The 14 Guns That Helped Fight the Revolutionary War

The British Pattern 1769 Short Land musket armed British infantrymen at the start of the war. Yet soon after the conflict began, the Americans seized large batches of the armaments, and the musket became the most used firearm by the Continental Army – but carrying it wasn’t easy, as it weighed in at more than 10 pounds. It was also known by the nickname “the Brown Bess,” for reasons that aren’t clear.

France showed its support for the American fight for independence by supplying the Continental Army with French Charleville muskets, soon to be known as Charlevilles. In 1777, France shipped 25,000 of the .69 caliber weapons to the Colonies.

British Major Patrick Ferguson invented the rifle that bears his name sometime in the 1770s. What made Ferguson’s armament unique was its ability to fire seven rounds a minute. At the time, firing three or four rounds was considered the standard. During the Battle of Kings Mountain in South Carolina, Ferguson was killed commanding forces loyal to the British.

Developed in the early 16th century in France, the flintlock pistol was a notable advancement in weaponry. The flintlock pistol has a frizzen, or striker, and a priming pan where the gunpowder is stored. When the soldier pulled the trigger, a spring action mechanism pushed the frizzen into the flint, causing sparks to ignite the gunpowder. The ball is then shot out from the pistol.

The Hessian dragoon pistol gets its name from the fact the long, large-caliber guns were once standard issue for mounted troops from German states. The weapons saw action in the Revolutionary War when the British commanded auxiliary troops from the German principality of Hesse-Cassel. In August of 1777, American forces captured Hessian pistols at the Battle of Bennington.

Holster pistols were not standard issue for troops. Instead, officers purchased the guns from private gunsmiths. In battle, the pistols were held in leather holsters in the front of a cavalryman’s saddle.

One of the earliest firearms made in America, the Kentucky flintlock was used by early settlers and pioneers before troops carried it during the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. Soldiers often teamed the pistol with a Kentucky rifle. It was said to be Davy Crockett’s favorite gun.

A .67 caliber smoothbore flintlock pistol, the Light Dragoon was made specifically for the Light Dragoon regiments – cavalry regiments in the British Army. During the Revolutionary War, the armament was employed by the 1st Continental Light Dragoons and the 2nd Continental Light Dragoons.

A French military flintlock pistol, the Mòdele 1763 was used during the French-Indian War and to a lesser extent during the Revolutionary War. It is similar to the British Light Dragoon pistol.

To battle the rebels, British troops received a shipment of more 1,000 Pattern 1776 rifles that same year. The guns were meant to even the playing field with rifles used by the Americans. Such rifles were supplied to the elite mounted and light military units. Meanwhile, the regular infantry had to make do with muskets.

The Pennsylvania long rifle takes its name from the Pennsylvania-based independent gunmakers who produced the gun during the Revolutionary War. Long and slender, the rifle was favored by hunters. During wartime, it was accurate over long distances, but other limitations kept it from being an effective weapon: It took time to load, and a bayonet could not be affixed to it..

Navies also need guns, and the Sea Service pistol was invented for service on ships by the British in the second half of the 18th century. With a 12-inch barrel, the weapon was widely used during the Napoleonic Wars, French and Indian War, and the Revolutionary War. If you want to see a version of the gun being used, watch the 2003 Russel Crowe starrer “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World.”

Although France was a major supplier of arms to the Americans, Spain also supplied gunpowder and other military stores to the American troops, including the Spanish Model 1757 musket. Infantrymen used the gun when Virginia state troops marched into the Illinois territory in 1779.