I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 535: Weapons that Subvert the Battlefield Model

Compared to the Minié rifle, the Touwennant rifle requires two more taps when reloading, resulting in a slightly slower reloading speed, but the difference is minimal.

In addition to the difficulty of research and development, the current level of technology and logistics capabilities are more suitable for the Tuvenan rifle. The irregular shape of the Minié bullet requires very high processing precision, so it can only be produced in the rear factory and then shipped to the front. This will undoubtedly increase the pressure on logistics.

Tuwennan's lead bullets can be melted and cast by frontline soldiers - current flintlock bullets are manufactured using this model, so the army's logistical supplies will only contain gunpowder, and no projectiles at all.

As for long-term goals, Joseph even wanted to skip the Minié rifle.

He glanced at the Ferguson 1776 breech-loader on the wall.

Although this gun was widely ridiculed in Britain and had not been taken seriously for half a century, he knew very well that it was the future development direction of rifles!

The Ferguson 1776 was very creative, loading the ammunition from the back of the barrel and closing the chamber with an upright iron block. It was the world's first breech-loading rifle used in actual combat.

The rate of fire of this gun reached a terrifying 6 rounds per minute. In comparison, the best flintlock shooter can only reach 4 rounds per minute, and the average soldier can only fire 3 rounds per minute.

And the biggest advantage of a breech-loading rifle is not its rate of fire, but the fact that it can be fired while lying down.

A muzzle-loader must be held upright before ammunition can be loaded into the barrel, so the shooter can only stand all the time.

Then you can load the gun and lie down to complete the process.

It can be imagined that when two armies are facing each other, if one side stands upright and the other side lies down and shoots, the former will definitely be massacred.

In fact, the Ferguson 1776 rifle was equipped by the British Army during the American Revolutionary War, and the American Chasseur Company commanded by Ferguson himself achieved good results on the battlefield. But in the end, he died in North America, and this type of rifle became silent.

Of course, the core reason why this gun was not taken seriously was technical factors - the poor vertical bolt design and rough processing level caused serious leakage in the barrel. After Ferguson's death, no one continued to improve it.

It was not until 1819 that American Hall developed the first relatively reliable breech-loading rifle, but it still used a flint-fired method, making it not very practical.

In 1841, the Prussian Dreiser invented the percussion cap-fired breech-loading rifle, which helped Austria win the Prussian-Danish War within a week and finally gave the breech-loading rifle a good reputation.

From then on, muzzle-loading rifles gradually withdrew from the stage of history, and breech-loading rifles began to dominate the battlefield.

Joseph's plan was to first use the Tourvenant rifle to create a mature rifle production system in France, and then let his father slowly develop the breech-loading rifle.

As long as it is successfully developed and equipped to the troops, it will not be a dream for 10,000 French troops to defeat any 50,000 European troops!
Moreover, he was very clear about the technical development direction of breech-loading rifles——

The rotating bolt, high-strength firing pin, paper shell fixed ammunition, plus the percussion cap firing system that the French army already had in large quantities, did not require any detours - a research and development process that had taken decades in history could likely be manufactured in just ten years, or even less, under the auspices of the "First Craftsman of France"!
Over there, Louis XVI's assistant Aymeric came over with a dozen cylindrical bullets that had just been cast.

Louis XVI took the bullet, immediately excitedly put on the freshly made rifle, and took his son to the Royal Arsenal next to the Palace of Versailles.

At the shooting range of the Royal Ordnance Factory, Joseph loaded the ammunition into the August 1790, pounded it a few times with an iron cleaning rod, pulled the bolt, and inserted a copper primer, and the loading was completed. The time consumed was almost the same as that of an ordinary flintlock rifle.

After testing it several times on a fixed wooden frame and feeling that there was no risk of explosion, Louis XVI ignored the advice of his guards and personally picked up the new gun, squinting at the wooden target in the distance. After a loud bang, the staff of the shooting range cheered and picked up the target and ran over. When everyone present saw the bullet hole on the target, they were all shocked.

From a full 100 steps away, the bullet hit the center of the wooden target accurately.

For a flintlock rifle whose accuracy at a distance of 40 steps depended entirely on faith, this was a crushing improvement.

In the subsequent test firings, the Auguste 1790 even directly hit a wooden target 140 steps away, demonstrating the terrifying accuracy of the rifle.

Louis XVI patted Joseph's back excitedly and said loudly: "My dear son, we have once again stood at the pinnacle of European muskets!
"I really look forward to the moment when the enemy is defeated by the French warriors and trembles and asks, 'What weapons did you use? They are so powerful.'"

"They will get the answer - August 1790 model, developed by our great King himself!" Joseph replied very flatteringly, and then the father and son looked at each other and laughed happily together.

Joseph waited until his father calmed down a little, then leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Dear father, do you want to create another gun that can subvert the battlefield mode of the whole Europe?"

"Oh my God! How many strange ideas are in your head?!" Louis XVI looked at his son in shock, "What kind of gun is that?"

Joseph smiled: "A brand new breech-loading rifle."

……

After Joseph had arranged the production plan of the Auguste 1790 to the Royal Arsenal, he returned to the Royal Workshop and gave his father a general account of the design ideas of the breech-loading rifle.

It was not until the king's attendant came to remind the father and son that it was time to rest that Joseph realized it was already 11 o'clock in the evening.

He tiredly put down the sketch in his hand, agreed with his father to continue discussing the technical plan tomorrow morning, then yawned and returned to his bedroom.

The maid Camelia had been waiting at the door for a long time. When she saw His Royal Highness the Crown Prince coming back, she hurried over to greet him and knelt down:

"Your Highness, would you like to rest right away or have some midnight snack first? I have prepared some nut puff pastry and fruit tea for you."

"Oh, then eat something, thank you." Joseph looked at her and was slightly stunned.

The girl in front of him was wearing a black and white maid outfit, yes, the kind of puff sleeves, lace collar, butterfly waist, lace hem black long skirt, and white stockings. With her violet eyes, bright and plump lips, snow-white and tender skin, and a chest that was about to burst out, she was like the embodiment of a beautiful girl in the second dimension.

"You, what is this?"

Camelia bit her lip and whispered:
"Your Highness, I asked Mr. Candice to make me a set of 'uniforms' according to the ones you mentioned last month... Do you think there is anything wrong with it?"

"Well, it's very beautiful and suits you very well."

Joseph thought to himself: I just mentioned it casually, and you really made it! No, Baron Candice seems to be the chief designer of fashion for the queen. How much did you pay him to do this?
(End of this chapter)