Snap Matchlock Musket
Historical Gunsmiths (generic) · Rifle · Out Of Production · 1475
Also known as: Snapping Matchlock, Snap Matchlock Arquebus, Tanegashima, Teppo
Overview
The snap matchlock musket is an early muzzle-loading smoothbore long gun whose serpentine match-holder is driven by a spring rather than moved directly by the shooter's finger. The cock, holding a smouldering slow match, is drawn back and caught by a sear; pressing a button, trigger, or pull-string releases the sear and lets the spring snap the match down into the priming pan, igniting the charge. This snap action was the first true firearm 'lock', appearing in Europe around 1475 and surviving there until roughly 1640, while it became the standard ignition of the Japanese tanegashima from 1543 and of Korean Joseon muskets from the 16th-century Imjin War onward. Because the match could jar the fragile pan powder, the design was gradually displaced in Europe by the slower but steadier trigger-lever (sear) matchlock, yet it remained in East Asian service well into the 19th century.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 5000 g (176.4 oz) |
| Overall Length | 1450 mm (57.09") |
| Barrel Length | 1020 mm (40.16") |
| Action Type | Muzzleloader |
| Firing Mechanism | Matchlock |
| Trigger Type | Single Stage |
| Muzzle Velocity | 300 m/s (984 fps) |
| Effective Range | 90 m (98 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 250 m (273 yd) |
| Rate of Fire | 2 rpm |
| Barrel Rifling | None |
| Barrel Material | Iron |
| Stock Material | Wood |
Calibers
- .72 Caliber Musket Ball · primary — also known as 0.72 in, 12-bore ball, lead round ball
Features
- Firing modes: Manual
- Feed systems: Muzzle Loaded
- Features: Smoothbore Barrel, Muzzle Loaded, Spring Loaded Serpentine, Snap Action Cock, Sear Release, Slow Match Cord, Priming Pan, Pan Cover, Ramrod
Variants
- Tanegashima (Japanese type) - Regional
- Joseon Snap Matchlock (Korean type) - Regional
Service history
Operators
- Ashigaru foot soldiers · adopted 1543
- Joseon Dynasty army
- European mercenary companies
Conflicts
- Sengoku period wars (1467-1615)
- Imjin War (1592-1598)
- Battle of Nagashino (1575)
Production
Production years: 1475-1880
Produced by countless independent gunsmiths in Europe, Japan and Korea; no centralized production figures exist. Japanese output alone ran to hundreds of thousands during the Sengoku period.
Origin
Country of origin: European Union
Discontinued: 1640
Notes
Specifications are representative of a full-size East Asian / early European snap matchlock musket firing a large lead round ball; period smoothbore weights, bore and velocity figures are approximate. The distinguishing feature versus the common trigger-lever matchlock is the spring-driven, sear-held cock that snaps the match into the pan.
Background
At the 1575 Battle of Nagashino, Oda Nobunaga arrayed massed ranks of ashigaru armed with snap-matchlock tanegashima behind wooden palisades and broke the vaunted Takeda cavalry with rotating volley fire, a landmark demonstration that disciplined gunpowder infantry could shatter Japan's mounted samurai elite.