Durs Egg Ferguson - The Rifle That Didn't Shoot George Washington
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- Опубликовано: 26 авг 2024
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Captain Patrick Ferguson was a British officer who designed and patented a breechloading rifle in 1776, which would actually see service in the American Revolution at the Battle of Brandywine. Ferguson presented two rifles to the British military for consideration, one of them being this specific gun. In a shooting demonstration on a windy, rainy day he convinced the Board of Ordnance of the viability of his rifle, and a field trials was set in motion. One hundred Ferguson rifles were made for the Crown, and Ferguson was detached form his Regiment to be given command of a company of specially trained elite riflemen. His men were drilled in accurate shoot as well as use of the bayonet, they were organized in small groups to make use of cover and concealment, and they were fitted with green uniforms to blend into the terrain. This unit deployed to the American colonies in 1777, and saw action in the Battle of Brandywine.
Unfortunately for Ferguson and his ideas, the unit didn’t make any particularly notable impact on the battle, although not by any fault of their own. Worse, Ferguson was wounded, and because the unit was so heavily dependent on him it was disbanded while he recuperated. He did see service again at the Battle of King’s Mountain, where he was killed in action. This particular Ferguson rifle was made by the noted London gunsmith Durs Egg, and is one of the two guns presented to the Board of Ordnance that began the whole series of events.
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I regret to report that the sample arm referenced is NOT with us at the Royal Armouries. We do however have one of Ferguson's own rifles, and another, sporting example. edit - it did go to the Tower but has never appeared in any subsequent inventory. Possibly it was lost in the grand storehouse fire of 1841.
Were there any other notable items lost in the fire you wish were not that you would have liked to have reviewed today?
@@L3G1T1SM3 Great question; I can't think of any off-hand, but I sure wish this hadn't got melted - collections.royalarmouries.org/object/rac-object-3376.html
Cool rifle I had a neighbor that was a descendend of Patrick Ferguson. I saw one of those rifles at the state museum years ago and asked him jokingly if he was related and he said yes actually lol
Corey Trout funny, one of my ancestors built the church that the President Jackson attended in his youth, not to mention Jackson’s dad is buried in the cemetery there.
he’s my great (x4) grandfather i would love to have a rifle but last one sold for 100,000 😂
My six-times-removed great grandfather was Col. James Williams, a South Carolina militia officer, also killed at the battle of King's Mountain, October, 1780.
So if things had gone a little differently with Ferguson and this rifle, we'd all be speaking English today.
No My Dear Boy we Mean the Queens English not this Johnny Come Lately American Lingo
lefr33man Woooosh
classic
@@leebennett4117 Even the Queen doesn't speak like that these days!
Blotty rites
6 rounds per Minute?!
That is ridiculously fast for a gun into which you have to load every part manually!
51WCDodge that is for a musket, a rifle was even slower...
@@howardwhite1507 True, hadn't thought to mention that.
So you need to understand that the loading procedures were different for a rifled flintlock and a smoothbore flintlock. Smoothbore flintlocks were, literally, the "assault weapons" of the day and could be loaded by a skilled shooter is about 12-15 seconds. Rifles, on the other hand, because the bullet was so tight so it could engage the grooves in the barrel and the powder measurements needed to be precise for accuracy took well over 45 seconds to load.
For a rifled muskets to be loaded this fast was pretty impressive.
Yeah that is insane, a musket will usually get off around three shots a minute, a rifle, one. But this is a rifle that is two times faster than a musket!
Not really that fast when you compare it to muzzleloaders... very well drilled troops could manage about four shots per minute when they were fresh and the fight was young... 3 was more likely but still, it composed so much more steps to get to it... setting the thing down, getting out your loading stick, biting off the bullet end from the cartridge, ramming down the powder, putting in the wad, ramming down the bullet, replacing the stick in its hole, changing the grip on the rifle, and only then comes the similar part with powder in the pan, priming and aiming... here you rotate the screw, stuff your cartride in, probably like a cannon load would have to pierce the cartridge hull and then screw shut, powder in the pan, priming, aiming fire... small gestures, all the same area, no big moving around of the whole gun, you probably could keep the rifle even at the shoulder just leaning a bit away to see the open breach and powderpan... it would take a bit of drill, but seems manageable.
What's the "record" of good troops with a bolt action rifle single load? I'd guess 8 to 10 per minute?
Ferguson was a person that stood out among others. His forthrightness speaking out against many British high ranking officers. Made him many enemies in the British Army.There were two large British forces very close. But neither answered his call for aid.Which kind of sealed his fate at Kings Mountain. Though his pride kept him from marching off the mountain before the enemy got there was another mistake. That and his threats to put the lands in S.C. To sword and fire. Being a Scotsmen He should of known such harsh words would be taken the exact opposite they were ment. The Scots Irish people put away their family feuds and banded together. Many coming from as far away as Tenn. To be sure they were ALL armed with very accurate rifles to a man. With orders to be your own commander and attack. They did just that. Ferguson was shot seven times and when approached by a Rebel commander to accept surrender? Being much like the very men he fought. He pulled his pistol and gut shot the man. Im sure resulting in another score of bullets being shot into him. He did keep his promise. Of only leaving the position. When they carried his corpse off of it.
Thanks for this information, he was my great(x4) grandfather, i always knew he was a british solider but didn’t realize the amount of history.
@@nickferg5964 He was not only just a soldier but an officer popular with most that he lead. Louis Lamore even wrote a book with the rifle he developed the heros weapon Titled The Furguson Rifle. That rifle was for sure well ahead of its time. If you like western books This one being of the early western Fur Trappers Louis and Clark era. Its well worth the read. I visited Kings Mt in my youth.
Damn.
Wah? A breechloader rifle?
At that time of the year?
At that time of day?
At that part of the country, localized entirely within that armory?
Can i see it?
@@flowerpetalpetrolfire may i see it?
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
And, believe it or not, yes!
Well, Ferguson, you are an odd fellow, but I must say... You build a good breechloader!
It's more of a Utica thing.
I can't believe the quality of the items on the Morphy's catalogue. Even Gun Jesus must be in ecstasy
D o u b t I t
Hi Ian,
Just wanted to tell you that my girlfriend and I really enjoy your historical weapon reviews very much. She never realized how interesting the evolution of these amazing machines could be and has become as great a fan as me.
Keep up the good work!
16:12
Back then, soldiers and officers typically had little interest in attacking the enemy unless they were specifically ordered to, like in a battle.
A very live and let live attitude, which was frankly not a bad thing. Life was difficult enough as it was without outright looking/inviting trouble.
"Thankfully" nowadays we have stepped above such "barbaric" notions, right?;)
We didn't really step over that 'barbaric' line until the second half of the 20th century, when indoctrination (political, nationalistic etc.) and army training changed to train soldiers to shoot at people instead of targets.
@@lavrentivs9891 of course there were a few nations that were quite "ahead of their time":(
@@lavrentivs9891 "We didn't really step over that 'barbaric' line until the *second half* of the 20th century,"
I... Errr... This statement is so stupid I can't even begin to speculate the motive behind it.
A lot of Soldiers in the Great War on both sides had similar views. Spoilt it for the General's on both sides.
Ian should add the line "The rifle that didn't shoot George Washington" to other videos too. The RSC 1918-The rifle that didn't shoot George Washington, The S & W Light Rifle-The rifle that didn't shoot George Washington, The L85A1-The rifle that didn't shoot George Washington, or anyone else for that matter.
For varieties sake it may sometimes be replaced with "the gun that didn't shoot Archduke Franz Ferdinand".
The AR-15, the rifle that didn't shoot George Washington
6.5mm Carcano: The rifle that didn't shoot George Washington
The 40mm Boffers anti-aircraft cannon that did not shoot George Washington
😂😂😂
Awesome. I always loved the Louis L'amour novel "The Ferguson rifle" never thought I would be able to see one, Thx for the History.
I was going to post basically the same reply, I'm surprised he didn't mention that reference.
Louis La'Mour wrote "The Ferguson Rifle". One of my favorites. Cool to see what it looked like
I'm guessing that it went for a tad more than £31.
$96k American... So, just under £75k pounds sterling... Just a tad more...😉
300,000% more.
Using the British inflation calculator, 31 pounds in 1776 is about 4,800 pounds in 2017. I wonder what it would actually cost today to have one hand made.
J. McQ. not too much I should think if you have the skills and time to do it youself and of course a good set of drawings, but to farm it out to specialists it might cost you more than an Arm or a Leg.
Wow that's pretty heavy!@@j.mcq.8418
Nice chat about this wonderful rifle. I enjoyed it much. A few points of interest to include might be that Ferguson's patent included ONLY the diagonally, cut grooves agaonst the closing screw threads, added to the breech screw. These helped much to resolve the powder residue binding of the screw. The design was more than half a century old by 1776, however. A French-born London gunsmith, La Chamette, made many long guns & pistols starting about the 1720s. Freguson was the first to apply it to military use.
That George Washington story is insane.
Yep one bullet and change histroy maybe, maybe not if a more competent military officer was in charge of the army the Americans might have been more successful earlier in the revolution? Never know!Washington for all of his legend wasn't a very successful soldier ,in fact he lost more times than he won and needed French help to end the British control of the military situation in the colonies. So maybe not a fatal shot if it had been taken!
@@royperkins3851 Captain Patrick Ferguson! American hero!
Must be true I heard it years ago.
Probably wouldn't have influenced the French Revolution very much. Unlike the American Revolution which was more about switching the people in charge, the French Revolution came from the lower 98 % of society.
Context for "USS Benedict Arnold": Benedict Arnold betrayed the Americans because he was (by his own words) frequently passed over for promotions even though he was good in command. This was of course in about 1780, so if at that point (1777) George Washington had died, the shuffling of American leadership would have probably had it that Benedict Arnold would feel satisfied in his position.
I am proud to say I am related to Major Ferguson and my family still lives in the area to this day.
The gun was mentioned by name in an Honor Harrington book, and I had a feeling Ian would have a video on it. I'm glad I was right.
Which book?
@@BlackSoap361 The very first, in fact; On Basilisk Station. To avoid too many spoilers, modern reproductions of the Ferguson Rifle make an appearance in the hands of technologically primitive native aliens.
Eggcellent presentation, clear, informative and entertaining.
I'm quite saddened that I had to scroll this far down for somebody to finally make that pun
@@jjtomecek1623 me too :-D
That was an eggceptably good pun, it had me positively fried. The yoke is on me, for continuing this line of puns
@@jeredhersh789 I think you mean "yolk." But even though you scrambled that one up, I think things are looking sunny side up for us.
@@jeredhersh789 Shell we find any better opportunities to make such poultry puns ? I think I have run out of them now, which may put me into a fowl mood.
Three misfires in the trial is really good for a flintlock, especially in windy and rainy weather. When shooting my flintlocks, I usually expect around 10% misfires, mostly from the special finely-ground FFFFg flash powder not igniting (troops usually use part of the coarsely ground FFg powder load to fill their pans which has an even lower rate of ignition), or the flint showers enough sparks to ignite the powder in the pan, but the flame fails to travel through the touch-hole to ignite the main powder charge in the weapon (a flash-in-the-pan failure).
Videos like this one are exactly why I subscribe to Ian's channel. The historical story about Washington and Ferguson is too freaking cool.
It is a magnificent piece of engineering...all hand-worked...pure artistry.
I use to live ~30-40 minutes away from where the battle of Kings mountain took place and use to go there a few times a year as a kid so it's really interesting that I've probably seen where Ferguson was killed and now I'm getting to learn more about his involvement in the history the war
“Yeah Turd Ferguson, it’s a funny name”
@Plz I Fan Norm MacDonald is very much still alive.
Well, to be fair, every manager of Manchester United after Alex Ferguson is Turd "Ferguson"
Well he did say you stick it in the back...
"Yeah well uh, why don't you gimme apetit for uh... $200"
I'd read of the Ferguson before, but I always remember Louis Lamour's novel inspired by it. "The Ferguson Rifle". The story of Washington being spared by the gentlemanly Ferguson I recall from several sources. This explanation of the circumstances made the story seem more probable to me. I think it likely happened but can never be proved an historical fact.
Just stick it in the back
Where it’s really easy to put it in
Don’t hear that as often as I’d like
[Best Jim Neighbors voice] Oh you're going to Hell for that!
Shooter.257 damn it beat me to it
If it's that easy to put it in the back, not sure I'd want to stick it in.
@@owainrichards4372 probably why its so easy
Giggity
This is gorgeous. Imagine making these by hand. Impressive craftsmanship. Its really cutting edge stuff for the time.
I acquired a Durs Egg bought many many years ago with gold highlights. The man that sold it to me had no idea what he had and neither did I and had to absorb endless flack for spending $300. It wasn’t until my brother in law who’s a USMC Vietnam vet years later brought to my attention to the clearly hand tool stamp “D Egg”. It’s in a gun safe with a manual dial lock that’s refusing to cooperate and likely need a locksmith to open.
So you could say that the man who developed this rifle was a good Egg.
😁😁😁👍
It also answers the question, which came first, the rifle or the Egg. Clearly the Egg.
This is an amazing piece of firearms history on the table! I wonder how Ian feels when he gets these once in a lifetime opportunities to evaluate and show firearms of this rarity, distinction, and condition.
the polite officer who lost Britain the thirteen colonies
We had other generals. Post revolution US would look a lot diffrent though.
His defeat at Kings mountain was considered to be the turning point that ultimately lead to Yorktown, so you could say he lost the colonies twice.
So the reason the British empire fell to pieces was because it's supersoldiers were too well mannered? Goddamnit.
Very well mannered. Just ask their slaves and their colonial subjects.
🙄
@@coconut6468 who the sub humans? We dont ask for their opinion.
I say old chap, steady on. It's time for tea and all, wot. Perchance are there some biscuits?
Actually, losing the 13 colonies made us centre our colonial efforts elsewhere. Most notably in India, which projected Britain's wealth and power to unimaginable heights. So, swings and roundabouts I suppose
NO, it was economics management or the lack of, the only shared denominator of collapsed, kingdoms, empires, nations, conflicts, wars all of it >>> economics driven
“That’s a fine rifle. How’d you come by it?”
“I pried it from the cold dead fingers of an Indian-lovin’ fool.”
GUN. Awesome game
Yep. That's why I'm here. Although I find it weird that they can reload the thing so damn fast in the game. And you can refill its ammo with all the cased ammo laying around.
I remember that shooting video surprisingly well though I watched it at least 2 years ago. You don't easily forget interesting (and good) guns like this..
That is an insanely expensive weapon and I would doubt it has parts interchangeability... And then we find that gentlemen do not snipe at other gentlemen, even if one is a traitor to his King and the other is French? This is tactical thinking Georgian style? No wonder we lost!
It's "ungentlemanly" at the time, only Native Americans shoot at officers and it was only until the French Revolutionary wars and the Napoleonic Wars where shooting at officers was an accepted tactic for the skirmishers and riflemen.
Wellington forbade his artillery to shoot at Napoleon during the battle of Waterloo. There are things that a gentleman simply does not do !
Just good manners, old chap.
I guess us Americans were less "gentleman-like" than the ones we were fighting. We were more willing to take that shot when the reverse opportunity arose...😅
We're cool now, tho? Virtual high-five? ✋
@@KickyFut You might have had a point at the time... No hard feelings :-)
Pretty cool looking and cool functioning gun! It’s amazing how much innovation there was to solve the problem of not having cartridge ammo...
Haven`t heard that name since I read about him in one of the many magazines I subscribed to as a youngster more than 40 years ago.
Ian, I am afraid you chose a rather poor backdrop for these videos - it is really hard to concentrate on whatever you are saying with the absolutely magnificent FG 42 in the background :D
I find the topic more interesting.
I saw a Ferguson yesterday at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia. Sure enough, there was a strip of metal screwed into place under the lock and circling the breech mechanism to repair a cracked stock! Thanks for your fine presentation.
This IS absolutely THE coolest Rifle you've ever covered Ian, THANK YOU !
For reference it's worth mentioning that brown bess muskets of the period had front beads with no rear sight, making it difficult to even achieve the potential accuracy of the smoothbore musket. It's also interesting to note that when the british military adopted the baker rifle a few years later they intentionally made it short so that it was possible to load from the unusual positions you mentioned despite being a muzzleloader. P.S. I love the anecdote regarding george washington, it's fascinating for many reasons.
Vincent Baelde-Millar that "front sight" isn't primarily a sight it's a bayonet lug.
"State your name, please."
"Durs Egg."
"Hah, funny."
"How? That is my name."
"...Right..."
The rifle that shot George Washington in a parallel universe ?
Would be interesting how the "Nr 2" Gun got out of the Tower of Londons Collection and into collectors circles
One of my ancestors was said to have been with Ferguson at Kings Mountain. There is no record of him after the battle so he likely died along with Ferguson.
Tory.......
@@ridgerunner5772 What makes you think his ancestor was a tory?
@@ginch8300, all those rode with Ferguson were Tories.....
@@ridgerunner5772 The average British soldier wasn't even allowed to vote, and while most loyalists were likely Conservatives, you can't assume every soldier in the British army voted Tory. That's like saying every single U.S. serviceman is a Republican.
@@ginch8300, lordy lou dude, NOT Tories in the sense of political parties; Tories in the sense of the American Loyalest to the Crown, you know, that German guy that was an English King. The 95% of the troops in the field for Ferguson at King's Mountain were Tories...... They got their asses shot off, scalped and run off from the field.....
One of my favorite breach loaders
I am so glad you did I video on this weapon mate❤
One of my all time favorates. Thank you for posting this.
LOL. A gunsmith named Egg works for a guy named Nog. Now I know who invented Eggnog
British regular infantry during the American War fought in an open order two ranks deep with as much 2 yards between files: a very open order. Emphasis was thus not on fire power but on quick movement over the battlefield, aggression and the shock power of the bayonet. Zeal and the bayonet as one writer on the British army during the war put it. Every battalion had a light infantry company that acted as skirmishers and flankers but in effect the entire battalion was often acting as light infantry. The soldier’s kit was modified for American conditions-coats were cut down into jackets, heavy duck trousers (like. Carhartts) were worn, hats were worn slouched, hair was cropped short, beards were worn, hatchets and tomahawks carried etc. Not like the movies or the common American myth.
Tom B. There are some nice sketches by a contemporary artist showing the details you describe. More formal paintings after the war were often accurate as portraits of wealthy or famous clients but less so as pictures of field kit etc.
I've always wanted one of these, well, a modern repro anyway! It's just such a cool piece of history.
I love story time with Ian.
Whenever I watch your videos I think "that has got to be the strangest action I've ever seen", then you make another video to prove me wrong.
"We have a really cool rifle to look at!"
FG42 in the background "Am I a joke to you?"
Louis L'Amour wrote a western called "the Ferguson rifle".Good read. Great video!
These Ferguson rifles were also used in the Napoleonic wars and were mentioned by some of General Andrew Jackson's riflemen who, during the battle of New Orleans, were surprised when British on a few occasions were able to match the range of the American rifles. Some Choctaw scouts under Jackson raided British pickets in the middle of the night (a favorite pastime of the frontiersmen and their Indian allies throughout the six weeks of skirmishing leading up to the battle). They reportedly captured two Fergusons. When the Americans examined them they were mesmerized because they immediately saw that they could be loaded from the prone position. American frontiersmen of course, had rifles and used them more effectively than the British, but their 'Kentucky' rifles were all muzzle loaders, usually of smaller calibers and universally of longer length. ( Louisiana Historical Society, Stanley Clisby Aitluir - 1915 )
Now that is a rare, one of a kind rifle. I wonder if any others survive. I've heard the GW story before, that it was a greenjacket sharpshooter, but did not know it was Ferguson himself with his rifle design. Ah, chivalry. I'm a little surprised he didn't try to take them prisoner. But, it was 2 against 1, and they may have had a brace of pistols each- 4 shots to 1. Live to fight another day. What a fantastic piece of history. It will go for big bucks. Great video as always. Thank you
My major weapon like is rotary actions of some sort. I'm starting to look into breach loading firearms more now.
Thanx Ian.
Louis Lamour wrote a book called The Ferguson Rifle. I have read it a couple times and it centers around a young boy given one of these rifles by a British officer during the revolutionary war and about this boys life time. All fiction but it's very cool that I get to see one of these rifles and it gives a better understanding of how it works.
Love your videos watch them every day at lunch at work thank you
I've read the Luis L'amour book the Ferguson rifle many times. He describes the rifle very well in the book but being able too actually see one is a lot better.
This rifle should really be in a national museum.
Funny Farmer it’s up to the owner
There is one in the British Army School of Small Arms Museum in Warminster.There was a Pistol version .
Sometimes when I'm sleepy, I just close my eyes and listen to Ian's beautiful voice in wonderfully consistent volume 😍😍😴😴he does such a good job at describing what is visually being shown
That stock is a thing of beauty.
Totally awesome, interesting and informative as always. Someone give this man a TV show.
Swedish chef: "Durs Egg!"
Imagine Jon Townsend drewling over this.
One thing I wonder is why he went for a complicated screw instead of a vertical locking action, like say a bolt action but pointed upwards.
A gentleman would never shoot another gentleman in such an ungentlemanly manner. God Save the King !
Fascinating rifle and amazing story - thanks.
Hey I have a rifle that didn't shoot George Washington, wonder how much I can get for it? 😉
Classified Information,
Holy sh*t the Loch Ness monster watches Forgotten Weapons. 😄
Wouldn't a couple of ten thousand rifles around in the 1770s to 1790s qualify as having taken part in fights where they did not shoot George Washington? :D probably half a million or more in England alone for his complete lifetimes... Sure 99% or so of them never had an opportunity to be used to shoot him, but details... :-p
Forgotten weapons should really do a video on early days machining/gun machining. I for one, am VERY curious how they breach was made for this gun way back then. Was it cast? was a giant thread tap used? today we'd used a CNC thread milling process.
One of the key things I’ve learned about the development of this rifle in the past was it was ridiculously expensive to produce. It was a prototype and prototype still spells expensive in any language. Remember that this was well before the day of mass production or standardization. Virtually everything had to be made by hand. They were lucky if they could produce 50 of these rifles every six months. Where on the other hand the standard rifle of the British military of the time was the Brown Bess and they could produce roughly 500 of these every month. Most folks forget also the British treasury of the time wasn’t exactly flush for cash, with England virtually going from war to war. Everybody remembers the saying that the sun never set on the British empire. That wasn’t until very very much later in its history…
A book I read many years ago whilst still at school and doing some research for a school project about the American revolution whilst in the library had a picture and a description of this model I wish it'd had a description of the George Washington incident ,I might of got higher marks, but it fascinated Me then and it still do's now, and probably started My fascination of firearms to this day . I thought I would Never get to see the operation of the mechanism/action other than in My imagination , when Iv'e finished writing My appreciation, I'm straight onto the link to view the reproduction in action . Thank You Ian , and all concerned , for granting Me one of My daydreams realized .Thank You Thank You !
- 03:00 - The star shaped top of the screw looks as if it couldn't possibly rotate in that star-shaped hole --- until you realize that each point of the star is just a thread on the screw.
That story at the end was cool as hell.
An interesting aside, some sci-fi fans may recognize the Ferguson name. It was the basis for the "Stiltie" rifles from David Weber's "On Basilisk Station", the first book in the successful Honor Harrington series. A nice little "huzzah" for the Ferguson.
The series also has a BUNCH of British Imperial references, and is really quite interesting, at least as far as I've read.
And of course it helps that this thing is absolutely fascinating. Hats off to you, Mr. Egg, wherever you are!!
I read that series and I read Louis Lamour who wrote a book titled "The Ferguson Rifle".
That is a beautiful looking piece.
It is a multiple start type of thread.. Very hard to make but very-very fast!!
...also, fergeson rifle brigade (so high tech for the time), also carbine version for carvery. cool historic gun.
Thanks Ian for a superb video.
What did that SELL for?!? A significant piece of history and one of the holy grails of gun collectors.
I've been to the King's Mountain Battlefield Park where Ferguson was bested by the Over The Mountain Boys from Tennessee. I saw the Cairn of stones that marks his grave. A bus load of us were coming back from the Cow Pens reenactment in SC we were part of and stopped to do a sight visit.
Strange I just finished reading The Ferguson Rifle by Louis L'Amour last week
Battle of kings mountain, where Ferguson heard what, 90 years later, would be called the rebel yell.
And then he was shot and killed.
One thing that surprises me is that armies of that era didn’t consider short rifles for their light cavalry. Cavalry were already elite, expensive troops so, the cost of equipping them with Ferguson or Baker rifles instead of smoothbore carbines wouldn’t be a huge factor. And the combination of rifleman’s long-range sniping and light cavalry’s mobility would have made for a versatile, elite force.
I wonder if perhaps the camo is what screwed over the experimental regiment. The reason the uniforms were so bright was to avoid friendly fire. Also as you said, most soldiers weren't really aiming to begin with so yeah. But you can also appreciate that had the Brits pushed forward with the program, it might have resulted in a pre-special forces type unit that performed smaller scale operations behind enemy lines. They'd go in to disrupt supply routes while the main force attacked. Or perhaps a Royal Guard unit be assigned to an improved version of the rifle. The overall design is so sound and reliable, with only a few flaws that could have feasibly been addressed with further development.
Really cool. I live in the path Ferguson would have taken to Brandywine from the battle of cooch's bridge.
What an unusual and interesting way to access the breech.
Amazing history! Thanks Ian!
OMG what a rare and historical firearm ! Thank you Ian
I was just reading about these last night.... get out of my head!
"There's some very important markings on here. D."
"D?"
"DEEZ EGGZ!"
awesome firearm. cool history. thank you, first time seeing on video.
Lewis Lamar wrote a novel called Ferguson Rifle, it was somewhat about this rifle
Thank you , Ian .
GreedFall players "17th century didn't have breech loading rifles."
Ferguson "I beg to differ."
There are breechloader examples from the 1500's and 1600's too
ten starts on that thread- crazy
Oddly enough I learned about the Ferguson rifle on the Daniel Boone television series starring Fess Parker.
And in the background is an FG42 (type 2) ... one of the OTHER holy grails! How can I get this job!!
I doubt that this particular rifle and his unit would have changed much in the colonies. In the end, they would have remained too expensive to hold - the British were in much the same situation as the US in Vietnam 160 years later.
That said, the impact of a large scale adaptation of these rifles in the infantry and light dragoons could have had a profound impact on the fighting against Napoleon. The fighting in the Spanish campaign would have been especially so.
But America might have ended up part of the Commonwealth of Nations ? That could have intresting results.
It should not be underestimated how much of an impact small, well equipped and trained units could have. While certainly expensive, the British were willing to heavily invest into keeping the North American colonies in the empire. Such possibilities could have had a profound impact on British tactics both on and outside of the battlefield by opening entirely new possibilities for skirmishing, ambush and cutting off supply lines and reinforcements.
The wider adoption to the cavalry or infantry would have remained an impossible feat, I would still argue that small units in such setups can make a significant impact if used right anyways.
Would love to know how much it sold for. Absolutely brilliant videos lan very interesting to watch thank you.
Dang if the video was 30 seconds longer then it would have been golden.
18:07? Why?
How neat! If you're into "shooting" old guns in videogames, the excellent Rise of Liberty features this weapon as an unlockable. I use it when I want to play at being Rambo in 1776 lol Very cool to see a video on it.