by Bob Carswel

The French Ordnance system is an interesting subject that you could spend years studying. I will focus on only the last two revolvers used by the French military. With that in mind, I need to mention that the French were ahead of the rest of the world in the pinfire era. This period did not last long, as ammunition seemed to change almost every year until the centerfire cartridge was perfected. The centerfire era is the one I shall address in this article. 

The revolvers concerned were the Model 1873/1874 and the Model 1892. In this period of time, all nations sought the ideal handgun. The French knew they needed to replace their 1854 Lefaucheux pinfire pistol, which most of the countries in Europe used. Both the North and the South in the American Civil War had these pistols in service; Stonewall Jackson personally owned one. 

After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, the French began to experiment by converting their pinfire revolvers to centerfire. In 1870, the navy used a new pistol developed by Lefaucheux in the 11 mm centerfire. This pistol was not as effective as expected, and in 1873, the army started using the Chamelot-Delvigne-designed revolver Model 1873. These were made at the St. Etienne Arsenal. I liked the first one I ever saw at a gun show, but I did wonder how the French managed to rub all the blue off this pistol. It didn’t occur to me that they would issue a firearm in the white. But they did, and these pistols were not blued; they were meant for the lower ranks. Another feature was the lack of flutes on the cylinder or chamber recesses.

A year later, the Model 1874 intended for officers came out. This model was blued and did have flutes, recessed chambers, and was lighter in weight than the Model 1873. The feudal system was still alive and kicking in 19th-century Europe, even in France, the country that had a revolution to ensure equality. The Model 1874 looks very nice with its blue finish. This pistol was also made as a commercial weapon for sale in France, when its citizens could still own these things. During this period, the French stamped a number, the last two numbers of the serial number, on every part of these guns, including the screw heads. Both models have the arsenal markings on the side,  neatly written out in longhand, as well as the date of manufacture and, like the Model 1873, are fitted with lanyard rings and are rugged double-action revolvers. They load from the rear through a loading gate like the Colt single-action. They also unload like the Colt. 

Like the Colt single-action, the French revolvers issued in 1873 are iconic, and as a matter of fact, the French feel much the same way about their guns as we do about the Colt. It is their national pistol, so to speak. The Model 1873/1874 was to be found all over the world in the French colonies, and it was used by the French army through World War II. It was a favorite of the Résistance in Paris during the German occupation; its large bore being used to kill German soldiers at point-blank range.

The Model 1873 was used by the Navy as well as the Army. The navy guns have an anchor on the bottom of the butt next to the lanyard. Some have an M next to the model number on top of the barrel – thus Mdl 1873M Pistolet de Marine, as the French referred to it. 

These pistols can be owned today in France, as gun collecting is legal if you follow the government rules. I think it is great when a country lets its citizens own pieces of their history. I think modern guns are another story, and when the 1873/1874 was modern, they were for sale in the shops. You see these commercial pistols, some retailers marked as Chamelot Delvigne revolvers. Most have a Paris address. I’ve enjoyed looking at these guns over the years, but they do not seem to show up as often at shows as they once did. 

All Model 1873/1874 revolvers are classified as antiques today, both in France and in the U.S.

The next revolver, the Model 1892, came about with the upgrade by the French when smokeless powder was developed. They issued the first smokeless powder rifle, the Lebel, in 1886. The Lebel was a small-caliber high-velocity round, again a first for any army on earth. It was 8mm, as was the 1892 revolver, which of course was an 8mm pistol round. I mention this because the French used the barrel blanks from the rifle for this pistol for at least some of the time during its manufacture.