Model 1763 Infantry Musket and Bayonet
Dateca.1763-1766
Maker
Royal Manufactory at Maubeuge
OriginEurope, France, Maubeuge
MediumIron, steel and walnut
DimensionsOL: 61" musket; 18" bayonet
Credit LineMuseum Purchase, The Friends of Colonial Williamsburg Collections Fund
Object number2008-124,A&B
DescriptionA) Musket and B) Bayonet.Label TextUnlike the British, who made trifling improvements to their martial firearms, France constantly revamped theirs in order to make them lighter and more functional. By the time of the Revolution, the latest firearms series of 1777 had made the previous series' of 1763, 1766, and 1773-1774 obsolete. Those slightly outdated arms, many of which had received upgrades, were sent over in quantities surpassing 100,000, becoming the principal firearms of the Continental Army. These French designs were so popular that an American version was the first arm made in 1794 at the newly established national arsenal at Springfield, Massachusetts.This example bears a deeply struck "US" on the lockplate, denoting ownership by the Continental Army
Mark(s)"US" surcharge on lock denotes Continental Army ownership during the Revolution.
