What Is a Military Cartouche?

Ammunition Box

• An ammunition box is a container for safe transport and storage of ammunition. Modern ammunition boxes are made of metal with a rubber gasket around the lid. Paper ammunition boxes, being cheaper, were once common, but provided ineffective protection against moisture damage that could ruin the ammunition inside.

History

• Even though the word "cartouche" is French in origin, the technology of paper ammunition boxes is not. Cartouches have been used all over the world until the more reliable metal ones became widely available. According to British History Online, the first recorded use of cartouche as a cartridge box was in 1752 as a component of military stores.

Cartridge

• In the military world, the term "cartouche" was not limited to ammunition boxes. The term was also, perhaps confusingly, applied to a single, paper ammunition cartridge. Both uses of the word are now rare.

Inspection Mark

• Another use of the term "cartouche" in military circles is for the inspection mark on the stock of a rifle. After inspecting a rifle, the inspector would use a metal stamp to place a mark on the outside of the rifle stock as a guarantee the rifle had passed inspection.

Collectors

• Specialist collectors collect the various types of cartouches for their historical significance. The trade in rifle stock inspection marks may be the most intense, with several websites, books, and gun refurbishers specializing in the collection and dissemination of information about the wide variety of marks used before and during the U.S. Civil War.