Baker rifle
Pattern 1800 Infantry Rifle a.k.a. Baker infantry rifle | |
---|---|
Type | Muzzle-loading rifle |
Place of origin | Kingdom of Great Britain |
Service history | |
In service | 1801–1837 (British Army) |
Used by | United Kingdom Portugal Brazil[1][2] United States Mexico |
Wars | French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars War of 1812 Brazilian War of Independence Texas Revolution |
Production history | |
Designed | 1798–1800 |
Produced | 1800–1838 (all variants) |
No. built | 22,000+ |
Variants | Cavalry carbine |
Specifications | |
Mass | 9 lb (4.08 kg) |
Length | 453⁄4 in (1162 mm) |
Barrel length | 30.375 in. (762 mm) |
Cartridge | 0.615 in. (15.6 mm) lead ball |
Caliber | 0.625 in (15.9 mm) |
Action | Flintlock |
Rate of fire | User dependent, Usually 2+ rounds a minute |
Muzzle velocity | Variable |
Effective firing range | Variable |
Feed system | Muzzle loaded |
The Baker rifle (officially known as the Pattern 1800 Infantry Rifle) was a
The Baker rifle was first produced in 1800 by Ezekiel Baker, a master gunsmith from Whitechapel. The British Army was still issuing the infantry rifle in the 1830s.
History and design
The British Army had learnt the value of rifles from their experience in the
Colonel Coote Manningham, responsible for establishing the Rifle Corps, influenced the initial designs of the Baker. The first model resembled the British infantry musket ("Brown Bess"), but was rejected as too heavy. Baker was provided with a German Jäger rifle as an example of what was needed. The second model he made had a .75 caliber bore, the same caliber as the infantry musket. It had a 32-inch barrel, with eight rectangular rifling grooves; this model was accepted as the Infantry Rifle, but more changes were made until it was finally placed into production. The third and final model had the barrel shortened from 32 to 30 inches, and the caliber reduced to .653, which allowed the rifle to fire a .625 caliber carbine bullet, with a greased patch to grip the now-seven rectangular grooves in the barrel.
The rifle had a simple folding rear sight with the standard large lock mechanism (initially marked "Tower" and "G.R." under a crown; later ones after the battle of Waterloo had "Enfield"), with a swan-neck cock as fitted to the "Brown Bess". Like the German Jäger rifles, it had a scrolled brass
After the Baker entered service, more modifications were made to the rifle and several variations were produced. A lighter and shorter carbine version for the cavalry was introduced, and a number of volunteer associations procured their own models, including the Duke of Cumberland's Corps of Sharpshooters, which ordered models with a 33-inch barrel, in August 1803. A second pattern of Baker Rifle was fitted with a "Newland" lock that had a flat-faced ring neck cock. In 1806, a third pattern was produced that included a "pistol grip" style trigger guard and a smaller patch box with a plain rounded front. The lock plate was smaller, flat, and had a steeped-down tail, a raised semi-waterproof pan, a flat ring neck cock, and a sliding safety bolt. With the introduction of a new pattern Short Land Pattern Flintlock Musket ('Brown Bess') in 1810, with its flat lock and ring-necked cock, the Baker's lock followed suit for what became the fourth pattern. It also featured a "slit stock"—the stock had a slot cut in its underpart just over a quarter-inch wide. This was done after Ezekiel Baker had seen reports of the ramrod jamming in the stock after the build-up of residue in the ramrod channel, and when the wood warped after getting wet.
The rifle is referred to almost exclusively as the "Baker Rifle", but it was produced by other manufacturers and sub-contractors from 1800 to 1837. Most of the rifles produced between 1800 and 1815 were not made by Ezekiel Baker, but under the
The
Use
During the
The rifle was used by what were considered elite units, such as the 5th battalion and rifle companies of the 6th and 7th Battalions of the
The rifle was used in several countries during the first half of the 19th century; indeed,
Performance
Rate of fire
For accurate firing, a Baker rifle could not usually be reloaded as fast as a musket, as the slightly undersized lead balls had to be wrapped in patches of greased leather or linen so that they would more closely fit the lands of the rifling. The tight-fitting patched ball took considerable force and hence more time to seat properly inside a rifle's barrel, especially after repeated firing had fouled the barrel, compared to a loose fitting musket ball which could easily roll down. Early on each rifleman was even provided with a small mallet to help seat the ball inside the muzzle, but this later was abandoned as unnecessary.
Thus a rifleman was expected to be able to fire two aimed shots a minute, compared to the four shots a minute for the Brown Bess musket in the hands of a trained infantryman. However, the average time to reload a rifle is dependent on the level of training and experience of the user; twenty seconds (or three shots a minute) is possible for a highly proficient rifleman. Using a hand-measured powder charge for accurate long-range shots could increase the load time to as much as a minute.
Accuracy was of more importance than the rate of fire when skirmishing. The rifleman's primary battlefield role was to utilize cover and skirmish (frequently against enemy skirmishers), whereas his musket-armed counterparts in the line infantry fired in volley or mass-fire. This could further reduce the firing rate of the rifle compared to musket during battle.
Troops issued with the Baker rifle were also occasionally required to "stand in the line" and serve as regular infantry if the situation called for it. The higher rate of fire (and therefore the volume of fire) of the musket was required when deployed as line infantry, even if this came with a significant loss in accuracy. For this reason, ammunition was issued in two forms: one, loose balls, in standard carbine caliber with greased patches for accurate shooting, with loose powder inside a flask equipped with a spring-loaded charger to automatically measure out the correct amount of powder; and two, paper cartridges similar to regular musket ammunition. The requirement for the Baker armed troops to be able to perform regular infantry tasks, such as form square against cavalry, or resist a bayonet attack, led to the rather cumbersome 23½-inch-long sword-bayonet which, when fitted, made the rifle-bayonet length some 65 inches, nearly the same as a bayonet-fitted musket. There were even talks early in the rifle's adoption of additionally equipping the riflemen with short pikes instead of bayonets; however, this impractical idea was never put into actual use.
Accuracy and range
The rifle as originally manufactured was expected to be capable of firing at a range of up to 200 yards (183 meters) with a high hit rate. The Baker rifle was used by skirmishers facing their opponents in pairs, sniping at the enemy either from positions in front of the main lines or from hidden positions in heights overlooking battlefields.
The accuracy of the rifle in capable hands is most famously demonstrated at the
That rifleman Plunkett and others were able to regularly hit targets at ranges considered to be beyond the rifle's effective range speaks for both their
See also
Notes
- ^ "ArmasBrasil - Carabina".
- ^ "Armas Antigas usadas pelo Exercito Brasileiro".
- ^ a b Edwards 2013.
- ^ Verner 1899, p. xvii.
- ^ Oman 1902, p. 569.
References
- Edwards, Eric W. (2013), The Baker Rifle, Pitt Rivers Museum, retrieved 5 December 2013
- Oman, Charles (1902), A History of the Peninsular War: 1807–1809, vol. 1, Oxford, )
- Verner, Willoughby (1899). A British Rifle Man: The Journals and Correspondence of Major George Simmons, Rifle Brigade, During the Peninsular War and the Campaign of Waterloo. London: A & C Black.
Further reading
- Antill, P. (3 February 2006). "Baker Rifle", History of War.
- Bailey, D. W. (2002). British Military Flintlock Rifles 1740–1840. Andrew Mowbray Publishers. ISBN 1-931464-03-0.
- Blackmore, Howard L. (1994). British Military Firearms, 1650–1850. Greenhill Books. ISBN 1-85367-172-X.
- Cline, Kenneth (December 2005). "The Baker Rifle". Military Heritage, Volume 7, No. 3, p. 10, pp. 12–13; ISSN 1524-8666.