In 1805, the French military adopted a new cavalry pistol for general issue, which would continue to serve the country for roughly half a century. The new Model AN 13 (Year 13) pistol was designated based upon the French Republican Calendar, with the first year being 1792, when the French Republic was officially established as a result of the French Revolution. The pistol was a refinement and improvement of the earlier AN IX (Year 9) pistol, with a redesigned forend, a single strap barrel band replacing the double strapped band of its predecessor and the elimination of the band spring, replacing it with a set screw. Like its predecessor the AN 13 was a single shot, flintlock muzzleloading pistol with a nominally 17.1mm bore, a 201mm barrel and a 370mm overall length. The pistol was brass mounted with the iron barrel, lock and extended backstrap left polished bright. A lanyard ring was typically attached to the bottom of the brass buttcap, but not always. No sights were incorporated into the design. The forward action lock was marked by the French national armory that produced the pistol, and the barrel tang was marked with the model of the pistol. Some 300,000 of the AN 13 Pistols were produced by the French arsenals at Charleville, Maubeuge, St. Etienne, Tulle, Versailles, Mutzig and Torino between 1806 and 1814. The pistol was superseded by the Model 1816 pistol but continued to serve the French military well into the mid-19^th century. The AN 13 was the primary French military pistol during the bulk of the Napoleonic Wars period, and no doubt thousands were present on the battlefield at Waterloo where Napoleon was handed his final defeat.

In 1840, the French adopted the percussion ignition system and the following year large numbers of AN 13 pistols were altered to percussion. These guns were marked on their tangs with the addition of a letter “T” after the model designation, indicating the gun had been “transformed”. In the 1850s the French adopted rifled arms for general issue, based upon the expanding base ammunition concepts of Claude Minié. Between 1854 and 1857 the French arsenals again altered many of the previously percussion converted AN 13 pistols still in service to rifled arms. The bores were rifled with four lands and grooves of approximately equal width, with the process expanding the bores to a nominal .70 caliber (officially 17.5mm). A rudimentary fixed rear sight was added to the breech tang and a front sight was added as well. The ramrod was also changed. The original button head rammer for round ball was replaced with a heavy cupped head ramrod similar to that used by French rifles of the period. These rifled arms were again marked on the tang noting the modifications with the designation “bis”, literally meaning “encore”, or more simply “again”. Thus, the new designation was “Model AN 13 Transformed Again”. Amazingly, at a time when many militaries around the world were transitioning to the use of percussion revolvers and eventually cartridge revolvers, the French continued to keep the single-shot, AN 13 pistols in the field in at least limited service through the period of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871. It would not be until the general adoption of the Model 1873 11mm Ordnance Revolver that the AN 13 would end its military service with the French, jumping from a percussion muzzleloader to a self-contained cartridge revolver and skipping over the percussion revolver period completely.

Offered here is a VERY GOOD+ condition French Model AN 13 pistol that remains in its original flintlock configuration. The breech tang is stamped with the model of the gun: M AN13. The gun was originally produced at the French Imperial Arsenal at St. Etienne in the south-eastern part of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. The lock is clearly marked in two lines of script: 

M. imp.

de St. etienne

along with various French controller and inspector marks. The left angled breech flat is dated C 1811 and also shows the additional proof and inspection mark of a large script B. The stock flat opposite the lock is stamped with the rack number 16. Considering that this gun managed to escape being altered to percussion, it seems reasonable that the gun was no longer in French service by the 1840s, suggesting it was captured, lost or stolen from service. Various French controller and sub-inspector marks are found throughout the pistol with a 2 or a {CROWN}/2 mark being found on many parts. 

As noted, the pistol remains in about VERY GOOD+ condition with all markings in the metal remaining relatively crisp and clear. The gun remains complete and original throughout. The iron barrel, tang and lock all have a medium pewter gray patina with scattered light surface oxidation and minor discoloration. The metal was likely cleaned at some point in the past in the European fashion and is now toning down to a dull steel gray. The metal is partly smooth, and shows evenly distributed light pitting, and pinpricking. The lock is in mechanically FINE condition and functions correctly on all positions. The steel (frizzen) remains fully functional as well, and both the mainspring and the frizzen spring remain strong and tight. A modern piece of flint and a leather wrap are in the jaws of the cock to enhance the displayability of the gun. The bore of the pistol is in GOOD+ to NEAR VERY GOOD condition. It remains partly bright, with some scattered discoloration and oxidation. The smooth bore shows some scattered areas of moderate pitting, with the balance relatively smooth. The brass furniture has a medium, mellow golden patina over all of the surfaces. There is no lanyard ring in the butt, suggesting that this pistol may have seen use with a branch of service other than the cavalry. The original button head ramrod is present in the channel under the barrel. The rod is full-length and still retains good threads on the end. The stock of the pistol is in about VERY GOOD condition as well. The stock is solid and full-length and free of any breaks or repairs. The stock appears to have been lightly sanded at some point, leaving the backstrap slightly proud of the wood, although that may be related to shrinkage as well. The stock retains good edges and any sanding was minimal. The stock appears to have had some oil finish added at some point, which has left the wood quite attractive. As would be expected, the stock shows only the usual scattered bumps, dings and mars from handling and use, but no abuse. 

Overall, this is a solid and attractive example of an original French Model AN 13 Pistol in original flintlock configuration. The gun remains in very nice condition with crisp markings, a good action and nice bore. This gun would be a very nice addition to any collection of 19^th century European military arms, particularly a collection of Napoleonic period weapons, as the 1811 date indicates it was produced and in the field long before Waterloo in 1815.