Some military rifles capture the imagination more than others. For many, the Short, Magazine Lee-Enfield (SMLE) represents a rich period of history that, oftentimes, is chronicled by the many markings left on the guns themselves. The Lee-Enfield platform emerged as the standard British service arm in 1889, at the height of empire, and the battle rifle shepherded soldiers of the Crown into the twilight years of British colonialism.
Because of the Lee-Enfield’s remarkably long service life, it’s not surprising that it showed up throughout British dominion and, later, in British commonwealth countries. Of these many countries, one in particular relied on the Lee-Enfield platform for far longer than many others: India. Magazine Lee-Metfords and Magazine Lee-Enfields saw Indian service first in British hands and later in the hands of Indian soldiers. In the last decades of the 20th century, SMLEs were issued solely for law-enforcement use, a practice that continues today.
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