Snider Rifle - Did it see action?

[Mark]

This might be a stupid question but did the Snider rifle see action in any campaigns during the Victorian period? I am struggling to think of any...

Mark

[colsjt65]

1868 Expedition to Abyssinia, which resulted in the death of Emperor Tewodros II and the total destruction of Magdala. Robert Napier's force of 13,000 soldiers, of regiments from India, were armed with Sniders. British casualties were 2 killed and 18 wounded, while the Ethiopians lost 700 killed and 1,400 wounded.

In New Zealand, they were issued to the remaining British regiment in 1867, but due to the self-reliant policy the 18th Regiment was confined to garrison duty in the major towns, while the New Zealand government forces, still armed with Enfield muzzle loaders and Calisher & Terry carbines, fought a war against Maori (adherents to the Hauhau religious cult) in South Taranaki, suffering several defeats.
The New Zealand Herald newspaper bemoaned the fact in late November 1868. -
THE SNIDER RIFLE – A SUGGESTION.
We (New Zealand Herald) call special attention to the great advisability of obtaining say a thousand Sniders for our [Colonial] troops. They would be of enormous service to them, and it is our duty to give them the very best weapon we can put into their hands. The 18th Royal Irish have them, but they are not permitted to use them against the Queen’s enemies in this colony. They were used against Theodore, who simply imprisoned a few persons, and kept them captive8. Could not the Governor order the 18th to use their weapons against the Hauhau murderers of the Queen’s subjects? Or is the Governor’s policy a do-nothing one?

[Mark]

Ah of course, I should have thought of both Abyssinia and New Zealand

Mark

[FROGSMILE]

This might be a stupid question but did the Snider rifle see action in any campaigns during the Victorian period? I am struggling to think of any...

Mark

[Will Mathieson]

North West Rebellions in Canada 1885.

[Mark]

North West Rebellions in Canada 1885.

Interesting, I didn't even consider it was still in use in the mid-1880s!

Mark

[Waggoner]

Don't forget the Fenian Raids, the Red River Expedition and the Ashanti War of 1873/74.

All the best,

Gary

[tabony]

What about Indian regiments?

Martin

[Isandlwana]

Picking up on Martin's point, the one gun behind policy introduced in the wake of the Mutiny meant that Indian troops would have carried the Snider well into the 1880's.

John Y.

[Jonathan]

The Snider was used by the Royal Niger Constabulary in the 1897 Niger-Sudan campaign.

[Tony Barton]

And by Indian Troops inthe Second Afghan War 1880 .

[tabony]

The Snider was used by the Royal Niger Constabulary in the 1897 Niger-Sudan campaign.

I like that picture. Is the uniform khaki and red.

Martin

[tabony]

And by Indian Troops inthe Second Afghan War 1880 .

And the Sudan.

Martin

[Mark]

Turning out to be quite an informative and interesting thread this...

Thanks all for the additional information, it has opened my eyes to the Sinder - a historical weapon I have sadly overlooked in the past.

Mark

[colsjt65]

The New Zealand government seemed to (and still has) a one gun behind policy because they are cheapskates. Our mounted rifles turned up in the Boer War armed with Martini Enfield carbines, at Gallipolli with Lee Enfield Mk I (Long Toms), WWII with Lee Enfield Mk III... Most of the NZ marked Sniders I've seen around here are marked "Bonehill 1880".