Martini Henry rifle
The Martini-Henry rifle , introduced by Great Britain in 1871, was the first British rifle designed from the start for a metal cartridge .
History and technical data
It replaced the Enfield Rifled Muskets , which had been converted according to the Snider system . The tilting block closure was patented by the American inventor Henry Peabody on July 22, 1862. The Swiss industrialist Friedrich von Martini improved the system by replacing the side lock with a self-tightening knock-off mechanism in the breech block. The profile of the trains in the barrel was based on a concept by the Scottish gunsmith Alexander Henry (1828-1894), an Edinburgh-based manufacturer of target rifles for long-range shooting.
The rifle fires the .577 / .450 cartridge. The cartridge was developed from the .577 Snider (14.6 mm) which was fired from the Snider-Enfield Rifle , but the caliber was reduced to a nominal .450 (11.43 mm). The actual bullet diameter was .468. Initially, the case had an iron base and a body made of wrapped brass foil. However, this case caused problems: when the gun was shot hot and smeared, the case jammed in the chamber. If the shooter tried to pull it out of the chamber with a strong jerk on the lever, the bottom tore off easily; the case body got stuck in the cartridge chamber and made the weapon unusable. Later sleeves were therefore made of brass.
The sight range is 1400 yards (1280 m); the effective combat range up to 600 yards (550 m).
The successor was the Lee-Metford rifle, which was introduced from 1888. The Martini-Henry rifles remained in service in the British colonies until the First World War .
function
The Martini-Henry is a single-shot breech loader with a tilting block lock . The breech block is movably suspended at the top of the breech block; its top is designed as a loading recess. The lock is actuated via the lower lever linked behind the trigger guard. The lower lever is swiveled down for loading; the movement also cocks the internal firing pin. The front end of the breech block lowers and releases the chamber. The shooter places a cartridge in the loading recess and pushes it into the chamber with his thumb as far as it will go. Then the lower lever is swiveled up again. The weapon is ready to fire; a teardrop-shaped pointer on the side of the bolt housing indicates that the firing pin is cocked. There is no backup.
When the trigger is pulled, the firing pin shoots forward under spring pressure and ignites the cartridge. After the shot, the lower lever is swiveled down again. On the way down, the breech block meets the short leg of the L-shaped ejector. The longer arm pulls the case at the edge a little bit out of the chamber. If the lower lever is operated with a lot of momentum, the case is even thrown completely out of the weapon.
variants
Infantry rifles
- Martini-Henry Mark I (1871–1876)
- Martini-Henry Mark II (1877-1881)
- Martini-Henry Mark III (1879–1888)
- Martini-Henry Mark IV (1888-1889)
Carabiner
- Martini-Henry Carbine, Cavalry Mark I (1877–1882)
- Martini-Henry Garrison Artillery Carbine (1878)
- Martini-Henry Artillery Carbine Mark I (1878–1889)
- Martini-Henry Artillery Carbine Mark II (1893-1896)
- Martini-Henry Artillery Carbine Mark III (1893-1896)
Bayonets
- Pattern 1853 socket bayonet
- Pattern 1876 socket bayonet
- Elcho Sword Bayonet
- Pattern 1860 Sword Bayonet
- Pattern 1879 Artillery Bayonet
- Pattern 1887 sword bayonet (Sword Bayonet, Martini-Henry Rifle, Pattern 1887)
- Pattern 1888 sword bayonet (Sword Bayonet, Pattern 1888, Mark I)
literature
- Stephen Manning: The Martini-Henry Rifle , Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013, ISBN 978-1-78096-507-9 . (82 pages online PDF)
Web links
- www.martinihenry.com (engl.)