The Tabatière rifle was a breech-loading rifle of the French Army. These rifles were typically not issued to regular front-line troops, but were instead allocated to irregular forces and militia.
== Overview == The Tabatière system was developed from 1864 as a way to convert numerous muzzle-loading weapons (usually Minié rifles) into breech-loading ones, in a process similar to that of the Snider-Enfield in Great Britain, Wänzl rifle in Austria, and the Springfield Model 1866 in the United States. The name "Tabatière" comes from the fact that the breech-loading mechanism looked like a snuff box.
History
The Tabatière was developed from an alteration of the Model 1853/1857 Musket Chasseur. Most of the conversion work had been accomplished by the time of the Franco-Prussian War. By July 1870, roughly 358,000 rifles had been converted, while 1.4 million muzzleloaders stayed in their original configuration. This weapon system was recognized as ballistically inferior to the Chassepot rifle, therefore it was used by second line troops and in defensive roles. The M1847 socket bayonet was issued for infantry and dragoon rifles as well as the Gendarmerie carbine; conversely, the Carabine de Chasseur Tabatière utilized the Mle1842 M.59 yatagan saber bayonet. The Type 1 Tabatière is primarily characterized by its thick, squared-off thumb lever. The firing pin is secured by a screw positioned at the top of the breechblock, specifically within the raised ridge through which the mechanism operates. While the system closely parallels the British Snider Marks I and II, the French variant presents a challenge due to the increased weight of the breechblock, which significantly raises the risk of inadvertent opening. This issue was subsequently mitigated through the engineering of the Type 2 receiver. The Type 2 breechblock features a half-round thumb lever mechanism, offering a more refined and streamlined aesthetic compared to the Type 1 iteration. This component is secured in the closed position by a V-shaped spring steel strip, which is fixed via a retaining screw positioned through an aperture at its apex and seated within a dedicated slot on the rear of the breechblock. Type 3 variants have been identified exclusively in post-Imperial, wartime bronze-receiver configurations. These are frequently classified as "Zulu Guns," resulting from the late 19th-century practice of converting rifles into shotguns for affordable distribution. The M1868 Belgian Terssen has a similar action mechanism to Tabatière.
== Models == Infantry
Fusil d’Infanterie Mle1867 Fusil d’Infanterie Mle1822T.bis/1867 Dragoon
Fusil de dragon Mle1867 Carbine
Mle1867 Carabine de Chasseurs Musketoon
Mousqueton de Gendarmerie Mle1867
Cartridge
The 18x35mmR was constructed similarly to a shotgun shell, in that it had a copper base with a paper tube for the body. There were two loadings, though interchangeable, meant for the rifle and carbine respectively. The rifle cartridge used a blue paper wrap and had a powder load of 5 grams with a 48 gram projectile. The carbine load used a brown paper wrap and had powder load of 4.5 grams with a 36 gram minie ball projectile.
== Users == Argentina: Acquired small amounts during the Paraguayan war. A number were imported from Germany and France in 1880 along with 500,000 cartridges. Those rifles were shipped without bayonets, and were adapted to use old muzzleloader bayonets. Qajar Iran: 30,000 captured Tabatière rifles were purchased from Germany in 1873. Siam: Examples have been found with the Thai acceptance markings.
== See also == Krnka, side-breech-loading rifle Joslyn rifle