What kinds of guns did they use in the Victorian era?

Answer 1

As the Victorian Era spanned from 1837 to 1901, a wide variety of weapons were in use from flintlocks to semi-automatic

pistols. All the pistols and rifles of the American West would also be included in that time frame. Flintlocks were still in use by many for things such as dueling in the upper class to the muskets and rifles of the Bedouin and aboriginal tribes of Africa.

During that time period, we also saw the development of the cap and ball rifle and revolver, then on to cartridge weapons. On the battlefield, the Gatling gun was introduced, then the Maxim gun for field "machine guns" with the Maxim being the first true fully automatic and reliable one (the Gatling being hand cranked and manually operated).

We saw the introduction of single action, revolvers, then the double action revolvers came on the scene.First

cap and ball, then cartridge. Revolvers such as the Webley

became the standard sidearm for the British Empire, starting in 1887 and last til til 1963 in such calibers as .455 Webley

and 38 S&W

during the Victorian era, and later in ,45 ACP. The iconic Broom Handled Mauser was invented and deployed during that time. Though never officially adopted by any nations' services during this period, it was carried by many officers as a personal side arm.

The well heeled gentleman of the era would have a smaller revolver, such as of the bulldog design with a shorter barrel for close in engagements. Some would be top breaks, others one would have to pull out the cylinder pin and remove the cylinder manually and punch out the expended casings with the pin to reload. Most often, you would have a compact framed weapon firing a larger round, such as a .38 S&W

or .455 Webley,

a smaller framed weapon firing a medium sized round, such as a .32 S&W

long or .32 S&W

short, or a small sized revolver firing something such as a .22 or .17 (usually firing 6-9 rounds). For the ultra concealable you would have derringers firing rounds from .41 down to .17 calibers, often firing only one or two shots, but 4 shot models were also not uncommon. Gun canes came into their own during this era as well.

To sum up, Any firearms that was manufactured from 1837 to 1901 would have been used and

most firearms that were of good condition and in service prior to 1837, were still being used somewhere.