Bergmann-Bayard model 1910
Encyclopedia
The Bergmann-Bayard was a German designed semi-automatic pistol produced under license in Belgium.

Bergmann Mars

The Bergmann Mars was produced in 1901, and was the first Bergmann design aimed squarely at the military market, with a comparatively powerful 9x23mm Bergmann round. It aroused the interest of a number of armies and was the subject of several trials in competition with the Mauser C96
Mauser C96
The Mauser C96 is a semi-automatic pistol that was originally produced by German arms manufacturer Mauser from 1896 to 1937...

, Mannlicher
Mannlicher
Mannlicher may refer to:* Ferdinand Mannlicher , a Bohemian-German/Austrian weapon designer*: various guns bearing his name:** Mannlicher-Schönauer rifle** Steyr Mannlicher M1894 pistol** Steyr Mannlicher M1901 pistol...

, Browning
John Browning
John Moses Browning , born in Ogden, Utah, was an American firearms designer who developed many varieties of military and civilian firearms, cartridges, and gun mechanisms, many of which are still in use around the world...

 and Luger pistols.

Model 1903

The Bergmann-Bayard Model 1903 was adopted by the Spanish army in 1905 as the Pistola Bergmann de 9 mm. modelo 1903. Unable to find a German manufacturer to complete the Spanish order for 3000 pistols, Theodor Bergmann
Theodor Bergmann
Theodor Bergmann was a German businessman and industrialist best remembered for the various revolutionary firearms his companies released. Like many entrepreneurs of the era, his activity was centered on bicycles and the nascent automobile...

 turned to a Belgian manufacturer, Anciens Etablissements Pieper
Anciens Etablissements Pieper
Anciens Etablissements Pieper is a Belgian arms manufacturer established under the name Henri Pieper in Herstal, Belgium in 1884 , by Henri Pieper. In 1898, it was renamed to Nicolas Pieper, and it became the Anciens Etablissements Pieper in 1905. It stayed in business until approximately 1950...

 (who used the trademark "Bayard") and who completed the order. The modified pistol was known as the Bergmann Bayard 1908 (not to be confused with Pieper-Bayard 1908
Bayard 1908
The Bayard 1908 is a semi-automatic pistol designed by Belgian Bernard Clarus in 1908 as a short-range self-defense handgun. The Bayard 1908 was sold on the civilian market, chambered in .25 ACP, .32 ACP, and .380 ACP...

), or in Spain as the Pistola Bergmann de 9 mm. modelo 1908. Although adopted in 1908 delivery of the approximately 3,000 weapons was not completed until two years later. Meanwhile other manufacturers such as Campo-Giro had adopted the 9mm Bergmann-Bayard round and, due to its long history of use in Spanish submachine guns, carbines and pistols, today it is most commonly known as the 9mm Largo.

Model 1910 and Model 1910/21

At the same time the Bergmann-Bayard model 1910 was adopted by the Danish military. A total of 4,840 M1910 Bergmann Bayards was initially delivered to the Danish Army. The pistol was produced in Belgium until 1914, when production ceased during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 and never resumed. The Bergmann-Bayard was later produced in Denmark from 1922-1935.

Several modifications to the original design, such as an improved extractor and bolt; a screw to retain the sideplate instead of a spring-loaded catch; and a new grip design extending the full length of the backstrap to the frame were made. The original grips were made of Trolit, a checkered plastic material similar to Bakelite. It was, however, prone to chipping and warping, and the majority of new 1910/21 models was fitted with checkered wooden grips.

More than 2,200 Danish Bergmann-Bayard pistols were produced in Copenhagen. In addition, most of the prewar M1910s delivered to the Danish army by AEP were converted to meet the new specifications. These were restamped "M1910/21" beneath the Societe Anonyme Anciens Establissments Pieper on the left side of the barrel extension. The last Danish 1910/21 models were built in 1935, but they remained standard issue for the Danish military until 1946 when they were replaced by the Browning Hi-Power
Browning Hi-Power
The Browning Hi-Power is a single-action, 9 mm semi-automatic handgun. It is based on a design by American firearms inventor John Browning, and completed by Dieudonné Saive at Fabrique Nationale of Herstal, Belgium. Browning died in 1926, several years before the design was finalized...

.

Other variants

German forces received between 1,000-2,000 modified Model 1910 pistols from the occupied AEP factory. Comparatively speaking these are very rare, and had a distinctive wooden grip fitted and changed markings, but seem to have been mechanically identical.

Greece also adopted the pistol in 1913 (presumably the Model 1910) but no deliveries are believed to have taken place due to the outbreak of war.

Bergmann-Bayard pistols in .45 ACP
.45 ACP
The .45 ACP , also known as the .45 Auto by C.I.P., is a cartridge designed by John Browning in 1904, for use in his prototype Colt semi-automatic .45 pistol and eventually the M1911 pistol adopted by the United States Army in 1911.-Design and history:The U.S...

were submitted for US army trials in 1906, but were unsuccessful.

External links

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