The Miquelet Musket,Originating in the late 1600’s and lasting to around the early 1800’
The Miquelet Musket,Originating in the late 1600’s and lasting to around the early 1800’s, miquelets were civilian muskets that originated in Spain and were common in Southern Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. They were especially common in Spain, Portugal, Italy, the Balkans, Greece, and Turkey. The term “miquelet” was said to originate with British troops serving in Spain and Portugal against the French during the Napoleonic Wars. The Miquelet was commonly used by Spanish partisans fighting the French, thus it took the name “Miquelet”, a type of Spanish militia unit.Today miquelet is a term commonly used to denote Mediterranean type muskets that share some broad characteristics. However modern collectors and historians do not agree on what exactly characterizes a miquelet as many are very unique and different from others. However, here are a few common characteristics.1. A larger than typical hammer that holds a large piece of flint. Also typically has a very large top jaw screw ring.2. Striated or grooved frizzen’s which serves to created more sparks and thus increase reliability. Often, this striated part of the frizzen is detachable, making it easy to replace when it is worn out, rather than removing or replacing the entire frizzen.3. Exposed horizontal sears and an exposed mainspring.Miquelet locks were not typically standard issue military muskets. While more reliable than military muskets, they were fragile, more difficult to maintain, and more complicated to produce. Thus they were often civilian firearms, and many are very ornate with Mediterranean, Balkan, Middle Eastern, or North African decor and styles. Miquelets were also produced in pistols, shotguns, and blunderbusses. -- source link
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