Brown Bess
"Brown Bess" is a nickname of uncertain origin for the British Army's muzzle-loading smoothbore flintlock Land Pattern Musket and its derivatives. The musket design remained in use for over a hundred years with many incremental changes in its design. These versions include the Long Land Pattern, the Short Land Pattern, the India Pattern, the New Land Pattern Musket, and the Sea Service Musket.
| British Land Pattern Musket a.k.a. Brown Bess | |
|---|---|
A Short Land Pattern Musket | |
| Type | Musket |
| Place of origin | Kingdom of Great Britain |
| Service history | |
| In service | British Army (1722–1867) |
| Used by | British Empire, various Native American tribes, United States, Haiti, Kingdom of Ireland, Sikh Empire, Sweden, Netherlands, Mexico, Brazil, Confederate States of America, Zulu Kingdom, Russian Empire, Vietnam, China |
| Wars | Ragamuffin War, Indian Wars, First Anglo-Sikh War, Second Anglo-Sikh War, Chickasaw Wars, Dummer's War, First Maroon War, War of the Austrian Succession, Jacobite rising of 1745, Carnatic Wars, French and Indian War, Seven Years' War, Anglo-Mysore Wars, Anglo-Maratha Wars, American Revolutionary War, Xhosa Wars, Australian Frontier Wars, Haitian Revolution, French Revolutionary Wars, Coalition Wars, Second Maroon War, Kandyan Wars, Irish Rebellion of 1798, Napoleonic Wars, Emmet's Insurrection, Ashanti-Fante War, Musket Wars, Finnish War, Ga-Fante War, War of 1812, Greek War of Independence, Anglo-Ashanti Wars, Anglo-Burmese Wars, Naning War, Baptist War, Texas Revolution, Rebellions of 1837, First Opium War, Mexican–American War, Second Opium War, Indian Rebellion of 1857, Cochinchina campaign American Civil War, Paraguayan War, Anglo-Zulu War, Boxer Rebellion |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1722 |
| Manufacturer | various |
| Produced | 1722–1850s (all variants) |
| No. built | 4,300,000 |
| Variants | Long Land Pattern, Short Land Pattern, Sea Service Pattern, India Pattern, New Land Pattern, New Light Infantry Land Pattern, Cavalry Carbine, Marine Carbine |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 10.5 lb (4.8 kg) |
| Length | 58.5 in (1,490 mm) |
| Barrel length | 42.0–46.0 in (1,070–1,170 mm) |
| Cartridge | paper cartridge, buck and ball/roundball undersized (.69/17.5 mm) to reduce the effects of powder fouling |
| Calibre | .75–.80 (19–20mm) |
| Action | flintlock/percussion lock (conversion) |
| Rate of fire | user dependent; usually 3–4 rounds/minute |
| Muzzle velocity | 1,300–1,800 ft/s (400–550 m/s) |
| Effective firing range |
|
| Maximum firing range | 1,200 yd (1,097 m) (the maximum range of the bullet when fired at an angle of 60°) |
| Feed system | Muzzle-loaded |
| Sights | a single fore-sight that also doubles as a bayonet lug |
The Long Land Pattern musket and its derivatives, all 0.75 inches calibre flintlock muskets, were the standard long guns of the British Empire's land forces from 1722 until 1838, when they were superseded by a percussion cap smoothbore musket. The British Ordnance System converted many flintlocks into the new percussion system known as the Pattern 1839 Musket. A fire in 1841 at the Tower of London destroyed many muskets before they could be converted. Still, the Brown Bess saw service until the middle of the nineteenth century.
Most male citizens of the thirteen colonies of British America were required by law to own arms and ammunition for militia duty. The Long Land Pattern was a common firearm in use by both sides in the American War of Independence.
In 1808 during the Napoleonic Wars, the United Kingdom subsidised Sweden (during the Sweden–Finland period) in various ways as the British government anxiously wanted to keep an ally in the Baltic Sea region. These included deliveries of significant numbers of Brown Bess-muskets for use in the Finnish War of 1808 to 1809.
During the Musket Wars (1820s–30s), Māori warriors used Brown Besses purchased from European traders at the time. Some muskets were sold to the Mexican Army, which used them during the Texas Revolution of 1836 and the Mexican–American War of 1846 to 1848. Brown Besses saw service in the First Opium War and during the Indian rebellion of 1857. Zulu warriors, who had also purchased them from European traders, used them during the Anglo-Zulu War in 1879. One was even used in the Battle of Shiloh in 1862, during the American Civil War.