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French soldier in a trench with a M1886 Lebel rifle, ca. 1916.
The Lebel rifle was developed by French General Baptiste Tramond and Colonel Basile Gras among others in 1886, by applying the recent inventions of smokeless powder ammunition and full-metal-jacket rifle bullets to an infantry rifle.
The ammunition for the rifle was designed by Lt. Colonel Lebel, whom the rifle would aqquire its name from. He developed an 8mm full-metal-jacket bullet known as the "Balle M", which was the first smokeless powder rifle cartridge made. The Balle M would later be designated as the 8mm Lebel rifle cartridge.
The Lebel rifle weighed 4.41 kg when loaded and was 130 cm long. The rifle could be equipped with a bayonet, bringing the weight to 4,89 kg. It used a bolt-action mechanism and had an effective firing range of 400 m.
The Lebel used a tube magazine of an impressive 8 rounds, with another 2 rounds stored in the chamber and elevator. Although while other rifles used stripper clips, the Lebel had to be loaded one round at a time.
In 1893, the Lebel received an improved model, which improved the bolt head as well as the rear sight. When the First World War broke out in 1914, the Lebel soon established itself as a reliable and hard-hitting weapon suitable for trench warfare.
However, it did come with its issues, such as the tube magazine mentioned before, being difficult to aim with due to a small sight, and continuous firing could lead to its user burning their hands due to an uncovered barrel.
Despite these flaws, the average French infantry still preferred the Lebel over the Berthier rifle, mainly due to the Berthier's sub-par 3-round magazine.
Some 3.5 million Lebel rifles were produced between 1886 and 1920, and it would continue to see consistent service in the French Army until 1960.
