Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle
- Category
- Rifle
- Barrel
- 832 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.42 kg
- Introduced
- 1873
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle is a single-shot, turning-bolt-action service rifle chambered in the 11x52mmR Dutch Beaumont black-powder cartridge. A colonial-service variant of the M1871 Beaumont infantry rifle, it was accepted by the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL) as the Klin-Geweer M.73 for use in the Dutch East Indies. Its barrel, breech, sights and bayonet were browned to resist corrosion in the tropical climate, and unlike the European army rifles it retained the original bolt-locking safety latch and was never updated with a repeating magazine.
Browned from muzzle to bayonet against the humidity of the Indies, the colonial Beaumonts were deliberately frozen in time: while Beaumonts back in the Netherlands were cut open and fitted with Italian Vitali box magazines in the 1880s, the KNIL's M.73 rifles soldiered on as single-shot black-powder arms through the long Aceh War.
Mechanically identical to the M1871 infantry rifle but finished and equipped for colonial tropical service. Colonial rifles were left unmodernized, retaining the single-shot black-powder action and original sights rather than receiving the Vitali magazine conversion applied to European-stationed Beaumonts.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Geweerfabriek Hembrug
- Category
- Rifle
- Country
- Netherlands
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1873 to 1895
- Variant of
- Colonial
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 832 mm
- Overall length
- 1320 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.42 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Bolt action
- Firing mechanism
- Internal hammer
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Capacity
- 1
- Magazine
- Internal
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- Browned
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 405 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 2075 J
- Effective range
- 400 m
- Maximum range
- 900 m
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Browned metal finish
Quadrant rear sight
Bayonet lug
Cleaning rod
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 1,612 rifles | 4.42 kg | 3.50 kg | Heavier than about 90% |
| Overall lengthAmong 1,557 rifles | 1320 mm | 1080 mm | Longer than about 90% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 1,659 rifles | 832 mm | 584 mm | Longer than about 90% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 1,611 rifles | 1 | 5 | Holds fewer rounds than about 90% |
Answers
Questions about the Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle
How much does the Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle weigh?
The Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle weighs 4.42 kg (9.73 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle?
The Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle is chambered in 11x52mmR Dutch Beaumont.
How many rounds does the Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle hold?
The Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle holds 1 rounds, fed from an internal magazine.
How long is the Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle?
The Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle is 1320 mm (52.0 in) long overall, with a 832 mm (32.8 in) barrel.
Who makes the Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle?
The Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle is made by Geweerfabriek Hembrug (Netherlands). It was designed by Edouard de Beaumont.
When was the Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle introduced?
The Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle was introduced in 1873 and discontinued in 1895.
How does the Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle operate?
The Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle uses a bolt action, and its firing mechanism is internal hammer.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL)
- 1873
Provenance
Confidence in this record
70%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/beaumont-m1873-colonial-rifle' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "beaumont-m1873-colonial-rifle", "name": "Beaumont M1873 Colonial Rifle", "manufacturer": { "id": "hembrug-zaandam", "name": "Geweerfabriek Hembrug", "countryCode": "NL", "foundedYear": 1679, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "fe83c3872cc981eea7f93e8605c860b11b13a06dddb30f170c6d6caa33fb4cbd" }, "category": { "id": "rifle", "name": "Rifle", "description": "Long-barreled firearms designed for accurate shooting" }, "country_of_origin": "NL", "year_introduced": 1873, "barrel_length_mm": 832, "weight_empty_g": 4415, "action_type": "bolt_action"}