Editing Webley Revolver (section)

==History==
[[Webley & Scott]] (P. Webley & Son before merger with W & C Scott in 1897) produced a range of [[revolver]]s from the mid 19th to late 20th centuries.  As early as 1853 P. Webley and J. Webley began production of their [[Webley Longspur|first patented single action cap and ball revolvers]].  Later under the trade name of P. Webley and Son, manufacturing included their own {{convert|0.44|in|mm|abbr=on}} calibre rim-fire solid frame revolver as well as licensed copies of [[Smith & Wesson]]'s tip up break action revolvers.  The quintessential hinged frame, centre-fire revolvers for which the Webley name is best known first began production/development in the early 1870s most notably with the Webley-Pryse (1877) and Webley-Kaufman (1881) models.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.phelbs.com/HRFTX/tbbd.htm |access-date=2011-03-28 |last=Ficken |first=Homer R. |title=Webley's 'The British Bull Dog' Revolver: Serial Numbering and Variations |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120223210553/http://www.phelbs.com/HRFTX/tbbd.htm |archive-date=2012-02-23 }}</ref><ref name="Kinard2004">{{cite book|last=Kinard|first=Jeff|title=Pistols: An Illustrated History of Their Impact|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZVnuHX_6bG0C&pg=PA141|year=2004|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-85109-470-7|page=141}}</ref>

The W.G. or Webley-Government models produced from 1885 through to the early 1900s, are the most popular of the commercial top break revolvers and many were the private purchase choice of British military officers and target shooters in the period, coming in a .476/.455 calibre. Other short-barrel solid-frame revolvers, including the [[Webley RIC]] ([[Royal Irish Constabulary]]) model and the [[British Bulldog revolver]], designed to be carried in a coat pocket for self-defence were far more commonplace during the period. Today, the best-known are the range of military revolvers, which were in service use in two World Wars and numerous colonial conflicts.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.phelbs.com/HRFTX/tbbd.htm |access-date=2011-03-28 |last=Ficken |first=Homer R. |title=Webley's 'The British Bull Dog' Revolver: Serial Numbering and Variations |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120223210553/http://www.phelbs.com/HRFTX/tbbd.htm |archive-date=2012-02-23 }}</ref><ref name="Kinard2004"/>

In 1887, the [[British Army]] was searching for a revolver to replace the largely unsatisfactory .476 [[Enfield Revolver|Enfield Mk I & Mk II revolvers]], the Enfield having only replaced the solid frame [[.450 Adams|Adams .450]] revolver which was a late 1860s conversion of the cap and ball [[Beaumont–Adams revolver]] in 1880. Webley & Scott, who were already very well known makers of quality guns and had sold many pistols on a commercial basis to military officers and civilians alike, tendered the .455 calibre Webley Self-Extracting Revolver for trials. The military was suitably impressed with the revolver (it was seen as a vast improvement over the Enfield revolvers then in service, as the American-designed Owen extraction system did not prove particularly satisfactory), and it was adopted on 8 November 1887 as the "Pistol, Webley, Mk I".<ref>''[[List of Changes|List of Changes in British War Material]]'' (hereafter referred to as "List of Changes"), H.M. Stationer's Office, periodical § 6075</ref> The initial contract called for 10,000 Webley revolvers, at a price of [[£sd|£3/1/1]] each, with at least 2,000 revolvers to be supplied within eight months.<ref>{{harvnb|Skennerton|1997|p=6}}</ref>

The Webley revolver went through a number of changes, culminating in the Mk VI, which was in production between 1915 and 1923. The Mk VI was also produced by the Enfield arsenal between 1921 and 1926. The large .455 Webley revolvers were retired in 1947, although the Webley Mk IV .38/200 remained in service until 1963 alongside the Enfield No. 2 Mk I revolver. Commercial versions of all Webley service revolvers were also sold on the civilian market, along with a number of similar designs (such as the Webley-Government and '''Webley-Wilkinson''') that were not officially adopted for service, but were nonetheless purchased privately by military officers. Webley's records show the last Mk VI was sold from the factory in 1957, with "Nigeria" noted against the entry.{{citation needed|date=October 2020}}





<gallery mode="packed" heights="140px">
File:Webley MkI P0.jpg|A Webley Mark I Revolver, circa 1887, from Canada, cal .455 (Mk I) Webley
File:Thinktank Birmingham - object 1949S00001.jpg|Webley Mark VI .455 service revolver
File:Webley-Mk-VI-p1030102.jpg|Close up of the cylinder (including thumb catch) on a Webley Mk VI service revolver
File:Webley W. G. Model.JPG|Webley WG Revolver .455/476 ([[.476 Enfield]])
File:Webley IMG 6793.jpg|A Webley Revolver, opened
File:IOF-32-REV-1.JPG|The [[IOF .32 Revolver]] is a derivative of a Webley produced in India
File:Khyber Pass copy Webley Pocket revolver.jpg|Fake Webley Pocket Pistol (in .38 S&W) at [[Bagram Airfield]], Afghanistan
File:455in SAA Ball - Webley 455 Ammunition.jpg|.455 in SAA Ball ammunition.
File:380RevolverMkIIz Cartridges.JPG|A box of Second World War dated 24 July 1944 in .380 Revolver Mk IIz cartridges
</gallery>