Webley Revolver The Webley Revolver ( also known as the Webley Break - Top Revolver or Webley Self - Extracting Revolver ) was , in various marks , the standard issue service pistol for the armed forces of the United Kingdom , the British Empire , and the Commonwealth from 1887 until 1963 . The Webley is a top - break revolver with automatic extraction . That is , breaking the revolver open for reloading also operates the extractor . This removes the spent cartridge s from the cylinder . The Webley Mk I service revolver was adopted in 1887 . A later version , the Mk IV , rose to prominence during the Boer War of 1899 – 1902 . However , the Mk VI , introduced in 1915 during the First World War , is perhaps the best - known model . Firing the large . 455 Webley cartridge , Webley service revolvers are among the most powerful top - break revolvers ever produced . Although the . 455 calibre Webley is no longer in military service , the . 38 / 200 Webley Mk IV variant is still in use as a police sidearm in a number of countries . History . The British company Webley and 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 first patented single action cap and ball revolvers . Later under the trade name of P . Webley and Son , manufacturing included their own . 44cal 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 . The W . G . or Webley - Government models produced from 1885 through to the early 1900s , ( often incorrectly referred to as the Webley - Green ) are the most popular of the commercial top break revolvers and many were the private purchase choice of English military officers and target shooters in the period , coming in a . 476 / . 455 caliber . However 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 , undoubtedly best - known are the range of military revolvers , which were in service use across two World Wars and numerous colonial conflicts . In 1887 , the British Army was searching for a revolver to replace the largely unsatisfactory . 476 Enfield Mk I & Mk II Revolvers , the Enfield having only replaced the solid frame 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 , which American designed Owen extraction system did not prove particularly satisfactory in service ) , and it was adopted on 8 November 1887 as the " Pistol , Webley , Mk I " . The initial contract called for 10 , 000 Webley revolvers , at a price of £3 / 1 / 1 each , with at least 2 , 000 revolvers to be supplied within eight months . The Webley revolver went through a number of changes , culminating in the Mk VI , which was in production between 1915 and 1923 . 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 revolvers in military service . Boer War . The Webley Mk IV , chambered in . 455 Webley , was introduced in 1899 and soon became known as the " Boer War Model " , on account of the large numbers of officers and NCO ' s who purchased it on their way to take part in the conflict . The Webley Mk IV served alongside a large number of other handguns , including the Mauser C96 " Broomhandle " ( as used by Winston Churchill during the War ) , earlier Beaumont - Adams cartridge revolvers , and other top - break revolvers manufactured by gunmakers such as William Tranter , and Kynoch . First World War . The standard - issue Webley revolver at the outbreak of the First World War was the Webley Mk V ( adopted 9 December 1913 ) , but there were considerably more Mk IV revolvers in service in 1914 , as the initial order for 20 , 000 Mk V revolvers had not been completed when hostilities began . On 24 May 1915 , the Webley Mk VI was adopted as the standard sidearm for British and Commonwealth troops and remained so for the duration of the First World War , being issued to officers , airmen , naval crews , boarding parties , trench raiders , machine - gun teams , and tank crews . The Mk VI proved to be a very reliable and hardy weapon , well suited to the mud and adverse conditions of trench warfare , and several accessories were developed for the Mk VI , including a bayonet ( made from a converted French Gras bayonet ) , speedloader devices ( the " Prideaux Device " and the Watson design ) , and a stock allowing for the revolver to be converted into a carbine . Second World War . The official service pistol for the British military during the Second World War was the Enfield No . 2 Mk I . 38 / 200 calibre revolver , but owing to a critical shortage of handguns , a number of other weapons were also adopted ( first practically , then officially ) to alleviate the shortage . As a result , both the Webley Mk IV in . 38 / 200 and Webley Mk VI in . 455 calibre were issued to personnel during the war . Post - war . The Webley Mk VI ( . 455 ) and Mk IV ( . 38 / 200 ) revolvers were still issued to British and Commonwealth Forces after the Second World War ; there were now extensive stockpiles of the revolvers in military stores . An armourer stationed in West Germany recalled ( admittedly tongue - in - cheek ) that by the time they were officially retired in 1963 , the ammunition allowance was " two cartridges per man , per year . " This lack of ammunition was instrumental in keeping the Enfield and Webley revolvers in use so long : they were not wearing out because they were not being used . The Webley Mk IV . 38 revolver was not completely replaced by the Browning Hi - Power until 1963 , and saw combat in the Korean War , the Suez Crisis , Malayan Emergency , and the Rhodesian Bush War . Many Enfield No . 2 Mk I revolvers were still circulating in British Military service as late as 1970 . Police use . The Hong Kong Police and Royal Singaporean Police were issued Webley Mk III & Mk IV . 38 / 200 revolvers from the 1930s . Singaporean police Webleys were equipped with safety catches , a rather unusual feature in a revolver . These were gradually retired in the 1970s as they came in for repair , and were replaced with Smith & Wesson Model 10 . 38 revolvers . The London Metropolitan Police were also known to use Webley revolvers , as were most colonial police units until just after the Second World War . There may still be some police units with Webley Mk IV revolvers that , whilst not issued , are still present in the armoury . The Ordnance Factory Board of India still manufactures . 380 Revolver Mk IIz cartridges , as well as a . 32 caliber revolver ( the IOF . 32 Revolver ) with barrel which is clearly based on the Webley Mk IV . 38 service pistol . Military service . 455 Webley revolver marks and models . There were six different marks of . 455 calibre Webley British Government Model revolvers approved for British military service at various times between 1887 and the end of the First World War : The Webley Mk IV . 38 / 200 Service Revolver . At the end of the First World War , the British military decided that the . 455 calibre gun and cartridge was too large for modern military use and — after numerous tests and extensive trials — that a pistol in . 38 calibre firing a 200 - grain ( 13 g ) bullet would be just as effective as the . 455 for stopping an enemy . Webley & Scott immediately tendered the . 38 / 200 calibre Webley Mk IV revolver , which as well as being nearly identical in appearance to the . 455 calibre Mk VI revolver ( albeit scaled down for the smaller cartridge ) , was based on their . 38 calibre Webley Mk III pistol , designed for the police and civilian markets . Much to their surprise , the British Government took the design to the Royal Small Arms Factory at Enfield Lock , which came up with a revolver that was externally very similar looking to the . 38 / 200 calibre Webley Mk IV , but was internally different enough that no parts from the Webley could be used in the Enfield and vice - versa . The Enfield - designed pistol was quickly accepted under the designation " Revolver , No . 2 Mk I " , and was adopted in 1932 , followed in 1938 by the Mk I * ( spurless hammer , double action only ) , and finally the Mk I * * ( simplified for wartime production ) in 1942 . Webley & Scott sued the British Government over the incident , claiming £2250 as " costs involved in the research and design " of the revolver . This was contested by RSAF Enfield , which quite firmly stated that the Enfield No . 2 Mk I was designed by Captain Boys ( the Assistant Superintendent of Design , later of Boys Anti - Tank Rifle fame ) with assistance from Webley & Scott , and not the other way around . Accordingly , their claim was denied . By way of compensation , the Royal Commission on Awards to Inventors eventually awarded Webley & Scott £1250 for their work . RSAF Enfield proved unable to manufacture enough No . 2 revolvers to meet the military ' s wartime demands , and as a result Webley ' s Mk IV was also widely used within the British Army in World War Two . Other well - known Webley Revolvers . Whilst the top - break , self - extracting revolvers used by the British and Commonwealth militaries are the best - known examples of Webley Revolvers , the company produced a number of other highly popular revolvers largely intended for the police and civilian markets . Webley RIC . The Webley RIC ( Royal Irish Constabulary ) model was Webley ' s first double - action revolver , and adopted by RIC in 1868 , hence the name . It was a solid frame , gate - loaded revolver , chambered in . 442 Webley . General George Armstrong Custer was known to have owned a pair , which he is believed to have used at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876 . A small number of early examples were produced in the huge . 500 Tranter caliber , and later models were available chambered for the . 450 Adams and other cartridges . They were also widely copied in Belgium . British Bull Dog . The British Bull Dog model was an enormously successful solid - frame design introduced by Webley in 1872 . It featured a barrel and was chambered for five . 44 Short Rimfire , . 442 Webley , or . 450 Adams cartridges . It was a popular weapon for plain clothes police officers and detectives in the British Empire in the late 19th and the turn of the 20th century . A . 44 caliber Belgian - made British Bulldog revolver was used to assassinate US President James Garfield on July 2 , 1881 by Charles Guiteau . It was designed to be carried in a coat pocket or kept on a night - stand , and many have survived to the present day in good condition , having seen little actual use . Numerous copies of this design were made during the late 19th century in Belgium , with smaller numbers also produced in Spain , France and the USA . They remained reasonably popular until the Second World War , but are now generally sought after only as collectors ' pieces , since ammunition for them is for the most part no longer commercially manufactured . Webley - Fosbery Automatic Revolver . A highly unusual example of an " automatic revolver " , the Webley - Fosbery Automatic Revolver was produced between 1900 and 1915 , and available in both a six - shot . 455 Webley version , and an eight - shot . 38 ACP ( not to be confused with . 380 ACP ) version . Unusually for a revolver , the Webley - Fosbery had a safety catch , and the light trigger pull , solid design , and reputation for accuracy ensured that the Webley - Fosbery remained popular with target shooters long after production had finished . Cultural impact . Webley Mark VI . 455 revolvers ( as stated above , not adopted until 1915 ) often serve as a stereotypical British revolver in film and television ; their appearance in the film " Zulu " , for example , is incorrect . Lt . Chard , the officer in command at Rorke ' s Drift , carried a Webley . 450 RIC solid frame revolver .