IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Claude Etienne Minié, of Paris, in the
Empire of France, and of 32, Essex Street, Strand, London, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS."
2
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Claude Etienne
Minié at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 18th May 1855.
I, CHARLES CLAUDE ETIENNE MINIE, of Paris, in the Empire of France, and
of 32, Essex Street, Strand, London, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS" to be as follows,
viz. :—
These improvements are embodied in a breech-loading fire-arm, which is
shewn on the annexed Sheet of Drawings.
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section through the line A, B, of Fig. 2; and Fig. 2,
a top plan of a military musket or gun, which I have chosen to illustrate the
principle of my Invention; Fig. 3 is an under plan of one of the sliding imple-
ments; and Fig. 4, a top plan of the swivelling piece by which the implement
shewn at Fig. 4 is made to slide backwards and forwards.
C, barrel of the gun; D, D, piece of wrought iron or malleable cast iron.
This piece is for fixing the barrel, and has a recess for receiving the slide piece
E, which is for shutting the barrel. The piece D is also to hold the swivelling
piece F, which is let through it, the swivelling piece being for opening and

page_text: closing the barrel breech. To the piece D, I also secure the tumbler G, the
detent H, and the springs K and K', belonging thereto, and acting upon
the same. L is the woodwork of the gun; and M, the priming needle. The
sliding piece E is drawn back by the swivelling piece F being turned, and acting
upon the sliding piece by means of a stud O on its front part F' entering a
curved dovetail groove O' on the under side of the sliding piece E. When the
sliding piece has been slid back the cartridge is laid in the recess left open,
and then the ball is pushed home by reversing the motion of the swivelling
piece, which is done by turning the trigger guard R home, on which the
swivelling piece F is keyed. When the arm has been discharged, and the
piece E is drawn back for reloading, a shoulder on the under side of the piece E
catches the point of the tumbler G, and in so doing, turns the same round against
the spring K, until the projection of the detent drops down upon the tumbler
after the second notch, the part of the detent_bearing against the wood pre-
venting the same from turning further. The arm thus being cocked is then
reloaded and closed, as stated above, and for firing, the detent I need only be
pulled, thereby releasing the tumbler and causing it to strike upon the needle
M, the latter thus inflaming the fulminating matter contained in the cartridge.
The cartridge I prefer using is shown at Fig. 5; where a is a lead ball, cast in
a bullet mould, and having at its hinder part a recess or cavity for receiving
a cap b, with a three-fold charge. c is a socket, made of pressed leather,
caoutchouc, gutta percha, &c.; this socket being intended to protect the
charge of the cartridge from any undue contact with fire and water, and to
prevent the escape of gases. The spring K' is for pushing the trigger down
into its original place after the arm has been discharged. I also sometimes
place on the gun barrel a second barrel, but not so strong as the first; this
barrel being intended to hold a suitable number of charged balls or cartridges,
according to the length of the gun. In that case I cause the slide piece E to
draw out a ball cartridge from said cartridge barrel and to drop it into the
recess which is filled by the slide piece.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the 18th day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Charles Claude Etienne Minié, Her special licence that I, the said Charles
Claude Etienne Minié, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said Charles Claude Etienne Minié, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time
to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, tho Channel Islands, and Isle of
Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," upon
the condition (amongst others) that 1, the said Charles Claude Etienne Minié,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what'
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the
Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Charles Claude Etienne Minié, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement:-
These improvements are embodied in a breech-loading fire-arm, which is
shewn on the annexed Sheet of Drawings.
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section through the line A, B, of Fig. 2; and Fig. 2,
a top plan of a military musket or gun, which I have chosen to illustrate the
principle of my Invention; Fig. 3 is an under plan of the sliding implements;
and Fig. 4, a top plan of the swivelling picce, by which the implement shewn
at Fig. 3 is made to slide backwards and forwards.
C, barrel of the gun; D, D, piece of wrought iron or malleable cast iron.
This picce is for fixing the barrel, and has a recess for receiving the slide
piece E, which is for shutting the barrel. The piece D is also to hold the
swivelling piece F, which is let through it, the swivelling piece being for
opening & closing the barrel breech. To the piece D, I also secure the
tumbler G, the detent H, and the springs K & K', belonging thereto, and
acting upon the same. L is the woodwork of the gun; & M, the priming
needle. The sliding piece E is drawn back by the swivelling piece F being
turned, and acting upon the sliding piece by means of a stud O on its front
part F¹ entering a curved dovetail groove O' on the under side of the sliding

page_text: piece E.
When the sliding piece has been slided back, the cartridge is laid
in the recess left, and then the ball is pushed home by reversing the motion of
the swivelling piece, which is done by turning the trigger guard R home, on
which the swivelling piece F is keyed. When the arm has been discharged,
and the piece E is drawn back for reloading, a shoulder on the under side of the
piece E catches the point of the tumbler G, and in so doing turns the same
round against the spring K until the projection of the detent drops down upon
the tumbler after the second notch, the part of the detent bearing against the
wood preventing the same from turning further. The arm thus being cocked
is then reloaded & closed, as stated above, and for firing, the detent II
need only be pulled, thereby releasing the tumbler and causing it to strike
upon the needle M, the latter thus inflaming the fulminating matter con-
tained in the cartridge. The cartridge I prefer using is shewn at Fig. 5;
where a is a lead ball, cast in a bullet mould, and having at its hinder part
a recess or cavity for receiving a cap with a three-fold charge. c is a
socket, made of pressed leather, caoutchouc, gutta percha, &; this socket
being intended to protect the charge of the cartridge from any undue contact
with fire and water, and to prevent the escape of gases. The spring K' is for
pushing the trigger down into its original place after the arm has been dis-
charged. I also sometimes place on the gun barrel a second barrel, but not
so strong as the first; this barrel being intended to hold a suitable number of
charged balls or cartridges, according to the length of the gun. In that case
I cause the slide piece E to draw out a ball cartridge from said cartridge barrel,
and to drop it into the recess which is filled by the slide piece.
I claim, first, the swiveling piece, by which the implement, shown at Fig. 3,
is made easily to slide backwards and forwards and fix the arm solidly.
Second, the principle which allows the cartridge to be put in a recess with-
out requiring its being inserted in the barrel, which last operation is sometimes
liable to some difficulty.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Claude Etienne Minié, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Tenth day of November, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.