The "Long Lee" (Magazine Lee-Metford or Lee-Enfield) as Battle Rifle

[RattlesnakeJack]

I had this post (and the following one) in Sgt. Drydock's "GAF Class Structure and Battle Rifle Standards " thread, but decided they were inappropriate there, so have moved them to their own thread .....

Regarding the Sergeant's final statement in his original posting referred to above ...

The Lee Enfield is NOT the SMLE, but the first, longer version.  The SMLE was developed in response to the Boer war,
and fielded after 1903.

... here is the "Rifle, Magazine, Lee-Enfield" (sometimes called the "Long Lee-Enfield") of which I am the very fortunate custodian  -



The earlier (1888) Magazine Lee-Metford rifle (which mated the bolt-action design of James Paris Lee with a barrel
having shallow rounded-profile rifling designed by William Ellis Metford to minimize black powder fouling problems) was pretty much identical in appearance.  However, that original form of rifling was found to erode excessively and rapidly lose accuracy with
the cordite propellant introduced in 1894, so a new form of rifling was developed at the Enfield Armory, and the
resulting "Lee-Enfield" was adopted in 1896.

Development of suitable cast bullet .303 loads is on my "to do" list ....

[RattlesnakeJack]

While I'm at it, here are a few period photographs of Canadian troops in South Africa during the Boer
War, armed with the "Long" Lee-Enfield rifles (click on thumbnails to enlarge ...)

Infantrymen of the Royal Canadian Regiment in their ascent of a kopje to dislodge the Boer defenders,
Battle of Paardeburg, February 1900 (in reality, likely staged for the photographer):


In fact, mounted forces were were soon found to be of the greatest value in the highly mobile warfare
conducted in the wide open spaces of South Africa, and The British War Department soon requested
that the Commonwealth countries (Canada and Australia, in particular) provide mostly Mounted Infantry. 

Canadian Mounted Infantry Sergeant:


As evident in the above photo, such Mounted Infantry were armed with the same rather lengthy rifle,
which was understandably quite unwieldy on horseback (one of the main reasons for adoption of the "Rifle,
Short, Magazine, Lee-Enfield" or SMLE following the Boer War.)  Mounted Infantry carried their rifles in a variety
of ways including the "hand carry" shown above, though often with rifle butt rested on the thigh, like this-


.... or supported across the saddle pommel,  as in this photo - which also shows another very common method,
i.e. slung crosswise on the back -


Note, however, the loop which is clearly visible attached to the muzzle of the rifle being carried across the
pommel in the photo above - that was used in the other main carry method, shown here - i.e. rifle butt
in a bucket, muzzle loop around the arm or over the shoulder, with the rifle sometimes steadied under the arm -