The Ferguson rifle, an invention by British MajorPatrick Ferguson, was most likely the first breech loadingrifle to be adopted by any organized military force. It was used for an interval by the British in the American Revolutionary war, but its superior firepower was unappreciated as being outside the paradigm of armed lines of men standing face to face.
The British East India Company troops suffer a crushing defeat at the hands of the Marathas in the Battle of Wadgaon in January 1779. This is the first ever defeat for the Company's troops since Plassey.
