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Baker Rifle
The Baker Rifle (officially designated the Pattern 1800 Infantry Rifle) is a flintlock rifle issued to the Rifle regiments of the British Army during the Napoleonic Wars. It was the first standard-issue rifle of the British Army.
Designed by Ezekiel Baker in 1800, the Baker was issued to the specialized Rifle brigades of the British Army, who were tasked to act as skirmishers and scouts rather than regular line infantry. The weapon was prized for its long-range accuracy but slow to reload, since ramming a lead ball down the muzzle of a rifled barrel was more difficult than doing the same with a smoothbore musket (an issue that prevented widespread adoption of any rifle before the advent of the Minié ball and similar bullets). Furthermore, the rifling was even more effective if the balls were first wrapped in small leather patches, which increased reloading time still more. Because of this disadvantage, smooth-bore muskets remained the standard-issue weapons for the majority of Napoleonic-era armies, and Napoleon Bonaparte refused to issue rifles to any units of the Grande Armée.
British rifle units used the Baker in Europe during the Napoleonic Wars and in Canada during the War of 1812. Bakers were also supposedly carried by Mexican soldiers at the Battle of the Alamo, and in 2004, the Nepalese government released stores of Bakers that were previously supplied to its army. The British Army was recorded as using Bakers as late as 1841.
Probably the most famous shot fired by a Baker was by Rifleman Thomas Plunket during the retreat to La Coruna, which flew an unmeasured but incredibly long distance (estimated as much as 600-800 yards) to kill French General Auguste Colbert (a short while later, just to prove that it wasn't a fluke, Plunket scored another hit on one of Colbert's aides).
The Baker has enjoyed a resurgence of historical and public interest thanks to its extensive use in the Sharpe series, based on the books by Bernard Cornwell.
Specifications
(1800 – 1838)
- Type: Muzzleloading Flintlock Rifle
- Caliber: 0.625 in (15.9 mm) ball
- Weight: 9 lb (4.08 kg)
- Length: 45 3/4 in (116.2 cm)
- Barrel length: 30.375 in (76.2 cm)
- Capacity: 1
- Action: Flintlock
- Rate of fire: User-dependent; approximately 2 rounds a minute
- Muzzle velocity: Variable
- Effective range: Variable (200 yards (183 meters) was the expected maximum range, but successful shots far exceeding that have been recorded)
- Feed system: Muzzle-loaded
- Fire Modes: Single Shot
The Baker Rifle and variants can be seen in the following films, television series, video games, and anime used by the following actors:
Film
| Title | Actor | Character | Note | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sharpe's Rifles | Sean Bean | Lt. Richard Sharpe | 1993 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Private Patrick Harper | |||
| Michael Mears | Private Cooper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Paul Trussell | Private Isiah Tongue | |||
| Lyndon Davies | Private Perkins | |||
| Sharpe's Eagle | Sean Bean | Capt. Richard Sharpe | 1993 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Michael Mears | Private Cooper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Paul Trussell | Private Isiah Tongue | |||
| Lyndon Davies | Private Perkins | |||
| Sharpe's Company | Sean Bean | Capt. Richard Sharpe | 1994 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Michael Mears | Private Cooper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Lyndon Davies | Private Perkins | |||
| Sharpe's Enemy | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1994 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Michael Mears | Private Cooper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Lyndon Davies | Private Perkins | |||
| 60th Regiment Riflemen | ||||
| Sharpe's Honour | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1994 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Michael Mears | Private Cooper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Lyndon Davies | Private Perkins | |||
| Sharpe's Gold | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1995 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Michael Mears | Private Cooper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Lyndon Davies | Private Perkins | |||
| Sharpe's Battle | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1995 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Lyndon Davies | Private Perkins | |||
| Sharpe's Sword | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1995 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Sharpe's Regiment | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1996 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Sharpe's Siege | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1996 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Philip Whitchurch | Capt. William Frederickson | |||
| Sharpe's Mission | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1996 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Private Harris | |||
| John Tams | Private Daniel Hagman | |||
| Sharpe's Revenge | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1997 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Philip Whitchurch | Capt. William Frederickson | |||
| Sharpe's Justice | Sean Bean | Maj. Richard Sharpe | 1997 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Sgt. Patrick Harper | |||
| Sharpe's Waterloo | Sean Bean | Lt. Col. Richard Sharpe | 1997 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Patrick Harper | |||
| Jason Salkey | Sgt. Harris | |||
| John Tams | Sgt. Daniel Hagman | |||
| The Alamo | Patrick Wilson | Lt. Col. William Travis | 2004 | |
| Sharpe's Challenge | Sean Bean | Richard Sharpe | 2006 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Patrick Harper | |||
| Sharpe's Peril | Sean Bean | Richard Sharpe | 2008 | |
| Daragh O'Malley | Patrick Harper | |||
| Pride and Prejudice and Zombies | Lily James | Elizabeth Bennet | 2016 | |
| Bella Heathcote | Jane Bennet | |||
| Ellie Bamber | Lydia Bennet | |||
| Millie Brady | Mary Bennet | |||
| Suki Waterhouse | Kitty Bennet | |||
| Matt Smith | Parson Collins | |||
| Black '47 | Hugo Weaving | Hannah | Percussion Cap | 2018 |
| Freddie Fox | Pope | |||
| James Frecheville | Martin Feeny |
Video Games
| Game Title | Appears as | Mods | Notation | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Call of Duty: Black Ops III | Not usable, stands in for Jaeger Rifle | 2017 | ||
| Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 | Not usable | 2017 | ||
| Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 | Not usable, seen in the "Alpha Omega" trailer | 2018 |