Lanchester submachine gun

Lanchester submachine gun
general information
Civil name:	Lanchester MPi
Military designation:	Machine Carbine, 9mm Lanchester Mk I / I *
Country of operation:	Great Britain
Developer / Manufacturer:	George Herbert Lanchester, Sterling Armament Company, Dagenham
Manufacturer country:	Great Britain
Production time:	1940 to 1942
Model variants:	Mk I, Mk I *
Weapon Category:	Submachine gun
Furnishing
Overall length:	850 mm
Weight: (unloaded)	4.3 kg
Barrel length :	203 mm
Technical specifications
Caliber :	9 mm parabellum
Possible magazine fillings :	50 cartridges
Ammunition supply :	Bar magazine
Cadence :	600 rounds / min
Fire types:	Single / continuous fire (Mk I), only continuous fire (Mk I *)
Number of trains :	6th
Twist :	right
Closure :	Mass closure
Charging principle:	Recoil loader
Lists on the subject

The Lanchester submachine gun was a British infantry weapon from the Second World War .

history

In the run-up to the war, the British military was opposed to submachine guns. Although these had proven their worth on the German side in the trench warfare of the First World War, the United Kingdom saw no reason to introduce such weapons themselves. However, the skepticism gave way with the start of the war. After the evacuation of the British expeditionary troops from Dunkirk , it was necessary to make up for the material losses suffered. The Lanchester-MPi was hastily developed on the basis of the German MP 28 submachine gun . The mechanism was practically identical to the original; the magazines were inserted from the left, as there, but the wooden stock corresponded to that of the Lee-Enfield rifle. The knife bayonets of the Lee-Enfield could also be planted.

The Lanchester was quite robust, but also very heavy. Production was costly and required complex milling techniques, and the magazine shaft was even made of solid brass. Therefore, the production was soon stopped in favor of the MPi Sten , which could be produced much more efficiently. The number of copies built is not certain, but will not have exceeded 50,000 pieces. The original order to build the submachine gun came from the Royal Air Force , which wanted to equip rear services and guards with it. Ultimately, however, it was only issued to troops of the Royal Navy and found little use in combat. The last Lancesters in service were retired in 1960.