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Potzdam Musket

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Potzdam Musket

The Potzdam musket was the standard infantry weapon of the Royal Prussian Army (German: Königlich Preußische Armee) from the 18th century until the military reforms of the 1840s. Four models were produced—in 1723, 1740, 1809 and 1831.

Potzdam, just outside Berlin, had been Frederick the Great of Prussia's favorite place of residence as well as the city where the musket was made, hence the name. While the musket is more correctly called a Prussian infantry musket or a Prussian pattern musket, these muskets later became known as „Potzdam muskets".

After Frederick was crowned in 1740, he ordered the then-current Prussian musket; a version from 1723, for his army. The Potzdam musket had already made a name for itself by being the first standard German-made long-gun, and the 1740 model further solidified Potzdam as the key arsenal for Germany. The muskets were widely used by the Prussians and soldiers of the various German principalities in the 18th century. British-hired Hessian troops as well as troops from other German principalities in the revolting thirteen British colonies in America also used the muskets against rebels.

A smoothbore musket, the weapon was reasonably accurate to about 100 yards (91 m) against line infantry. But a musket was preferably used at a much shorter distance than that when discharged en masse.

The calibre of the Potzdam Muskets was between 0.71 (18.034 mm) and 0.7874 inches (20.00 mm)—which was larger than most other major nations' military rounds.

The barrel length of the Potzdam muskets varied between 884 millimetres (34.8 in) and 116 centimetres (46 in) and an overall length between 1,420 millimetres (56 in) and 1,565 millimetres (61.6 in), and weighed between 4.42 kilograms (9.7 lb) and 4.88 kilograms (10.8 lb). The stock of the Potzdam was usually made of walnut. Stress-bearing parts of the Potzdam, such as the barrel, lock plate and firing mechanism were made of steel and sling-swivels made of iron whilst other furniture pieces such as the butt plate, trigger guard and ramrod pipe were found in brass.

Many were converted from flintlock to percussion cap in the mid-19th century.

The Potzdam Infantry Musket Model 1723 was the first standard long-gun of the Prussian Army. It was the rival of the Charleville musket (1717) of France and the Brown Bess-musket (1722) of Great Britain. These were manufactured in .73 calibre—to enable the use of British military bullets. It had pins to hold the barrel in place and four pipes which held a steel scouring stick with a trumpet shaped end. As with the Royal Swedish Army, that also clung to pinned barrels (until pattern 1775), the Potzdam musket had fore-sights made of brass, making the bayonet lug's optimal location under the barrel where an 18.50-inch (470 mm) triangular cross-section bayonet could be fitted—its inner diameter was approximately 0.8543307 inches (21.70000 mm). Moreover, could the weapon's rounded fore-sights be used with a crude rear sight in form of an oblong rounded notch in the barrel peg.

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