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THE AMERICAN LONG RIFLE 047. Immigrants to the British North American colonies began arriving from the German states shortly after the turn of the 18th century. Because most of the Atlantic coast wasalreadyoccupied, they settled further inland, in Pennsylvania, and then spread to Virginia, the Carolinas, and Maryland. Some of the German men who lived on the then-western frontier of the colonies had brought with them the short hunting, or "Jager," rifles used in the German states. There islittle distinction between the general configurations ofthe relatively plain Jager rifles brought to America by these immigrants and the militaryJager rifles used by the German states' soldierswho fought as part of the British Army during the Revolutionary War. These Jager rifles are described in Section 095. A number of German immigrant gunmakers began to make rifles, primarily for sale to settlers along the western frontier.The earliest rifles show the German influence of their makers. As time passed, the American long rifle evolved in response to the requirements and conditions of the frontier. There has been a general misconception that the rifle played a dominant role in the American Revolution. Some historians have stated that American forces, largely armed with rifles, commonly engaged the enemy from hidden positions and carried the battles solely on the superior accuracy of these weapons. This is simply not true. With the exception of the battle of King's Mountain, every major Revolutionary War battle was decided by the clash of forces employing standard European linear tactics ofthe period. The Americans formed solid lines in the open, just as the British did. Great rapidity of volley fire was essential for these tactics, because the theory was to force the enemy to endure as many concentrated volleys as possible before the armies closed for hand-to-hand combat, where the bayonet played the primary role. The number of riflemen relative to the number of infantry in the American army remained small for a number of reasons: 1. The main value of the rifle, its accuracy, was lost if it were in the hands of anyone other than a marksman well experienced in its use. 2. The rifle was slow to load in comparison to the musket. 3. The rifle bores required frequent cleaning to remove black powder fouling in order to maintain accuracy and to permit loading ofthe tightly patched ball. 4. The rifle was not equipped with a bayonet. The linear tactics of the day included the mass bayonet attack by line infantry, and the riflemen were not expected or equipped to receive these attacks. THE AMERICAN LONG RIFLE In spite of these limitations, the American long rifle was used extensively during the early years of the Revolution and played a significant role in many of the major battles throughout the war. The long rifle proved to be avery successful military weapon in the battles against the British-supported Indians. It was also a successful auxiliaryweapon in the hands of scouts, skirmishers, and snipers in the more conventional battles fought in the east and south and when units of riflemen were in support of massed line infantry. Daniel Morgan used riflemen and line infantry in this manner at the Battle ofCowpens. Three lines ofinfantry were formed. The first two comprised militia and riflemen and the third was regular infantry. The first two lines took asheavy a toll on the advancing enemy as possible and then retreated behind the line infantry, which met the enemy with a volley and the bayonet. Nathanial Green used similar tactics successfully at Guilford Courthouse. The first organized company-sized units of riflemen were formed as a result of a resolution of the Continental Congress dated June 14, 1775, which called for the raising of ten companies of riflemen. John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, regarding these riflemen: "[The Congress] have voted ten companies of riflemen to be sent from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, to join the Army before Boston. They are excellent species of light infantry." Each rifle company consisted of sixty-eight privates, twelve officers and noncommissioned officers, and a drummer, for a total of eighty-one men. The riflemen were formed too late to take part in the Battle of Bunker Hill, but three companies under Daniel Morgan were with the forces of General Montgomery and Benedict Arnold in the futile attempt to capture Quebec. About 400 riflemen were among the American forces defending New York City when General Howe's troops began arriving in the New York...

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