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Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk1
Overview
The Lee-Enfield rifle was introduced in November 1895 as the .303 calibre, Rifle, Magazine, Lee-Enfield, or more commonly simply Magazine Lee-Enfield, or MLE (sometimes spoken as "Emily"). Barrel length was 767mm and overall length 1180mm and a weight of 4.2 kg. A shorter version was introduced as the Lee-Enfield Cavalry Carbine Mk I, or LEC, with a 538mm barrel. The rifle was also equipped with a detachable sheet-steel, 10-round, double-column magazine.
Historical information
The Lee-Enfield rifle was derived from the earlier Lee-Metford, a mechanically similar black powder rifle, which combined James Paris Lee's rear-locking bolt system with a barrel featuring rifling designed by William Ellis Metford. Experiments with smokeless powder in the existing Lee-Metford cartridge seemed at first to be a simple upgrade, but the greater heat and pressure generated by the new smokeless powder quickly wore away the shallow, rounded, Metford rifling. Replacing this with a new square-shaped rifling system designed at the Royal Small Arms Factory (RSAF) Enfield solved the problem, and the Lee-Enfield was born. The fast-operating Lee bolt-action and large magazine capacity enabled a trained rifleman to fire between 20 to 30 aimed rounds a minute, making the Lee-Enfield the fastest military bolt-action rifle of the day.
Originally, the concept of a detachable magazine was opposed in some British Army circles, as some feared that the private soldier might be prone to lose the magazine during field campaigns. Early models of the Lee-Metford and Lee-Enfield even used a short length of chain to secure the magazine to the rifle. Critics also predicted that a repeating rifle with such a large magazine capacity would discourage soldiers from taking careful aim, relying instead on sheer volume of fire to repel the enemy. Both of these concerns were proved to be unfounded.
Details
Details
Registration number
cwa-org-32-99-501
Contextual Information
The Australian Army Museum of WA has several examples of the Magazine Lee-Enfield on display in dioramas and technical exhibits. All firearms in the Museum's collection are rendered innocuous and cannot be operated.
Australian Army Museum of Western Australia
Australian Army Museum of Western Australia
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World War 1, Australia, Western Australia, 7 LEGGE (LIGGI), 10 Australian Light Horse, 1917
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World War 1, Australia, Western Australia, 10 BREDE, 10 Australian Light Horse, 1914
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World War 1, Australia, Western Australia, 12 CARTHEW, 10 Light Horse, 1944
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World War 1, 46 COOKE, 10 Light Horse, 1914
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World War 1, 18 WARD, 10 Light Horse
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World War 1, 20 LOWN , 10 Light Horse
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World War 1, 22 FRASER, 10 Light Horse
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World War 1, 25 BEAN, 10 Light Horse
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World War 1, 26 NAGLE, 10 Light Horse.
Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk1 (MLE) "Emily"
Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk1* and Bayonet
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