The Chassepot was a bolt-action, breech-loading rifle, which was used by the French infantry in the Franco-Prussian War (1870-71). It was designed by Antoine Alphonse Chassepot in 1866. It was an improvement over the Prussian-made Dreyse needle gun as it had a longer range and a faster rate of fire. The Chassepot rifle had a needle ignition system and its barrel had fast-twisting rifling, making the gun accurate. It was fitted with a straight bolt and had a straight musket-style trigger. This 11mm-caliber rifle fired percussion-capped paper cartridge, but, in 1874, the Chassepot was converted to shoot metallic cartridges. The higher muzzle velocity of this French rifle was due to the cartridges it used which had more gunpowder than the cartridges fired by the Dreyse. The Chassepot used a 57cm-long bayonet.
Specifications
Type: bolt-action rifle
Country of origin: France
Manufacturer: MAS (Manufacture d’Armes de Saint-Etienne)
Caliber: 11 mm (.433)
Cartridge: paper cartridge with lead bullet
Barrel length: 795 mm
Weight: 4.635 kg (9 lb 5 oz)
Rate of fire: between 10 to 15 rpm
Effective range: 1200 m (1300 yd)
