Infantry rifle model 1723

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Potzdam rifle
general information
Civil name: Potzdam, Potzdam rifle
Military designation: Potzdam infantry rifle
Country of operation: Prussia and other principalities in the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation , British Empire , United States of America
Developer / Manufacturer: Royal Prussian rifle factory
Development year: 1723
Manufacturer country: Kingdom of Prussia
Production time: 1723 to 1xxx
Model variants: Model 1723
Model 1723 / Model 1740
Model 1809
Model 1831 Carabiner model
Weapon Category: musket
Furnishing
Overall length: 1420-1565 mm
Total height: ? mm
Total width: ? mm
Weight: (unloaded) 4.42-4.88 kg
Sight length : 0 mm to ~ 1000 mm
Barrel length : 884.6-1164 mm
Technical specifications
Caliber : .71 to ~ .78, undersized musket ball to reduce contamination from powder residue
Possible magazine fillings : No cartridges
Ammunition supply : No
Cadence : User dependent; usually 3 to 4 rounds / min
Fire types: Single loader
Number of trains : Smooth tube
Twist : -
Visor : Front
sight front sight and rear sight
Closure : Flintlock
flintlock
Charging principle: Muzzle loader
Lists on the subject

The infantry rifle M 1723 or M 1723 / M 1740 was the first standard weapon of the Royal Prussian Army from the 18th century. Century to the military reforms of the 1840s . Three samples were made — 1723, 1740, and 1809. It was made in the Royal Prussian Rifle Factory since 1723 and was nicknamed “ Potzdam ” after the place of manufacture . Competing European weapons were the French Charleville rifle (1717) and the British Brown-Bess rifle (1722).

Faces

The Potsdam rifle made a name for itself as the first musket made in Germany . The 1740 model consolidated Potzdam's importance as a location for arms production in Germany. The muskets were widely used by Prussians and soldiers from the various German principalities in the 18th century. Century used. Hessian troops in British service as well as mercenary troops from other German principalities used the muskets in the revolt of the thirteen British colonies in British America against rebels .

Although the M 1723 / M 1740 was eventually replaced by the Prussian Model 1809 infantry rifle , it was still used by Prussian soldiers in the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 and beyond.

description

As a musket, and therefore smoothed , the weapon was reasonably accurate to about 91 m against line infantry . But a musket was preferably used at a much shorter distance than the en masse .

The caliber of the Potzdam muskets ranged from .71 (18 mm) to about .78 (20 mm) and was larger than most other major nations.

The barrel length of the Potzdam muskets varied between 884.6 mm and 1164 mm and the total length between 1420 mm and 1565 mm and weighed less than 4.42 kg to 4.88 kg. The shaft of the Potzdam was usually made of walnut wood . Resilient parts of the Potzdam, such as the barrel , lock plate and firing mechanism , were made of steel and loop - pegs were made of iron, while other pieces such as the butt plate, trigger guard and barrel were found in brass .

Apart from the fact that the weapon a grain had Brown Bess muskets were virtually identical to 1809 Potzdam muskets.

variants

Model 1723

These rifles were made in .73 caliber (18.54 mm) - to allow the use of British military bullets. It had pins to hold the barrel in place and four tubes that held a ramrod with a steel trumpet-shaped end. As with the Royal Swedish Army military muskets, which were also clamped to pin-mounted cannon barrels (up to model 1778), the Potzdam musket also had a brass front sight, so that the bayonet shell was optimally positioned under the barrel where a 470 mm triangular bayonet could be mounted . Their inside diameter was about 21.7 mm. In addition, the front sight of the weapon could be used with a coarse sight in the form of an elongated, rounded notch in the gun barrel.

The Potzdam Infantry Rifle Model 1723 for the Guard had a caliber of approximately .78 (~ 20mm). The barrel length was 1164 mm, the total length 1565 mm and it weighed 4.88 kg.

Model 1723 / Model 1740

The pattern Potzdam Musket of 1740, derived from the earlier pattern of 1723 was from 1740 to 1760 prepared and used the same standardized parts . The mounts were made of brass and the barrel was shortened by 279.4 mm. It was delivered to the Allied German States during and after the Third Silesian War and was also manufactured in Herzberg , Wesel , Schmalkalden and Suhl .

The 1740 model had a 884.6 mm barrel and an overall length of 1285.6 mm and weighed less than 4.5 kg.

In the early XIX century , the 1740 pattern was considered obsolete. His poor performance contributed to the German defeat in Jena in 1806. Although the M 1723 / M 1740 finally had to make way for the Potsdam infantry rifle model 1809, it was used by Prussian soldiers in the battle of Waterloo in 1815 and beyond .

Model 1809

The model 1809 infantry rifle , like its predecessor, was assembled in the Potsdam armory during the Napoleonic Wars . It had treadmills made of steel instead of mesding in order to reduce costs and took extensive reference to the design of the French infantry rifle model 1777. The rooster had a decorative heart-shaped cutout and the steel ignition pan had a protective shield to keep the canned powder dry in wet weather . The pens were abandoned in favor of three treadmills. What was unusual was that the front seats were cast into the treadmill instead of the end of the barrel. Even more unusual for a military musket was that the weapon had a rear sight.

The 1809 model had a barrel of 1047.75 mm and an overall length of 1433.83 mm and weighed about 4.5 kg. The caliber was reduced to .71 (18.034mm). The gun barrels were made separately in Spandau and brought to Potzdam for finishing and final assembly.

At the Battle of Waterloo, the Muster Potzdam of 1809 was the most widely used musket among Blücher's troops . Due to its large bore, it could fire the cartridges from fallen British and French soldiers, although the smaller French bullets rattle down the barrel, reducing accuracy and man- stopping stopping power.

The socket bayonet of the M1809 musket was introduced after the bayonet of the French Charleville musket. Like most of the other bayonets of the early XIX century. Century, it had a triangular blade of 488.95 mm. What was missing, however, was the pin with which the bayonet could be secured over the front part of the musket barrel.

However, it lacked the mortise and tenon joint that was normally used to secure the bayonet over the front sight of the musket barrel.

Model 1831

From 1831 to 1839, the Prussians built a firing cap version of the Potzdam musket of 1809. These were not only in Potzdam but also in Gdansk made . The 1831 musket was replaced by the Dreyse needle rifles in 1841 , and most of the old muzzle-loaders were sold to the Americans for use in your Civil War . These were issued to the American Union Army as early as 1864.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Don Troiani
  2. ↑ Other Sections of Interest: Swords Artillery Helmets and Armor Sword Knots Other Muskets and Bayonets Frederick the Great's Prussian Potzdam Infantry Musket 1740 - 1815
  3. ^ Middlesex Village Trading Company
  4. ↑ Frederick the Great's Prussian Potzdam Infantry Musket 1740-1815
  5. ^ German Historical Museum
  6. ^ German Historical Museum
  7. ↑ Kronoskaf-Prussian Line Infantry Weapons
  8. ↑ Artax Prussian pattern 1740, Frederick the Great musket
  9. ^ German Historical Museum
  10. ↑ Artax Prussian pattern 1740, Frederick the Great musket
  11. ↑ Don Trionani's Soldiers in America 1754-1865
  12. ^ Swedish Army Museum
  13. ↑ Germany at War - 400 Years of Military History
  14. ↑ Kronoskaf-Prussian Line Infantry Weapons
  15. ↑ Don Trioani's Soldiers of the American Revolution
  16. ↑ American Military Shoulder Arms
  17. ^ Royal Armories
  18. ↑ Military Heritage
  19. ^ Prussian Line Infantry 1792-1815 — false lock of 1809 Musket
  20. ↑ Military Heritage
  21. ^ Liberty Tree Collectors
  22. ↑ Arms2arms
  23. ↑ 1820 The General Gazetteer; Or the Compendious, Geographical Dictionary
  24. ^ Waterloo: The Decisive Victory
  25. ↑ World of bayonets
  26. ^ Richard Holmes — Weapon - a visual history of arms and armor
  27. ^ Maine Memory Network
  28. ↑ American Rifleman
  29. ↑ Prussian M1809 / 31 Infantry Musket (aka Potzdam Musket)
  30. ^ Springfield Armory Museum