In 1891 Archduke Carl Salvator and Sir Georg Dormus designed perhaps the world’s first semiautomatic pistol. It fired an 8mm round and was made to be tested by the Austrian military. Although it did not receive contract, it was a good start to an industry that would explode in the coming years. It has a 6 inch barrel and fixed sights front and rear. It is a gas operated blowback shell thrower design and it is loaded via a stripper clip and features a hinged magazine door on the butt. It was built and patented in 1891 jut days before the Laumann company earned a patent for their model of the automatic action.
Source: Forgotten weapons and James D. Julia Auctions
