Holland & Holland is a British gunmaker and clothing retailer based in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, England, which offers handmade sporting rifles and shotguns. The company holds two royal warrants.

History

Holland & Holland was founded by Harris Holland (1806–1896) in 1835. Harris Holland was born in 1806 in

. Although accounts of his background are somewhat sketchy, it is believed that his father was an organ builder, while Harris had a

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

wholesale Wholesaling or distributing is the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional or other professional business users; or to other wholesalers (wholesale businesses) and related subordinated services. In ...

business in London. He was successful, and was often seen at various pigeon shoots at important London clubs, as well as leasing a

grouse Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes, in the family Phasianidae. Grouse are presently assigned to the tribe Tetraonini (formerly the subfamily Tetraoninae and the family Tetraonidae), a classification supported by mitochondria ...

moor in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

. Having no children of his own, he took on his nephew Henry Holland as an apprentice in 1861. In 1867 Henry became a partner and in 1876 the name changed to Holland & Holland. Although Henry was a full partner, Harris kept strict control and was the only one who could sign a

cheque A cheque, or check (American English; see spelling differences) is a document that orders a bank (or credit union) to pay a specific amount of money from a person's account to the person in whose name the cheque has been issued. The pers ...

until he died in 1896. At first, the guns bore the inscription H.Holland, without an address, and it is probable that these were built in the trade to his design. It is not known when Harris Holland started his own manufacturing, but it is estimated to be in the 1850s. This start makes him very unusual among the London Best makers, as others such as Purdey, Boss,

Lang Lang may refer to: * Lang (surname), a surname of independent Germanic or Chinese origin Places * Lang Island (Antarctica), East Antarctica * Lang Nunatak, Antarctica * Lang Sound, Antarctica * Lang Park, a stadium in Brisbane, Australia * L ...

and Lancaster had apprenticed with

Joseph Manton Joseph Manton (6 April 1766 – 29 June 1835) was a British gunsmith. He innovated sport shooting, improved weapon quality and paved the way for the modern artillery shell. Manton was a sport shooter and a friend of Colonel Peter Hawker. ...

, while others such as Beesley, Grant and Atkin apprenticed with Purdey or Boss. In 1883, Holland & Holland entered the trials organized by the magazine '' The Field'' and won all of the rifle categories. This set a new standard of excellence for the competition among English gunmakers. In 1885,

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...

s were granted to Holland & Holland for their Paradox gun, a shotgun with rifling in the front two inches of the barrel. In 1908, they patented the detachable lock feature with a small lever, for sidelock shotguns. The last major development in the evolution of the sidelock side-by-side gun occurred in 1922, when the H&H assisted-opening mechanism was patented. This gun, the self-opening Royal side-by-side, has been hugely influential in gun-making throughout the world. In the period after

World War II 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 opposing ...

under the leadership of new owner and

Managing Director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

Malcolm Lyell, the company made sorties to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, where guns from the famous collections of the princes and maharajahs were bought back, developing an important market for second-hand pieces. In 1989, all remaining shares in H&H were bought by the French luxury group Chanel. Since then, the factory building, in use since 1898, has been extensively renovated and equipped with modern technology. Guns such as the Royal over & under or side-by-side double-barreled shotguns were improved and reintroduced, and are currently available from 4 bore to .360 inch. A hand-built gun from H&H can cost around for a shotgun and close to for some rifles, with prices roughly doubling with luxury engraving, and there is a waiting period of 2–3 years between ordering and delivery. In the 1990s, Holland & Holland started a major expansion programme. The company has gunrooms in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

and

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

. Its gun room in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

closed in 2017. The company's London flagship store on

Bruton Street Bruton Street is a street in London's Mayfair district. It runs from Berkeley Square in the south-west to New Bond Street in the north-east, where it continues as Conduit Street. Notable residents have included Field Marshal John Campbell, 2n ...

has been completely renovated and expanded. In February 2021, Holland & Holland was acquired by the Beretta Holding group from its previous owner, Chanel.

Cartridges

Cartridges developed by Holland & Holland: * .240 Apex introduced in 1920, produced in belted and rimmed versions. * .244 H&H Magnum introduced in 1955. * .297/250 Rook introduced before 1880. * .275 H&H Magnum introduced in 1912, produced in belted and rimmed versions. * .295 Rook. * .300 H&H Magnum introduced in 1912, produced in belted and rimmed versions. *

.375 Flanged Nitro Express The .375 Nitro Express 2 inch Velopex , was a nitrocellulose (smokeless) powder cartridge introduced in 1899. Overview A hunting cartridge produced for single-shot and double rifles, the .375 Flanged NE is a slightly longer version of the .303 ...

introduced in 1899. * .375 H&H Magnum introduced in 1912, produced in belted and rimmed versions.. * .400/375 Belted Nitro Express introduced in 1905. * .400 H&H Magnum introduced in 2003. * .500/450 Nitro Express introduced in the late 1890s. * .465 H&H Magnum introduced in 2003. * .500/465 Nitro Express introduced in 1907. * .600/577 Rewa introduced in 1929. *

.700 Nitro Express The .700 Nitro Express (17.8×89mmR) is a big game rifle cartridge. The cartridge is typically charged with around 250 grains of powder, in addition to a two-grain igniter charge (to reduce the tendency of the cartridge to hang fire from such ...

introduced in 1988.

History

Cartridges

See also

References

Further reading