Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta (; "Pietro Beretta Weapons Factory") is a

privately held A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose Stock, shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in their respective listed markets. Instead, the Private equi ...

Italian

firearms manufacturing company The following list of modern armament manufacturers presents major companies producing modern weapons and munitions for military, paramilitary, government agency and civilian use. The companies are listed by their full name followed by the short ...

operating in several countries. Its firearms are used worldwide for various civilian, law enforcement, and military purposes. Sporting arms account for three-quarters of sales; Beretta is also known for marketing shooting clothes and accessories. Founded in 1526, Beretta is the oldest active firearm manufacturer and one of the oldest continuously operating companies in the world. Its inaugural product was the

arquebus An arquebus ( ) is a form of long gun that appeared in Europe and the Ottoman Empire during the 15th century. An infantryman armed with an arquebus is called an arquebusier. The term ''arquebus'' was applied to many different forms of firearms ...

barrel; by all accounts Beretta-made barrels equipped the Venetian fleet at the

Battle of Lepanto The Battle of Lepanto was a naval warfare, naval engagement that took place on 7 October 1571 when a fleet of the Holy League (1571), Holy League, a coalition of Catholic states arranged by Pope Pius V, inflicted a major defeat on the fleet of t ...

in 1571. Beretta has supplied weapons for every major European war since 1650.

History

Val Trompia, a northern Italian river valley in the

Province of Brescia The province of Brescia (; Brescian: ) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Lombardy region of Italy. It has a population of some 1,265,964 (as of January 2019) and its capital is the city of Brescia.With an area of 4,785 km2, it is the ...

Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...

, has been mined for iron ore since the time of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, Val Trompia was known for its ironworks; after the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

, it came to be a center for the manufacture of weapons. By the mid-16th century, Val Trompia had forty ironworks supplied by fifty mines and eight smelters. The birthplace of Beretta is in the village of Gardone, located on the banks of the Mella river in the middle of Val Trompia (i.e., between the upper and lower valley). The Beretta forge was in operation from about 1500, although the first documented transaction is a contract dated 3 October 1526, for 185

barrels, for which the Republic of Venice was to pay 296 ducats to ''Maestro di Canne'' (master gun-barrel maker)

Bartolomeo Beretta Bartolomeo Beretta (c. 1490 – c. 1565), known as ''maestro di canne'' (master gun-barrel maker), was an Italian artisan from Lombardy who, by 1526, had established the arms manufacturing enterprise Beretta. Beretta worked at Gardone in Val Tr ...

. The original account document for the order of those barrels is now stored in the ''Archivio di Stato di Venezia'' in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. By the end of the 17th century, Beretta had become the second largest gun barrel maker in Gardone. Under the guild system, the knowledge of gun barrel fabrication that had been bequeathed to Jacopo (1520/25 – ...) by his father Bartolomeo (1490 – 1565/68) was then passed down to Jacopo's son, Giovannino (1550 – post-1577), and then to his grandson Giovan Antonio (1577 – post-1649), and it continued to be passed down in this manner until guilds were abolished by

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

after his conquest of the Venetian Republic in 1797. The same family has owned Beretta for almost five hundred years; it is a founding member of Les Henokiens, an association of bicentenary companies that are family-owned and operated. In 1918, the

Beretta Model 1918 The Moschetto Automatico Revelli-Beretta Mod. 1915 (Commonly known as the Beretta Model 1918) was a self-loading carbine that entered service in 1918 with the Italian Armed Forces. Designed as a semi-automatic carbine, the weapon came with an ove ...

, one of the first

submachine gun A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine (firearms), magazine-fed automatic firearm, automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to descri ...

s in the world, was fielded by the Italian army. Beretta manufactured

rifle A rifle is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting and higher stopping power, with a gun barrel, barrel that has a helical or spiralling pattern of grooves (rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus o ...

s and

pistol A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...

s for the Italian military until the 1943 Armistice between Italy and the Allied forces during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Once the Wehrmacht controlled northern Italy, the Germans seized Beretta and continued using it to produce arms until the 1945 German surrender in Italy. During that time, the quality of the exterior finish of the weapons diminished—-late-war specimens were much inferior to both the pre-war and mid-war weapons—-but their efficacy remained excellent. The last shipment of Type I Rifles left Venice for Japan in a

U-boat U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...

in 1942. After World War II, Beretta repaired the American

M1 Garand The M1 Garand or M1 rifleOfficially designated as U.S. rifle, caliber .30, M1, later simply called Rifle, Caliber .30, M1, also called US Rifle, Cal. .30, M1 is a semi-automatic rifle that was the service rifle of the United States Army, U.S. ...

s that the U.S. had given Italy. Beretta modified the M1 into the

Beretta BM-59 The BM59 is an automatic battle rifle developed in Italy in 1959. It is based on the M1 Garand rifle, chambered in 7.62×51mm NATO, modified to use a detachable magazine, and capable of selective fire. Later revisions incorporated other features ...

rifle, which is similar to the M14

battle rifle A battle rifle is a service rifle chambered to fire a fully powered cartridge. The term "battle rifle" is a retronym created largely out of a need to differentiate automatic rifles chambered for fully powered cartridges from automatic rifles cha ...

. Armourers consider the BM-59 rifle to be superior to the M14 rifle in some ways because it is more accurate under certain conditions. After the war, Beretta continued to develop firearms for the Italian army and police force, as well as the civilian market. In the 1970s, Beretta also started a manufacturing plant in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. A contract between Beretta and the Brazilian government was signed, under which Beretta produced Beretta 92s for the

Brazilian army The Brazilian Army (; EB) is the branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible, externally, for defending the country in eminently terrestrial operations and, internally, for guaranteeing law, order and the constitutional branches, subordina ...

until 1980. Later this plant was sold to

Taurus Taurus is Latin for 'bull' and may refer to: * Taurus (astrology), the astrological sign ** Vṛṣabha, in vedic astrology * Taurus (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac * Taurus (mythology), one of two Greek mythological ch ...

, who continues to manufacture the Beretta 92 under the name of PT92 using the same tools and labour that Beretta used, without the need for a license from Beretta, since the design is based on the original Beretta 92, for which the patents have expired. In the late 1980s, Beretta acquired several domestic competitors (notably Benelli and Franchi) and some foreign companies (notably in Finland). Also in the 1980s, Beretta enjoyed a renewal of popularity in North America after its

Beretta 92 The Beretta 92 (also Beretta 96 and Beretta 98) is a series of semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. History Carlo Beretta, Giuseppe Mazzetti and Vittorio Valle, all experienced firearms designers, contributed to ...

pistol was selected as the service handgun for the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

(as the "

M9 pistol The Beretta M9, officially the Pistol, Semiautomatic, 9mm, M9, is the designation for the Beretta 92FS semi-automatic pistol used by the United States Armed Forces. The M9 was adopted by the United States military as their service pistol in 19 ...

"). In 1993, a Beretta USA executive revealed that it had been the company's strategy since 1980 "to use the military contract to make Beretta a household name in the United States", and then to expand into more prominent law enforcement and commercial markets.

Overview

Today, Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta (Beretta S.p.A.) is run by Franco Gussalli Beretta, President and CEO. The traditional father-to-son Beretta dynasty was interrupted when Ugo Gussalli Beretta assumed control. Uncles Carlo and Giuseppe Beretta were childless. Ugo married into the Beretta family and adopted the last name Beretta. His sons are now direct descendants through their mother's side of the family. Beretta is known for its broad range of firearms: side-by-side

shotguns A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, peppergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which discharges numerous small ...

, over-and-under shotguns, semi-automatic shotguns, hunting

s, express rifles,

assault rifles An assault rifle is a select fire rifle that uses an intermediate-rifle cartridge and a detachable magazine.C. Taylor, ''The Fighting Rifle: A Complete Study of the Rifle in Combat'', F.A. Moyer ''Special Forces Foreign Weapons Handbook'', ...

submachine guns A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine-fed automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to describe its design concept as an automa ...

, lever- and bolt-action rifles, single- and double-action

revolvers A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...

and semi-automatic

pistols A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a barrel with an integral chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the English language when early handguns ...

. The parent company, Beretta Holding, also owns Beretta USA, Benelli, Franchi,

SAKO Sako Limited (natively ) is a Finnish firearm and ammunition manufacturer located in Riihimäki, Tavastia Proper in southern Finland. It also has owned the Tikka brand of bolt-action rifles since 1983, and is now owned by the Italian firear ...

Stoeger Stoeger Industries is a manufacturer and importer of firearms into the United States. The company's Stoeger Publishing division also publishes books and videos about firearms, hunting and fishing. Stoeger Industries' headquarters are in Accoke ...

, Tikka, Uberti, the Burris Optics company, and SwissP Defence. The model

Beretta 92FS The Beretta 92 (also Beretta 96 and Beretta 98) is a series of semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. History Carlo Beretta, Giuseppe Mazzetti and Vittorio Valle, all experienced firearms designers, contributed to ...

was the primary side arm of the

Marine Corps Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included raiding ashore (often in supp ...

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

and

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

, designated the

. In 1985, Beretta was chosen after a controversial competition to produce the M9, winning a contract for 500,000 pistols. A condition of the original agreement was domestic manufacture of the M9. In 2017, the

9mm This is a list of firearm cartridges that have bullets in the to caliber In guns, particularly firearms, but not #As a measurement of length, artillery, where a different definition may apply, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviate ...

version of the

SIG Sauer P320 The SIG Sauer P320 is a modular semi-automatic pistol made by SIG Sauer, Inc., SIG Sauer's American branch. History The P320 chambered in 9×19mm Parabellum was introduced in the North American market on 15 January 2014, followed by the .45 A ...

was selected to replace the M9 throughout the U.S. Armed Forces.

Product lines

Semi-automatic pistols

Beretta Model 1915 The Beretta Model 1915 or Beretta M1915 is a semi-automatic pistol manufactured by Beretta, designed by Tullio Marengoni who was the chief engineer in the company, to replace the Glisenti Model 1910 which had a complex and weak firing mechanism. ...

Beretta M1923 The Beretta Model 1923 pistol was a service pistol used by the Italian Army from 1923 until 1945. The M1923 was designed to consolidate the improvements of the 1915/19 model and to use the 9mm Glisenti round. However, due to the vast amount of h ...

* Beretta 418 *

Beretta M1934 The Beretta Model 1934 is an Italian compact, semi-automatic pistol which was issued as the service pistol of the Royal Italian Army beginning in 1934. As the standard sidearm of the Italian army it was issued to officers, NCOs and machine gun ...

/ Beretta M1935 *

Beretta M1951 The Beretta M1951 is a 9×19mm semi-automatic pistol developed during the late 1940s and early 1950s by Pietro Beretta S.p.A. of Italy. The pistol was produced strictly for military use and was introduced into service with the Italian Armed Forc ...

* Beretta 70 series ** Beretta 70 ** Beretta 71 Jaguar ** Beretta 72 Jaguar ** Beretta 73, 74, 75 ** Beretta 76 ** Beretta 100, 101, 102 *

Beretta Cheetah The Beretta Cheetah, also known as the 80 Series and originally known as the Series 81, is a line of compact blowback operated semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. They were introduced in 1976 and include models ...

** Beretta 80X ** Beretta 81 ** Beretta 84 ** Beretta 85 ** Beretta 86 ** Beretta 87 ** Beretta 89 *

Beretta 8000 The Beretta 8000 (Cougar) is a family of rotating barrel semi-automatic pistols that were designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. History They first appeared on the market in 1994 as a more compact alternative to the full-sized Beretta 92 ...

** Beretta 8000 Cougar ** Beretta 8045 Cougar ** Beretta Cougar Inox ** Beretta Mini Cougar * Beretta 90 *Beretta 9000 **Beretta 9000S Beretta 92F 9MM Parabellum Pistol

** Beretta 90two ** Beretta 92F ** Beretta 92F/FS ** Beretta 92FS Inox *** Beretta 92FS Compact *** Beretta 92FS Centurion *** Beretta 92FS Brigadier *** Beretta 92FS Brigadier Inox ** Beretta 92G Elite 1A *** Beretta 92G Elite II ** Beretta 92S *** Beretta 92SB **** Beretta 92SB-C ** Beretta 92A1 **

**Beretta 92X * Beretta 96 ** Beretta 96A1 * Beretta Px4 Storm ** Beretta Px4 Storm Compact ** Beretta Px4 Storm Subcompact * Beretta U22 Neos *

Beretta APX The Beretta APX is a family of polymer-framed, modular, striker-fired semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Beretta. The series began in 2016, starting with the full-size standard model. The line includes compact, concealed carry, and com ...

* Beretta 21 Bobcat ** Beretta 21A Bobcat * Beretta 3032 Tomcat * Beretta 950 Jetfire * Beretta Nano * Beretta Pico

Revolvers

* Beretta Stampede * Beretta Laramie * Manurhin MR73

Shotguns

*Beretta 1200 * Beretta 1200 FP *Beretta 1201 * Beretta 1201FP * Beretta AL390 * Beretta AL391 Urika and Teknys *Beretta Tx4 ** Beretta Tx4 Storm * Beretta 1301 **Beretta 1301 Comp **Beretta 1301 Tactical *Beretta A400 **Beretta A400 Xcel **Beretta A400 Xtreme Unico **Beretta A400 Xtreme Plus **Beretta A400 Xplor Action *Beretta A 300 Outlander *Beretta A 350 Outlander *Beretta SO4, SO5 and SO6 *Beretta Xtrema * Beretta Xtrema 2 *Beretta Model A series *Beretta UGB25 Xcel *Beretta Folder * Beretta Ultraleggero *Beretta Urika *Beretta Urika 2 *Beretta RS 202-M2 *Beretta LTLX7000 *Beretta 470 Silver Hawk * Beretta 682 *Beretta 692 * Beretta DT-10 *Beretta DT-11 * Beretta Silver Pigeon *Beretta SV10 Perennia *Beretta bellmonte due

Rifles and carbines

* Beretta Rx4 Storm * Beretta Cx4 Storm *Beretta BRX1

straight-pull Bolt action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the turn-bolt via a bolt handle, most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the firearm (as most users are right-handed). The majority of bo ...

bolt-action rifle

Assault rifles

Beretta AR with thermal sight and grenade launcher noBG

Beretta AR70/90 The Beretta AR70/90 is a gas operated assault rifle chambered for the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge, and is the standard issue service rifle of the Italian Armed Forces. The weapon is also designed to be fitted with a rifle grenade, and has gr ...

* Beretta AS70/90 *Beretta AR-70/223 * Beretta ARX 160 * Beretta ARX 200 * Beretta NARP

Sniper rifles

* Beretta 501 *

Beretta Victrix Corvus Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta (; "Pietro Beretta Weapons Factory") is a privately held Italian firearms manufacturing company operating in several countries. Its firearms are used worldwide for various civilian, law enforcement, and military pu ...

Submachine guns

* Beretta Model 38 ** Beretta Model 38A ** Beretta Model 38/42 ** Beretta Model 38/44 * Beretta Model 3 – a postwar modification of the 38/42 *

Beretta M12 The Beretta M12 (Model 12) is a 9×19mm Parabellum caliber submachine gun designed by Beretta. Production started in 1959, the first users were the Italian Carabinieri, Italian State Police and the Guardia di Finanza, though in limited numbers; i ...

series * Beretta PMX * Beretta Mx4 Storm

Machine pistols

* Beretta M951R *

Beretta 93R The Beretta 93R is an Italian selective-fire machine pistol, designed and manufactured by Beretta in the late 1970s for police and military use, that is derived from their semi-automatic Beretta 92. Designation The "R" stands for ''Raffica'', ...

*Model 951A

Grenade launchers

*Beretta GLX-160 (underbarrel grenade launcher for the

Beretta ARX160 The Beretta ARX160 is an Italian modular assault rifle manufactured by Beretta. Developed for the Italian Armed Forces as part of the ''Soldato Futuro'' (English: "Future Soldier") program, the ARX160 was launched in 2008 as a commercial weapon sy ...

)

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1526 establishments in Italy Companies established in the 16th century Defence companies of Italy Firearm manufacturers of Italy Henokiens companies Italian brands Multinational companies headquartered in Italy Organizations established in the 1520s