#durs egg

[historicalfirearms]

Breech-Loading Durs Egg Carbine

My other project, The Armourer’s Bench, returns with a new video and in-depth article looking at a 18th century cavalry carbine made by Durs Egg, based on Giuseppe Crespi's breech-loading action! 

Check out the video above and read the accompanying article here.

[bookloversofbath]

Duelling Pistols: And some of the Affairs They Settled :: John A. Atkinson

Duelling Pistols: And some of the Affairs They Settled :: John A. Atkinson

Duelling Pistols: And some of the Affairs They Settled :: John A. Atkinson soon to be presented for sale on the lustrous BookLovers of Bath web site! London: Cassell, 1964, Hardback in dust wrapper. Includes: Further reading list; Black & white photographs; Colour plates; Black & white plates; From the cover: A man should not allow the idea of becoming a target to make him feel uneasy. Be cool,…

View On WordPress

[historicalfirearms]

The Crespi Breech-loading System

In the late 1760s a Milanese machinist/clockmaker Giuseppe Crespi developed a breech-loading system for the Austrian Empire. Working with Ambroglia Gorla Crespi built a practical breech loader which was eventually adopted and fielded by the Austrian army during the 1770s. Crespi’s system is a lesser known contemporary of the Girandoni air rifle.

Crespi and Gorla’s system was designed to be a conversion of standard Austria’s muzzle-loading carbines. It used a hinged breech which tipped up to allow powder and then a ball to be loaded into the chamber. The breech was then closed and the handle locked into a pair of lugs mounted to the barrel (see image #2). Austrian Emperor Josef II ordered testing of the design and over 350 were initially ordered and delivered by June 1771.

Despite some wrangling over payment a further order for 2,000 guns using the Crespi system was made in 1772. These were to be made by the Ferlach gunmakers association in southern Austria and Crespi was paid a lump sum settlement for his design. Gorla’s role in the development of the system is unclear and he did not receive a settlement from the government. In 1771 he sued Crespi for his share but the courts threw out his claim in 1778.

A 1770 Austrian Crespi breech-loading carbine held by the Royal Armouries (source)

The principle problem with Crespi’s system was that it was not gas tight, a problem which plagued many early breech-loading systems. As can be seen in the images above the breech block is flat where it meets the breech. This allowed gas to escape and troops complained the chamber was susceptible to wear. The Crespi carbines were issued to Austrian cavalry with a long bayonet, some sources also suggest a spear point bayonet. The bayonet, like the one seen in image #1, was carried reversed suspended in the carbine stock.  The Austrian carbines were removed from service in 1779 following numerous reports of men being badly burned by escaping gases and opening breeches during the War of Bavarian Succession. 

In 1768, Crespi was also allegedly hired by the Portuguese crown to establish a factory at Coimbra to manufacture guns using his system. By 1776 Crespi no longer had any interests in the factory and it was taken over by Companhia de Armamento who continued to manufacture muskets. 

An Egg breechloading Carbine which borrowed heavily from Crespi’s design (source)

The early 1780s the Duke of Richmond became the Master General of Ordnance and ordered a selection of breech loaders for trials. Two of these came from Swiss-born London Gunmaker Durs Egg. Egg’s carbine (see images #1 & #2) was a copy of Crespi’s system. The carbines were tested by a board of general officers in July 1784 and it was recommended that the carbine be issued to the Light Dragoon regiments. Egg was paid £31 10s for these two carbines with one being presented to King George III and the other retained by the Ordnance office. In 1786 the 7th, 10th, 11th, 15, and 16th Light Dragoons were issued with the Egg/Crespi carbines, some of which were rifled, for field trials. The trials report was returned in 1788 and reported that more experimentation with the rifled carbines should be carried out and that a folding bayonet may be better suited to cavalry use.

Crespi system Egg breechloaders, the second has Hennem’s screwless lock - both have the unusual spear bayonet ( British Military Firearms - Blackmore)

The lack of a gas seal was also reported and the Duke of Richmond began to explore other designs including those by Henry Nock. Tatham & Egg (Durs’ nephew) continued to manufacture weapons using the Crespi system until at least 1810 when the example shown above (image #1) was made for volunteer yeoman cavalry with the serial number #134.  Crespi’s system would be improved by Urbanus Sartoris in 1817 with the addition of an interrupted screw and a moving barrel. Giuseppe Crespi reportedly died in poverty and his breech-loading system became another footnote in the early history of breech loading firearms. 

Sources:

Images: 1 2 3-7

John H. Hall and the Origin of the Breechloader, D.B. Demeritt Jr (source)

British Military Firearms 1650-1850, H. L. Blackmore (1961)

The Austrian Army 1740-80: Cavalry, P.J. Haythornthwaite (1994)

If you enjoy the content please consider supporting Historical Firearms through Patreon!