Galand
Encyclopedia
Charles-François Galand (1832-1900) was a French
gunsmith who worked in Liege and Paris
, France
. He manufactured many revolvers for civilian and military use, including the Galand Revolver (also called the Galand-Sommerville or Galand-Perrin), the Tue Tue, and the tiny Le Novo. The Velo-dog
, developed from the Tue Tue and the Novo, was designed by Charles-François' son René in 1904.
The original Galand revolver was a double-action, open frame (no strap across the top of the cylinder) revolver patented in 1868. Military versions were produced in 9 mm while civilian versions were made in 12 mm. The gun is easily recognizable due to its long extraction lever, which stretches under the gun to form the trigger guard. Pulling the lever forward separates the barrel and cylinder from the rest of the gun. At the same time the extractor plate is blocked which catches any cartridges in the cylinder, thereby extracting them.
The first model was manufactured both in Liege and in Birmingham, England
by the British
arms firm Braendlin and Sommerville, and is therefore sometimes referred to as the Galand-Sommerville. Sommerville shared the patent for the case extracting system with Galand. The Galand-Perrin is an identical model which uses the Perrin cartridge (7 mm, 9 mm, and most famously 12 mm).
The Galand's double-action mechanism allowed for rapid firing but the longer trigger pull made this less accurate than single-action fire. The Galand's self-extracting system made loading the revolver much faster than contemporary gate-loaded pistols such as the Colt Peacemaker.
First distributed in October 1868, the Galand revolver sold briskly in France, at least in part due to fears over the looming Franco-Prussian War
of 1870.
Despite France's loss to the Germans the Galand performed successfully and the Imperial Russian
Navy
adopted the Galand model 1870 revolver in 1871. This revolver was manufactured under contract by Nagant
and Goltiakoff in Russia in 1878. The Romania
n Army also adopted the Galand.
In 1872 Galand improved the design with a closed frame, but failed to win a French military contract and began aiming most of his production at the civilian market. In 1893 Galand introduced the 8 mm Tue Tue (kill kill) hammerless pocket revolver, which continued in production until about 1935. Later versions were also sold in .32 S&W and .38 ACP, and some had an external hammer. The tiny Le Novo revolver, with a hinged trigger and no trigger guard, also featured a folding grip.
After Charles-François Galand's death in 1900 his son, René, continued the business until 1942. He created the Velo-dog
, a truly peculiar conceit in personal defence weapons. The name is a contraction of vélocipède (bicycle) and dog. The weapon was originally marketed as a defence for bicyclists during the bicycle craze which started at the end of the 19th century. Like the Le Novo the Velodog originally used a 5.5 mm center fire cartridge; it was also available in .22 caliber and 6.35 mm.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
gunsmith who worked in Liege and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. He manufactured many revolvers for civilian and military use, including the Galand Revolver (also called the Galand-Sommerville or Galand-Perrin), the Tue Tue, and the tiny Le Novo. The Velo-dog
Velo-dog
The Velo-Dog was a pocket revolver originally created in France by Charles-François Galand in the late 19th century as a defense for cyclists against dog attacks. The name is a portmanteau of "velocipede" and "dog"....
, developed from the Tue Tue and the Novo, was designed by Charles-François' son René in 1904.
The original Galand revolver was a double-action, open frame (no strap across the top of the cylinder) revolver patented in 1868. Military versions were produced in 9 mm while civilian versions were made in 12 mm. The gun is easily recognizable due to its long extraction lever, which stretches under the gun to form the trigger guard. Pulling the lever forward separates the barrel and cylinder from the rest of the gun. At the same time the extractor plate is blocked which catches any cartridges in the cylinder, thereby extracting them.
The first model was manufactured both in Liege and in Birmingham, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
arms firm Braendlin and Sommerville, and is therefore sometimes referred to as the Galand-Sommerville. Sommerville shared the patent for the case extracting system with Galand. The Galand-Perrin is an identical model which uses the Perrin cartridge (7 mm, 9 mm, and most famously 12 mm).
The Galand's double-action mechanism allowed for rapid firing but the longer trigger pull made this less accurate than single-action fire. The Galand's self-extracting system made loading the revolver much faster than contemporary gate-loaded pistols such as the Colt Peacemaker.
First distributed in October 1868, the Galand revolver sold briskly in France, at least in part due to fears over the looming Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
of 1870.
Despite France's loss to the Germans the Galand performed successfully and the Imperial Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
Navy
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
adopted the Galand model 1870 revolver in 1871. This revolver was manufactured under contract by Nagant
Nagant
The firm Fabrique d'armes Émile et Léon Nagant was established in 1859 in Liège, Belgium, to manufacture firearms.Émile and Léon Nagant were brothers, and probably best known for their important contributions to the design of the Mosin-Nagant Russian service rifle, adopted in 1891...
and Goltiakoff in Russia in 1878. The Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n Army also adopted the Galand.
In 1872 Galand improved the design with a closed frame, but failed to win a French military contract and began aiming most of his production at the civilian market. In 1893 Galand introduced the 8 mm Tue Tue (kill kill) hammerless pocket revolver, which continued in production until about 1935. Later versions were also sold in .32 S&W and .38 ACP, and some had an external hammer. The tiny Le Novo revolver, with a hinged trigger and no trigger guard, also featured a folding grip.
After Charles-François Galand's death in 1900 his son, René, continued the business until 1942. He created the Velo-dog
Velo-dog
The Velo-Dog was a pocket revolver originally created in France by Charles-François Galand in the late 19th century as a defense for cyclists against dog attacks. The name is a portmanteau of "velocipede" and "dog"....
, a truly peculiar conceit in personal defence weapons. The name is a contraction of vélocipède (bicycle) and dog. The weapon was originally marketed as a defence for bicyclists during the bicycle craze which started at the end of the 19th century. Like the Le Novo the Velodog originally used a 5.5 mm center fire cartridge; it was also available in .22 caliber and 6.35 mm.