The vz. 27 is a Czechoslovak semi-automatic
pistol
A pistol is a handgun, more specifically one with the chamber integral to its gun barrel, though in common usage the two terms are often used interchangeably. The English word was introduced in , when early handguns were produced in Europe, an ...
, based on the
pistole vz. 24
The pistole vz. 24 (Pistol Model 24) was the standard Czech Army pistol of the inter-war period. It was an improved version of the '' pistole vz. 22'', which had been licensed from Mauser. Slovakia seized over ten thousand vz. 24s when it declare ...
, and chambered for 7.65 mm Browning/
.32 ACP
.32 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol, also known as .32 Automatic) is a centerfire pistol cartridge. It is a semi-rimmed, straight-walled cartridge developed by firearms designer John Browning, initially for use in the FN M1900 semi-automatic pi ...
. It is often designated the CZ 27 after the naming scheme used by the
Česká zbrojovka factory for post-World War II commercial products. However, it is correctly known as vz. 27, an abbreviation of the Czech "vzor 27", or "Model 27".
After the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in mid-March 1939 the pistol was folded into the German armed and police forces as the P27. Construction of the pistol continued in Czechoslovakia until the 1950s. Allegedly, the Czechoslovak military authorities sold five and a half thousand surplus vz. 27s to the Swiss in 1973 for half a million marks. Between 620,000 and 650,000 were manufactured in total, 452,500 of those under German occupation. In December 1948, a gift of five "ÄŒZ 247" automatic variants of the pistol (based on both the vz. 24 and vz. 27) was sent to Ethiopian emperor
Haile Selassie
Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀá‹áˆˆ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä SÉ™llasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (' ...
. In 1949, the pistol was exported to 28 countries, including Turkey (3,286 pistols), Great Britain, South Africa, Egypt, Kenya, and Pakistan.
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See also
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Weapons of Czechoslovakia interwar period
This is a list of weapons used by Czechoslovakia during its interwar period (1918–1938). These include weapons that were designed and manufactured in Czechoslovakia and Czechoslovak modifications to existing weapons, like the Schwarzlose machine ...
References
CZ 27 Serial Numbers & Year of Manufacture. Details of Markingsat Modern Firearms & Ammunition
CZ-27 pistol explained (Ebook)
.32 ACP semi-automatic pistols
Semi-automatic pistols of Czechoslovakia
World War II infantry weapons of Germany
Military equipment introduced in the 1920s
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