Chassepot
Sign in to saveAlso known as Fusil modèle 1866
The Chassepot (pronounced ; ), officially known as '''''', was a bolt-action military breechloading rifle. It is famous for having been the arm of the French forces in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871. It replaced an assortment of muzzleloading Minié rifles, many of which were converted in 1864 to breech loading (the Tabatière rifles). An improvement to existing military rifles in 1866, the Chassepot marked the commencement of the era of modern bolt action, breech-loading military rifles. The fucil Gras modèle 1874 was an officially adopted successor to the Chassepot. Although based on and
Key facts
- Weapon.is_ranged
- yes
- Weapon.name
- Chassepot
- Weapon.image
- Chassepot-diag.jpg
- Weapon.image_size
- 300
- Weapon.caption
- Chassepot rifle with bayonet
- Weapon.origin
- France
- Weapon.type
- Needle gun
- Weapon.designer
- Antoine Alphonse Chassepot
- Weapon.design_date
- 1858–1866
- Weapon.used_by
- See Users
- Weapon.service
- 1866–1874 (primary French service rifle)
- Weapon.production_date
- 1866–1875
- Weapon.action
- Bolt action
- Weapon.rate
- 8–15 rounds per minute
- Weapon.caliber
- 11 mm (.433 inches)
- Weapon.feed
- Single-shot breach loading
- Weapon.sights
- Ladder
- Weapon.number
- ~2,000,000
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Chassepot-diag.jpg
Show 4 more facts
- service retirement
- 1874-01-01
- total produced
- 1000000
- Commons category
- Chassepot Mle 1866
- service entry
- 1867-01-01
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~8 min read
Article
11 sectionsContents
- History
- Technology
- Bolt mechanism
- Cartridge
- Users
- Gallery
- See also
- Notes
- References
- Further reading
- External links
The Chassepot (pronounced ; ), officially known as '''''', was a bolt-action military breechloading rifle. It is famous for having been the arm of the French forces in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871. It replaced an assortment of muzzleloading Minié rifles, many of which were converted in 1864 to breech loading (the Tabatière rifles). An improvement to existing military rifles in 1866, the Chassepot marked the commencement of the era of modern bolt action, breech-loading military rifles. The fucil Gras modèle 1874 was an officially adopted successor to the Chassepot. Although based on and frequently converted from existing Chassepot rifles, it was designated a new model and adopted as a separate rifle firing a metallic cartridge.
It was manufactured by (MAS), (MAC), (MAT), and, until 1870, in the in the former Château des Rohan. Many were also manufactured under contract in England (the Chassepots delivered to the French Navy), in Belgium (Liege), and in Italy at Brescia (by Glisenti). The approximate number of Chassepot rifles available to the French Army in July 1870 was 1,037,555 units. Additionally, state manufacturies could deliver 30,000 new rifles monthly. Gun manufacturers in Britain and Austria also produced Chassepot rifles to support the French war effort. The Josef und Franz Werndl & Co. in Steyr, Austria delivered 12,000 Chassepot carbines and 100,000 parts to France in 1871. Manufacturing of the Chassepot rifle ended in February 1875, four years after the end of the Franco-Prussian War, with approximately 700,000 more Chassepot rifles made between September 1871 and July 1874.