Snap matchlock: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Type of matchlock mechanism used to ignite early firearms}} |
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{{Distinguish|snaplock|snaphance}} |
{{Distinguish|snaplock|snaphance}} |
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[[File:Choshu tanegashima.JPG|thumb|right|Antique Japanese matchlock (''tanegashima''), showing the firing mechanism. Note the V-shaped mainspring.]] |
[[File:Choshu tanegashima.JPG|thumb|right|Antique Japanese matchlock (''tanegashima''), showing the firing mechanism. Note the V-shaped mainspring.]] |
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The '''snap matchlock''' is a type of [[matchlock]] mechanism used to ignite early [[firearms]]. It was used in Europe from about 1475 to 1640, and in Japan from 1543 until about 1880.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=24Wxr5vL1YcC |
The '''snap matchlock''' is a type of [[matchlock]] mechanism used to ignite early [[firearms]]. It was used in Europe from about 1475 to 1640, and in Japan from 1543 until about 1880, and was also largely used by Korea (Joseon) during the Imjin war to the early 20th century.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=24Wxr5vL1YcC&dq=snap+matchlock&pg=PA176 ''The defences of Macau: forts, ships and weapons over 450 years''] Richard J. Garrett, Hong Kong University Press, 2010, {{ISBN|9789888028498}} P.176</ref> |
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==Description== |
==Description== |
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The serpentine (a curved lever with a clamp on the end) was held in firing position by a weak spring,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=NUnYAAAAMAAJ&q=snap+matchlock+weak+spring |
The serpentine (a curved lever with a clamp on the end) was held in firing position by a weak spring,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=NUnYAAAAMAAJ&q=snap+matchlock+weak+spring ''European & American arms, c. 1100-1850''], Author Claude Blair, Publisher B. T. Batsford, 1962, Original from Pennsylvania State University, Digitized Jun 30, 2009 P.42</ref> and released by pressing a button, pulling a trigger, or even pulling a short string passing into the mechanism. The [[slow match]] held in the serpentine swung into a [[flash pan]] containing priming powder. The flash from the flash pan travelled through the [[touch hole]] igniting the main propellant charge of the gun. As the match was often extinguished after its relatively violent collision with the flash pan, this type fell out of favour with soldiers, but was often used in fine target weapons. |
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In Japan the first documented introduction of the matchlock which became known as the [[Tanegashima (Japanese matchlock)|''tanegashima'']] was through the [[Portuguese people|Portuguese]] in 1543.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=6WQnNqhDNhAC |
In Japan the first documented introduction of the matchlock which became known as the [[Tanegashima (Japanese matchlock)|''tanegashima'']] was through the [[Portuguese people|Portuguese]] in 1543.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=6WQnNqhDNhAC ''Tanegashima: the arrival of Europe in Japan''], Olof G. Lidin, Nordic Institute of Asian Studies, NIAS Press, 2002 P.1-14</ref> The ''tanegashima'' seems to have been based on ''snap matchlocks'' that were produced in the armory of [[Goa]] in [[Portuguese India]], which was [[Portuguese Conquest of Goa (1510)|captured by Portugal]] in 1510.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Daehnhardt |first=Rainer |title=The Bewitched Gun: The Introduction of the Firearm in the Far East by the Portuguese; Espingarda Feiticeira: A Introducao Da Arma De Fogo Pelos Portugueses No Extremo-Oriente |publisher=Texto Editora |year=1994 |pages=}}</ref>{{Rp|26}} There were two different lock mechanisms used in Indo-Portuguese matchlock guns. One has a single leaf mainspring of the [[Lusitanian Basin|Lusitanian]] gun prototypes, which can be found in [[Ceylon]], the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, and Vietnam, and the other has a V-shaped mainspring, and can be found in Java, Bali, China, Japan, and Korea.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|103–104}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Firearms and Artillery in Pre-Colonial Vietnam « Seven Stars Trading Company|url=https://sevenstarstrading.com/site/2010/10/firearms-and-artillery-in-pre-colonial-vietnam-an-introduction-by-philip-tom/|access-date=2020-10-03|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180626140640/https://sevenstarstrading.com/site/2010/10/firearms-and-artillery-in-pre-colonial-vietnam-an-introduction-by-philip-tom/|archive-date=26 June 2018}}</ref> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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Latest revision as of 19:15, 12 March 2024
The snap matchlock is a type of matchlock mechanism used to ignite early firearms. It was used in Europe from about 1475 to 1640, and in Japan from 1543 until about 1880, and was also largely used by Korea (Joseon) during the Imjin war to the early 20th century.[1]
Description
[edit]The serpentine (a curved lever with a clamp on the end) was held in firing position by a weak spring,[2] and released by pressing a button, pulling a trigger, or even pulling a short string passing into the mechanism. The slow match held in the serpentine swung into a flash pan containing priming powder. The flash from the flash pan travelled through the touch hole igniting the main propellant charge of the gun. As the match was often extinguished after its relatively violent collision with the flash pan, this type fell out of favour with soldiers, but was often used in fine target weapons.
In Japan the first documented introduction of the matchlock which became known as the tanegashima was through the Portuguese in 1543.[3] The tanegashima seems to have been based on snap matchlocks that were produced in the armory of Goa in Portuguese India, which was captured by Portugal in 1510.[4]: 26 There were two different lock mechanisms used in Indo-Portuguese matchlock guns. One has a single leaf mainspring of the Lusitanian gun prototypes, which can be found in Ceylon, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, and Vietnam, and the other has a V-shaped mainspring, and can be found in Java, Bali, China, Japan, and Korea.[4]: 103–104 [5]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ The defences of Macau: forts, ships and weapons over 450 years Richard J. Garrett, Hong Kong University Press, 2010, ISBN 9789888028498 P.176
- ^ European & American arms, c. 1100-1850, Author Claude Blair, Publisher B. T. Batsford, 1962, Original from Pennsylvania State University, Digitized Jun 30, 2009 P.42
- ^ Tanegashima: the arrival of Europe in Japan, Olof G. Lidin, Nordic Institute of Asian Studies, NIAS Press, 2002 P.1-14
- ^ a b Daehnhardt, Rainer (1994). The Bewitched Gun: The Introduction of the Firearm in the Far East by the Portuguese; Espingarda Feiticeira: A Introducao Da Arma De Fogo Pelos Portugueses No Extremo-Oriente. Texto Editora.
- ^ "Firearms and Artillery in Pre-Colonial Vietnam « Seven Stars Trading Company". Archived from the original on 26 June 2018. Retrieved 2020-10-03.