May i add that, context is important in these issues; a man trotting or galloping a horse has hardly enough stability to shoot a weapon at target with effectiveness
...EXCEPT, FERNANDO, IF IT IS HAPPENING ON A HOLLYWOOD FILM SET WITH CAMERA ROLLING!
gunpowder was very crude, gun barrels had to be frequently cleaned, the French ones more than the British.
...THE FRENCH OPTED FOR A SMALLER BORE (.69 inch) BECAUSE A SUPPLY OF BULLETS WEIGHED LESS THAN FOR THE BRITISH .75 in. BORE, AND WITH THE SAME POWDER CHARGE THE VELOCITY AND MUZZLE ENERGY WOULD BE GREATER. BUT THE TENDENCY OF BLACK POWDER TO CREATE LOTS OF FOULING, DUE TO THE SULFUR CONTENT, MEANT THAT SMALLER BORES NEEDED MORE FREQUENT CLEANING.
Heavy rain could simply inutilize the weapon, as the gunpowder got wet and would not explode.
...ALSO FLINT DOES NOT STRIKE AS MANY SPARKS ON A WET STEEL. AS FOR A MATCHLOCK, FORGET IT! CHARCOAL AND SALTPETER, THE MAJOR COMPONENTS OF BLACK POWDER, HAVE A TENDENCY TO ABSORB ATMOSPHERIC MOISTURE EASILY, MAKING THE SITUATION EVEN WORSE.
And adding to that, the smoke; there are countless narrations of soldiers mentioning that, the (black) gunpowder smoke in battle was so dense that they couldn't discern where to aim at.
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...THAT IS WHY MILITARY UNIFORMS WERE BRIGHTLY COLORED, AND UNITS CARRIED LARGE FLAGS SO AS TO BE RECOGNIZABLE .
AND THE SLOW RATE OF FIRE OF MUZZLE-LOADING FIREARMS IS YET ANOTHER ISSUE TO BE TOUCHED UPON. NOT UNTIL THE DEVELOPMENT OF BREECH LOADING GUNS USING CARTRIDGES IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE 19TH CENT. DID MILITARY FIREARMS CATCH UP TO THE BOW AND ARROW FOR FIREPOWER. A REASON THAT MOST ORIENTAL CULTURES THAT RELIED ON CAVALRY KEPT USING THEIR POWERFUL COMPOSITE BOWS WELL INTO THE CENTURY.
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