The British Martini-Henry rifle doesn’t need much of an introduction. Anyone who’s ever seen Zulu or levelled up enough in Battlefield 1 knows the rifle and its iconic status as a symbol of the British Empire at the height of the Victorian era.
Introduced in 1871, it was a single-shot falling-block design firing the .577/450-calibre black-powder cartridge and remained in front-line service until being replaced in 1899 by the Magazine Lee-Metford bolt-action rifles (firing a black powder-loaded .303 cartridge).
By then the .577/450 cartridge had now become obsolete but the guns themselves were still serviceable, and so after some experimenting the decision was eventually made in 1895 to rechamber and rebarrel Martini-Henry rifles to the newly introduced smokeless-powder version of the .303 cartridge, using smokeless-compatible Enfield rifling
This resulted in the Martini-Enfield Mk I and Mk II rifles, which were was put to use as a colonial, reserve unit and police firearm.
They differed mainly in which mark of Martini-Henry they were converted from. In addition to full-length rifles, carbines were also converted for cavalry and artillery unit use.
Production was mainly carried out in the UK at the Royal Small Arms Factory Enfield, although many were also assembled at the Cairo Citadel in Egypt from assorted (genuine) parts between 1903-1908 for use by Egyptian military and police forces.
While never a front-line weapon for the British themselves, Martini-Enfields were cheap and thus widely used in colonial Australia by the military and police forces of the colonies (now states), and the majority of Martini-Enfield rifles in Australia are from this colonial service, identifiable by the markings on the receivers or stocks.
British military production of Martini-Enfield rifles began in 1895 and concluded in 1903, although they saw extended use in parts of the British Empire and Commonwealth (including Australia) until well after WWI, and in some cases until the end of WWII.
They were a popular Australian shooting club rifle in the early 20th Century as well.
The Martini-Enfield can chamber and fire modern commercial .303 British ammunition. The projectile on the original .303 Mk II cartridge was a 215gn LRN projectile doing around 2000fps, whereas modern commercial hunting ammo usually has a 150gn or 180gn SP projectile and is travelling in the 2500-2700fps range.
For best results a modern shooter should load their own ammunition. Quality brass is recommended to help prevent extraction issues after firing, and pressures should be kept on the lower side in consideration of the age of the rifles.
The sights are a barleycorn-and-leaf arrangement calibrated to 1800 yards and while fine for practical hunting and service rifle competition shooting, they’re not designed for precision use (and there’s no way you’re hitting anything at 1800 yards with them).
Martini-Enfields could be fairly accurate rifles in their day, but given they are all around 130 years old and were shot with corrosive ammo until after WWII, many of them do not have great bores so if you’re considering one as a hunting or competition rifle, you may have to consider getting it professionally rebarrelled.
If you do, make sure you keep the original barrel for historic preservation purposes.
Whether you’re looking for an elegant firearm from a more civilised age to go “back to basics” with for hunting, or looking for something historic to use at the range, the Martini-Enfield rifle remains a solid choice.
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