|
 |
THE SHORT MAGAZINE LEE ENFIELD
The Short Magazine Lee Enfield (SMLE) affectionately known as the "SMELLIE" Starting life as the No 1 Mk 1 and finishing as the No 1 Mk VI, it used all over the world in two World Wars. Most probably the finest bolt action battle rifle ever produced, it was easily capable of 15 rounds a minute of accurate fire in the hands of a trained soldier. However, a Small Arms School Corps QMSI managed a rate of 37 rds a minute in the 1930's.
Pictured is a Rare No 1 Mk VI trials rifle complete with trials pattern bayonet.
The Hard Won Reputation of The SMLE
Britain declared war on the 4th Aug 1914. By mid August the Belgians were no more than an irritating hitch to the German advance. Only one intact force stood in the way of the Germans - the BEF. The first shots that the British fired were at Malpaquet, the Germans were pulled up short near Mons as the withering rifle fire of the British caused them heavy casualties
2 days later on the 25 August 1914 at Le Cateau the storey of Mons was repeated only on a bloodier scale. Once again the Germans attacked in tightly bunched waves and again they were met with rifle fire so intense that they thought the British were equipped with machine guns. At the end of the day 3 British Divisions fell back with the loss 7,812 men and 38 field guns. Some 2000 of which became POW's
By September 1st 1914 the forward elements of the German Army were a mere 30 miles from Paris. The BEF had earned the title 'Contemptible Little Army' from the Kaiser, and the reputation of the SMLE rifle was born.
An account from Lt R A Macleod 80th Bty XV Bde RFA stated:
"Our Infantry were splendid they had only scratchings in the ground made with their entrenching tools, which didn't give much cover, but they stuck it out and returned a good rate of fire. The German Infantry fired from the hip as they advanced but their fire was very inaccurate."
What was conclusively proved in 1914 was the awful power of the SMLE in skilled hands. From the Boer War the Army had worked unceasingly to achieve a standard of speed and accuracy of rifle fire never before considered possible in any Army. The battles of Mons, The Marne and First Ypres showed how successful the training had been.
In a sense the first few months of the Great War represented the high¬water mark for the SMLE as an infantry weapon, since time and skilled instructors necessary to achieve such standards were just not available thereafter.
Trench warfare saw the return of many weapons thought to be obsolete; mortars, grenades being amongst them but above all was the rise in importance of the machine gun which was soon to rule the battlefield.
This said, what is not stated is that the main reason for the Army placing such an emphasis on rapid rifle fire between the Boer War and the start of the First World War was that the Treasury would not unduly fund machine guns so the army had to place ever more stress on rapid musketry as a substitute for machine gun fire. Also a lot of the armies hierarchy still believed that cavalry and bayonet charges were still the way wars should be fought.
Whilst it has been often accepted that the Short Magazine Lee Enfield is inferior to the Mauser System, particularly as regards the strength of the action and accuracy, it is most likely one of the most "soldier proof" rifles ever designed. It was also preferred for it's reliability under the most adverse conditions, as well as it's speed of operation. In 1912, trials conducted at Hythe against the German Service rifle, it was found that about 14 - 15 rounds a minute could be fired from the Mauser, compared with 28 for the SMLE.
SMLE POSTAL COMPETITION
Match Conditions
All Practices to be fired at 200 yards
Practice 1 STANDING SLOWFIRE (Deliberate)
2 Sighters and 10 shots to count. Target figure 11 on a 4 foot screen with a central 8 inch band running verticaly on the target scoring 5, remainder of the fig 11 target scores 4 and a hit on the screen scores 2 Practice HPS is 50
Practice 2 KNEELING SNAP
2 Sighters followed by 10 exposures of 3 seconds only one shot to be fired at each exposure. Target Figure 12 with 8 inch vertical central band scoring 5 remainder of Fig 12 scores 4 Practice HPS 50
Practice 3 RAPID FIRE (Mad Minute)
Unlimited shots firer starts standing up in the alert position rifle loaded with 10 rounds bolt closed and safety on. The appearance of the 4 foot screen (as Used in practice 1) is the signal to adopt the prone position and fire as many shots as possible in the one minute the target is exposed. Reloading by clips on demand scoring 5 points per hit on the fig 11 Practice HPS (the record is 37 rds in a minute acheived just after the first world war by a British Skill at Arms Instructor so we shall say the HPS is 37 x 5 so 185 anyone beats that they have cheated!)
Do we award the title World SMLE Champion to the Highest Scorer
|
 |
|
