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Chassepot 1866

From Internet Movie Firearms Database - Guns in Movies, TV and Video Games
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Fusil Chassepot Modèle 1866 - 11mm
German Modified Chassepot Carbine M1871 - 11x60mm
Chassepot Mle. 1866/74T (transormé) - 11x59mmR

The Chassepot 1866 (pronounced "Shaspou") is a French bolt-action, single-shot rifle, using paper cartridges with black powder. This rifle was used by various countries, including France, Monaco, the Tokugawa shogunate (Japan), and the Qajar Dynasty (Iran). The French Army adopted this rifle as Fusil Mle. 1866 and used it as their main infantry weapon in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/1871, where it was the counterpart to the Prussian Dreyse Needle Gun. Chassepot rifles were manufactured in France by Manufacture d'armes de Saint-Étienne (MAS), Manufacture d'Armes de Châtellerault (MAC), Manufacture d'Armes de Tulle (MAT) and some other factories, and also abroad in England, Belgium, and Italy.

When the Chassepot rifle was replaced by the Gras Mle. 1874, numerous Chassepots were converted to use the 11x59mmR Gras ammunition; this model was known as the Fusil Mle. 1866/74. Similar conversions were made in Germany which received many Chassepot rifles captured during the Franco-Prussian war. About 150,000 rifles were converted to using the 11x60mmR Mauser cartridge and shortened to carbine size. German cavalry and artillery used them until the early 1880s.

Specifications

  • In service: (1867–1874)
  • Weight: 10.2 lbs (4.6 kg)
  • Length: 51.6 in (131 cm) (without bayonet)
    74 in (188 cm) (with bayonet)
  • Caliber: 11 mm
  • Action: Bolt action
  • Rate of fire: 8-15 rounds/minute
  • Effective range: 1,312.336 yards (1,200 m)
  • Feed system: Single-shot


The Chassepot 1866 and variants can be seen in the following films, television series, video games, and anime used by the following actors:


Film

Title Actor Character Notes Date
Jánošík Soldiers With yataghan bayonets 1921
Westfront 1918 French soldiers 1930
Hell on Earth Georges Péclet Charles Durand 1931
Louis Douglas Joe Smile
Angel and Sinner Georges Tourreil Henri 1945
French and Prussian soldiers
The Captain from Köpenick Werner Schumacher German Corporal 1956
Balduin Baas East Prussian grenadier
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Vulgarian soldiers 1968
Joe Kidd Seen on the table of broken guns 1972
Prairie Hunters in Mexico (Präriejäger in Mexiko) Mexican and French soldiers 1988

Television

Title Actor Character Notes / Episode Date
Imperial Game Oona von Maydell Louise Michel 2021
French soldiers

Video Game

Title Appears as Mods Notes Date
Civilization V 2010
Total War: Shogun 2 — Fall of the Samurai 2011

Gras Model 1874

Fusil Gras Modèle 1874 - 11x59mm Gras
Fusil Gras Mle. 1874 M80 with Mle. 1874 sword bayonet - 11x59mm Gras
Fusil Gras Mle. 1874 M80 M14 - 8x50mmR

The Gras Mle. 1874 (pronounced "Grah") rifle is an adaptation of the Chassepot rifle to a metal cartridge developed by Basile Gras. The Bavarian Werder-Gewehr M/1869 was a comparable development. In 1880, the Gras got a slight modification of the receiver through a groove, and the cylinder head (extension of the notch in addition to the bleeding of the case) are better subjected to protect the shooter from breakage of holster and exhaust fumes. This model was designated as Gras Mle. 1874 M80. The weapon gained an excellent reputation for ruggedness and ballistic efficiency during overseas expeditions this time. The Japanese Murata Rifle was inspired by the Gras rifle and the Greek Army was introduced to the Gras Mle. 1874 in 1877 and used it in all conflicts until the Second World War. It became the favorite weapon of partisans from the revolts against the Ottoman Empire to resistance to the German occupation and gained a legendary reputation.

Reasons for the relatively quick replacement of this rifle (in France by the Lebel 1886) was the result of the discovery of new powder types that are superior to black powder. But in 1914, the rifle was converted to the 8mm Lebel cartridge because of firearm shortages in World War I. These models were equipped by troops who were not destined to fight at the front with a weapon using standard ammunition, thus simplifying the manufacture and logistics. The second time this happened at the beginning of WWII for the same reasons, in particular in France 1940, and in the USSR 1941, for security and patrol purposes, before they were replaced by more modern rifles.

Specifications

  • In service: (1874–1886, 1914-1918)
  • Weight: 4.15 kg (9.15 lb)
  • Length: 51.4 in (130.5 cm)
  • Caliber: 11×59mmR, 8x50mmR
  • Action: Bolt action
  • Rate of fire: ?
  • Effective range: ?
  • Feed system: Single-shot


The Gras Model 1874 and variants can be seen in the following films, television series, video games, and anime used by the following actors:


Films

Title Actor Character Notes Date
The Heart of Humanity German soldiers 1918
The Lost Battalion American and German soldiers With Mle. 1866 Yataghan sword bayonets 1919
The Merry Widow Monteblanco soldiers 1925
The New Babylon Pyotr Sobolevsky Jean Standing in for Chassepot 1866 1929
French soldiers
The Paris Commune (Zori Parizha) Antonina Maksimova Catherine Millard Standing in for Chassepot 1866 1936
Andrei Abrikosov Etienne Millard
Dmitri Dorlyak Eugene Gorrot
Vladimir Belokurov Raoul Rigault
Anatoliy Goryunov Richet
Communards, National Guardsmen, French Army soldiers
Gavroche Republicans Anachronistic 1937
Lenin in October (Lenin v oktyabre) Red Guards 1937
Daybreak (Le jour se lève) French soldiers Carbine 1935
Paths of Glory French soldiers 1957
Mata Hari, Agent H21 French soldiers 1964
Magnificent Sinner Russian prison guards 1959
King of Hearts A German soldier 1966
Two Mules for Sister Sara French soldiers Standing in for Chassepot 1866 1970
Lacombe, Lucien Pierre Blaise Lucien Lacombe Converted shotgun; only on a promotional image 1974
A Captain's Honor (L'Honneur d'un capitaine) Converted shotgun 1982
Field of Honor Cris Campion Pierre Naboulet Standing in for Chassepot 1866 1987
Algerian, Turkish, and French troops
The Lost City of Z Charlie Hunnam Percy Fawcett 2017
Robert Pattinson Henry Costin

Television

Title Actor Character Notes / Episode Date
Data Tutashkhia Vladimer Bregvadze Jonjolia Ep.5 1977
The Alsatians or the Two Matildas Lucas Belvaux Yerri Laugel Ep. 01; standing in for Chassepot 1866 1996
French soldiers
Around the World in 80 Days Loic Djani Gérard Ep. 01; standing in for Chassepot 1866 2021
A Parisian Commune member

Video Game

Title Appears as Mods Notes Date
Squad 44: Letters From The Front "Gras mle1874" Added in December 2023 2018

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