The 14 Guns That Helped Fight the Revolutionary War

Holster pistols were not standard issue for troops. Instead, officers purchased the guns from private gunsmiths. In battle, the pistols were held in leather holsters in the front of a cavalryman’s saddle.

One of the earliest firearms made in America, the Kentucky flintlock was used by early settlers and pioneers before troops carried it during the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. Soldiers often teamed the pistol with a Kentucky rifle. It was said to be Davy Crockett’s favorite gun.

A .67 caliber smoothbore flintlock pistol, the Light Dragoon was made specifically for the Light Dragoon regiments – cavalry regiments in the British Army. During the Revolutionary War, the armament was employed by the 1st Continental Light Dragoons and the 2nd Continental Light Dragoons.

A French military flintlock pistol, the Mòdele 1763 was used during the French-Indian War and to a lesser extent during the Revolutionary War. It is similar to the British Light Dragoon pistol.

To battle the rebels, British troops received a shipment of more 1,000 Pattern 1776 rifles that same year. The guns were meant to even the playing field with rifles used by the Americans. Such rifles were supplied to the elite mounted and light military units. Meanwhile, the regular infantry had to make do with muskets.