The Campo-Giro was a
semi-automatic pistol, chambered for the
9mm Largo cartridge, which saw service in the Spanish military. It is named for its designer, Colonel Don Venancio López de Ceballos y Aguirre, Count of Campo-Giro.
Background
Venancio López de Ceballos y Aguirre was born in 1856 in Peñacastillo,
Santander
Santander may refer to:
Places
* Santander, Spain, a port city and capital of the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain
* Santander Department, a department of Colombia
* Santander State, former state of Colombia
* Santander de Quilichao, a m ...
. He attended the ''Academia Militar de Caballería'' (Military Cavalry Academy) from 1876 to 1879, and graduated as a second
lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations.
The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...
and first in his class. In 1881 he enrolled in the ''Academia de Estado Mayor'' (
General Staff Academy), becoming staff lieutenant in 1885. He held a number of positions until 1893 when he was posted to
Melilla. In 1894 he was promoted to
major and the following year posted to
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
as Chief of Staff for the
Matanzas brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division.
B ...
. He was based there when the
US Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
bombarded Matanzas during the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (cloc ...
. He was appointed Chief of Staff for the 3rd
Division
Division or divider may refer to:
Mathematics
*Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication
*Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division
Military
*Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...
, 1st
Corps
Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...
and decorated for his Cuban service. On his return to Spain he was elected to the Spanish parliament and in 1905, one year after his first patent, placed on the retired list. In 1909 he was promoted to
lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
, and in 1911 returned to active duty. He ended his career in 1912 as
aide-de-camp to General
Fernando Primo de Rivera
Fernando Primo de Rivera y Sobremonte, 1st Marquess of Estella (24 July 1831 – 23 May 1921) was a Spanish politician and soldier.
Fernando Primo de Rivera was the son of Antonio Hermenegildo Primo de Rivera y Sobremonte and his wife Ana Ma ...
, uncle of the future Spanish dictator.
Development
Campo-Giro obtained his first patent in 1904 for ''Una pistola automática de calibre 9mm. de nuevo sistema'' ("An automatic pistol of 9mm calibre of a new system"). He followed this in 1911 with a patent for a self-loading carbine. In 1912 he obtained a registered design for his pistol. In November that year lodged another patent for ''Una pistola sistema Campo-Giro con amortiguador del choque en el retroceso, para los calibres 11,25, 9mm largo, 9mm corto y 7,65mm'' ("A Campo-Giro system pistol with a shock-absorber for recoil in calibre
11.25, 9mm largo,
9mm Kurz and
7.65mm").
The pistol was adopted for the Spanish army in 1912 as the ''Pistola Campo-Giro de 9mm Modelo 1912''. The previously issued
Bergmann–Bayard pistol which was found unsuitable for military use during the
early Moroccan campaigns was however still retained by those troops who had been issued with it, the 9mm Largo cartridge having been judged a success. Early examples were manufactured by the
Oviedo
Oviedo (; ast, Uviéu ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains the city. Oviedo is located ap ...
armoury. The design proved both modern and sound and the pistol saw widespread use during extended trials.
Production
After an unknown number of Modelo 1912 pistols had been manufactured, the army became aware that an improved version of the pistol that had been developed, and in January 1914 this was adopted as the ''Pistola Campo-Giro de 9mm Modelo 1913''. The Model 1913 was manufactured by
Esperanza y Unceta
Astra Unceta y Cía was a Spanish weapons manufacturer founded on July 17, 1908, under the name Esperanza y Unceta by Juan Esperanza and Pedro Unceta.
Initially based in Eibar, the centre of the Basque arms industry, the company moved in 1913 t ...
and the increased orders triggered their move to a new factory in Guernica. During 1914 1,300 pistols were made before production was halted to include new modifications.
The ''Modelo 1913'' was a delayed blowback design, unusual in a gun chambered for a powerful military cartridge. The Campo-Giro used a powerful spring to handle the recoil of the 9mm Largo cartridge, and had a smaller spring beneath the barrel to serve as a
shock absorber
A shock absorber or damper is a mechanical or hydraulic device designed to absorb and damp shock impulses. It does this by converting the kinetic energy of the shock into another form of energy (typically heat) which is then dissipated. Most sh ...
and delay the opening of the breech. It retained an external hammer and a top ejection port like the Bergmann–Bayard, but had its magazine in the grip instead in front of the trigger guard, thus allowing a much longer barrel to be fitted. The magazine release lever was just behind the oval-shaped trigger guard between it and the front of the frame. The slide was fixed to the frame by a transverse wedge behind the breech that in turn was held in place by the firing pin. The Campo-Giro was over 225mm (9 inches long), weighed over 900 grams (2 pounds) unloaded, and had an 8-round magazine. It produced a greater muzzle velocity from the 9mm Largo round than did the Bergmann–Bayard, due to its longer (165mm or 6⅝ inch) barrel. The pistol was well made and accurate, but difficult to disassemble.
Campo-Giro patented new improvements in 1913, 1914, and 1915, resulting in a redesigned frame, redesigned mainspring and the magazine release being moved to the bottom of the grip. Because of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the supply of black
buffalo horn that was used for the grips was interrupted and wood was substituted. The improved model was adopted in September 1916 as the ''Pistola Campo-Giro de 9mm, Modelo 1913-16''. However, by 1919 the Spanish military had begun looking for yet another new pistol.
Las pistolas Bergmann y Campo-Giro (y II) by Juan L Calvo
/ref> However they did not stray far, as the Campo-Giro was the direct forerunner of the Astra tubular slide guns such as the Astra Modelo de 1921/Model 400 which were subsequently adopted. Despite being declared obsolete, many were re-issued during the Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
. Campo-Giro did not live to see the success of his creation, dying after a riding accident in Madrid on 22 May 1916.
References
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017
World War II infantry weapons
Semi-automatic pistols
Semi-automatic pistols of Spain
9mm Largo firearms