Australian Army Museum of Western Australia > Records

Pre 1914, 2nd Anglo Boer War, Technology Display, Weapons, 1900

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Overview

Display of three weapons frequently associated with the 2nd Anglo Boer War. (1) .303 Magazine Lee Enfield rifle (2) 7mm Mauser rifle (3) 7.63 Mauser C96 Pistol (Broomhandle)

Historical information

The Lee–Enfield rifle was introduced in November 1895 as the .303 calibre, Rifle, Magazine, Lee–Enfield,[ or more commonly magazine Lee–Enfield, or MLE (sometimes spoken as "emily" instead of M, L, E). The next year, a shorter version was introduced as the Lee–Enfield cavalry carbine Mk I,

After the defeat of the British in the 1881 war, by the mid-1890s, the Boers pinned their hopes on the most up-to-date rifle then being produced in the world—the 7x57 mm Mauser. Both the Orange Free State and the Transvaal ordered and took delivery of thousands of these rifles and carbines from 1896 right up to the beginning of hostilities in 1899.

303 British cartridges, along with the Lee–Enfield rifle, were heavily criticized after the Second Boer War. Their heavy round-nosed bullets had low muzzle velocities and suffered compared to the 7×57mm rounds fired from the Mauser Model 1895. The high-velocity 7×57mm had a flatter trajectory and longer range that excelled on the open country of the South African plains.

With its long barrel and high-velocity cartridge, the Mauser C96 had superior range and better penetration than most other pistols of its era; the 7.63×25mm Mauser cartridge was the highest-velocity commercially manufactured pistol cartridge until the advent of the .357 Magnum cartridge in 1935.[16]
Mauser manufactured approximately one million C96 pistols. The grip earned the gun the nickname "broomhandle" in the English-speaking world

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-32-54-625

Inscriptions and markings

All weapons within the collection of the Australian Army Museum of Western Australia are rendered innocuous and are permanently incapable of being fired. All firearms on display are cased and are individually internally secured.

Contextual Information

This exhibit is located in the Pre 1914 Gallery at the Australian Army Museum of Western Australia.

Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

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