Theodor Bergmann

Who was Theodor Bergmann?

Theodor Bergmann was a German businessman and industrialist best remembered for the various revolutionary firearms his companies released. Like many entrepreneurs of the era, his activity was centered on bicycles and the nascent automobile. Armament was not Bergmann's primary focus, but the one he had more attraction to, which was the reason most of his pistols were manufactured under license once they were created, creating pistols and their ammunition.

Theodor Bergmann sold his automobile activity to Carl Benz in 1910.

The first automatic pistol was made by the Clair brothers working in Saint-Étienne, France using the newly appeared smokeless powder, created by Paul Vieille in 1884 and used in the 1886 Lebel rifle, built a pistol in 1888 using a 8mm round derived from the Swiss 7.5mm 1882 round, but it was rejected by the French Army.

The first pistol to be really manufactured with a significant number was designed by an Austrian, Joseph Laumann, and made by Osterreichische Waffenfabrik Gesellschaft, Steyr in 1892. It was called the Schönberger-Laumann and drew an immediate success. OWG later manufactured the Mannlicher 1894.