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{{Short description|Early Ottoman firearm}}
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{{Infobox weapon
| name               = Ottoman matchlock musket
| image              = Luntlåsbössa,_1600-tal_-_Skoklosters_slott_-_90994.tif
| image_size         = 300
| caption            = Ottoman matchlock musket, about 1600.
| origin             = [[Ottoman Empire]]
| type               = [[Musket]]
<!-- Type selection -->| is_ranged          = yes
| is_UK              = yes
<!-- Service history -->| service            = 1500–1688
| used_by            = {{Plain list|
* [[Ottoman Army]]
}}
| wars               = {{Plain list|
* [[Hungarian–Ottoman Wars]]
* [[Long Turkish War]]
* [[Morean War]]
* [[Great Turkish War]]
}}
<!-- Production history -->| designer           = 
| design_date        = mid 1400s
| manufacturer       = 
| production_date    = 1400s-1688
| number             = 
| unit_cost          = 
| variants           = [[Wall gun|Trench gun]]
<!-- General specifications -->| weight             = 3-4.5 kg
| length             = 115-140 cm
| part_length        = <!-- Ranged weapon specifications -->
| cartridge          = 
| caliber            = 11-20 mm
| action             = [[Matchlock]]
| rate               = User dependent, usually 1-2 rounds a minute
| velocity           = 
| range              = 
| max_range          = 
| feed               = [[Muzzle-loaded]]
| sights             = 
}}

The '''Ottoman matchlock musket''' ([[Turkish language|Turkish]]: ''tüfenk''), an early [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] firearm, used from the mid-15th to the late 17th century.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://askerimuze.msb.gov.tr/SANALGEZI/en.html|title=Military Museum - Harbiye / İSTANBUL - TURKEY -- www.sanalgezinti.com --|website=askerimuze.msb.gov.tr|access-date=2025-05-06}}</ref>

== History ==

Although originally an Asiatic state, the [[Ottoman Empire]] received firearms from Europe.<ref name=":0" /> The Ottomans first encountered firearms in the [[Balkans]] in the mid-14th century, in their first conflicts with the [[Republic of Venice]] and [[Kingdom of Hungary|Hungary]], and by the [[Battle of Kosovo]] (1389) they were already making extensive use of modern cannons for that time.<ref name=":0" />

As early as the mid-15th century, the word '''''tüfenk''''' appears in the armament lists of Ottoman fortresses in the Balkans, most likely denoting a [[matchlock]] [[arquebus]]. It is not known whether these earliest Ottoman arquebuses had a [[serpentine lock]] or a more advanced [[matchlock]] mechanism.<ref name=":0">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Ágoston|2005|p=88}}</ref> The first arquebuses were adopted into the armament of the [[Janissary|Janissaries]] as early as the reign of [[Murad II]] (r. 1421–1451), although it was not until the mid-16th century that most Janissaries received arquebuses.<ref name=":2">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Ágoston|2009|p=219}}</ref> [[Republic of Venice|Venetian]] sources state that [[Bayezid II]] (r. 1481–1512) supplied the Janissaries with better firearms, certainly a more modern version of the matchlock, but there is no mention of whether the new weapon was imported from Europe or produced by the Ottomans themselves.<ref name=":0" /> In this regard, it is worth noting that technological historians credit the Ottomans with perfecting the serpentine mechanism.<ref name=":3">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Ágoston|2005|p=89}}</ref> Janissary arquebuses are known to have played a decisive role in the [[Battle of Mohács]] (1526).<ref name=":2" />

Venetian sources also mention that [[Murad III]] (r. 1574–95) equipped all Janissaries with [[musket]]s.<ref name=":3" /> This source undoubtedly refers to a more modern weapon, the matchlock musket, first introduced in the early sixteenth century by Spanish soldiers who, fighting in Italy against heavy armour, realized that they needed a more powerful weapon. The musket was larger than the arquebus: it had a longer barrel and could fire heavier projectiles at the same or greater velocity, and thus proved effective against heavy armour. John Francis Gilmartin has suggested that "''the process which produced the sixteenth-century Turkish musket must have had a parallel with that which produced its Spanish equivalent''", as "''the tactical incentives and technological results were remarkably similar''".<ref name=":3" />

Until the seventeenth century, the Janissaries used matchlock muskets ([[Turkish language|Turkish]]: fitilli tüfenk), although from the late 16th century, flintlock muskets ([[Turkish language|Turkish]]: [[shishane|çakmaklı tüfenk]]) with [[miquelet lock]] were being produced and gradually introduced in the Ottoman Empire. This mechanism spread throughout the Mediterranean and the Balkans thanks to the Ottomans, who were early adopters of it. Since the early flintlock muskets were not as reliable as matchlock muskets, and were considerably more expensive, the Ottomans, like Western Europeans, used muskets of both systems side by side until the late 17th century (after 1688).<ref name=":3" />

== Characteristics ==

=== Light muskets ===
European sources from the 16th century often state that Ottoman muskets were larger and heavier than Christian muskets. However, generalizations should be taken with caution, because in addition to these heavy muskets, the Janissaries<ref name=":3" /> also used smaller and lighter rifles on a large scale. In 1567, the Janissaries in the Belgrade Fortress used muskets that fired 12- and 15-gram bullets. Similar weapons, firing 12-gram bullets, were used in [[Ottoman Egypt]]. Muskets produced in state workshops and used in [[Baghdad]] in 1571 fired 15-gram bullets. Given the weight of the lead bullets, these weapons had a caliber of between 13 and 14&nbsp;mm and were probably similar to the smaller Janissary muskets used in field battles. These latter muskets were usually 115–140&nbsp;cm long, weighed only 3–4.5&nbsp;kg, and had a caliber of 11, 13, 14, or 16&nbsp;mm (and rarely 19 or 20&nbsp;mm). The characteristics of these Janissary rifles were very similar to those used by the Janissaries' European opponents. The "typical" matchlock musket in European armies of the sixteenth century was 120–150&nbsp;cm long, weighed 2.5–4.5&nbsp;kg, and had a caliber of 14–18&nbsp;mm.<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Ágoston|2005|p=90}}</ref>

=== Heavy muskets ===

In siege warfare or in the defense of fortresses, the Ottomans used a heavy musket with an octagonal or cylindrical barrel. Known as the [[Wall gun|trench rifle]] (Turkish: metris tüfengi), it had a barrel length of 130–160&nbsp;cm and a caliber of 20–29&nbsp;mm, but larger calibers (35 and 45&nbsp;mm) were used for firing shells. When European sources claimed that Ottoman rifles were heavier than European ones, they were probably referring to this weapon.<ref name=":3" />

=== Quality ===

Regarding the quality of Ottoman muskets, the sources are contradictory. A former Janissary, who wrote the most detailed description of the corps around 1606, complained that the muskets produced in the state workshops in Istanbul were of inferior quality compared to those available from private gunsmiths. [[Raimondo Montecuccoli|Raimundo Montecuccoli]], on the other hand, claimed that the metal of Turkish muskets was of good quality and that their range and power were greater than those of Christian muskets, a claim that is also accepted by historians of technology.<ref name=":5" /> The latter suggests that the barrels of Ottoman muskets were stronger and more reliable than European ones, as Ottoman gunsmiths made the barrels by spiraling flat steel plates – a method similar to that used to make [[Damascus steel]] – which gave them great strength.<ref name=":5">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Ágoston|2005|p=91}}</ref> On the other hand, the Turkish authorities themselves apparently had a better opinion of the quality of European weapons, as they had already begun importing muskets from England and Holland in the early 17th century, despite the blockade imposed by the Spanish and Venetian fleets. In November 1605, Maltese ships successfully intercepted an English ship carrying a cargo of 700 barrels of gunpowder, 1,000 arquebus barrels, 500 cavalry arquebuses, and 2,000 sword blades to Istanbul.<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Ágoston|2005|p=93}}</ref>

== Ottoman matchlock mechanism ==
[[File:Luntlåsmusköt s.k. skeppsgevär, 1600-talets förat hälft - Skoklosters slott - 103432.tif|thumb|Typical Western European matchlock musket, circa 1600.]]
[[File:Luntlåsbössa,_1600-tal_-_Skoklosters_slott_-_90994.tif|thumb|Turkish matchlock, circa 1600. The serpentine protruding from the cavity of the stock behind the flash pan is clearly visible, as is the lower part of the serpentine under the stock. There is no lock plate.]]

The lock mechanism of the surviving Ottoman muskets from the 16th and 17th centuries is of the original type, and differs significantly from the muskets used in Europe at the time, as well as from the [[snap matchlock]] carried by Portuguese sailors to [[Tanegashima (gun)|Japan]] (1543). The Ottoman lock is without a lock plate, with a [[Serpentine lock|serpentine]] inserted into the cavity of the butt, before (near the end closer to the shooter) the [[flash pan]]. The upper end of the serpentine is bent to the right, to reach the flash pan on the right side of the barrel.<ref name=":4">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Nicolle|McBride|1983|p=26}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> Pressing on the lower end of the serpentine (under the butt) pushes the serpentine with the fuse forward and downward.

The original evolution of the matchlock in the Ottoman Empire most likely occurred because the first arquebuses were adopted into the armament of the Janissaries relatively early, already during the reign of [[Murad II]] (1421–1451).<ref name=":2" /> Since the true [[matchlock]] (with a spring and trigger like a [[crossbow]] and a serpentine after the flash pan - further from the shooter) was invented in Europe only around 1470,<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Roberts|2002|p=7}}</ref>{{full citation needed|date=May 2025}} the first arquebuses in the Turkish army certainly did not have a lock, but only a simple serpentine. From surviving examples of Ottoman arquebuses and muskets from the 16th and 17th centuries, we see that Ottoman craftsmen had perfected the simple serpentine by the early 16th century at the latest, and produced their own type of lock, simpler and cheaper (without a lock plate, with fewer moving parts), but equally reliable.<ref name=":4" />

== Influence ==
{{Main|Matchlock musket in China|Toradar}}
[[File:A Manchu Soldier from the North of China Wellcome L0040986.jpg|thumb|A Chinese musketeer armed with a simple matchlock, photographed in 1874. The same lock as on 16th-century Ottoman muskets is clearly visible.]]
This simple mechanism spread eastward during the 16th century, first to [[Safavid Iran|Persia]] (after 1514), and from there to [[Mughal Empire|India]] (after 1526) and Afghanistan,<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Sarkar|1960|p=38}}</ref> across [[Central Asia]] all the way to [[Ming dynasty|Ming Dynasty]] China (c. 1513–1524). Muskets of this type remained in use in China and India until the end of the 19th century.<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Peers|2006|p=234}}</ref>

== Gallery ==
<gallery caption="Matchlocks of the Ottoman system (from Ottoman Empire to China)">
File:Luntlåsbössa,_1600-tal_-_Skoklosters_slott_-_90994.tif|Turkish matchlock, circa 1600.
File:Armored_Cavalryman_MET_DP368665.jpg|Tibetan matchlock musket, about 1850
File:Matchlock_Musket_MET_271767.jpg|Lock of the Tibetan musket.
File:Matchlock_Musket_of_Sikhs.jpg|Matchlock from the [[Sikh Empire]], 19th century.
File:Antique_Indian_torador_matchlock_rifle,_pistol_and_salawar_yataghan_(khyber_Knife).jpg|Indian [[toradar]], a musket and a pistol, 19th century.
File:Antique_Indian_matchlock_torador_pistol.jpg|Indian matchlock pistol.
File:Matchlock_Gun_MET_DP216836.jpg|Indian toradar, late 18th or early 19th century.
File:Matchlock_Gun_MET_DP216844.jpg|Lock of the toradar.
File:Matchlock_Rifle_MET_DP166307.jpg|Matchlock from [[Sindh]], second quarter of the 19th century.
File:Matchlock_Rifle_MET_DP166305.jpg|Lock of the Sindh musket.
File:Ming_matchlocks.jpg|[[Matchlock musket in China|Ming dynasty matchlock musket]] (16-17th century).
File:Vietnam_matchlock_of_Qing_period.jpg|[[Qing dynasty]] musket from Vietnam, drawing from 1767.
</gallery>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Literature ==

* {{Cite book |last1=Nicolle |first1=David |url=https://archive.org/details/men-at-arms-140-armies-of-the-ottoman-turks-1300-1. |title=Armies of the Ottoman Turks 1300-1774 |last2=McBride |first2=Angus |publisher=Osprey Publishing |year=1983 |location=Oxford |pages=26 |trans-title=}}
* {{Cite encyclopedia |title=Firearms |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire |publisher=Facts On File, Inc. |location=New York |last=Ágoston |first=Gábor |date=2009 |editor-last=Ágoston |editor-first=Gábor |pages=218–220 |isbn=978-0-8160-6259-1}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ágoston |first=Gábor |title=Guns for the Sultan: Military Power and the Weapons Industry in the Ottoman Empire |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-521-84313-3 |location=New York |trans-title=}}
* {{Cite book |last=Sarkar |first=Jadunath |title=MILITARY HISTORY OF INDIA |publisher=M. C. Sarkar & Sons Private Ltd. |year=1960 |location=Calcutta |trans-title=}}
* {{Cite book |last=Andrade |first=Tonio |title=THE GUNPOWDER AGE: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=2016 |isbn=978-0-691-13597-7 |location=Princeton and Oxford |trans-title=}}
* {{Cite book |last=Peers |first=C. J. |title=Soldiers of the Dragon: Chinese Armies 1500 BC-AD 1840 |publisher=Osprey Publishing Ltd |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-84603-098-7 |location=Oxford |trans-title=}}
* {{Cite book|title=Science and civilisation in China: the gunpowder epic|last1=Needham|first1=Joseph|last2=Ho|first2=Peng Yoke|last3=Lu|first3=Gwei-Djen|last4=Wang|first4=Ling|date=1986|publisher=Cambridge university press|isbn=978-0-521-30358-3|location=Cambridge London New York [etc.]|pages=425–471}}

== External links ==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUPAxUoeZhM The Musket Used from Ottoman to Chinese Qing Empire  The Asian Serpentine Matchlock Musket]
{{Early firearms}}
[[Category:Early firearms]]
[[Category:Early modern firearms]]
[[Category:Weapons of the Ottoman Empire]]
[[Category:Muskets]]