Brown Bess Flintlock Musket

Modern reproduction "Long Land Pattern" Brown Bess Infantry musket made from 1722-1768 - .75 caliber.

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Modern reproduction Sea Service Brown Bess Naval musket

The Brown Bess (British Long Land Pattern) was a smooth-bore flintlock musket that was standard issue with the British Army throughout the 18th and early 19th centuries, including the French and Indian / 7 Years War, the American War of Independence and the Napoleonic Wars. For the purposes of this page, Brown Bess refers to any of the British Land Pattern Muskets of 1722-1883, which include the Long Land Pattern, Short Land Pattern, Sea Service Pattern, India Pattern, New Land Pattern and New Light Infantry Land Pattern Cavalry Carbine.

Specifications

• Weight: 10.5 pounds (4.8 kg)
• Length: 58.5 inches (1,490 mm)
• Barrel length: 42 inches (1,100 mm)
• Cartridge: 0.71 inches (18 mm) lead ball, undersized to reduce the effects of powder fouling.
• Caliber: 0.75 inches (19 mm)
• Action: Flintlock
• Rate of fire: User dependent; usually 3+ rounds a minute
• Muzzle velocity: Variable
• Effective range: Variable (50-100 yards)
• Feed system: Muzzle loaded

The Brown Bess Flintlock Musket has been used in the following:

Film

• Various characters in The Last of the Mohicans

• The Mexican Army in 'The Alamo (2004)

• Soldiers in The Patriot

• Two Arabian Bad Guys in Blazing Saddles

• British soldiers and various characters in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

• British Marines and various characters in Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

Television

• British Army soldiers in the television series Hawkeye (1994)