British military rifles

Uncommon card · No. 188399

The origins of the modern British military rifle are within its predecessor, the Brown Bess musket. While a musket was largely inaccurate over 100 yards (91 m), due to a lack of rifling and a generous tolerance to allow for muzzle-loading, it was cheap to produce and could be loaded quickly. The use of volley or mass firing by troops meant that the rate of fire took precedence over accuracy. Beginning in the late 1830s, the superior performance of the new rifles led the British military to phase out the venerable .75 calibre Brown Bess musket in favour of smaller-calibre muzzle-loading rifles. Early rifles were non-standard and often used components from the Brown Bess, including locks and stocks adapted to new rifled barrels. It was not until the late 19th century that the rifle fully supplanted the musket as the weapon of the infantryman.

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