canadian broad arrow stamp info

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Rdrash

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Hello. I was wondering if someone could give me a little info on when we switched from <DC> and went to C with the broad arrow? Im hearing of sniders with dc and or c broad arrow but martinis seem to have just DC. I was just wondering if they are correct? Thanks
Trevor
 
The "C-broadarrow" as a Canadian military property mark was introduced by Militia General Order 213 of 1907 .....

As you may know, while the broadarrow (and its various Colonial/Commonwealth variants) was a government acceptance and property mark used primarily (but not exclusively) on military matériel, "opposing broadarrows" - i.e. two such arrows oriented point to point (either slightly separated or points touching) was a disposal mark - i.e. signifying that the firearm (or other piece of kit) had been "sold out of service" - i/e/ disposed of by the Crown and thus no longer government property ....

If a Snider (or Martini) bears anything like the C-broadarrow, it is more likely to be an opposing broadarrows disposal mark applied in 1907 or later ....

One of my Canadian-issue Snider-Enfield Mark III Short Rifles has such a disposal mark which is quite impressive -

Second2-bandmarkings_zpscdff2da0.jpg


C-broadarrowdisposalmark_zpsb4771a5f.jpg
 
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GrantR, I like to meet you one day and spend all of it talking about Canadian history. Well done lad.
 
GrantR said:
The "C-broadarrow" as a Canadian military property mark was introduced by Militia General Order 213 of 1907 .....

As you may know, while the broadarrow (and its various Colonial/Commonwealth variants) was a government acceptance and property mark used primarily (but not exclusively) on military matériel, "opposing broadarrows" - i.e. two such arrows oriented point to point (either slightly separated or points touching) was a disposal mark - i.e. signifying that the firearm (or other piece of kit) had been "sold out of service" - i/e/ disposed of by the Crown and thus no longer government property ....

If a Snider (or Martini) bears anything like the C-broadarrow, it is more likely to be an opposing broadarrows disposal mark applied in 1907 or later ....

One of my Canadian-issue Snider-Enfield Mark III Short Rifles has such a disposal mark which is quite impressive -

Second2-bandmarkings_zpscdff2da0.jpg


C-broadarrowdisposalmark_zpsb4771a5f.jpg
Click to expand...

That's what I call a very interesting answer and a very nice gun. Thanks for sharing.

Martin
 
The DC diamond mark was replaced by the M&D stamp in the mid 1890s and was used until replaced by the C arrow. M&D appears on Martini Metford and Long Lees.
 
No Dominion of Canada after the Statute of Westminster of 1931.
Your Snider wasn't made in Canada and would have been 'sold out of service' to our lot.
 
sunray said:
No Dominion of Canada after the Statute of Westminster of 1931. ....
Click to expand...

Not correct, actually ..... the word "dominion" was used rather loosely prior to the Statute of Westminster, but its meaning was "firmed up" by that legislation .... its use was not discontinued:

After the passage of the Statute of Westminster in 1931, however, the definition of dominion became lot more precise, with the British drawing a clear line of separation between what was a "dominion" and what was a "colony." From henceforth, a "dominion" was declared to be an independent country, united in "free association [as] members of the British Commonwealth of Nations" which were in turn "united by a common allegiance to the Crown." After 1931 the Imperial Parliament gave up most of its power to pass laws for the dominions, which in turn gave rise to the status quo of today, where we have a number of independent countries who nevertheless recognize the British monarch as their head of state and form a symbolic union with one another.

The Westminster Statute formally recognized the following six countries with "dominion" status in this regard:
The Dominion of Canada
The Dominion of New Zealand
The Irish Free State
The Commonwealth of Australia
The Union of South Africa
Newfoundland
Click to expand...
(http://www.jjmccullough.com/dominion.htm)

If I am not mistaken, of the various British statutes which as a group make up the Constitution of Canada, the first not using the term "Dominion" in relation to Canada were the Canada Act and the Constitution Act of 1982, which finally "patriated" our Constitution to Canada. (It was that same year that the Federal government changed the name of the July 1st national statutory holiday from "Dominion Day" to "Canada Day". Of course we have the Trudeau Liberal government to thank for that departure from long-standing tradition, as well as many other such departures ....)

sunray said:
.... Your Snider wasn't made in Canada and would have been 'sold out of service' to our lot.
Click to expand...

Actually, virtually all of Canada's Snider-Enfield rifles came to Canada as "new" arms, not British "sold out of service" arms ..... (I placed "new" in quotation marks because of course the great majority of Mark I and Mark II Sniders were converted from existing stocks of muzzle-loading Enfield Rifle Muskets which were in suitable condition for such conversion. However, the first large batch came directly to Canada as "newly converted" Snider-Enfields ....)
 
I may not know much (.... or, at my age, am starting to have more difficulty keeping it clear in my mind ....) but I do have a good library ..... ;)

This, by the way, is that particular Snider-Enfield Short Rifle .... an 1872-dated Birmingham Small Arms Co. Mark III. The backdrop is a studio image of members of the "School of Mounted Infantry" in winter kit. (The School of Mounted Infantry was established 20 July 1885 in Winnipeg; in 1891 it was re-designated as the "Canadian Mounted Rifle Corps", which in turn was amalgamated with the Royal Canadian Dragoons in 1892.)

SE_2_band_zpsb81d5429.jpg
 
I think I found the photo he was referring to (plus some others that maybe shouldn't be floating around)

S5000270.jpg.html


Edit - well, it seems that didn't work. Try the link directly - http://s175.photobucket.com/user/flintlockCAN/media/S5000270.jpg.html
 
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