Berthier rifle
| Berthier rifle | |
|---|---|
| Type | Bolt-action rifle |
| Place of origin | France |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1890–1960s |
| Used by |
France Nazi Germany Turkey Russia Serbia Greece Persia |
| Wars |
World War I Rif War (1920) World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Monsieur Berthier |
| No. built | 2,000,000+ |
| Specifications | |
| Cartridge |
8×50R mm 7.5×54mm French |
| Caliber |
8×50R mm 7.5×54mm French |
| Action | Bolt action |
| Muzzle velocity | 2,100 ft/s (640 m/s) |
| Feed system | 3- or 5-round magazine, clip fed |
The Berthier rifles and carbines were a family of bolt-action small arms in 8mm Lebel, used in the French Army from the 1890s to the beginning of World War II (1940). After World War II, the Berthier carbine with a five round clip ( Mle 1890M16, 1892M16 and Mle 1916 "mousquetons" ) was again utilized by French Foreign Legion and some colonial infantry and cavalry units, including the French Spahis. Mle 1916 Berthier carbines were retained in some French law enforcement units (e.g. the "Compagnies Republicaines de Securite" or "CRS") until the 1960s. The Berthier weapons were invented by a French civilian engineer in the Algerian railways, named Emile Berthier, whose first short carbine designed to arm cavalry troops was adopted by the French Army on March 14, 1890. The preserved French records indicate that altogether in excess of 2 million Berthier rifles and carbines were manufactured by the French State manufactures supplemented by civilian industries.
The Berthier design began as the "Mousquetons Berthier" - a series of bolt action cavalry and artillery carbines with distinctly different actions from the Mle 1886/M93 8mm Lebel rifle. For instance the Berthier carbine's bolt lugs lock vertically into the receiver instead of horizontally as in the Lebel rifle. Berthier carbines were first issued in 1890 and 1892, and had been designed by Emile Berthier, an engineer at the French Algerian Railways,to be used with standard 8mm Lebel ammunition. The Berthier design was introduced as a replacement for the various aging Mle 1874 Gras single-shot carbines - still standard for French cavalry, artillery, and gendarme forces even after the introduction of the Mle 1886/M93 Lebel. Prior experiments with several carbine versions of the Lebel action proved unacceptably heavy and slow to load while on horseback. While retaining most of the bolt action's strong points, the Berthier carbine improved on the earlier Mle 1886 rifle by using a one-piece stock and a Mannlicher-style, charger-loaded en bloc 3 shot clip. These Berthier carbines were progressively allocated to all cavalry, artillery and gendarmerie troops during the 1890s.
After the success of the Berthier carbines or mousquetons, two full-length Berthier rifles were introduced during the years preceding World War I. They were the fusil Mle 1902 ("rifle, model of 1902") and the fusil Mle 1907, which were issued respectively to Indochinese and Senegalese Tirailleur troops. Lighter and easier to handle and load than the Mle 1886/M93 Lebel rifle, the Berthier rifles proved more suitable for offhand shooting and easier to maintain in tropical environments. In comparison to the Mle 1886 Lebel, the Berthier's sights were also wider, higher and more substantial. Like their shorter carbine counterparts, these Berthier rifles also featured a Mannlicher-type 3-round en bloc clip-loaded magazine and used 8 mm Lebel ammunition. The Mle 1902 and Mle 1907 were made on special order and in small numbers (altogether about 5,000 rifles) by the Manufacture d'Armes de Châtellerault.
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