Spanish Pistol with Miquelet Lock

Pistols were part of the soldier’s gear on the Spanish frontier in Texas. A 1784 Spanish report for Texas listed 328 pistols in San Antonio’s inventory. The soldiers of the presidio at San Antonio de Béxar protected the people of this important Spanish outpost.

Spanish soldiers were required to carry a leather shield, a lance, a sword, two pistols, and an escopeta (small musket). The pistols were always worn as a pair and in Spanish Texas were most often used for defense.

Unlike the French, the Spanish in Texas did not trade firearms with the Indigenous people living in the area. Spanish documents indicate that in some cases, however, they did give them as gifts to important tribal leaders. The giving of gifts by Europeans to Indigenous peoples was part of a larger strategy of diplomacy. Gifts, which often indicated the wealth of the giver, were used to establish and maintain relationships, facilitate trade and alliances, and build support for European colonizers.

The Spanish markings on the barrel date the pistol to a maker in Madrid, Spain in the late 1700s. The lock, which later became known as a miquelet lock, was common from the 1600 to 1900s.