The paper cartridge was an eighteenth-century invention that revolutionized infantry firing rates. Before cartridges, a musketeer carried his powder loose in a flask and his ball in a pouch — loading required measuring powder, finding a ball, and seating both separately, a slow and unreliable process under combat stress. The cartridge solved the problem by pre-packaging a measured powder charge and a ball together in a paper tube, sealed at both ends. The soldier kept eighteen to thirty cartridges in his cartridge box, ready to use. The first active step in loading was "Tear cartridge" — the soldier brought the cartridge to his mouth, bit the paper open, held the ball in his teeth, and poured the powder into the pan and the barrel before spitting the ball into the muzzle. The British army standardized on the paper cartridge in the 1750s; by 1780 every line infantryman carried them, and every drillmaster expected the bite to be done in two seconds or less.

This figure shows a 43rd Foot infantryman at the "Tear cartridge" step — musket held horizontally across his body to keep the muzzle clear, right hand bringing the cartridge up to his mouth, the bite about to happen. He wears the standard 1780 British line uniform: scarlet coat with white facings, white cross-belts with cartridge box at the right hip, white waistcoat and breeches, black knee gaiters, tricorne with white binding. He pairs naturally with the British 43rd Foot Ramming Cartridge (a later step in the same loading cycle), the British 43rd Foot at "Make Ready" (the step just before firing), and the British 43rd Foot Sergeant with Halberd (the NCO calling the cadence) — together composing a sequence of the British loading drill.

1/30 scale (60mm), matte-painted, single figure boxed. Catalog number 16198. As with the rest of the W. Britain modern range, the painting is photographic-quality detail intended to read well in dioramas and display cases.