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A Kropatschek is any variant of a rifle designed by Alfred von Kropatschek. Kropatschek's rifles used a
:taken into Soviet inventory following the Russian Civil War; most were shipped to Republican forces during the Spanish Civil War * : 746 M1878 Kropatschek rifles procured from OEWG. * :1,821 surplus 1878 Kropatschek rifles delivered by the Soviet Union * : The
French 1878 Marine Kropatschek
Forgotten Weapons {{WWIAus-HunInfWeaponsEquipment World War I Austro-Hungarian infantry weapons Bolt-action rifles Early rifles Rifles of Austria
tubular magazine
A magazine, often simply called a mag, is an ammunition storage and feeding device for a repeating firearm, either integral within the gun (internal/fixed magazine) or externally attached (detachable magazine). The magazine functions by holdi ...
(constructed of nickel
Nickel is a chemical element; it has symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel is a hard and ductile transition metal. Pure nickel is chemically reactive, but large pieces are slo ...
-plated steel) of his design, of the same type used in the Japanese Murata Type 22 and the German Mauser Gewehr 1871/84. While designed for black powder
Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium ni ...
, the Kropatschek action proved to be strong enough to handle smokeless powder
Finnish smokeless powder
Smokeless powder is a type of propellant used in firearms and artillery that produces less smoke and less fouling when fired compared to black powder. Because of their similar use, both the original black powder formula ...
.
The Kropatschek was the basis for the French Lebel M1886.
Variants
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
:
* ''Gendarmerie Repetier-Karabiner M1881'': 11 mm Gendarmerie Carbine (also known as M1874/81);
*''Kropatschek Torpedo Boats Gewehr M1893'': 8 mm Navy Rifle for Torpedo boat crews.
France:
* ''Fusil de Marine Mle 1878'': 11 mm Navy Rifle;
* ''Fusil d'Infanterie Mle 1884'': 11 mm Infantry Rifle;
* ''Fusil d'Infanterie Mle 1885'': 11 mm Infantry Rifle.
Portugal:
* ''Espingarda de Infantaria 8 mm m/1886'': 8 mm Infantry Rifle;
* ''Carabina de Caçadores 8 mm m/1886'': 8 mm Light Infantry Carbine;
* ''Carabina de Cavalaria 8 mm m/1886'': 8 mm Cavalry Carbine;
* ''Carabina da Guarda Fiscal 8 mm m/1886/88'': 8 mm Treasury Guard Carbine;
* ''Espingarda de Infantaria 8 mm m/1886/89'': 8 mm Colonial Infantry Rifle;
* ''Carabina de Artilharia 8 mm m/1886/91'': 8 mm Artillery Carbine.
Users
* * :1878 Kropatschek rifle adopted by the navy in 1884; in 1891 it was replaced by the 1886 Portuguese model. During the secondRevolta da Armada
The Brazilian Naval Revolts, or the Revoltas da Armada (in Portuguese), were armed mutiny, mutinies promoted mainly by admirals Custódio José de Melo and Saldanha da Gama and their fleet of rebel Brazilian navy ships against the claimed unco ...
the army used a small number of Kropatscheks captured from navy depots. The Kropatschek was phased out in naval service in 1895 after the adoption of the 1894 Brazilian Mauser
* : 2000 1878 Kropatschek rifles were delivered for the navy in 1881. The objective of this acquisition was to have a fast-firing weapon to repeal torpedo boats.
*
*
* : Part of French military aid during World War I.
*
* :150,000 Kropatscheks bought from France in 1915:taken into Soviet inventory following the Russian Civil War; most were shipped to Republican forces during the Spanish Civil War * : 746 M1878 Kropatschek rifles procured from OEWG. * :1,821 surplus 1878 Kropatschek rifles delivered by the Soviet Union * : The
Wassoulou Empire
The Samorian state, also referred to as the Wassoulou empire, Ouassalou empire, Mandinka empire or Samory's empire, was a short-lived West African state that existed from roughly 1878 until 1898, although dates vary from source to source. It span ...
arms industry created functional copies of the Krophatschek rifle in the 1880s and 90s to use in their struggle against French colonial forces.
See also
*Antique firearms
An antique () is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely to describe any object that i ...
References
External links
French 1878 Marine Kropatschek
Forgotten Weapons {{WWIAus-HunInfWeaponsEquipment World War I Austro-Hungarian infantry weapons Bolt-action rifles Early rifles Rifles of Austria