Modern Combat Pistols: The Development of Semi-Automatic Pistols for Military and Police Service Since 1945

Modern Combat Pistols provides a comprehensive account of the development of military and police semi-automatic pistols and their ammunition from 1945 to present day. It follows on from the same authors critically acclaimed Assault Rifle [Crowood 2004].The first part of the book looks at defensive and offensive pistols, the difference between military and police pistols, and special-purpose weapons such as silenced and underwater pistols. The history of the handgun before 1945 is described, and there is an examination both of the development of the semi-automatic pistol since 1945 and of future trends in pistol design.The second part of the book is divided up on a country-by-country basis. Each countrys section starts with a historical overview of pistol development in that country before giving a description and technical data for each individual weapon. Appendices cover technical aspects of semi-automatic and ammunition design.