1911 History | An Interesting Story

hello and welcome back to the guns and outdoors channel make sure that you like comment and subscribe to the channel as we bring you more outdoors and firearms content for many years to come buckle up grab your favorite pistol out of the gun safe based upon the title of this video i know what you've selected unload the weapon rack the slide engage that safety point it at the like button down below as we dive into this very rich and fascinating history of a service pistol used by the military law enforcement competitive shooters and everyday enthusiasts like you and i for over a century termed america's gun it's tried and true many times over model 1911 45 automatic pistol referred to by us today as the 1911 standby [Music] of course the 1911 is an outdated design it came from an era when weapons were designed to win fights not avoid product liability lawsuits it came from an era when it was the norm to learn how your weapon operated and to practice the operation until it became second nature not to design the piece to the lowest common denominator it came from an era in which our country tried to supply its fighting men with the best tools possible unlike today when our fighting men and women are issued hardware that was adopted because of international deal making or the fact that the factory is in some well-known connected congressman's district yes beyond the shadow of a doubt the 1911 is an outdated design and that's exactly what i love about it a quote from roscoe s benson if you'll allow me i'd respectfully change the word outdated in the quote above to timeless for those of you that have been watching my channel for a while you will know that i own three 1911s that could not be happier my love for the timeless pistols was really cemented when i sought out professional firearms training and took several training classes at my range with brian gunny zen's u.s marine corps retired he's a competitor from the famous show on history channel's top shot series he's in the annals of history as having more nra national pistol championship wins than anyone else i was fortunate to take many of his classes and that list includes advanced pistol marksmanship fast is fine but accuracy is everything bullseye and 1911 fundamentals everyone is a student when you're around brian we learned more than we ever could have imagined in those classes brian's love and passion for the 1911 pistol is infectious over a solid two-year stretch the love of that service pistol became infectious in all of us as it grabbed a hold of the students and never let go we became lifelong fans of the 1911. it's funny brian and i had a text going recently as i was seeking an opinion on red dots for concealed carry pistols from him he helped me out there with great perspective concluded in his private text to me with one of his famous sayings a saying that seems simple on the surface is easy to ignore but strikes really deep justin he says it's all about the fundamentals this video is heavily influenced by an unpublished book that gunny's ends and an illustrator named mark wahl created thank you guys for the training material and inspiration pistols do not win wars but they save the lives of men who do the noble 1911 is a mechanical marvel whose ruggedness dependability and ferocious power have comforted issues of gis and which unlike any other instrument you can name is as much superior to its rivals as it was in 1917 quote colonel jeff cooper january 1968 a brief history of the 1911. the model 1911 45 automatic pistol is the world's most respected handgun it has been designated by many authorities as the finest service pistol design of all time any complete history of the model 1911 must start over a decade prior to the year 1911. following the sinking of the battleship uss maine on february 15 1898 in havana cuba the american public and members of the congress were outraged many americans blamed spain for the disaster and by april 21st 1898 the u.s and spain were at war although it began in cuba the war quickly spread to the spanish territories of puerto rico guam and the philippines the united states navy entered the philippines on april 30th by slipping into manila bay under the cover of darkness the u.s asiatic fleet took the spanish navy by surprise the battle of manila bay began the following morning at 5 40 a.m and by early that afternoon the spanish fleet was routed and destroyed american ground forces then went ashore to overthrow the spanish colonial government and take control of the islands a famous quote from that time was remember the maine the sunken wreck of the uss maine is in havana cuba harbor and public sentiment over the loss of the uss maine was the rallying cry and tipping point a year later 1899 through 1913 although the war with spain led to american involvement in the philippines peace did not come with spain's defeat it was there in a tropical island heat that the u.s soldiers and marines became locked in combat with fanatical local insurgents continuing the armed resistance with which they had previously shown against the spanish the moro tribesmen of the southern islands engaged the american forces in long bouts of guerrilla warfare the moro warriors were reportedly fueled by a combination of religious zealotry ardent tribalism and potent opiates while the struggle lasted nearly 15 years much of the combat was at close quarters with the morrow's long bladed chris kris knives which were used to lethal effect the need for an effective large caliber defensive pistol became clearly evident take a look here at this morro chris sword that is intimidating for sure it's a double-edged filipino bladed weapon indeed the blade is designed for cutting and thrusting and then have a look at this map it's a historical map that indicates where the americans fought the morals within the philippine islands you'll notice that it is mainly down south in the southern island of mindanao and nearby archipelagos at the time the u.s troops were armed with either 30 caliber craig or springfield bolt action rifles and 38 caliber double action revolvers the 30 caliber rifles as one would expect proved to be effective in stopping the attackers but those 38 long cult caliber handguns used by the us troops demonstrated an unnerving lack of stopping power this resulted in numerous reports of moral warriors absorbing multiple pistol bullets when they came to hack away at the americans by no surprise morale amongst the u.s troops suffered badly in this situation in response the americans rushed their old model 1873 cult revolvers in 45 caliber back into service while many of these weapons dated back to the plains indian wars the 45 quickly demonstrated a much better track record of stopping an attacker with one well-placed shot during this time the thompson ligardi tests of 1904 were conducted battlefield experience against the morrows resulted in a famous test by the u.s army in 1904 a variety of military cartridges of the day were tested for penetration stopping ability and energy transfer using both live and dead cattle and cadavers as the target medium while somewhat subjective to modern day standards the test resulted in an official recommendation which was the 45 automatic cult pistol cartridge this is where the much debated genesis of the term stopping power and shock effect originated about this time two new armament technologies were also emerging they include smokeless powder and the autoloading pistol in 1906 the u.s military under the direction of general william krozaire of the ordinance department began evaluating several pistol designs along with the suitability of the new cartridge that was designated the 45 automatic colt pistol or 45 acp for short as these military tests continued over the next several years the colt pistol began to merge as the clear favorite considered bar none in the american firearms industry as the most influential and successful weapons designer in american history a man named john moses browning submitted the colt pistol for the american military tests without a doubt he was the most innovative and visionary firearms designer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as a result john moses browning earned the lasting reputation as the father of automatic fire john browning's design genius was not limited just to pistols he had many patented inventions they include the browning automatic rifle the bar numerous 30 caliber and 50 caliber browning machine guns along with many lever action rifles and pump action shotguns his last was also a legendary browning high power which was the first successful high capacity auto loading pistol we're going to take it back to the u.s military pistol trials in the year 1910 and then work our way forward browning's design for the u.s military pistol trials featured a short recall principle of operation that was magazine fed it was a single action semi-automatic pistol that had manual and grip safeties you see with his designs browning demonstrated a level of durability simplicity and reliability that no other pistol design of that era could match during a two-day test in the year 1910 6000 rounds were fired using the sample pistol provided by mr browning in the process it became so hot that it was dumped into a pail of water in order to cool it before further firing it was reported that the same pistol passed the test with no malfunctions while its competitor a pistol submission from savage had numerous failures since calvary troops were going to be the primary combat users of the new pistol several design specifications were mandated by the horse soldiers including a lanyard ring it also had to have a grip safety because nothing would turn a cavalry trooper into an infantryman faster than shooting his own horse by accident browning's pistol design was formally adopted by the u.s army on march 29 1911 and thus became officially known as the model 1911. the us navy and the u.s marine corps adopted the browning designed pistol in 1913. pancho vila 1916 yankee fist the browning designed m1911 pistol was first tested in combat in mexico at the time mexico was wracked by revolution and the most prominent of the rebel generals was francisco pancho villa on march 9 1916 villa and his men attacked looted and burned the small town of columbus new mexico resulting in the deaths of 18 u.s soldiers and citizens further attacks by villa's rebels in texas resulted in the deaths of several more u.s soldiers and officials president woodrow wilson ordered general john j blackjack pershing to lead a force of nearly 5 000 u.s soldiers into mexico to capture vela many of the next generation of u.s military leaders got their first combat experience on this operation including an ambitious young lieutenant by the name of george s patton true story i worked with one of his great great grandsons while the punitive expedition ultimately failed to capture vela it did prove the first major combat test for a number of new military technologies including the airplane the wireless telegraph the motorized truck transport and the 1911 pistol world war one otherwise known as the great war 1914-19 the united states enters the great war in 1917 and the model 1911 proved more than equal to the task the powerful pistol quickly became a favorite of american servicemen during the muse argonne offensive sergeant alvin york uses 1911 pistol to stop an attack by six german soldiers with six shots over the entire engagement sergeant york led an attack on a german machine gun nest killed at least 25 enemy soldiers and captured 132 combatants for his efforts he was awarded the nation's highest honor the prestigious medal of honor with his name becoming synonymous for bravery on the battlefield 1941 a day that will live in infamy happened in pearl harbor and was the catalyst for our world war ii mobilization effort on december 7th 1941 imperial japan launched a surprise attack against the united states at pearl harbor hawaii within days the united states declared war on japan thus entering world war ii to fight against the axis powers the war came to represent the largest war mobilization in u.s history with more than 16 million american men and women serving in the armed forces in every theater of the conflict the model 1911 was the standard sidearm for almost all u.s military forces fighting on the ground at sea and in the air total military production of the model 1911 was nearly 3 million pistols combined with the millions of browning machine guns and bars produced over the decades it is easy to see that the guns designed by john browning played a major role in defending freedom and crushing tyranny around the world post-world war ii conflicts 1945 to present the model 1911 continues to serve with distinction at the site of the american servicemen for most of the remainder of the 20th century including wars in korea vietnam and many other conflicts post-world war ii shooting sports arise with the end of world war ii millions of u.s servicemen returned from combat service around the globe eager to enjoy a new life of peace and prosperity along with the prosperity of the post-war years americans had ample leisure time for recreation widespread interest in the shooting sports among adults and youth alike new clubs were formed in established groups groups like the national rifle association had a big influence back then with the youth sports as well as in high school programs etc it really sucks to see where they have gone now especially with the recent news of their bankruptcy and their relocation efforts now and no in part do we all agree on maybe bad leadership but that's a story for another day shooting techniques evolution for many decades prior to the 1950s much of the combat firearms training doctrine for law enforcement officers was based on the fast draw followed by unsighted or instinctive one-handed firing from the up while this technique may have some application at very close ranges the hip potential quickly became marginal as distances increased accuracy force and speed marine officers including jeff cooper charles askins jack weaver cell reed and others helped shape the thinking of an entire generation of law enforcement and military trainers in 1976 jeff cooper played a major role in the creation of an international practical shooting confederation ipsc he came up with the concept of the modern technique in the latin motto abbreviation ddc delta victor charlie which translates as accuracy speed force this phrase is featured prominently in the ipsec logo today the 1911 everyone's perennial favorite with an appreciation of battle proven weapons and ammunition alike the u.s military continued to turn toward the venerable 1911 and the 45 acp caliber cartridge to this day yes it's true you'll still see it out there occasionally this effective combination is still preferred by many civilian shooters and collectors alike for the most part our military services and special operations units and even the marine corps have followed the army's lead and taken them out of service however these days it's not unheard of to see an occasional general with one strapped to his hip it's all due to a healthy respect that many americans have for the pistol and its lineage how cool was that all right big thank you very much for watching the video please like and subscribe comment down below and here's what i want to know i want to know what your favorite 1911 is what do you own let me know and no glock jokes damn it this video is only for current and future 1911 connoisseurs as we wrap up the video i would like to also add with everything going on in the world today i think it's critically important that we hold on to our history and our rights history is taught and shared to others and we all have a hand in that to make sure that goes forward as leaders let's please try not to let things get canceled out sure things are good bad and ugly it's part of being human america isn't perfect and to the folks up in washington dc that are elected officials you step up your game because you're not doing a good job in terms of news and staying informed where do you go who do you trust my recommendation is to seek out unbiased news sources easier said than done i know consider donating to groups like gun owners of america the second amendment foundation and other national and local level groups that are doing a great job in the shooting sports industries and for our freedoms also focus on what you can control and not to sound corny but focus those energies and your passions into constructive things my thought is go ahead and introduce yourself to a neighbor a friend a co-worker have them have a look at the safe and fun world of the shooting sports get good quality training with the industry and this costs of thing it's putting the squeeze on all this wonderful trainers out there but we're all feeling the crunch certainly i know that teach those new shooters how to properly shoot a pistol and discuss self-protection put that new shooter on a path to conceal carry we want them to carry the united states of america at this moment in my opinion needs humble and virtuous people that are staunch advocates of the second amendment love god and strive to be respectful citizens that is capable of protecting their family and there you have it the 1911 fundamentals and its history guys i just want to say thank you one more time for watching help me drive the algorithms put some comments down below i want this video to go viral tell me what your detail and what you own my favorite is still my cabot vintage classic followed up by my dan wesson but i tell you after a couple years ago hitting shot show i still wish for a less bear it's on my wish list there you have it guys we're going to end it right there thanks as always we're out of here take care of yourselves see ya

Channel: Guns and Outdoors Channel

Views: 924

Rating: 4.9285712 out of 5

Keywords: 1911, Springfield, History, 1911 history, Pancho Villa, General Pershing, George S Patton, War war one, World War II, Spanish American war, USS Maine, Cabot, Dan Wesson, 1911A1, John Moses Browning, BAR, #1911

Id: iRgk3XE0xPA

Length: 19min 55sec (1195 seconds)

Published: Mon Jan 18 2021