Theodor Bergmann (May 21, 1850 in

Sailauf Sailauf is a municipality in the Aschaffenburg district in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Lower Franconia (''Unterfranken'') in Bavaria, Germany. It has a population of around 3,600. Geography Location The community lies in the area of the Spessa ...

– March 23, 1931 in

Gaggenau Gaggenau is a town in the district of Rastatt, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located some 8 km northeast of Baden-Baden. History Gaggenau was first mentioned in local records in 1243 under the name "Gaggenaw". The present district ...

)Erich Keyser; Heinz Stoob, ''Deutsches Städtebuch, Handbuch städtischer Geschichte'', Stuttgart,

Kohlhammer Verlag W. Kohlhammer Verlag GmbH, or Kohlhammer Verlag, is a German publishing house headquartered in Stuttgart. History Kohlhammer Verlag was founded in Stuttgart on 30 April 1866 by . Kohlhammer had taken over the businesses of his late father-in-law ...

, 1939. (page 239) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

businessman and industrialist best remembered for the various revolutionary firearms his companies released. Like many entrepreneurs of the era, his activities centered on bicycles, and the nascent automobile. Armament was not Bergmann's primary focus, but the one he was most attracted to, which was the reason most of his pistols were manufactured under license once they were created. He is famous for creating automatic pistols, and their ammunition. Theodor Bergmann sold his automobile activity to

Carl Benz Carl Friedrich Benz (; 25 November 1844 – 4 April 1929), sometimes also Karl Friedrich Benz, was a German engine designer and automotive engineer. His Benz Patent Motorcar from 1885 is considered the first practical modern automobile and fir ...

in 1910. A new Bergmann model pistol was patented every year: *Bergmann 1893 *Bergmann 1894 *Bergmann 1895 * Bergmann 1896 * Bergmann 1897 a.k.a. Bergmann Pieper * Bergmann 1898 * Bergmann 1899 * Bergmann 1901 a.k.a. Bergmann Simplex *

Bergmann Mars The Bergmann Mars was Theodor Bergmann's first successful military pistol design. The pistol was originally designed for the 7.63 Mauser cartridge, but was soon changed to the proprietary 9mm Bergmann cartridge. Military service The Mars was ...

* Bergmann 1905 * Bergmann 1908 a.k.a. Bergmann–Bayard 1908 * Bergmann 1910 a.k.a. Bergmann–Bayard 1910 * Bergmann 1910/21 a.k.a. Bergmann–Bayard 1910/21 Bergmann designed the

Bergmann MG15 nA Gun The Bergmann MG 15nA was a World War I light machine gun produced by Germany starting in 1915. It used 100- and 200-round belts and utilized a bipod, which allowed the weapon to be mounted on a flat surface for more accurate firing. It was brie ...

a LMG using a locking system he patented in 1901. It was used until World War II as the

MG 15 machine gun The MG 15 was a German 7.92 mm machine gun designed specifically as a hand-manipulated defensive gun for combat aircraft during the early 1930s. By 1941 it was replaced by other types and found new uses with ground troops. History The MG 1 ...

In 1915, the German Rifle Testing Commission at

Spandau Spandau () is the westernmost of the 12 boroughs () of Berlin, situated at the confluence of the Havel and Spree rivers and extending along the western bank of the Havel. It is the smallest borough by population, but the fourth largest by land ...

decided to develop a new weapon for

trench warfare Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied lines largely comprising military trenches, in which troops are well-protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery. Trench warfare became a ...

. The original intention had been to modify existing semi-automatic pistols, specifically the Luger and C96 Mauser. However, the mechanisms of these pistols were not suited to the stresses of full automatic fire, let alone the dirt and debris of the typical battlefield. In addition these light weight weapons were difficult to control in full automatic fire. Based upon this, the Commission determined that a completely new kind of weapon was needed.

Hugo Schmeisser Hugo Schmeisser (24 September 1884 – 12 September 1953) was a German developer of 20th century infantry weapons. Schmeisser was born in Jena, Thuringia. His father, Louis Schmeisser (1848–1917), was one of the best-known weapons designers i ...

, working for the Bergmann Waffenfabrik, was part of a team that designed a new type of weapon to fulfill the requirements, which was designated the MP18 or Maschinenpistole 18/I. Theodor Bergmann's company still exists today as a plastics manufacturer.

Bibliography

* Götz, Hans Dieter, ''German Military Rifles and Machine Pistols, 1871-1945'', Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. West Chester, Pennsylvania, 1990. * Schroeder, Joseph J., "Theodor Bergmann, ein Berühmter Name aus den Anfangszeiten der Selbstlader Pistolen" in Waffen Digest '83, Verlag Stocker-Schmid AG/Motorbuch Verlag, Zurich, 1982 * Smith, W.H.B., ''Small Arms of the World: The Basic Manual of Military Small Arms'', Harrisburg, Pa. : Stackpole Books, 1955. * Günter Wollert; Reiner Lidschun; Wilfried Kopenhagen, ''Illustrierte Enzyklopädie der Schützenwaffen aus aller Welt : Schützenwaffen heute (1945-1985)'', Berlin : Militärverlag der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik, 1988. * Clinton Ezell, Edward, ''Small Arms of the World'', Eleventh Edition, Arms & Armour Press, London, 1977 * Deutsches Waffen Journal * Visier * Schweizer Waffen Magazin * Internationales Waffen Magazin * Cibles * AMI * Gazette des Armes * Action Guns * Guns & Ammo * American Handgunner * SWAT Magazine * Diana Armi * Armi & Tiro

Notes

External links

* Theodor Bergmann in German
Guns & Ammo, May 2003 Bergmann pistols
* ttp://www.9mmlargo.com/cartridge/index.htm 9mm Largo, 9mm Bergmannbr>MG15MP 18.1 Video, Informations and PicturesSpringfield Armory's Villar Perosa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bergmann, Theodor 1850 births 1931 deaths 19th-century German inventors People from the Kingdom of Bavaria 20th-century German inventors