Mauser C-96 - heavy and powerful weapon, an unusual appearance - was developed by Mauser brothers. The history of this company deserves special attention.
Peter Paul Mauser (Mauser, Peter Paul fon) was born June 27, 1838 in Oberndorf and in 12 years, following in the footsteps of his father, started working on a weapons factory. Of all the education in the future of the famous armorer had only an elementary school. In 1868 Paul, together with his elder brother William Mauser and American Charles Draw the patented breech-loading rifle in the US, and in 1871, Prussia and Württemberg have adopted a single-shot rifle Mauser sample 1871 Recognition Mauser brothers was broadcast to them in 1874 . government arms factory, which was made famous by "Mauser Brothers and Co". The company headed by Wilhelm. After his death in 1882, Paul transformed the company into a "Vaffenfabrik Mauser AG" and in 1884 appointed a new manager - one of the three designers of the brothers - Fidel Federle.
In 1893 Federle brothers have developed an automatic pistol, and after 2 years, 15 March 1895 submitted modified in conjunction with the Paul Mauser and foreman Gaizer version, later dubbed Mauser C-96. Federle design was patented in the name of Paul Mauser first in Germany (German reyhspatent number 90430 dated 11 September 1895) and then in the UK (1896).
August 1, 1896 a new weapon has been demonstrated to members of the arms commission in Stuttgart, and in particular the Minister of Defence of Württemberg Schulte Shottenshtaynu background. Since 1897, the production of C-96 was put on stream, and in 1899-1902. Mauser pistol was tested during the 1st Boer War. Famous was the motto of the war hero Gen. Ben Wilhelm: «Met Got En Die Mauser! (With God and with Mauser!). " Until 1908, the plant 70 thousand. Guns were produced in Oberndorf.
Mauser C-96, nicknamed "Broomhandle" featured Marked in front of the trigger guard shoplifting box (so-called permanent store) with a hinged lid, placed "on-rifle", which is charged from the cage, a staggered arrangement of cartridges gate hidden in the receiver box block design trigger, adjustable sights. The wooden holster, which could be used as the butt, made it possible to combine the functions of a gun and a light carbine. By the pistol was specially designed cartridge 7.63 × 25 "Mauser", the basis of which the cartridge 7.65 "Borchardt" was taken.
In 1900 at the Mauser C-96 there were serious competitors - Georg Luger pistol (Borchardt-Luger) "Parabellum" pistol Browning. Against the background clearly stood out shortcomings C-96: large dimensions, loading inconvenience, complexity of manufacture and assembly and disassembly, the sensitivity to contamination. As a result, in Germany Mauser was adopted only a partial arms cavalry rangers in 1908, and is due to lack of Parabellum. At the same time it took to change the caliber of the C-96 to 9 mm, as in the regular cartridge 9 × 19 "Parabellum". These guns were marked with a red number "9" on the handle, as when firing 9 mm Mauser cartridge of caliber 7.63 mm occurred barrel gap. Another 6,000 pieces of Mauser were made for the Italian Navy and some of the Life Guards of the Turkish sultan.
However, submachine carbine Mauser acquired coveted popularity among members of African and Oriental expeditions. It is known that with the Mauser C-96 began his career Winston Churchill. It is said that during the Sudan Campaign, at the Battle of Omdurman in September 1898 Watch the 21 th Hussars, led by 25-year-old Lieutenant Churchill was surrounded by a vastly superior force of enemy forces. Quest has demonstrated undoubted advantage of semi-automatic firearms to the swords and spears.
In Russia the first Mauser called "Mauser number 2" or "Mauser in block" appeared in 1897 and were among the officers recommended for purchase of personal weapons. "Mauser number 1" called pocket 6.35 mm Model 1910 In 1913 Aeronautic part of the Main Directorate of the General Staff has identified C-96 "as the airplanes belonging." Mauser also staffed automobile and motorcycle parts. After a few years, "Comrade Mauser" was one of the most popular pistols in Russia. British aid turned white parts that Mauser came to Central Asia to Basmachi. In 1922-1930 gg. for the Red Army and the Cheka-OGPU were purchased large amounts of 7.63 mm Mauser, t. n. "Policing model." In the West, these guns are called "Bolo Mauser" - "Bolshevik Mauser." At that time, Germany was forced to comply with the terms of the Versailles Treaty, pursuant to which the gun had a barrel length of 98 mm with a total length of 255 mm. C-96 is actively used and thugs. In Moscow, it is with a revolver in the hands of a criminal Korol'kov robbed the world proletariat leader Vladimir Lenin. Known and St. Petersburg amateur Mauser - famous Lenka Panteleyev. Pathological passion for Mauser world famous polar explorer Ivan Papanin very clearly described in the story M. Weller "Mauser Papanin". Premium Mauser C-96 with the Order of the Red Banner on the handle obtained at the time Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the RSFSR S. Kamenev and commander of the First Cavalry Army S. Budyonny.
Mass distribution Mauser led to the fact that in July 1928 it was decided to make a regular patron of the 7.63-mm pistol cartridge "Mauser" in Russia. At the same caliber equated with "three-way" of 7.62 mm and a capsule taken from the "Revolver" cartridge.
Mauser C-96 was repeatedly modernized. One of the most famous models is the model 1912, which featured the best ballistics and incredible "survivability" of weapons. The Spanish-based schemes have developed C-96 pistol Astra 900 Astra Models 901-904 received translator fire mode. Some of the design elements of the firm Astra itself were then used "Veerke Mauser AG." Mauser automatic models 711 and 712 have also been provided with an interpreter modes of fire and had a removable magazines for 10, 20, 40 rounds. Unfortunately, automatic pistols with an interpreter showed extremely low accuracy of fire, so none of these models has not been accepted into service. In China, where the C-96 was nicknamed «Boxed Cannon», produced copies of various calibers up to .45 (11.43 mm). Incidentally, a Model 712 «Schnellfeur», made in China, went so-called "style of Hollywood" firing (it «Gangbanger Style»), when the gun is not in the vertical and in the horizontal plane. Because of the large spread of bullets in a vertical plane and the inability to conduct aimed fire in automatic mode during transient fire contacts the Chinese have adapted to fire "fan", with direct fire on the index finger "in line" with the barrel and release the hammer middle finger.
And yet, if you look closely to the blaster, which wielded Han Solo in "Star Wars. Episode IV: A New Hope »(Star Wars: Episode IV - New Hope), then it is possible to guess the familiar outlines of the same C-96. Indeed, when creating the image of fantastic weapons the basis was taken just Mauser.
Stocks Mauser were so significant that they were in use during World War II. In 1943, Guard Colonel Leonid Brezhnev was awarded just Mauser C-96. And even in Afghanistan and Chechnya in the capture of our fighters found gangs guns of this model, developed almost 100 years ago