Creation of the famed Prussian Needle Gun began in 1824, when gunsmith Johann Nikolaus von Dreyse first began experimenting with rifle designs. The son of a locksmith in S?mmerda, Dreyse spent 1809-1814 working in the Parisian gun factory of Jean-Samuel Pauly. A Swiss, Pauly tinkered with various experimental designs for breech-loading military rifles. In 1824, Dreyse returned home to S?mmerda and opened a business producing percussion caps. Utilizing the knowledge he gained in Paris, Dreyse began by designing a muzzle-loading rifle that fired a self-contained cartridge
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