IMPROVEMENTS IN SHIELDS OR APPLIANCES FOR PROTECTING SOLDIERS UNDER FIRE, AND IN APPARATUS CONNECTED THEREWITH
Year: 1871

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Ernest Alexandre Crosnier at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 16th March 1871.
I, ERNEST ALEXANDRE CROSNIER, of Paris, France, but at present of
No. 89, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SHIELDS OR APPLIANCES
FOR PROTECTING SOLDIERS UNDER FIRE, AND IN APPARATUS CONNECTED THEREWITH,"
to be
as follows:-
The first part of my Invention consists of a shield constructed as
hereafter described, which is capable of being folded up for facility of
transport, and when open to afford protection to troops under fire, and
particularly to skirmishers.
According to one arrangement I form the shield in two parts hinged
together with angle pieces; in such manner that when open the upper
half is set back double the thickness of the shield relatively to the lower
half, and when folded together the outside of the upper half comes
against the outside of the lower half, and can then be placed in a bag
for transport, or carried on the back. The shield when open is some-

page_text: what above the average height of a soldier. Each piece or part is
composed of layers of sheet steel and felt or tow, with a sheet of copper
on a wood bed. The upper part is provided with a flap hinged thereto,
which can be opened when required and supported in that position by
rods extending from the flap to the frame, so as to form a sort of hood,
cover, or protection to the head. Straps are provided for carrying the
shield on the back, and there are legs linked to the lower half of the
apparatus, whereby the shield is steadied, and its position adjusted by a
handle connected to it for that purpose.
In the previous arrangement the upper and lower parts of the shield
are hinged together, but according to another arrangement the two parts
are held together by pins, and on the latter being withdrawn from their
staples the two parts can be separated the one from the other, thus each
part may be used separately by a skirmisher to guard him when on his
knees; the lower part is provided with two feet hinged thereto, which
on being extended abut against the ground and act as props to the
structure.
According to another arrangement I make the shield with flaps to
afford protection to the head, shoulders, and upper part of the body
against flank fire; these flaps are hinged to the upper part of the main
structure in a similar manner to those before described.
Several of the shields before described when placed or arranged
together in a circular, square, or other form make a strong temporary
battery, and may thus be sometimes used in the face of an enemy with
considerable advantage.
Apparatus as before described may be used in combination with steel
plates, placed so that bullets cannot pass between, and the spaces filled
up with wood or cork.
The Invention further consists in the construction and employment
of plugs for stopping holes made in shields by shot. The plugs consist
of a disc of metal on which a cork is secured, so that as soon as a hole
is made a plug is inserted in the aperture, and the disc of metal pressed
up against the metal forming the shield.