[unspellable]

What were the British Navy and the British Army using for handguns in the Crimean war?

[4v50 Gary]

First, I've never studied the Crimean War with regards to sidearms.

However, looking at Blackmore's British Military Firearms: 1650-1850 he illustrates it with photographs of the Adams Revolver, the Deane, Adams & Deane Revolver, the Colt London Navy, and the London Armoury Company revolver. It would not be unusual for an officer to privately purchase a sidearm to carry into the field.

[mec]

Colt's London Armory was in business for a few years in the mid 50s. He made something over 20,000 navies, 700 Dragoons and a few pocket revolvers according to R.L. Wilson. Several officers are mentioned with specific revolvers with one mention of a Dragoon. Military officers were major customers for Colt's stuff and they saw a lot of use across the Empire. After the patents all played out in the mid 50's, the british developed a preference for the Adams and other large bore double actions but the Crimean period was right in the hayday of the London armory.

Colt was also hawking his revolvers in russia and considering setting up a factory at Tula. Distributed presentation Dragoons and others to The Czar and the Sultan of Turkey among others.

[Ole-sailor]

Single shot percussion pistols were still fairly common in both the Army and Navy during the Crimean War period, although nearly obsolete. These would have been considered "boarding pistols" in the Navy or "horse pistols"
(to be carried in holsters on the horse's saddle) by the Cavalry and artillery.
Some percussion revolvers were being procured during the Crimean War, probably various Adams or Tranter models.
Officers provided their own sidearms and they chose a wide variety of different types, but tended to go with more modern, better made, and more expensive arms. These likely included revolvers made by Adams, Tranter (or their variants) and some Colts. [the Ordnance did purchase some 1851 Colt 'London Navy' Pistols, 36 cal.Revolvers, presumably for officer issue.] It is possible that some pinfire revolvers were also used, although likely made in France or Belgium. Perhaps a few chose single shot percussion pistols, but probably very few.
Hope this helps.
A.W.F. Taylorson's "The Revolver 1818-1865" would be a good book for further research.

[Colt46]

I seem to remember many carried Navy Colts as they were the best thing going at that time. There would have been just about everything under the sun carried during the conflict.

[unspellable]

What sort of single shot percussion pistols would the navy have? Anything like the Tower or Sea Service flint locks?

[Colt46]

Single shots might run the gamut of everything but the kitchen sink. I've seen Tower flintlocks converted to percussion. I'm thinking that most of the Officers with money went to higher end makers. Egg, Manton, Mortimer, there were hundreds of English gunmakers then and quality firearms were pretty easy to obtain.

[mec]

In 1842, England, the United states and others replaced their flintlocks with percussion arms including pistols. The Tower Model was pretty much the same as the East India Company Pistol
The American Aston-johnson was a bit smaller in caliber but about the same general design.

Colt had renewed his American revolver patents but no longer had a monopoly in England. He did still have something of a step up on the Adams, Tranter and others in the area of mass production at the time of the Crimean War. At about the same time, Richard Francis Burton was in Africa - Harrari and mentioned both the Adams Revolver and the "Colt Sixshooter" - probably a Navy.