Alexander Henry

Alexander Henry (1818–1894) was a Scottish gun maker, based in Edinburgh, and designer of the Henry rifling and barrel used in the Martini–Henry rifle. He submitted a rifle to the competition organised by the British government for a replacement for their existing Snider–Enfield service weapon. His breech action and barrel were both judged to be the best (and won the prizes). The War Office did not adopt its action, preferring that of Friedrich von Martini, but did adopt its seven-grooved barrel rifling scheme. The resulting Martini-Henry rifle is named after von Martini and himself. Henry is a fascinating character, from a number of personal tragedies in his family, to some disastrous other business ventures, but he also was the "First Volunteer", the first signatory to the creation of the Queen’s Edinburgh Rifle Volunteers, Moderator of the High Constables of Edinburgh, a Justice of the Peace, a Freemason (initiated in Lodge St Clair No 349) and an Edinburgh town councillor. He was admitted to The Royal Scottish Society Of Arts in March 1856.