Baker Rifle

Baker Rifle (1800 - 1838), Caliber - 0.625 inch (15.9 mm)

British Baker rifle - .61 caliber, with sword bayonet.

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

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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