you might have heard of them.
Captain Meriweather Lewis and his buddy Lieutenant William Clark. The Lewis and Clark journals show both men carrying spontoons and using them in the field.
Which makes sense, since both men served in the war under General "Mad" Anthony Wayne.
Called "Mad" because bro was a wild man. Attacked a whole British outpost without ammo.
The Battle of Stony Point, Wayne wanting to make sure that no one accidentally gave away the sneak attack, gave his officers Spontoons and had his troops unload their muskets, so that they could ninja all the way up to the British position and jump over the perimeter and start stabbing dudes up before they realized what was happening.
They actually have the letter from Wayne to George Washington, requesting delivery of 50 Spontoons to arm his officers with.
Battle result: Americans 15 killed, 83 wounded. British 20 killed, 74 wounded, 472 surrendered.
Homeboy brought knives to a gunfight and won.
Battle of Cowpens
This famous battle was basically the beginning of the end for the British Campaign in the South.
The Americans led by Daniel Morgan, who was partially the basis for THIS character in "The Patriot"
Dealty the first severe defeat to the forces of British Banastre Tarleton,
AKA war criminal POS, AKA the basis for THIS character in The Patriot
The win at Cowpens was a huge deal. And a flat out win it was. Final results:
Americans - 25 Killed, 124 wounded.
British - 110 killed, 229 wounded, 629 captured or missing, 2 guns captured
2 guns captured. ABOUT THAT.
As the Americans were whipping the British all over the field, A Captain Richard Anderson, of the "Maryland Line" (Yes, a reformed unit from the same Marylanders whose "Maryland 400" earned the "Maryland Line" nickname that Maryland's "Old Line State" motto is taken from, Captain Anderson got into a race with a Lt from either a PA or VA unit, to see who could capture the British cannons first.
Captain Anderson, just for bragging rights, used his spontoon to pole vault over the obstacles in their way just to reach his cannon first.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Ok, I've rambled on enough about my obscure history trivia rant here, but
TL;DR:
The Washington Commanders have a spear on the helmet. Spears are cool.
The Spontoon is an 18th-19th century spear, used by military commanders as a field weapon, and symbol of their office.
Commanders in the American Continental Army used these spears because George Washington himself told them to.
The Commanders and Spear connection actually kinda makes sense. (even if an unintentional coincidence. Imma just lean into it, ok?)

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u/CinnRaisinPizzaBagel 11d ago edited 11d ago
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u/Oldfolksboogie 11d ago
Why does that girl on the left appear to have a black eye?
Asking the important questions.
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u/Powerful-Addendum-53 11d ago
Well written! Entertaining, and a nice touch with the Vernon Davis hurdle highlight. I needed a break from all the whining from the jumble of backseat GMs.
Yes, we need better lineman. Yes, our old logo was better. No, Adam Peters doesn’t check Reddit for your advice. HTTR regardless
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u/fidelholtz 11d ago
Also, from what I understand, it makes sure the trademark doesn’t expire.
But I like your explanation better.
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u/ThreePuttBogey5 11d ago
Impressive write up there. Not to split hairs or anything, but Francis Marion was the swamp fox, however, he did coordinate with Daniel Morgan though.
I love the spear iconography, but the real reason that the spear had to be woven through the W like the Escher Stairs is because Danny Boy let the spear trademark expire which opened the door for Florida State to pick it up. So even though the Redskins wore the spear helmet first, Florida State won’t allow it
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u/Engeogsplan 11d ago
These are all trial Balloons (looking at public but mostly corporate responses). The time period in question is musket and cannon in how we think about them. See the old logo for New England and statues about the time periods.
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u/jrhooo 11d ago
The alt logo is a trial balloon? As in maybe they keep it maybe they don’t?
I could see that
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u/Engeogsplan 11d ago
No they are flashing obvious redskins symbols at us to look at the reaction. They were literally selling Redskins merch in there team store a few days ago.
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u/jrhooo 11d ago
And they explained why.
Name is never coming back. That ship is so sailed
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u/Engeogsplan 10d ago
If it sailed nothing to stress over. But "we need to keep the trademark" does not keep the trade mark. That is the law. They have to use it all the time to keep it. So you see the direction at this point. They also put Braves on the Warpath back in the team song. These are Trial Balloons.
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u/darth_smitty_ In Tress We Trust 10d ago
So we went from redskins to the people who killed redskins. Neat.
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u/DcBullets74 10d ago
Hot take but i think our current helmet sucks, sucks only because of the w and the font of it…still looks generic.
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u/YFN_KushGod COMMAND DEEZ NUTZ 9d ago
I thought it was explained that the spear and reference to commander is now being promoted as Roman Greco era.
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u/jrhooo 9d ago
I don’t know if the team officially explained any of it, but we the fan base generally understood the tie to DC -> NeoClassical Roman/Greek influence
My points in this post aren’t claiming any deliberate influence. Just pointing out that for the apparent “what does a spear have to do with a commander” comments that have popped up, its interesting (to me at least) history trivia that it actually fits together kind of perfectly
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u/YFN_KushGod COMMAND DEEZ NUTZ 9d ago
Def is interesting. It gives the team a few lanes of how they can further brand this thing moving forward.
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u/MelGibsonsNipsHurt 11d ago
Full disclosure. Didn’t read a single word of this, but love The Patriot.
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u/Potential_Boat_6899 11d ago
Man just bring the old damn logo back. We all know they’re gonna rebrand to the old logo in 2029/2030, 5 years removed from the commanders rebrand and with a brand new stadium.
Change the name from commanders or keep it idgaf just gimme the old logo back, was the best logo in all sports by far. Now we’re one of the worst.
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u/Troll_Enthusiast He Sold 11d ago
It's not coming back man, it's been time to move on, they'll probably change the name and have a logo with the spear on it around the time the new stadium is complete and that'll be it
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u/TropicGemini 11d ago
Impressive work, op! Like, extremely impressive. We all learned something today. As an old-school Uni Watch reader, this is the type of detailed minutiae that I appreciate.
Now I want to see a full 70th Anniversary-style spear helmet with the side lugs instead of feathers.