I Have This Old Gun

Though Switzerland broke the ice by choosing the semi-automatic German Parabellum as its official sidearm as early as 1900, the accolade for the first major military power to adopt a self-loading handgun goes to Austria-Hungary and the Roth-Steyr Model 1907.

For tiger hunters in 19th-century India, there was a very real need for a backup handgun for self-defense, and the Howdah pistol was the answer.

Often unrecognized and underappreciated, the Mauser Model 1914/34 was one of the most popular German handguns of the 20th century.

On the eve of the American Civil War, there were a number of breechloading carbine designs available on the commercial market. One such design was the Maynard carbine, developed by Maryland dentist Dr. Edward Maynard.

The Remington Model 600, introduced in 1963, was a visually distinctive rifle, with a nylon shotgun-style vent rib on its barrel and a dogleg bolt handle that hearkened back to the Model 1917 military rifle that Remington manufactured for World War I.

After almost two decades of trial and development, by the end of the 1930s, the French military adopted the Model 1935A, its first official semi-automatic service pistol.

When it came to training new members of the military in World War II, the Ordnance Dept. chose the Hi-Standard Model B as its stand-in handgun trainer.

In the Middle East, a distinctive style of longrifle emerged that is known today as the jezail, a native name that described the arm's extraordinarily long barrel.

Webley Metropolitan Police revolvers were manufactured from 1883 to 1911 and issued at the discretion of division officers to be used by policemen who desired them and had exhibited an aptitude in their use.