peashooter85:The Russo-Turkish War of 1877 and the Turkish Modified Winchester 1866In 1877 the Russi

peashooter85:The Russo-Turkish War of 1877 and the Turkish Modified Winchester 1866In 1877 the Russians invaded the Ottoman Empire in hopes of regaining territory lost in the Balkans during the Crimean War.  The Russian Empire sent an army of 737,000 troops plus Romanian and Bulgarian allies, the Turks had an army of less than 200,000.The Turks however had a little surprise in store.  At the onset of the war the Ottoman Empire order a large number of Winchester Model 1866 rifles from the United States.  The Model 1866 was a lever action repeating rifle that was made in the US and was an improved model of the famed Henry Repeating Rifle.  Chambered in .44 rimfire, the Winchester lacked the range of most military single shot rifles of the day, but had a 15 round tubular magazine allowing much greater firepower. The picture above is an example of a Winchester that the Turks modified for even greater firepower.  The magazine (and barrel) was often extended to 20 or even 30 rounds and the rifle may be mounted on a bipod or tripod.  Due to excessive heat buildup a water sleeve is added to prevent overheating of the barrel.At long ranges the Turks would engage with large caliber single shot rifles, but when the Russians would close in, they would switch off and fire their Winchesters.  The Russians, who were armed with single shot KRNKA and Berdan Rifles (also made in US), were often cut to ribbons. One example was the Siege of Plevna, where due to the rifles the Russians suffered four times as many casualties as the Turks. Officially the Russo-Turkish War was a victory for Russia.  In reality, however, it was a victory so badly won it might as well have been a defeat.  Russia and her allies suffered over 300,000 dead altogether (mostly due to disease), whereas the Turks suffered 120,000.  Worse yet, Russia was pressured by Britian and France to give up most territorial gains won during the war. Despite such a military disaster, Russia would continue to use their single shot rifle until adopting the Mosin Nagant around the turn of the century.  The rest of the world would reconsider the role of firepower on the battlefield. -- source link

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