British semi-automatic infantry rifles?

The Kretz was a semi-automatic rifle. On pulling the trigger it fired a round, cycled the action and fed the next round into the chamber ready for the trigger to be pulled again. No energy was held in the springs except during the cycling of the action. The energy came from the propellant gases as it used a muzzle cap with a blow forward action reminiscent of the Bang system.

Regards
TonyE

 

I wonder, does anyone know if the War Department even considered adopting a semi-automatic infantry rifle?

According to David French (Raising Churchill's Army, p. 84-5) the War Office issued a specification for a self-loading rifle in 1926 and reviewed a number of submitted designs, but ultimately decided to stick with the SMLE.

There were two reasons for this. One was that the Treasury refused to make money available for a new weapon while large stocks of WWI-era Lee-Enfields were still in store. But more importantly, the War Office was hesitant about employing automatic and semi-automatic infantry weapons both because it was worried that the extra ammunition they demanded would impede operational mobility, and because they were unsuitable for colonial policing.

Bear in mind that during the interwar years the Army's main role was as a light imperial gendarmerie: speed was much more important than firepower. The War Office's concern was that high-volume 'lead pumping' would make it difficult for small independent units to operate for long far from their supply base. Moreover, the Army often acted as a police force 'in aid of the civil power'; indiscriminate shooting during protests and demonstrations risked causing another Amritsar Massacre.

By the time the idea of mounting another continental expeditionary force developed in the late 1930s, it was too late to reconsider these earlier decisions.

Best, Alan

 

thanx tony i could not se the muzle in the pic.