Albanian Rat tail Miquelet pistols

TVV · 8th April 2011, 12:29 AM

Marcus,

Looking forward to seeing some pictures. The local craftsmen of Albania and Macedonia, where the distinctive rat tail pistols were produced, were not working on state contracts for the Ottoman Army, but were rather meeting the demands within their local area. The same applies to the various types of long guns. These beatiful weapons saw service mostly locally, but also anywhere throughout the Empire wrhere there were irregulars, recruited from the Balkans involved, such as in Egypt during the Napoleonic wars. They were used not just by Ottoman troops, but also by various outlaws and by Christian freedom fighters.

The compelxities of the production and trade of firearms in the Balkans during the Ottoman period are well explained in Dr. Elgood's latest book "The Arms of Greece and Her (Western) Balkan Neighbors". Alternatively, another good source will be Dr. Elgood's "Firearms of the Islamic World", where there is also a chapter on the region.

Regards,
Teodor

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8th April 2011, 12:29 AM	#2
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,660	Marcus, Looking forward to seeing some pictures. The local craftsmen of Albania and Macedonia, where the distinctive rat tail pistols were produced, were not working on state contracts for the Ottoman Army, but were rather meeting the demands within their local area. The same applies to the various types of long guns. These beatiful weapons saw service mostly locally, but also anywhere throughout the Empire wrhere there were irregulars, recruited from the Balkans involved, such as in Egypt during the Napoleonic wars. They were used not just by Ottoman troops, but also by various outlaws and by Christian freedom fighters. The compelxities of the production and trade of firearms in the Balkans during the Ottoman period are well explained in Dr. Elgood's latest book "The Arms of Greece and Her (Western) Balkan Neighbors". Alternatively, another good source will be Dr. Elgood's "Firearms of the Islamic World", where there is also a chapter on the region. Regards, Teodor