Paper cartridge

Paper cartridges have been in use for nearly as long as hand-held firearms, with a number of sources dating their use back to the late 14th century. Historians note their use by soldiers of Christian I in 1586, while the Dresden museum has evidence dating their use to 1591, and Capo Bianco writes in 1597 that paper cartridges had long been in use by Neapolitan soldiers. Their use became widespread by the 17th century. The first army to officially use paper cartridges is presumed to be "piechota wybraniecka" of Poland under the rule of Stephen Báthory. Paper cartridges were often coated in beeswax, lard, or tallow to aid with firearm functioning and maintenance. The coating repels water and protects the wrapped content from moisture, acts as lubricant for the bullet traveling down the bore, and melts upon firing; the melted coating mix with the powder residue and makes resulting fouling easier to remove. The coating also protects gunpowder from being ignited by unintended sources like stray sparks, making them less hazardous to carry and handle (especially in combat). Cultural impact The standard procedure for loading a musket or rifled musket involved biting open the cartridge. In 1857, a new cartridge greased with tallow helped start the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The grease used on these cartridges was rumoured to include tallow derived from beef, which would be offensive to Hindus, and pork, which would be offensive to Muslims - and the sepoy soldiers in the employ of the British were largely Hindu or Muslim. Rumors of the use of lard and tallow in the lubrication of the cartridges they were using were part of the cause of the Rebellion of 1857. ==Construction and use==

The most common applications of paper cartridges were in muzzleloading firearms. While these may be loaded with loose powder and balls or bullets, a paper cartridge combines a pre-measured amount of powder with the ball in a sealed unit. This eliminated the operation of measuring the powder during loading. In the case where multiple projectiles were used, such as buck and ball loads, the cartridge also served to package up the projectiles, so they did not have to be measured or counted out. The paper also served as a patch in smoothbore firearms, which fired balls that were smaller than the diameter of the bore, and wrapped a paper or cloth patch to make them fit snugly. The paper used in cartridges varied considerably. The instructions for making Enfield paper cartridges, published in 1859, which uses three pieces of paper of two different thicknesses, shows the complexity that could be involved. Some cartridges, such as those for percussion revolvers, used nitrated paper. Treated by soaking in a potassium nitrate solution and then drying, this made the paper far more flammable and ensured it burned completely upon firing. Despite the complexity involved in their construction, paper cartridges were used through the 19th century, from the Napoleonic Wars through the time of the American Civil War, after which time they were displaced by modern metallic cartridges. Paper cartridges varied in their construction based on the specifications of the buyer or the practices of the builder; a cartridge tended to be built with a specific weapon in mind, with a specified powder charge and a correctly sized ball or bullet. A cartridge built for a .65 caliber musket obviously could not be used in a .50 caliber weapon. However, similarly-sized weapons could often share cartridges. During the American Civil War, the primary small arms used by each side were the .58 caliber Springfield Model 1861 rifle-musket (North), and the .577 caliber Enfield rifle-musket (South). The two guns were similar enough that both sides could make use of ammunition captured from the enemy without any problems. The loose-fitting nature of minie ball ammunition in rifled muskets meant that slightly undersized ammunition could be used in a pinch, although accuracy would be degraded compared to correctly sized ammunition. There are a number of features which are not specific to any particular firearm, and so apply to any paper cartridge. For example, the cartridge must be sturdy enough to withstand the handling it can be expected to receive. This means either a sturdy paper must be used, or the cartridge must be reinforced for strength. The importance of paper cartridges can be seen by the existence of cartridge paper, a paper specially produced for the production of paper cartridges. In some cases the cartridges were produced directly from paper pulp, and formed into a seamless cylinder of the correct diameter. For smoothbore muskets Smoothbore muskets were loaded with lead balls, slightly smaller than the diameter of the bore, to make them easier to ram down the barrel (especially as fouling built up); a "patch" of paper or cloth was wrapped around the bullet before inserting it into the barrel, to make it fit snugly, so it wouldn't roll back out when the muzzle was tipped downward. It also helped the ball to not bounce around inside of the barrel as it was fired (see windage). A typical flintlock cartridge consisted of a paper tube, tied off in three places to form two compartments. The first compartment contained the projectile or projectiles, either a single round ball or a large round ball plus three buckshot in the case of a buck and ball load. The second compartment contained the charge of powder. To load the musket, the following steps were used: • Hold the musket level, place at half cock, and open the flash pan • Bite open a cartridge, pour a small quantity of powder into the pan, and close it • Hold the musket vertically, and pour the remaining powder down the barrel • Ram the ball and remaining paper down the barrel with the ramrod The paper, typically a thick, sturdy variety, keeps the undersized bullet centered in the bore. As each shot leaves progressively more fouling in the barrel from the black powder, this makes each shot harder and harder to load. This can be helped by using a lubricant, which serves not only to help the ball slide down the barrel, but also serves to soften the fouling in the bore, so that it is pushed clear during loading. For breechloaders needle gun cartridge The concept of a fully self-contained paper cartridge for a breech loader was patented in 1808, only a year after the invention of the percussion cap. One of the earliest breechloading firearms that was widely adopted was the Dreyse needle gun, patented in 1839, which was used by the Prussian army. The needle gun used a unitary cartridge, containing bullet, powder, and primer in a paper wrapper. The primer was located at the base of the bullet, and the firing pin, or needle, penetrated the back of the case, went through the powder, and struck the primer to ignite it. The acorn-shaped bullet used by the Prussians was carried in a Papier-mâché sabot which served not only to seal the bore, but also contain the primer. The fragility of the breechloading needle gun was a primary reason that only a few militaries adopted the system; in the well trained Prussian army, this was handled by having each soldier carry several spare needles. This allowed the individual soldiers to repair their guns in the field. ==References==