KIS was the name of a Polish
submachine gun
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 autom ...
from the time of the
Second World War
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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. It was designed and manufactured by engineers in
Jan Piwnik
Jan Piwnik (31 August 1912 – 16 June 1944) was a Polish World War II soldier, a ''cichociemny'' and a notable leader of the Home Army in the Świętokrzyskie Mountains. He used the nickname ''Ponury'' ("Gloomy" or "Grim") and ''Donat''.
Biogr ...
's "Ponury" ("Grim") partisan group that was operating in
Holy Cross Mountains
Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...
region.
The weapon was patterned after
Sten
The STEN (or Sten gun) is a family of British submachine guns chambered in 9×19mm which were used extensively by British and Commonwealth forces throughout World War II and the Korean War. They had a simple design and very low production cost ...
, retaining its left-side magazine. Main differences were a longer barrel, with conical rear part, and lack of stock – the gun had a pistol grip instead.
See also
*
Błyskawica submachine gun
The Błyskawica (Polish: 'lightning') was a submachine gunhttp://www.cruffler.com/trivia-October00.html. produced by the Armia Krajowa, or Home Army, a Polish resistance movement fighting the Germans in occupied Poland. Together with a Polis ...
References
Bibliography
*Kazimierz Satora - "Produkcja Uzbrojenia w Polskim Ruch Oporu 1939-45", Warszawa 1985
*Kazimierz Satora "Podziemne zbrojownie polskie 1939-1944",
Dom Wydawniczy Bellona, Warszawa 2001
External links
KIS photos
Insurgency weapons
World War II submachine guns
Submachine guns of Poland
9mm Parabellum submachine guns
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