Whitworth rifle

Whitworth rifle
TypeMuzzle-loading rifle
Place of originUnited Kingdom
Service history
Used byUnited Kingdom
Canada
Australia
New Zealand
Confederate States of America
WarsAmerican Civil War, Australian frontier wars, New Zealand wars
Production history
DesignerJoseph Whitworth
Designed1854–1857
ManufacturerWhitworth Rifle Company
Produced1857–1865
No. built13,400
Specifications
Length49 in (1,200 mm)
Barrel length33 in (840 mm)

Calibre0.451 in (11.5 mm)
ActionPercussion lock
Rate of fire2–3 rounds per minute
Effective firing range800 to 1,000 yd (730 to 910 m)
Maximum firing range1,500 yd (1,400 m)
Feed systemMuzzle-loaded
SightsClassic iron sights, Scope

The Whitworth rifle was an English-made percussion rifle used in the latter half of the 19th century. A single-shot muzzleloader with excellent long-range accuracy for its era, especially when used with a telescopic sight, the Whitworth rifle was widely regarded as the world's first sniper rifle.[1]

The Whitworth rifle saw extensive use with the Confederate sharpshooters in the American Civil War, claiming the lives of several Union generals, including Major General John Sedgwick, one of the highest-ranking Union officers killed during the Civil War, shot on 9 May 1864, at Spotsylvania. In October 2017, a surviving example of a Confederate Whitworth rifle was auctioned with a hammer price of $161,000.[2]

The Whitworth rifle was considered to be the very best rifle of its time in terms of accuracy, when compared to other British, French, American rifles, or those produced elsewhere.[3]

  1. ^ "Sure Shot: Confederate Sharpshooters Left No Doubt the Whitworth Was Their Weapon of Choice—When Available". History.net. November 2017.
  2. ^ "Lot Detail - WHITWORTH, SNIPER RIFLE, C544, 52BORE, PROV". auctions.morphyauctions.com. James D. Julia Auctioneers. Archived from the original on 1 November 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
  3. ^ Illustrated Times: Weekly Newspaper, v. 4, p. 46, 21 July 1860.