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The Enfield 1859 Pattern Percussion Musket. This particular one is in fine condition with a strong action that ½ cocks and cocks fully; it is complete with its yataghan bayonet. These were issued to Indian infantry men called Sepoys by the British East India Company in 1856. This was a significant contributing factor to the Indian rebellion or Sepoy mutiny of 1857. The problem was that the paper cartridges used to load the musket contained gunpowder at one end which was poured down the barrel and a bullet at the other end greased with ‘tallow’ with no real description of what the tallow was derived from. British military drill at the time required the soldiers to tear open the cartridges using their teeth then pour the gunpowder down the barrel then tear open the bullet end dropping the greased bullet down the barrel and ramming it home. In addition to this, the instructions followed on to say that if the talon had leaked or dried up the soldier would place the bullet in his mouth to lubricate it with saliva. In the background rumors were rife that the tallow was derived from beef or pig fat, which was abhorrent to Muslim and Hindu soldiers because of their religious beliefs. The British the suggested an acceptable grease be used such as vegetable fat or Ghee? This only had the effect of confirming the rumor that pig or beef fat was being used. Instructions were then issued that cartridges should be torn open using the thumb and forefinger but using the mouth was second nature now and this was considered impractical. An unhappy situation The Indian rebellion had diverse political, economic, military, religious and social causes but the Sepoy mutiny was sparked by the cartridges. The rebellion suffered from weak leadership and had poor planning and organization. The revolt only really affectednorthern and central India. Many communities actually helped the British such as rajputs, gurkhas and hulkars. The rulers of Kashmir, Gwalior and Hyderabad also assisted the British at the time. As a consequence of British fears the Sepoys rifles were reamed out removing the rifling. This meant that as a smooth bore the shot could be loaded without lubricant just using a patch. This also made the rifle less accurate and less effective, as opposed the britishtroops who retained the Enfields with rifling which could be an advantage in the event of a further uprising
