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Weapons System

Minié rifle

Small Arms And Sidearms

The Minié rifle was a rifled musket used by the infantry of a number of countries in the mid-19th century, adopted briefly by Britain in 1851 and officially by the French Army in 1857. Its use followed the invention of the Minié ball in 1849 by the French Army officer Claude-Etienne Minié and by Henri-Gustave Delvigne, a bullet designed to allow rapid muzzle-loading of rifles. The innovation brought about the widespread use of the rifle, rather than the smoothbore musket, as the main battlefield weapon for individual soldiers.

Facts
Partially Attested
Introduced Year
1857 1
This is the French Army's official adoption date; other countries such as Britain adopted the design earlier, around 1851
Classification
Service Status
Retired 1
Weapon Class
Rifled musket 1
Weapon Class
Weapon Class (category)
Rifle 1
Connections

Operated By

Confederate States Army, Armed Forces and Units
Source Wikipedia: Minié rifle
United States Armed Forces, Armed Forces and Units
Source Wikipedia: Minié rifle

Used In

American Civil War, Wars
Source Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
Austro-Prussian War, Wars
Source Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
Crimean War, Wars
Source Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
Indian Rebellion of 1857, Wars
Source Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
Paraguayan War, Wars
Source Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
Second Italian War of Independence, Wars
Source Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
Taiping Rebellion, Wars
Source Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
War of the Pacific, Wars
Source Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Minié rifle
  • Lead section
    The Minié rifle was a rifled musket used by the infantry of a number of countries in the mid-19th century.
  • Lead section [introduced-year] [2]
    the French Army only officially adopted it in 1857
  • Introduced circa 1857 per the entity's own sourced description text; no pre-1900 weapon system remains in current active military service.
  • Operated By: Confederate States Army, Users section
    Confederate States of America
  • Operated By: United States Armed Forces, Users section
    United States
View the Source
Wikidata: Minié rifle
Wikidata Q1427149, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
Minié rifle (Wikipedia)
  • Used In: Taiping Rebellion, infobox wars field: 'Taiping Rebellion'
  • Used In: Crimean War, infobox wars field: 'Crimean War'
  • Used In: Indian Rebellion of 1857, infobox wars field: 'Indian Rebellion of 1857'
  • Used In: Second Italian War of Independence, infobox wars field: 'Second Italian War of Independence'
  • Used In: American Civil War, infobox wars field: 'American Civil War'
  • Used In: Paraguayan War, infobox wars field: 'Paraguayan War'
  • Used In: Austro-Prussian War, infobox wars field: 'Austro-Prussian War'
  • Used In: War of the Pacific, infobox wars field: 'War of the Pacific'
View the Source
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