Enfield Pattern 1851

In 1851 the Enfield factory embarked upon production of the .702-inch Pattern 1851 Minié rifle using the conical Minie bullet, which replaced the Pattern 1842 .753 calibre smoothbore musket as the primary weapon issued to regular troops. The Pattern 1851 was referred to as a rifled musket and was longer than previous production rifles, conforming to the length of prior muskets which allowed for consistency in standards for firing in ranks and bayonet combat. Relatively few of these were produced since a new design was adopted within two years. The rifle used the lock and bayonet mount from the Pattern 1842, with a 39-inch (990 mm) barrel.

The new Minie ammunition allowed much faster loading so that rifles were no longer slower to load than smoothbore muskets. Previous rifles such as the Baker and the Brunswick were designated for special troops such as skirmishers or snipers, while the majority of shoulder arms remained smoothbore muskets.