Guns International #: 103468157

Category - Military Rifles - British - Military Rifles - Antique

Category
Military Rifles - British
Military Rifles - Antique

Windsor Rifle 1856

Description:

Pattern 1853 Enfield .577 inch Percussion Rifle Musket, Windsor Pattern, 1856
Manufactured under contract to British War Department by Robbins and Lawrence, Windsor, Vermont, USA, 1856.
During the Crimean War (1854-1856) there was a shortfall of Enfield rifle muskets. Insufficient numbers were being produced in the United Kingdom. An American contact was swiftly set up in February 1855 for 25,000 US rifle muskets, altered to the Enfield bore, to be made by Robbins and Lawrence of Windsor, Vermont. The American produced Enfields were stamped with 'WINDSOR' on the lock.
Unforeseen financial difficulties at the company and complaints in Britain that the American Enfields were of inferior quality resulted in a total of only some 16,000 rifle muskets being produced in the US for the British Army...

Later, a quantity of these so called Windsor Enfields were reimported back into the United States and were used by both sides during the Civil War...

This one is in fine condition, complete and with all originial parts...39" barrel, with shallow groove rifling...Barrel is burnished bright, which was military custom at the time...Lock plate and barrel proof marks are correct for this piece...Brass butt plate is stamped with  British military unit markings...Nice example of a rare rifled musket, made up here for use by the British in The Crimeian War and later brougtht back for our own internal conflict...

SOLD

Antique: Yes