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The article offers information on a classic American Indian gun from 1846, Model M1842 U.S. Percussion, Springfield Armory, musket. It further discusses that the classic signs of American Indian usage, and likely Northern Plains based on the ornamentation and types of repairs; short-barreled guns had advantages for use in dense brush; and also mentions about the period photos of early Indian guns of similar vintage in actual use by Native Americans.

Following the publication of the article 'Trusty Bess': the Definitive Origins and History of the term 'Brown Bess', the author was made aware of an intriguing illustration that perfectly captures the meaning of that famous nickname. This short note details this archival document and sheds light on both its place in the lore of 'Brown Bess' and its wide historical context in terms of the Victorian attitudes to military small arms development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Nankai Journal: Philosophy, Literature & Social Science Edition / Nankai Xuebao: Zhexue Shehui Kezue Ban is the property of Nankai Xuebao Bianjibu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The Akko 1 shipwreck is the remains of a 26-metre-long Egyptian armed vessel or auxiliary naval brig built at the beginning of the 19th century. Remains of six flintlock muskets were retrieved from the shipwreck, and characterised by various metallurgical methods. The research aimed to study the composition and microstructure of the musket fittings and their manufacturing processes, and if possible, to determine the date and origin of the raw materials. The lead isotope analysis of the fittings suggests that their raw material originated in Great Britain. Based on their typology and composition, the fittings were made in Great Britain of brass alloy and manufactured by casting, probably at the same workshop; and the staple was manufactured by casting and drawing. Considering the zinc content, combined with the manufacturing techniques, the fittings were manufactured between the latter part of the 18th and the early 19th centuries, which might indicate that they were purchased in the course of 19th century weapons trade to be used on board the Egyptian ship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Pattern 1838 Musket was initially designed for the rank and file of the British army, it was instead issued to the elite Foot Guards. With arguably the lowest survival rate of any 19th Century British military firearm it is one of the rarest muskets to encounter today. This is its story … [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper describes the efforts of Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond, Master General of the Ordnance from 1782 until 1795, and the very talented gunsmith Henry Nock to give the British army a much-improved flintlock musket during the 1780s and early 1790s. New evidence from surviving prototypes illustrates the development of the rare musket that has become known as the ‘Duke of Richmond’s Musket’. The need for large quantities of arms to fight the wars with France resulted in the abandonment of this excellent gun in favour of the lower quality but much faster to make India Pattern Musket, and afterwards many Duke of Richmond Muskets were converted to conventional locks and then lost in the Tower of London fire of 1841. Only a handful of examples exist today. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Tiempos Modernos is the property of Tiempos Modernos and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Cuadernos de Historia Moderna is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper introduces the Duke of Richmond’s Muskets and their precursors as made by Henry Nock and others. It particularly explores the development pathway for Nock’s Screwless locks by examining the production variants, the known prototype and experimental versions and in particular the prototype breech loading muskets. There are now known to be three breech loading prototypes, two very similar guns with locks marked by Henry Nock and a similar gun that appears by comparison to locks known to be by Walter Dick to have a lock made by Dick. This examination indicates that Nock was likely to have been instructed to make the production lock smaller than the prototype and that a key design step that enabled this was the use of a small double-ended mainspring linked to the cock and actuating the steel (frizzen) via a lever as developed by Dick. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the use of ballistics data and principles to clarify historical experience of firearms is to be encouraged, their application is not always straightforward. This paper emphasizes the need for care. An example is given of too sanguine reliance on period studies, specifically of muzzle velocity, and of inadequate appreciation of the physics, in particular of the Magnus force. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper deals with firearms that were employed by the Argentine army in frontier warfare between 1869 and 1877. Documentary information and archaeological assemblages from two contemporary military facilities - Fort General Paz and Fortín Algarrobos - are combined to characterize the armament in service during those years. This was a crucial period, during which a process of modernisation and standardisation of the army's armament started, centred on the incorporation of Remington single-shot breech-loading rifles and carbines. However, the archaeological record shows that this process was slow and that an astonishing variety of older firearms (flintlocks, percussion smoothbores and rifles) remained in service, causing logistic and operative problems, and reducing the army's combat effectiveness. The paper then discusses the impact of the incorporation of the Remington guns on frontier warfare, critiquing commonly held determinist characterisations, and placing the Remington's effect in a broader political and economic context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A review is presented of dual-ignition musket locks, including a matchlock, to identify the key design variants and their subtleties, and to initiate a discussion on their utility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the fall of 2001, staff of the Florida Bureau of Archaeological Research were led by river divers to an underwater site in the Apalachicola River containing a large concentration of prehistoric and historic artifacts lying on the riverbed. Subsequent inspection of the submerged river bank and scoured limestone river channel revealed a myriad of objects, which included iron fasteners, metal tools and implements, broken glass bottles, stone projectile points, scattered bricks and stone blocks, and other materials. Discovery of two large fragments of a wooden watercraft, a bayonet, a copper arrowhead, and flintlock gun barrels initially prompted researchers to hypothesize that the site might represent the remains of a U.S. Army boat that was attacked in 1817 by Seminole Indians while en route upriver. The episode, which caused the deaths of more than 30 soldiers and several women who were aboard the boat, led to the First Seminole War and the U.S. Army invasion of Florida. To investigate this hypothesis, a systematic survey of the riverbed was undertaken in the spring of 2002 to record underwater features and recover additional diagnostic artifacts. These activities employed side-scan sonar as well as diver visual investigations. This paper presents a case study of the value and broader significance of aggregate data where interpretation was underpinned by artefactual, historical and environmental analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]