The mitrailleuse was a French volley gun with a cluster of rifle caliber barrels that fired in rapid succession when a crank turned a steel breech block loaded with 25 cartridges at once, letting a trained crew fire around 100 rounds a minute. The French Army adopted it in 1866, and by the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870 roughly 190 to 210 were in service, the Reffye version firing a 13mm cartridge to an effective range of about 1,800 meters. Despite its rate of fire, French commanders kept the weapon a closely guarded secret and deployed it like artillery at long range instead of using it for close infantry support, so it performed well below its potential against Prussian forces in that war.
Facts
Classification
Service Status Weapon Class Introduced Year Weapon Class
Weapon Class (category) FAQs
Why is the Reffye mitrailleuse called a tactical failure?
Its concept and operational use were flawed even though the gun performed well ballistically.
One source describes it as innovative and capable of good ballistic performance, but a tactical failure because its basic concept and operational use were flawed. The Reffye guns were deployed in six-gun batteries and manned by gunners as a form of special artillery. Only about 210 existed at the start of the Franco-Prussian War.
Connections
Operated By
Source Mitrailleuse (Wikipedia)
Source Mitrailleuse (Wikipedia)
Used In
Source Mitrailleuse (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Mitrailleuse (Wikipedia)
Origin, first sentence
A mitrailleuse (French pronunciation: [mitʁajøz]; from French mitraille, "grapeshot") is a type of volley gun with barrels of rifle calibre that can fire either all rounds at once or in rapid succession.
Origin, Reffye paragraph
Then the French 25 barrel "Canon à Balles", better known as the Reffye mitrailleuse, was adopted in great secrecy in 1866.
service status
Their field use was discontinued by the French Army after 1871
- Weapon class classified from the entity's own sourced description text.
Infobox: caliber
13 mm (.512 caliber)
Infobox: service
1866-1908
Caliber attribute (mitrailleuse)
The French Army adopted it in 1866, and by the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870 roughly 190 to 210 were in service, the Reffye version firing a 13mm cartridge to an effective range of about 1,800 meters.
- Used In: Franco-Prussian War, infobox wars field: 'Franco-Prussian War'
Operated By: French Armed Forces, Article text
OCLC 67444364, OCLC 459713766.
Operated By: Mexican Armed Forces, Article text
OCLC 67444364, OCLC 459713766.
In Group: Multi-Barrel and Rotary Machine Guns, Lead sentence
A mitrailleuse (French pronunciation: [mitʁajøz] ; from French mitraille, "grapeshot") is a type of volley gun with barrels of rifle calibre that can fire either all rounds at once or in rapid succession.
View the SourceWikidata: Mitrailleuse
Wikidata Q1760834, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
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