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French Arms
In 1515, St. Etienne was established as the first of the Royal Manufacturies, Charleville was opened in 1620 and became a royal manufactory in 1688, then Maubeuge. Most all firearms for the kings’ infantry were made in these manufactory’s. The Tulle factory was started in 1691, but did not attain Royal Manufactory status until 1777. Tulle was a large gunmaking center in the early 1600’s and Michael Pauphille brought it all together as, the Tulle Arsenal in 1691. Tulle drew its work for from Leige Belguim and St. Etienne, in fact in the pay rate books and cemetary around Tulle the majority of the people working and dying there were from Leige. The "La Peid" stock shape is believed by most to have originated at Tulle. There is a 1695 in Parks Canada Collection that is stamped Michille Pauphille on the left flat of the barrel breech and is most certainly in European Walnut with the "La Peid" stock design. John Bosh had one which we carefully measured and copied . St. Etienne soon followed because they made guns at times for Tulle to help fulfill their contracts. The term "La Peid" for the stock design which means cows foot does not just mean the outline but also the way these early muskets swell out a little larger on the sides than the butt plate just before the butt plate. If you look through Neumans book you will find many American Muskets that were built using old furniture and locks from the 1695’s, so there were quite a few of these early guns and parts still in the colonies during the Revolutionary War. The flintlock was gradually phased into the French Army in the mid 1600’s. The Carrignan-Salieres Regiment was the first to be completely armed with them in 1665, and was immediately sent into Canada to defend Quebec from the Iriquois. These were the first regular troops sent to Canada until 1755. In 1669, all of France’s Colonies were put under the responsibility of the Department of Navy and Ministry of Marines, which was completely separate from the army in all matters including their contracts for weapons. This is the reason the early Marine Muskets look almost like the regulation army models, but vary in minor details. Most Marine weapons contracts were awarded to St. Etienne till the establishment of Tulle. The Ministry of Marines also established the "Compagnies Franches De La Marines" (independent companies of marine) for protection of the French colonies. The 1680’s and 1690’s muskets were also contracted for slight variances in furniture (plain or fancy) depending on the "Pride of the Regiment" they were going to. There is one absolutely beautiful example in the French Naval Museum in Paris. We highly recommend the following books for help with French Arms: "Fusil De Tulle" by Russel Bouchard"American Military Shoulder Arms" by George Moller "Battle Weapons of the American Revolution" by George Neuman The Following is a list of links to the French Arms we offer parts for.
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We stock many items, but each item is custom cast or made by us to the exact specifications of the originals parts, we have copied. Due to the investment casting process which we use there are sometimes delays due to this process which in turn requires patience from our customers, the average delivery time on our parts is between 60 and 90 days, if the parts you order are not in stock. We assure you that the quality of our parts is well worth any wait, as many of the items we make have never been offered by anyone before. If you are serious about the authenticity of your weapon then the time will be a small price to pay. Many of the pictures shown on this web site are of original pieces. We do not sell any original pieces on this web site only reproduction's of the original parts we have copied. If the item description does not say assembled then you are buying the castings of that particular item. To see the difference between an assembled lock and a set of lock castings please click the button below.
Send mail to
trshoppe@therifleshoppe.com with
questions or comments about this web site.
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18420 E. Hefner Road ~
Jones, Oklahoma 73049 ~ (405) 396-2583 Tel
~ (405) 396-8450 Fax 
