"Am I cixelsyd?" Topic

While putting together some SYW Swiss regiments using FreiKorps 15s, French line inf w/skirts, I was forced to fill in a few blanks with a few old Mini-fig French 15s I had lying about. For a time I couldn't figure out why the Minifig figures looked so odd next to the FreiKorps, somewhat smaller yes, but not disproportionately, the uniforms were the same then suddenly it hit me, they had their muskets on their left shoulder, the FreiKorps figures had them on their right shoulder. Which is correct, I'm tending towards the right shoulder cuz I'm a righty?

Based on period prints I would say right shoulder

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Almost all of my 28mm SYW figures carry their muskets against their left shoulder -- Sash & Saber, Minden, Crusader, Old Glory, Foundry, etc. I think it is quicker to bring a musket from the left shoulder to the firing position than from the right shoulder.

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Jim

Curious, Frederick, as most of those beautiful prints you linked to (at least those with shouldered muskets) seem to have the musket on the left shoulder!

Left shoulder keeps the lock away from your face. I'm more familiar with the AWI period drill books, but usually the only time the musket was on the right was for 'Advance Arms', which has the musket reversed so the trigger points forward, keeping the lock away from your face. Some more info here: link

They could have 'changed arms'?

anybody who has done arms drill knows you get build up of lactic acid in the muscles which makes the arms quite stiff, usually change over every 15 mins.

if in the right hand shoulder a command of change arms would bring back to the left hand shoulder before the command to bring to the firing position.

@per ardua
Makes a Helluva lotta sense. I seem to remember some friends of mine in the 1st Minnesota, re-enactment group, having their muskets on the right shoulder and complaining about how heavy the damn things were. I was a member of "Brackett's Battalion" for a very short time, that was a cavalry unit, but of course, we had cavalry carbines, shorter and much lighter.

For 7YW left shoulder only, right shoulder maybe in the WAS – when still the poses of matchlock muskets were used despite the already in use fire locks.

They would not have changed arms in any haphazard way, those soldiers were professionals and drilled according to their regulations.

Please consult the numerous contemporary plates of drill instructions.

It would be different off the battle field, like on the march, here soldiers could change shoulders, but they would carry the musket differently then when marching in battle.