TOPIC:

I attach several pictures of a Winchester Rifle I recently acquired through Holt's Auctioneers in the UK. They were able to confirm a South African Provenance, but unable to provide any more details. I believe that this rifle has an intriguing history and would share several details I've observed that make it distinct. Furthermore, being a Western Canadian, I have to wonder whether there may be a connection with personal firearms brought (and left) by certain Canadian officers of the Canadian Mounted Rifles. I welcome any further information that anyone reading this post may wish to share.

By description, on initial examination, the rifle is a pretty well a standard Model 1873 Full Length Rifle, calibre 44-40 with an octagonal barrel. Based on the serial number, it was shipped from the factory to Winchester's US warehouse in the spring of 1897. On more careful exam, it has several unusual features:

1. The top barrel flat has the U/Broad Arrow Acceptance mark of the Union of South Africa (apparently not used until either late in the War or until Union was declared in 1910).
2. The right side barrel flat has the letters "BESL" deeply embossed. This abbreviation doesn't correspond to any of the military, paramilitary or police units of South Africa, the Cape Colony or Bechuanaland. The only unit abbreviation that matches is "British Empire Service League," which was the predecessor of todays South African Legion.
3. Unusual features for an American gun include sling swivels and a front sight secured by a setscrew.
4. There are no British proof markings present, indicating that the rifle was not shipped from the UK, but arrived directly from North America.

--Winchester Rifles with Known African Provenance. These include some famous rifles owned by prominent explorers and adventurers of the nineteenth century. Everyone is familiar Teddy Roosevelt's Winchester M1895 "Big Medicine for Lions" in .405 Winchester, brought with him on his extended African safari of 1904. However, earlier explorers brought Winchester rifles with them too:




Henry Morton Stanley brought an 1866 rifle, in 44 rimfire; and an 1876 rifle, in 45-75 calibre on his epic expedition to locate the lost explorer David Livingstone. He credited the firepower of these weapons for saving his men from repeated attacks by hostile African natives.

Winchester rifles were popular because of their firepower and handiness, if not for their effectiveness on larger game animals. The Winchester M1873 was famous as "the gun that won the West" and because it was chambered in calibre 44-40, which was also a common chambering for Colt revolvers. An individual could carry the same ammunition for both rifle and handgun--very handy! Colt apparently exported more than 4000 Double-Action Frontier pistols in this calibre for sales in Africa and Asia. Winchester followed suit and directly exported some sporting versions of the 1873 to South African gun dealers, at least until the early 1890s. These are collector rifles today referred to as "seven leaf" guns, after the seven-leafed rearsight installed as a custom feature, along with other features requested of the export market: sling swivels, set triggers, and various custom front sights. A number of these guns were also shipped from Winchester's London office after receiving custom features. All English guns had British Proof marks stamped on their receivers or barrels. Attached are several photos of guns exported for sporting sales to South African colonies. All exports of rifles ended in the late 1890s when the British Government placed a naval embargo on the Boer Republics.

The Canadian Connection. It seems very probable that Canadians (at least the officers) brought their guns with them when they departed for South African service. Cavalrymen would have found American guns much-more handy than their English counterparts of the era. Many members of the Canadian Mounted Rifles had formerly been cowboys, frontiersmen or members of the NWMP, and all of these individuals would have been intimately familiar with the handiness of American rifles and handguns in mounted operations. English firearms, such as the Enfield Mk 1 and 2 revolvers and the Martini Henry rifle had met with limited success in Western Canada. Officers of the era commonly purchased their own personal firearms. They were handloaders, casting their own bullets and reusing their own brass, and a gun was often sold with it's reloading tools as part of a "package." Attached are photos of Canadian officers posing with personal firearms: Col. Sam Steele, C/O of LdSH, with his Mauser 1896 "Broomhandle," an unnamed officer with a magazine-tube-equipped lever-action carbine; and another mounted officer displaying his Colt revolver in a Western Rig and without the cumbersome "boot" used to hold the butt of the Long-Lee rifle mounted behind the saddle. Therefore, it seems plausible, indeed probable that some Winchester rifles were brought to South Africa by the enterprising Canadians, who were famous for their "cowboy" ways. Surely, some of these rifles would have been captured, retrieved from the battlefield by the Boers, lost in battle, or otherwise left to remain in South Africa! Finally, there were some notable Americans who volunteered for Imperial service during the Boer War, including Frederick Burnham, the famous Indian Scout; he would have been most-particular with his choice of firearms.

Centurion
Regarding Winchester rifles used in the Boer War, I recall seeing an article by the late Peter Labbett in the UK magazine Guns Review (1961 or so) in which he described the various arms used and he illustrated a Winchester 66 rifle as being captured from the Boers. Just now, I had a look to see if I still had that particular magazine issue but - unusually for me - I must have chucked it out. Given that there was a good market in the Republics for rifles and pistols in the 1890's, I would not really be surprised at any contemporary firearm captured/confiscated/surrendered from 1900 onwards. Actually proving a connection these days is quite another matter.

Regarding the carrying of personal small arms by British and Colonials during the Boer war, some Officers carried the Mauser M96 ("broomhandle") pistol in calibre 7.63 mm. It seems almost to have been a status symbol!
The owner had the option of clipping the wooden holster to the pistol's handle/grip and thus having a neat little semi-automatic carbine to fire from the shoulder. Limited effective range, of course - less than 100m in spite of the back sight graduations. The Boers also used the same type of Mauser pistol; a possible source of ammunition resupply on the veldt. A more experienced officer would, in my opinion, forsake the status symbol for the magnificent .455" Webley service revolver. Great close-up stopping power, fast to re-load and ammunition available upon demand.

Which brings me to the matter of Canadian private soldiers (i.e., other ranks of LSH, CMR, etc) taking personal rifles to South Africa. In those days, I suppose anything was possible; but what about resupply of ammunition? Where would a chap get .44"/45"-75 ammunition once his personal supply ran out? Not in the local store! Not really a practical option. Or get his Winchester repaired should it get out of whack? No option other than use the excellent Lee Enfield rifles or carbines on issue. And get used to the short arm-sling to get the rifle out of the so-called "cumbersome" rifle bucket in a hurry. I do think, however, that experienced Colonial soldiers would have been partial to the idea of packing a personal pistol or revolver in their kit for trekking. Private purchase/pinched/"liberated"/ what-have-you - and doubtless frowned upon - but useful.

To conclude an overly long email, I must comment that Winchester rifles and carbines were reportedly widely used during the various campaigns in Rhodesia in the 1890's. Right now, I cannot lay my hands on a reference to support the statement. This afternoon I will have a closer look.
Regards
IL.

Thanks for the response. The Canadian War Museum Archive contains at least one example of Winchester rifle used by a Canadian officer during the South African War (as it happens, a Winchester M 1885 High-Wall Rifle), as well as the usual and expected list of Martini, Enfield and Mauser rifles and carbines. Mark 2 and 4 Webley pistols in either .476 or .455 also tend to be the usual issue for Imperial as well as Colonial officers. By no means did I mean to imply that anything more than a minority of Canadian officers would have chosen anything other than standard service weapons, given the availability of ammunition/spares, etc. Nevertheless, having spent some time in more-recent years in Southern Africa, I can attest to the ingenuity of locals to reload their own ammunition; and this would have been fairly standard practice back in those days as well, particularly where there was a source of supply for components. Certainly these components would have been no-more problematic on the Veldt than in the Northwestern Territories of Canada. The presence of a Winchester M1873 rifle made in that era indicates the appeal of such a weapon to at least a few individuals in Southern Africa! I enclose one more piece of intrigue for your entertainment and consideration: this is a painted portrait of a mounted rifle officer, entitled "The Last Patrol" which is copied from the Canadian War Museum Archives, and which illustrates a rifle that is clearly not the standard Long Lee Service Rifle:

Centurion
Thanks for posting that painting of the Last Patrol. I did find a definite reference to the Boer War captured 66 Winchester mentioned in my earlier email. There is a good pic of it in "The Illustrated History of 19th Century Firearms" by Maj. F.Myatt, M.C. It is shown to be a saddle carbine. As the book itself is still under copyright, I won't post a pic of it. I regret to say that - despite a search of my rather chaotic library - I did not find the reference to Winchester longarms being used in the Rhodesian wars. It will probably surface when I am not looking for it. I did, however, find an illustration of Col. Baden Powell on horseback with what certainly appears to be a Winchester carbine. The original illustration certainly appears to have suffered the attentions of a "trimmer" back then (I took it from "With the Flag to Pretoria") - however the tube magazine under the barrel and the short forestock lead me to ID it as a Winchester.



Earlier in the war, the Boers did intend to handload fired .303" and 7mm cartridge cases. The authorities even paid for quantities of recovered cases. The scheme progressed and was abandoned when the British occupied Bloemfontein.
IL.