The FN Browning M1900 is a

single action A trigger is a mechanism that actuates the function of a ranged weapon such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow, or speargun. The word may also be used to describe a switch that initiates the operation of other non-shooting devices such as a trap ...

semi-automatic pistol A semi-automatic pistol is a type of repeating single-chamber handgun ( pistol) that automatically cycles its action to insert the subsequent cartridge into the chamber (self-loading), but requires manual actuation of the trigger to actu ...

designed c. 1896 by

John Browning John Moses Browning (January 23, 1855 – November 26, 1926) was an American firearm designer who developed many varieties of military and civilian firearms, cartridges, and gun mechanisms many of which are still in use around the world. He m ...

for

Fabrique Nationale de Herstal Fabrique Nationale Herstal (), trading as FN Herstal and often referred to as Fabrique Nationale or simply FN, is a leading firearms manufacturer based in Herstal, Belgium. It is currently the largest exporter of military small arms in Europe. ...

(FN) and produced in Belgium at the turn of the 20th century. It was the first production handgun to use a slide.

History

The design was presented to arms manufacturer

FN Herstal Fabrique Nationale Herstal (), trading as FN Herstal and often referred to as Fabrique Nationale or simply FN, is a leading firearms manufacturer based in Herstal, Belgium. It is currently the largest exporter of military small arms in Europe. ...

in 1898, with production commencing the following year (then under the designation ''Modele 1899''). In 1900, an improved design featuring primarily a shorter barrel and wider grips was introduced as the M1900. These designations were applied retroactively after FN began manufacture of other Browning pistol designs; initially the M1900 was marketed as simply the "Pistolet Browning" (Browning Pistol). Production ceased only 11 years later, with a total of about 700,000+ units having been produced.

United States President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

owned a mother of pearl-gripped Modele 1899, which he regularly kept on his person and in his bedside drawer. It now resides in the NRA Firearms Museum.

Eugen Schauman Eugen Waldemar Schauman (russian: Евгений Владимирович Шауман, ''Evgeny Vladimirovich Shauman''); ( – ) was a Swedish speaking Finnish nationalist and nobleman. Schauman assassinated the Imperial Russian Governor-Ge ...

, a Finnish nationalist activist,

assassinated Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

the Governor-General

Nikolay Bobrikov Nikolay Ivanovich Bobrikov (russian: Никола́й Ива́нович Бо́бриков; in St. Petersburg – June 17, 1904 in Helsinki, Grand Duchy of Finland) was a Russian general and politician. He was the Governor-General of Finla ...

(the highest Russian authority in the

Grand Duchy of Finland The Grand Duchy of Finland ( fi, Suomen suuriruhtinaskunta; sv, Storfurstendömet Finland; russian: Великое княжество Финляндское, , all of which literally translate as Grand Principality of Finland) was the predecess ...

) with a Browning pistol on June 16, 1904, in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

. The act was followed by spontaneous anti-Russian celebrations in the streets of Helsinki and after the 1917 independence Schauman was considered to be a national hero of Finland.

An Jung-geun Ahn Jung-geun, sometimes spelled Ahn Joong-keun (; 2 September 1879 – 26 March 1910; baptismal name: Thomas Ahn ), was a Korean-independence activist, nationalist, and pan-Asianist. He is famous for assassination of Itō Hirobumi, the first ...

, a Korean-independence activist, assassinated the Resident-General of Korea

Itō Hirobumi was a Japanese politician and statesman who served as the first Prime Minister of Japan. He was also a leading member of the '' genrō'', a group of senior statesmen that dictated Japanese policy during the Meiji era. A London-educated sa ...

with this type of gun on October 26, 1909 in

Harbin railway station Harbin railway station () is a railway station on the Jingha railway, Binsui Railway, Labin Railway, Binbei Railway and Binzhou Railway. The station is in Nangang District, Harbin, Heilongjiang, China. History Songhuajiang station () was opened ...

. The pistol was popular in China from its introduction through

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

and was often copied and used as the basis for other designs. State-run arsenals produced serialized production runs for warlord militias, and local craftsmen produced one-off handmade versions. LA2-Blitz-0150 Browning-Selbstladepistole

LA2-Blitz-0150 Browning-Selbstladepistole

The is a copy of the M1900. Specimens examined by western authorities were marked with the date of 1964. A silenced variant was produced that featured a shortened slide to allow the threaded barrel to protrude far enough to attach the silencer.

Ammunition

The weapon is chambered for the

.32 ACP .32 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol, also known as .32 Automatic) is a centerfire pistol cartridge. It is a semi-rimmed, straight-walled cartridge developed by firearms designer John Browning, initially for use in the FN M1900 semi-automatic pi ...

, also known as 7.65×17mm Browning SR, "SR" denotes semi-rimmed.

Users

* * :Bought by the

Federal District A federal district is a type of administrative division of a federation, usually under the direct control of a federal government and organized sometimes with a single municipal body. Federal districts often include capital districts, and they ...

police * * :First acquired by police before 1917, in total up to a thousand were bought. The pistol was very popular in the civilian market and among early Finnish nationalist movement ''Voimaliitto.'' Also used by the State Railways and the Bank of Finland. * :Bought by police agencies * * :Popular sidearm with officers * :Issued to police forces and military officers

Conflicts

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and def ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

Russian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...

Finnish Civil War The Finnish Civil War; . Other designations: Brethren War, Citizen War, Class War, Freedom War, Red Rebellion and Revolution, . According to 1,005 interviews done by the newspaper ''Aamulehti'', the most popular names were as follows: Civil W ...

Warlord Era

Chaco War The Chaco War ( es, link=no, Guerra del Chaco, gn, Cháko Ñorairõ

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on main ...

Synonyms

This model is known by several names, including: *FN M1900 *FN Mle.1900 *Browning M1900 *Browning No.1

References

External links

FN 1900 pistol (Infographic tech. drawing)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fn M1900 .32 ACP semi-automatic pistols M1900 World War II infantry weapons of China 19th-century semi-automatic pistols