Welcome back- at last we’ve assembled our cartouches and loaded the giberne! And how, you might ask?
With the template cut out…
…we place a lead ball in the top of the mandrel, and then roll it into the paper.
We use the “hole” in the table to secure the paper around the ball.
Then we fill it with a charge of powder – in this case, as a demonstration piece, we are used an aquarium gravel the same approximate density as gunpowder…
…and fold the tail of the cartouche around itself.
These are made into parcels of 10; three make a full giberne, which weighs around 4kg in total. Curiously, and in contrast to many other armies of this period, the only twine mentioned is used to secure the parcels together.
It is worth remembering that the same complement of 30 rounds is just one magazine in most modern military rifles!
Le Régiment Gatinois 