Pattern 1913 Enfield
Encyclopedia
The Pattern 1913 Enfield (P'13) was an experimental rifle
developed as a result of combat experience in the Second Boer War
by the Royal Small Arms Factory
for the British Army
from 1912 to 1914 to serve as a replacement for the Short Magazine Lee-Enfield (SMLE). An advanced design chambered for a high velocity .276 Enfield
rimless round which was more powerful than the service-issue .303 cartridge, putting the P'13 into service was rendered impractical by the outbreak of the First World War.
the British Army
had been faced with expert Boer marksmen equipped with the Mauser
Model 1895, in 7 x 57 mm caliber
. This experience prompted the War Office
to develop its own "magnum" round in 1910, using a .276 calibre rimless cartridge
. In August 1910 the Small Arms Committee, which had been responsible for the adoption of the Short Magazine Lee Enfield, was asked by the Director of Artillery to produce a new specification for a service rifle. The main changes called for a Mauser-style action and a one piece stock (a cheaper and more serviceable option). In response Birmingham Small Arms (BSA) submitted a design chambered for a rimless high-velocity cartridge. In 1911 the Royal Small Arms Factory
(RSAF) at Enfield, the British Government's design and production facility, produced a modified Mauser-pattern rifle for a similar cartridge, the .276. This rifle was presented to the Small Arms Committee on 3 April 1911 by the Assistant Superintendent Carnegie, and the Chief Designer Reavill.
Initially the RSAF designed the new rifle, at this point the Pattern 1911, around two calibres; the .276 and the .256. The .256 was found to be inaccurate and the .276 was adopted in mid-1911 for further testing. Problems with pressure and jacket fouling in the bore resulting from the high velocity round led to the cartridge being redesigned. Numerous changes to the rifle and the cartridge led to eleven Pattern 1911 and Pattern 1912 rifles being manufactured. At the end of 1912 it was decided to put the latest incarnation of the design into limited production for troop trials in 1913 and 1,000 were ordered from RSAF. By the end of 1912 508 had been completed, and by the end of January 1913 1,251 had been manufactured. The rifle was distributed to the army as the Rifle, Magazine, Enfield, .276-inch. The trials took place in Britain, Ireland, Egypt and South Africa and at the end the Chief Inspector of Small Arms recommended a number of changes, which resulted in a quantity of 6 improved Pattern 1913 rifles being manufactured between March and April 1914. The outbreak of World War I
led to the abandonment of the effort to introduce a smaller caliber rimless cartridge for purely practical reasons. Adapting the design (with largely cosmetic alterations aside from chamber and extractor redesign) to fire the standard .303 British
round led to the Pattern 14 Rifle
(P'14), a competent design fed from a five-round internal magazine. Effective mass production in Britain during World War I was impossible, and so the P'14 became a de facto afterthought. Thus the SMLE remained the standard British rifle during World War I and beyond.
The design of the weapon showed the emphasis on accurate, rapid fire emphasised by British Army training during this period. The adjustable flip-up aperture rearsight with 300 yd battle setting when folded down was an excellent design allowing rapid and accurate sight acquisition, and was advanced for the period. The Mauser-type bolt had a low profile handle with integral safety lug built into its base with the bolt knob moved rearwards to bring it close to the user's hand, hence its distinctive 'dog-leg' shape. The action was configured to be easily operable, even when heated by sustained rapid fire, with slick operation, cock-on-closing feature and positive camming action when opening or closing the bolt. The action was strong and the barrel was given a heavy profile. It was a long and comparatively heavy rifle, and the pronounced sight protector 'ears', the 'pot-belly' magazine and 'dog-leg' bolt handle gave it an ungainly air.
The lack of industrial capacity led the British government to contract with US commercial arms manufacturers: Winchester Repeating Arms Company
, Remington Arms
and Eddystone Arsenal (a non-governmental arms manufacturer owned by Remington Arms) who produced the P'14 in .303 for the British Army before the United States entered the war in 1917. When the US entered the war, the P'14 was modified and standardized by the US Ordnance Department and went into production at the same factories as had produced the P'14, production of that rifle having ceased, as the Model of 1917, commonly M1917 Enfield
, chambered for the standard US 30-06 cartridge and enjoyed some success as a complement for the Springfield
M1903 rifles which were America's official standard issue, soon far surpassing the Springfield in total production and breadth of issue.
The P13 is distinguished by unusual angled finger grooves on the fore end of the stock, which were not present on the later P14
and M1917
. Some P'13s survived as target rifles in the UK, often having been "sporterized" (removal of wooden handguards and shortening of the stock). Very few were produced, and so very few survive.
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
developed as a result of combat experience in the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
by the Royal Small Arms Factory
Royal Small Arms Factory
The Royal Small Arms Factory was a UK government-owned rifle factory in the London Borough of Enfield in an area generally known as the Lea Valley. The factory produced British military rifles, muskets and swords from 1816...
for the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
from 1912 to 1914 to serve as a replacement for the Short Magazine Lee-Enfield (SMLE). An advanced design chambered for a high velocity .276 Enfield
.276 Enfield
The .276 Enfield was an experimental military rifle cartridge developed in conjunction with the Pattern 1913 Enfield rifle. Development was discontinued by the onset of World War I.-History:...
rimless round which was more powerful than the service-issue .303 cartridge, putting the P'13 into service was rendered impractical by the outbreak of the First World War.
History
During the Second Boer WarSecond Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
had been faced with expert Boer marksmen equipped with the Mauser
Mauser
Mauser was a German arms manufacturer of a line of bolt-action rifles and pistols from the 1870s to 1995. Mauser designs were built for the German armed forces...
Model 1895, in 7 x 57 mm caliber
7 x 57 mm Mauser
The 7×57mm cartridge, also known as the 7 mm Mauser, 7×57mm Mauser, 7 mm Spanish Mauser in the USA and .275 Rigby in the United Kingdom, was developed by Paul Mauser of the Mauser company in 1892 and adopted as a military cartridge by Spain in 1893. It was subsequently adopted by several...
. This experience prompted the War Office
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
to develop its own "magnum" round in 1910, using a .276 calibre rimless cartridge
Cartridge (firearms)
A cartridge, also called a round, packages the bullet, gunpowder and primer into a single metallic case precisely made to fit the firing chamber of a firearm. The primer is a small charge of impact-sensitive chemical that may be located at the center of the case head or at its rim . Electrically...
. In August 1910 the Small Arms Committee, which had been responsible for the adoption of the Short Magazine Lee Enfield, was asked by the Director of Artillery to produce a new specification for a service rifle. The main changes called for a Mauser-style action and a one piece stock (a cheaper and more serviceable option). In response Birmingham Small Arms (BSA) submitted a design chambered for a rimless high-velocity cartridge. In 1911 the Royal Small Arms Factory
Royal Small Arms Factory
The Royal Small Arms Factory was a UK government-owned rifle factory in the London Borough of Enfield in an area generally known as the Lea Valley. The factory produced British military rifles, muskets and swords from 1816...
(RSAF) at Enfield, the British Government's design and production facility, produced a modified Mauser-pattern rifle for a similar cartridge, the .276. This rifle was presented to the Small Arms Committee on 3 April 1911 by the Assistant Superintendent Carnegie, and the Chief Designer Reavill.
Initially the RSAF designed the new rifle, at this point the Pattern 1911, around two calibres; the .276 and the .256. The .256 was found to be inaccurate and the .276 was adopted in mid-1911 for further testing. Problems with pressure and jacket fouling in the bore resulting from the high velocity round led to the cartridge being redesigned. Numerous changes to the rifle and the cartridge led to eleven Pattern 1911 and Pattern 1912 rifles being manufactured. At the end of 1912 it was decided to put the latest incarnation of the design into limited production for troop trials in 1913 and 1,000 were ordered from RSAF. By the end of 1912 508 had been completed, and by the end of January 1913 1,251 had been manufactured. The rifle was distributed to the army as the Rifle, Magazine, Enfield, .276-inch. The trials took place in Britain, Ireland, Egypt and South Africa and at the end the Chief Inspector of Small Arms recommended a number of changes, which resulted in a quantity of 6 improved Pattern 1913 rifles being manufactured between March and April 1914. The outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
led to the abandonment of the effort to introduce a smaller caliber rimless cartridge for purely practical reasons. Adapting the design (with largely cosmetic alterations aside from chamber and extractor redesign) to fire the standard .303 British
.303 British
.303 British, or 7.7x56mmR, is a .311 inch calibre rifle and machine gun cartridge first developed in Britain as a blackpowder round put into service in December 1888 for the Lee-Metford rifle, later adapted to use smokeless powders...
round led to the Pattern 14 Rifle
Pattern 14 Rifle
The Rifle, .303 Pattern 1914 was a British service rifle of the First World War period. A bolt action weapon with an integral 5-round magazine, it was principally contract manufactured by companies in the United States. It served as a sniper rifle and as second line and reserve issue until being...
(P'14), a competent design fed from a five-round internal magazine. Effective mass production in Britain during World War I was impossible, and so the P'14 became a de facto afterthought. Thus the SMLE remained the standard British rifle during World War I and beyond.
The design of the weapon showed the emphasis on accurate, rapid fire emphasised by British Army training during this period. The adjustable flip-up aperture rearsight with 300 yd battle setting when folded down was an excellent design allowing rapid and accurate sight acquisition, and was advanced for the period. The Mauser-type bolt had a low profile handle with integral safety lug built into its base with the bolt knob moved rearwards to bring it close to the user's hand, hence its distinctive 'dog-leg' shape. The action was configured to be easily operable, even when heated by sustained rapid fire, with slick operation, cock-on-closing feature and positive camming action when opening or closing the bolt. The action was strong and the barrel was given a heavy profile. It was a long and comparatively heavy rifle, and the pronounced sight protector 'ears', the 'pot-belly' magazine and 'dog-leg' bolt handle gave it an ungainly air.
The lack of industrial capacity led the British government to contract with US commercial arms manufacturers: Winchester Repeating Arms Company
Winchester Repeating Arms Company
The Winchester Repeating Arms Company was a prominent American maker of repeating firearms, located in New Haven, Connecticut. The Winchester brand is today used under license by two subsidiaries of the Herstal Group, Fabrique Nationale of Belgium and the Browning Arms Company of Morgan, Utah.-...
, Remington Arms
Remington Arms
Remington Arms Company, Inc. was founded in 1816 by Eliphalet Remington in Ilion, New York, as E. Remington and Sons. It is the oldest company in the United States which still makes its original product, and is the oldest continuously operating manufacturer in North America. It is the only U.S....
and Eddystone Arsenal (a non-governmental arms manufacturer owned by Remington Arms) who produced the P'14 in .303 for the British Army before the United States entered the war in 1917. When the US entered the war, the P'14 was modified and standardized by the US Ordnance Department and went into production at the same factories as had produced the P'14, production of that rifle having ceased, as the Model of 1917, commonly M1917 Enfield
M1917 Enfield rifle
The M1917 Enfield, the "American Enfield" , formally named "United States Rifle, cal .30, Model of 1917" was an American modification and production of the British .303 caliber P14 rifle developed and manufactured during the period 1917-1918.-History:Before World War I developed, the British had as...
, chambered for the standard US 30-06 cartridge and enjoyed some success as a complement for the Springfield
Springfield Armory
The Springfield Armory, located in the City of Springfield, Massachusetts - from 1777 until its closing in 1968 - was the primary center for the manufacture of U.S. military firearms. After its controversial closing during the Vietnam War, the Springfield Armory was declared Western Massachusetts'...
M1903 rifles which were America's official standard issue, soon far surpassing the Springfield in total production and breadth of issue.
The P13 is distinguished by unusual angled finger grooves on the fore end of the stock, which were not present on the later P14
P14
P14, P-14 or P.14 may refer to:* Pattern 1914 Enfield, a service rifle used by the British Army during World War I* P-14 radar, a radar used by the Soviet military* P14 , a tax form in the UK* LSWR P14 class, a type of locomotive...
and M1917
M1917
Under the old Model-year nomenclature system many different Pieces of equipment had the same Model number.* M1917 bayonet, the bayonet used with the US M1917 Enfield rifle and later with US Army combat shotguns* M1917 Trench knife...
. Some P'13s survived as target rifles in the UK, often having been "sporterized" (removal of wooden handguards and shortening of the stock). Very few were produced, and so very few survive.