The Baker rifle is a muzzle-loading flintlock firearm with a rifled barrel, adopted by the British Army in 1800 and designed by the gunmaker Ezekiel Baker, offering considerably better accuracy at range than the smoothbore muskets, such as the Brown Bess, that equipped the great majority of infantry of the period, though its tighter-fitting rifled bore made it slower to load. Because of this accuracy, the British Army issued the Baker rifle chiefly to specially trained rifle regiments, most famously the 95th Rifles, who fought as skirmishers operating in loose order ahead of and around the main infantry line, using the weapon's precision to pick off enemy officers, gunners and skirmishers at ranges ordinary musket-armed infantry could not effectively engage. The Baker rifle saw extensive service with British rifle units throughout the Napoleonic Wars, including the Peninsular War in Spain and Portugal and the Battle of Waterloo, and its performance helped establish the value of dedicated rifle-armed light infantry within European armies of the era.
Facts
Classification
Service Status Weapon ClassFlintlock muzzle-loading rifle (British service rifle) 1 Introduced Year Weapon Class
Weapon Class (category) FAQs
Why did the British Army want a standard rifle in 1800?
Rifles had proved more accurate than muskets in the American Revolutionary War, so Britain standardized one.
British Army authorities had learned from the American Revolutionary War that rifled long-barrel designs held an advantage over the smoothbore Brown Bess muskets the British relied on, because American rifles proved more accurate at range. With Britain at war with France, work began on a standardized rifle, led mainly by the gunmaker Ezekiel Baker. The Baker rifle became the first standardized British-designed rifle to see official service, and its design was influenced by close examination of the German Jager rifle.
Connections
Associated With
Source Wikipedia: Baker rifle
Source Wikipedia: Baker rifle
Operated By
Source Wikipedia: Baker rifle
Used In
Source Wikipedia: Baker rifle
Source Wikipedia: Baker rifle
Source Wikipedia: Baker rifle
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Baker rifle
Wikipedialead sentence
The Pattern 1800 Infantry Rifle, better known as the Baker rifle, was a flintlock rifle designed by English gunsmith Ezekiel Baker and used by the British Armed Forces from 1801 to 1837.
Lead section
The Pattern 1800 Infantry Rifle, better known as the Baker rifle, was a flintlock rifle designed by English gunsmith Ezekiel Baker and used by the British Armed Forces from 1801 to 1837. First seeing action during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, it was the first British-made firearm to be issued as a service rifle to all soldiers in the British Army's rifle units.
- Infobox: caliber 0.625 in (15.9 mm)
Infobox: service
1801-1837 (British Army)
Associated With: Napoleonic Wars, Use section
During the Napoleonic Wars the Baker was reported to be effective at long range due to its accuracy and dependability under battlefield conditions.
Used In: Napoleonic Wars, Infobox: wars
French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars War of 1812 Brazilian War of Independence Texas Revolution Second French intervention in Mexico
Used In: War of 1812, Article text
First seeing action during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, it was the first British-made firearm to be issued as a service rifle to all soldiers in the British Army's rifle units. The rifle was also used in the War of 1812, the Brazilian War of Independence and the Texas Revolution.
Used In: Texas Revolution, Infobox: wars
French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars War of 1812 Brazilian War of Independence Texas Revolution Second French intervention in Mexico
View the Source 2. Wikidata: Baker Rifle
Wikidata Q633100, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
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