Other Dates of Interest

 

1247 The first record of the actual use of gunpowder in Europe is a statement by Bishop Albertus Magnus in 1280 that it was used at the Siege of Seville.
1267 Roger Bacon gives an account of gunpowder in his Opus Majus. (Actually his account was written in cryptic form. See Read, T. Explosives (Pelican Books, 1942)
1327 Possibly Edward III used cannon against the Scots
1364 Hand Cannon had appeared in the field of battle during the reign of Edward III
1375 Hand guns were known in Italy in 1397, and in England they appear to have been used.
1424 The first mechanical device for firing the hand gun made its appearance.
1425 We hear of amour being penetrated by bullets and the hand gun showing signs of becoming a weapon capable of rudimentary precision.
1485 Henry VII organized the corps of Yeomen of the Guard, half of whom were to carry bows and arrows while the other half were equipped with harquebuses. This represents the first introduction of firearms as an official weapon of the Royal Guard
1498 Rifling was invented.
1509 The first wheel lock or "rose lock" was invented somewhere around this date
1535 Firearms were recognized as hunting arms as early as 1515, and a book (Balleates Mosetuetas y Areabuces Pablo del Fucar, Naples, 1535) on sporting firearms appeared.
1540 Rifled arms had been made.  The hair trigger a German invention.
1550 Flintlock Shotgun
1552 Wheel lock Shotgun
1560 The invention of the typical Spanish lock is attributed by some writers to Simon Macuarte the Second.
1580 The snaphaunce lock, the forerunner of the true flintlock, was invented about, or considerably earlier than this date.
1630 The standard flintlock gun came in around this time.
1637 The London Gunmakers' Company initiated proofs when it was first incorporated, but it is not clear whether private proofs or a trade proof-house common to the Company was used. (A crowned A was given as the mark).
1640 The screw or cannon barrel pistol came in probably prior to this date.

The bayonet was introduced by the French; it was a long narrow blade with a wooden plug handle and was simply dropped into the muzzle of the musket

1672 The London Gunmakers' Company enjoyed powers which enabled them to enforce proof when the second charter was granted.
1680 A ring attachment was added to the bayonet so that it no longer served as a muzzle plug.
1689 The earliest known English breech-loading rifle was made by Willmore, who was apprenticed to Foad.
1690 The "Brown Bess" was known in Ireland as a "King's Arm" from its use by William at the Battle of the Boyne

The whole English army was equipped with flintlocks.
1710 The socket bayonet had appeared and was adopted in the British service about
1730 The large box lock type of pistol made its appearance.

A few hammerless flintlock sporting guns were made by Stanislaus Paczelt, of Prague in Bohemia.
1746 The French introduced the double-necked hammer and the steel ramrod.
1750-1800 Side-by-side Flintlock shotgun
1750-1765 The use of pistols for dueling purposes became general as the practice of carrying the rapier or small sword died out.
1760 The duelling pistol was entirely unknown until about
1760 Double shotguns were rather peculiar arms, usually of the under and over revolving barrel type until About
1763 The French introduced the muzzle band with a funnel or guide for the ramrod and acorn sight integral with the band.
1769

First Shot tower

 
1777 Duelling pistols became officially standardized weapons -then it was laid down that they should be 9 or 10 inch barreled, smooth bore flintlocks of 1 inch bore, carrying a ball of forty- eight to the pound
1780 The top rib in double-barreled guns appeared.
1781 Spring bayonets are common on blunderbusses and pistols of the period subsequent to the date of the patent (John Waters, Pat. No. 1284).
1789 The first patent for single trigger locks for double arms (James Templeman, Pat. No. 1707).

Single trigger pistols, with side by side, and also under and over barrels, were made by Egg.
1792 Joseph Manton's first patent (No. 1865) introduces the "break-off" breech, into which the barrel fits with a lump instead of being secured by a tang and screw as previously used.
17th Centaury Cloth Called :  Denim & Jean. Different fabrics till 19th Centaury
18th Centaury Denim Introduced America
19th Centaury Cowboy history
1800 The swivel ramrod attached to the piece by a stirrup appeared.

The "First Baker Rifle" was issued.

The half stocked pistol with the lower rib beneath the barrel fitted to carry the ramrod came in during.
1807 The "Second Baker Rifle" was introduced.

Alexander Forsyth patented the detonating or percussion principle.
1810-1820 The revolving principle is as old as firearms, but manufacturing methods permitting sufficient accuracy of workmanship and precision of boring for a really safe cylindered or chambered weapon date.
1811 The first serious military breech loader was an American invention, Colonel John H. Hall's patent.
1814-1816 The copper percussion cap is not definitely alluded to in the patent records till 1823, but appears to have been invented.
1820 The true flintlock revolver is the very rare weapon made by Collier.

Flints were converted to percussion cap, and the flint principle lost favor.
1826 The percussion cap came into universal use on private arms.

The Delvigne (French) service rifle was invented.
1830 The "Third Baker Rifle" was issued.
1831 The needle fire cartridge was patented by Adolph Moser.
1843 The percussion cap system of ignition was in common use before it was adopted for the service weapon. It was tested at Woolwich.
1835 Coach pistols supplied to the guard of public stage coaches are extremely rare, but were made with flintlocks and brass lock plates until this time.

The rim fire cartridge evolved naturally out of the percussion cap, and was first made by Flobert of Paris, a maker of saloon arms.

Colt claims the ratchet motion, locking the cylinder and centre fire position of the nipples as particular points of his specification

Colt did not know that the revolving principle was an age-old European idea until he visited England.

The Enfield percussion carbine - .65 inch caliber with hinged spring triangular bayonet folding below the barrel was made for Constabulary service.
1840 The true pin-fire cartridge emerged.

It was not until 1840 that we definitely find a breech-loading needle gun cartridge patented (Wm. Bush, Pat. No. 8513).

The Brunswick rifle superseded the Baker model about 1840.
1842 A few service arms were converted to the percussion cap system in 1839, and it was officially adopted.
1844 The service percussion musket was mainly experimental until this time.
1850 The shot-gun or fowling piece began its separation from the musket in the latter half of the 18th century and divorce was completed by 1850

The Minie (English) service rifle was introduced.
1851 Minie's patent for the self-expanding bullet was purchased and adopted by the British Government for the Enfield rifle.
1852 Charles Lancaster brought out his central fire under lever gun with extractor and the first true centre fire cartridge in
1853 The Pritchett bullet, a plain lead cylindroconoidal plug with a shallow base depression, was selected as the best type of bullet for the new Enfield rifle.
1854-1856 During the Crimean War, 25,000 Enfield rifles were made in America.
1855 There never was an official State-maintained arms factory until the Government established Enfield as a Government factory when the Birmingham gun-makers struck for higher wages in the middle of the Crimean War
1857 Whitworth rifles were produced.
1859 The first recorded European revolver for central fire cartridges appears to be that patented by Perrin and Delmas.
1869 The Martini-Henry rifle was issued.
1869-1871 The first European magazine military arm was the Swiss Vetterli rifle.
1870 In 1866, the Chassepot was authorized and all branches of the French army were equipped with the weapon.
1874-1875 The first bolt action military repeater seems to be the Edge rifle (Pat. No. 3643).
1879 Lee patented his box magazine.
1886 The French adopted the Lebel rifle.
1886-1887 The Gras-Kropatschek rifle was issued for the French Marine.
1887 Maxim was officially adopted in the army as a machine gun.
1888 The Lee-Metford rifle was adopted by Great Britain.
1893 The first automatic weapon to appear on the market was the Borchardt pistol.
1894 The Bergmann pistol appeared.

The first Mannlicher automatic pistol was introduced.
1898 The Mauser combination automatic pistol or carbine, the wooden holster serving as a stock attachment was introduced.

The Browning automatic pistol of .32 inch caliber, made its appearance.
1900 End Cowboy Era for Cowboy Action Shooting
1903 The Winchester Firearms Company brought out the first widely sold automatic rifle.

All automatic pistols were of small bore until this time.
1905 The Webley self-loading .455 inch pistol was adopted for the British Navy.
20th Centaury 1920 - Last black powder shot shells produced.