Old Guns and Militaria

Red Leg

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GSXRMike posted a great thread about his Civil War era Springfield. Old rifles, muskets and blades are every bit as fascinating to me as the finest double rifle or latest set of optics. Let me preface all this by saying as a career combat arms officer and unapologetic proud Southerner, our collective military history has always been an integral part of what makes me the person I am today. My Great Great Uncle Paul was a young infantryman in the Army of Northern Virginia. My 94 years young mother remembers him as her favorite uncle. He told her stories of Cold Harbor and of being wounded and taken prisoner at Petersburg. My grandmother's family were Barksdale's, and my most noted ancestor on that side led a Brigade at Gettysburg where on the second day he fell mortally wounded in the Peach Orchard crushing Sickles' Corps at Gettysburg.

The first photo is my Confederate wall.

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The two rifles are Model 1853 Enfield Rifled Muskets. The British-made Enfield was used by both sides, but was the principal rifle used by Confederate forces. Both of these have the "JS Anchor" mark showing Confederate ordnance acceptance. The rifle on the left has additional unit markings on the butt plate and the soldier's initials carved in the stock. As a result, the rifle is identified with a young mounted infantryman who fought and was wounded at the battle of New Market, Virginia in 1864. I have been unable to find him listed on any returns after admittance to a hospital or in a census after the war. He undoubtedly died of his wounds.

And of course, no self-respecting rebel went to war without a blacksmith-made "D-Guard Bowie" or fighting knife.

The large framed Tintype is a rare Half-plate of a Texas Confederate soldier. The image was likely taken early in the war. He is in civilian dress, armed to the teeth, and wearing an issue Confederate Kepi with a Texas Lone Star prominently displayed on the front. He is almost certainly a member of Hood's Texas Brigade who had a photograph made for his family before heading east.

The second wall photo is carte de visite of a young Confederate Cavalryman. It is interesting because of his confederate uniform and British accoutrements.

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The next grouping is Napoleonic. The breastplate and armor are those of a Napoleonic French Cuirassier - the French heavy cavalry. this particular set belonged to a member of the 10th Regiment. On the wall behind are a massive Cuirassier Saber and two sabers with the decorative guards (Guard de Bataille) which a company grade officer would carry in the same regiment. These were the men who attempted to break Wellington's squares at Waterloo in 1815. At the base of the breastplate are a pair of pommel holsters for the dragoon pistols with which the Cuirassier would have also been armed.

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I have also spent a lot of time mucking around the Middle East. The musket is a "Jizail". These were made in North Africa and the Arab Peninsula on a pattern of the snaphance lock which preceded the flintlock. This particular gun dates from the early 19th century and is heavily decorated with silver, agate, bone and ivory. The two sabers are also Arab. The curved blade originated in the early 1800s in modern day Syria or Iraq, and the straight blade was built in Zanzibar.

I have every bit as much fun digging into the history of these artifacts as I do the best location to pursue another buffalo.
 
Excellent articles and post RedLeg! Beautifully displayed and I completely agree that finding where, when and who something belonged to is one of the most rewarding uses of time I have found. I am currently consumed by a 1st gen Colt SAA that my Lady’s father got from his father. Anxiously awaiting my Colt archive letter!
Thanks for the post and when you have a moment put up a photo of the carbine and a note on its history. I hope this thread goes on for a long time.
Cheers,
Cody
 
Outstanding collection and very well displayed! Thanks for sharing and providing the information. An Enfield is next on my wish list. They are certainly harder to find than a Springfield.
 
Very cool! Thanks for sharing. I recently read "Grant and Sherman: The Friendship that won the Civil War." There are so many amazing facts and stories from the Civil War.
 
Well done sir!
 
Thanks for letting us view some of your collection and the history lesson. Very interesting!
 
Excellent! Outstanding display and thanks for sharing! The 'smith made D-guards are special, each one unique and reflect a really very, very short time span of history- only a year or two at the very beginning of the Civil War. Those Jezails are likewise very unique arms. I have a relatively primitive one from Afghanistan that has a scavenged Brown Bess lock. I've shot it with patched roundballs and light charges but it's a real pain to properly clean.

Here're my Enfields, P 53 carbine and rifle musket. The carbine likely saw use in the Civil War and is quite dinged and bruised up on the outside but interestingly retains an excellent bore. Whoever had it was very conscientious about cleaning. The rifle musket stayed in London and served in a militia unit there (1st Surrey Rifles). For whatever reason, the carbine is an exceptionally accurate Minie´ shooter. There is nothing like "shooting" history.

P53 carbine & rifle.jpg
 
GSXRMike posted a great thread about his Civil War era Springfield. Old rifles, muskets and blades are every bit as fascinating to me as the finest double rifle or latest set of optics. Let me preface all this by saying as a career combat arms officer and unapologetic proud Southerner, our collective military history has always been an integral part of what makes me the person I am today. My Great Great Uncle Paul was a young infantryman in the Army of Northern Virginia. My 94 years young mother remembers him as her favorite uncle. He told her stories of Cold Harbor and of being wounded and taken prisoner at Petersburg. My grandmother's family were Barksdale's, and my most noted ancestor on that side led a Brigade at Gettysburg where on the second day he fell mortally wounded in the Peach Orchard crushing Sickles' Corps at Gettysburg.

The first photo is my Confederate wall.


The two rifled muskets are Model 1853 Enfield Rifled Muskets. The British-made Enfield was used by both sides, but was the principal rifle used by Confederate forces. Both of these have the "JS Anchor" mark showing Confederate ordnance acceptance. The rifle on the left has additional unit markings on the butt plate and the soldier's initials carved in the stock. As a result, the rifle is identified with a young mounted infantryman who fought and was wounded at the battle of New Market, Virginia in 1864. I have been unable to find him listed on any returns after admittance to a hospital or in a census after the war. He undoubtedly died of his wounds.

And of course, no self-respecting rebel went to war without a blacksmith-made "D-Guard Bowie" or fighting knife.

The large framed Tintype is a rare Half-plate of a Texas Confederate soldier. The image was likely taken early in the war. He is in civilian dress, armed to the teeth, and wearing an issue Confederate Kepi with a Texas Lone Star prominently displayed on the front. He is almost certainly a member of Hood's Texas Brigade who had a photograph made for his family before heading east.

The second wall photo is carte de visite of a young Confederate Cavalryman. It is interesting because of his confederate uniform and British accoutrements.


The next grouping is Napoleonic. The breastplate and armor are those of a Napoleonic French Cuirassier - the French heavy cavalry. this particular set belonged to a member of the 10th Regiment. On the wall behind are a massive Cuirassier Saber and two sabers with the decorative guards (Guard de Bataille) which a company great officer would carry in the same regiment. These were the men who attempted to break Wellington's squares at Waterloo in 1815. At the base of the breastplate are a pair of pommel holsters for the dragoon pistols with which the Cuirassier would have also been armed.


I have also spent a lot of time mucking around the Middle East. The musket is a "Jizail". These were made in North Africa and the Arab Peninsula on a pattern of the snaphance lock which preceded the flintlock. This particular gun dates from the early 19th century and is heavily decorated with silver, agate, bone and ivory. The two sabers are also Arab. The curved blade originated in the early 1800s in modern day Syria or Iraq, and the straight blade was built in Zanzibar.

I have every bit as much fun digging into the history of these artifacts as I do the best location to pursue another buffalo.
That is a beautiful collection you have! Museum-esque in fact! I have a couple dozen roman coins, an arrowhead and a javelin point that are about 1,800 years old, but nothing on the order of what you have here! the cuirasser armor is very nice!
 
It's very kind of you to share your passion and collection, thanks! I know I covet a sabre of my family's from the 15th light dragoons. Also, the medals from my grandfather and great grandfather's service are very special. Being able to connect the man to the time and place is a very cool thing for you to research.
 
Very cool, thanks for sharing with us!
 
subscribed!

Old militaria has always been a fascination for me.. I've told myself for years that I would start a "civil war" collection.. but have never made much of an effort..

I used to love touring around the old civil war battlefields when I was a kid.. I grew up not too far from Shiloh and probably made a dozen trips there over the years.. visited battlefields at vicksburg, gettysburg, manassas, ft. sumpter, chickamauga, and antietam as well..
 
Red Leg, thanks for sharing your collection(s), family history and interests with us. History is history and facts are facts. I am severely disheartened by those that think it can be changed or altered by removing some of the "memorabilia" from America's public places like city squares, parks, cemeteries, courthouses etc. Failure to recognize historical "truths" severely limits our ability to learn from it. As a first generation American I have no "dog in that fight." I can only stand on the side and contemplate the foolishness of such actions.
 
Red Leg, thanks for sharing your collection(s), family history and interests with us. History is history and facts are facts. I am severely disheartened by those that think it can be changed or altered by removing some of the "memorabilia" from America's public places like city squares, parks, cemeteries, courthouses etc. Failure to recognize historical "truths" severely limits our ability to learn from it. As a first generation American I have no "dog in that fight." I can only stand on the side and contemplate the foolishness of such actions.
Erase the lessons taught by our forefathers and we will repeat it. Very sad what isn’t being taught to our children.
 
Excellent articles and post RedLeg! Beautifully displayed and I completely agree that finding where, when and who something belonged to is one of the most rewarding uses of time I have found. I am currently consumed by a 1st gen Colt SAA that my Lady’s father got from his father. Anxiously awaiting my Colt archive letter!
Thanks for the post and when you have a moment put up a photo of the carbine and a note on its history. I hope this thread goes on for a long time.
Cheers,
Cody
Benjamin Franklin Joslyn was an interesting inventor who created a moderately successful single shot carbine used by a few Federal cavalry units during the war. With the 1862 Model, Joslyn had the good sense to chamber it in .56-52 rimfire which was the same chambering as the iconic Spencer. He had a contract for something over 20,000 carbines, and perhaps half were delivered before the end of the war. Interestingly, some turn up in West Africa. It seems about 6,000 were sold to France in 1871 during the Franco Prussian War. Many were seized by the Germans who in in turn sold them to the Belgians after the war. The Belgians converted many of those to shotguns and sent them to the Congo to arm native troops around the turn of the century.


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This particular carbine was a presentation piece from Joslyn to his business partner.

One of my real treasures is a British model 1796 Infantry Officer's sword. Several years ago, I bought it at auction where it was described simply as an "attributed" Napoleonic era sword. Upon getting it home, I was able to make out that the engraved name was "Lt J Pratt 30th Foot". A bit of research put me in touch with the curator of the Lancashire Infantry Museum into which the 30th Infantry Regiment (Foot) was eventually assimilated. http://www.lancashireinfantrymuseum.org.uk/the-salamanca-eagle/ Lieutenant John Pratt served in the 30th Foot during the Peninsula campaign and later at Waterloo. One of the great battles during the Peninsula campaign was Salamanca in 1812 where Wellington defeated a French Army under Marshal Marmont. During the battle, Lt. Pratt seized the Imperial Eagle of the 22 Infantry Regiment - one of only five taken by British forces during the Napoleonic wars. The Lancashire Regimental museum displays the eagle and makes bronze and silver-plated copies as presentation pieces (typically for retiring senior officers). I acquired one that they were kind enough to specially engrave to recognize Lt Pratt's sword.

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It is a great example of the sort of treasure one can find out there. I plan to gift it on permanent loan to the museum when I no longer have use for it.

Finally one more scratch at the Middle East itch. This armor set is late 18th century Indo-Persian. The helmet originally had plumes and the battle ax hiding behind the shield is a fairly rare weapon. The Tulwar or saber, on the other hand, is quite common though a lot of copies are being made for the collector market.

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Thank You!
 
An outstanding collection!
 
I am thoroughly enjoying the history and the opportunity to view your collection. Thanks
 
Awesome collection @Red Leg! What a find that LT's saber ended up being! Congratulations.
 

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