Three years ago, I got around to it and found that I could not pull the lever down to open the action. I put it aside and concentrated on cleaning and sorting the others that were in better shape first. This rifle showed sign of neglect when I got it. In Sicily there is no game of the size needed to do this Martini justice, and the last time it was used according to records was before WWII on a wild boar drive.
I am also his namesake, the first one in the family since his death.Įnough patter on History, this is a site for firearms. Six years ago, I formally inherited these guns ( minus the muzzle loader which was never mentioned again anywhere in his papers ) together with other firearms that belonged to my family. Unrecalled to active duty in WWI due to his infirmity, Marcel and his family lived a quiet life in Sicily, until the the Spanish influeza pandemic killed all three of them within weeks of one another in 1919. The couple were rather older than average, Marcel being 45 and Maria 32. Again through family lore and writings he was a very friendly dapper man, the surviving images him are reminiscent of another Belgian of the same period, Poirot as seen on TV! Family lore says the two fell in love at first sight, so much so that they were married the same year and settled in Northern Sicily the seat of my GG Grandfather. At court Col Marcel B, was introduced to the Marchesina Donna Maria Contessa della V, my Great Great Aunt who was at court with her elder brother, my GG Grandfather. Marcel was at the forefront of relief efforts there and for his efforts and organisation in Messina he was awarded a gold medal by King Vittorio Emanuele of Itay in 1909.
In 1908 a HUGE earthquake devasted Messina in Sicily and Reggio in the southern tip of Italy. According to his diaries he was deemed unfit for regular Military Duties and after his recovery was sent to Rome as part of the Belgian Delegation to the Holy See. That same year he was commisioned Colonel. In 1899, a severely ill Marcel was returned home to recover. This part of Africa was notorious for Malaria and other tropical fevers and Marcel was not immune. This fact also prompted him to order from the same firm, a neat Mauser 1891 model in 7x57 to shoot game for the pot. He later wrote in his diary that meat of small and medium game was ruined unless he shot them in the head with this rifle. Which he did, from Elephants for throphies, to gazelle for the pot. Charles Francotte also implied that Marcel could use the same round for all sorts of game. Papers in my possession show the Charles Francotte advised Marcel to chamber rifle in the 455/577 English Military cartridge as it was most likely to be available in Africa should he run low on ammunition. As one can surmise, the family was well off, and the firearms that Capt Marcel took with him were all commisioned to his order from the famous firm of Auguste Francotte. The subject here.Ĭapitaine Marcel was the third son of a Belgian Count and well connected to the Court of King King Leopold II of Belgium. 50 revolver and a big bore Martini Rifle. With him he took,a 16 gauge side by side shotgun, a single barrelled rifled muzzle loader, a five shot. He graduated with distiction from the Belgian Royal Military Academy. Captain Marcel, was an up and coming officer on a fast track. He was sent in advance of Belgium taking over the guardianship of this troublesome (then and even now ) spot in Africa, through the International African Association. In 1888, A Captaine Marcel B, arrived in Africa, in what later became the Belgian Congo.
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