Blunderbuss

The blunderbuss was the original coach gun, being a short, handy and devastating weapon at close range. It was used in many capacities, not the least of which were for naval boarding or defending by pirates and navies.

The flintlock blunderbuss was the original coach gun, being a short, handy and devastating weapon at close range. It was capable of firing up to 20 buckshot in front of 120 grains of black powder, according to Spencer Tucker in Almanac of American Military History, Volume One. It was used in many capacities, not the least of which were for Naval boarding or defending vessels, stagecoach and messenger companies, home defense and more.

The Blunderbuss was sometimes considered a poor man's shotgun. The blunderbuss could be loaded with various scraps, rocks, or wood, although this would result in damage to the barrel of the gun. Most historical accounts have the blunderbuss being loaded with lead balls smaller than the bore diameter. The early Blunderbuss barrels were constructed from either steel or brass, and was usually flared. The barrel flaring served a two-fold purpose by increasing the spread of the shot, and serving as a funnel, making it easier to reload on horseback or on top of a moving carriage. The flared muzzle is the defining feature of the Blunderbuss, differentiating it from other large caliber carbines of it's day. Blunderbusses were notoriously short, with barrels under two feet in length, at a time when a typical musket barrel was over three feet long.

While the blunderbuss is often associated with the Plymouth Colony Pilgrims of 1620, evidence suggests that the blunderbuss was relatively scarce in the American colonies. After the Battle of Lexington in 1775, British General Thomas Gage occupied Boston, Massachusetts, and upon negotiating with the town committee, Gage agreed to let the inhabitants of Boston leave town with their families and effects if they surrendered all arms. While most of the residents of Boston stayed, those who left under the agreement surrendered 1,778 long arms, 634 pistols, 273 bayonets, and only 38 blunderbusses.

A blunderbuss in handgun form was called a dragon, and it is from this that the term dragoon evolved. The term "blunderbuss" is of Dutch origin, from the Dutch word donderbus, which is a combination of donder, meaning "thunder", and bus, meaning "Pipe." The muzzle (and often the bore) was flared with the intent not only to increase the spread of the shot, but also to funnel powder and shot into the weapon, making it easier to reload on horseback or on a moving carriage.

The blunderbuss, and especially the dragon, was typically issued to troops such as cavalry, who needed a lightweight, easily handled firearm. The dragon became so associated with cavalry and mounted infantry that the term dragoon became synonymous with mounted infantry. In addition to the cavalry, the blunderbuss found use for other duties in which the shotgun-like qualities were desirable, such as for guarding prisoners or defending a mail coach, and its use for urban combat was also recognized. A typical British mail coach would have a single postal employee on board, armed with a blunderbuss and a pair of pistols, to guard the mail from highwaymen.

Blunderbusses were also commonly carried by officers on naval warships, privateers and by pirates for use in close-quarters boarding actions. The Portuguese marines used it widely in the 17th century. Many types of ammunition, including gravel and sand, could be shot in a pinch, but most of the time they were shot using traditional lead balls.