The Springfield Model 1812 Musket is a .69
caliber
In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel Gauge (firearms) , bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the f ...
, flintlock musket manufactured by the
Springfield Armory.
The War of 1812 revealed many weaknesses in the earlier
Model 1795 Musket. The Model 1812 was an attempt to improve both the design and manufacturing process of the musket. The design borrowed heavily from the French
Charleville model 1777 musket. The Springfield Model 1812 musket arrived too late to be of use in the War of 1812 but would later become standard issue to
regular infantry and
militia units.
The Model 1812 was a .69 caliber
smoothbore musket, with a 42-inch (107 cm) barrel and a 54-inch (137 cm) stock, and a total length of 57-inch (145 cm). The Model 1812 was produced only at Springfield: the M1795 would continue in production at Harpers Ferry into 1818.
The Model 1812 was produced in a quantity of almost 30,000 between the years 1814 and 1816. It was replaced by the
Model 1816 Musket. However, the Model 1812 remained in service for many years, and was even used in the
American Civil War, mostly by the
Confederate forces. By the start of the Civil war, the weapon was considered to be old and obsolete but was needed to fill arms shortages.
["A Civil War Treasury" By ]Albert A. Nofi
Albert A. Nofi (born January 6, 1944), is an American military historian, defense analyst, and designer of board and computer wargaming systems.
Early life
A native of Brooklyn, he attended New York City public schools, graduating from the Boys' ...
, Published by Da Capo Press, 1995
Some Model 1812 muskets were later converted to
percussion lock firing mechanisms. The
percussion cap system was much more reliable and
weatherproof than the
flintlock system used on the Model 1812 in its original configuration.
See also
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List of individual weapons of the U.S. Armed Forces
This is a list of weapons served individually by the United States armed forces. While the general understanding is that crew-served weapons require more than one person to operate them, there are important exceptions in the case of both squad a ...
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List of wars involving the United States
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Military history of the United States
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United States Armed Forces
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Military of the Confederate States of America
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Charleville musket
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Brown Bess
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Potzdam Musket 1723
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M1752 Musket
The M1752 Musket was a muzzle-loading firearm invented in 1752 and used by the Spanish Army from then until it was widely replaced by the much more effective Minié rifles during the mid-19th century. The M1752 was the first standardized lon ...
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Springfield musket
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Harpers Ferry Model 1803
The Harper's Ferry M1803 rifle was the first standard rifle (as opposed to a smoothbore musket), made by an American armory.
History
Rifles existed long before the 17th century, but were rarely used by military forces. In order to be effectiv ...
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M1819 Hall rifle
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Pattern 1853 Enfield
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Springfield Rifle
The term Springfield rifle may refer to any one of several types of small arms produced by the Springfield Armory in Springfield, Massachusetts, for the United States armed forces.
In modern usage, the term "Springfield rifle" most commonly refer ...
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Richmond rifle
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Fayetteville rifle
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Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually d ...
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Rifle
A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...
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Carbine
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Historical reenactment
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American Civil War reenactment
References
{{USCWWeapons
Muskets
Weapons of the Confederate States of America
American Civil War weapons
Firearms of the United States
Springfield firearms