The anniversary of Mikhail Timofeevich Kalashnikov, an outstanding designer, citizen and patriot of the Fatherland, is approaching. It so happened that during the period of mastering the production of his machine gun at the Izhevsk Motorcycle Plant, and then at the "Izhmash" in Izhevsk, there were German technical specialists in small arms and the production of motorcycles. This fact, as well as the external similarity of the Kalashnikov assault rifle and the StG-44 assault rifle of the German designer Hugo Schmeisser, give rise to various versions of his involvement in the development of the best model of small arms of our time, ranging from modest "advice" to accusations of absolute plagiarism or even direct development AK-47. The culmination of the absurdity around the alleged involvement of a German in the development of a machine gun was the offensive depiction of an explosion-diagram of a German rifle on the bas-relief of the Kalashnikov monument in Moscow.
Obviously, all this hype comes from pathological haters of Russia and clearly schizoid personalities obsessed with the idea of their own greatness in the media space. At the same time, Schmeisser is credited with such fantastic merits in the development of small arms, which even he, who was not devoid of ambition, did not even suspect.
In order to understand the true merits of Schmeisser in the development of small arms and evaluate its design level, it is necessary to understand several areas, therefore, before looking at the published patents of Hugo and Hans Schmeisser, it is necessary to grasp the following consideration, without which any assessments of the gloomy Teutonic geniuses cannot will make no sense.
If a bear has stepped on a man's ear, then he should not talk about the innovative ideas of Alfred Schnittke in his first symphony. A weapon is not just a set of tactical and technical characteristics, the name of the designer and the year it was put into service. For this assessment, knowledge is required in the field of ballistics, the fundamentals of technology and production of mechanical engineering, special sections of mechanical engineering (principles of operation of automation, methods of locking the barrel, etc.), the historical period of the creation of the sample and the general laws of development. Failure to comply with this condition will speak of the elementary amateurism of the authors of such, for example, pearls:
… in 1949, Soviet stamping could not ensure the quality of the receiver of Kalashnikov assault rifles
or
Schmeisser has created something epochal - a short rapid-fire carbine….
Airframe MP-18
Hugo Schmeisser is credited with two samples: the MP-18 submachine gun and the StG-44 assault rifle. They both appeared at the end of two world wars, marked certain milestones in history, and both were not taken seriously for a long time, until in the first case the war in Latin America with the use of German submachine guns, and then the Kalashnikov assault rifle in Vietnam, announced the approval of a new class in small arms.
So, MP-18. The first thing to start with is to refute the myth that the submachine gun was developed on the instructions of the German General Staff as an offensive weapon for German assault troops and was allegedly even used by them in one of the offensive operations. Nobody has seen the document signed by Ludendorff or Hindenburg, approving the terms of reference for the development of a submachine gun as a weapon for assault groups, and although this is not proof that it does not exist, there is a mass of facts that indirectly confirm that the first submachine guns were developed as defensive weapon. This is primarily the location of the store, which reduces the profile of the shooter when firing from the trench - from the side of the MP-18 or from the top of the Beretta Model 1918.
Initially, the maintenance staff of the MP-18 consisted of two fighters, one of whom was a carrier of cartridges. It is somehow doubtful that a warrior was involved in the assault operation, whose main duty was to equip stores and serve them to a fighter armed with a machine gun and in constant motion.
The second is the knowledge of the features of the tactics of warfare that have developed in WWI. I will not dwell on it, but it was she who influenced the emergence of a new class of weapons - the light machine gun, in the development of the idea of which submachine guns for pistol and intermediate cartridges appeared later. Schmeisser in the round dance of these events occupies the same place as Fedorov, Revelli or Shosha, whose first light machine gun is called a "non-machine gun" only idiots. If only because the Shosh machine gun, although it was terribly unreliable, appeared on time and played its role. The answer (or a parallel solution) to the creation of the Shosh machine gun was the creation of a light machine gun for a pistol cartridge, which went through its short evolution: from a double-barreled aircraft version of the Villar Perosa, which moved into the trenches and transformed to the usual version in the form of an automatic self-firing carbine.
The appearance of automatic weapons chambered for a pistol cartridge is a natural result of technical evolution, and not a momentary brilliant insight, as people who are not versed in the laws of development like to imagine. A revolution in development can only be a scientific discovery in a related field, for example, the invention of smokeless powder and the development of a unitary cartridge on its basis, which made it possible to create an automatic self-loading, and then self-firing weapon. As a rule, at this stage, inventions and innovations grow like mushrooms, a mass of inventors, developers, entrepreneurs try to stake out their plots by filing patents, bring raw products to the market, trying to chop off their piece, stifle competitors, engage in industrial espionage, plagiarism. In other words, there is a usual struggle for existence through the selection of the stronger and more arrogant, called "natural" by Sir Charles Darwin.
At the stage of evolution, the transformation of prototypes takes place. For submachine guns, the prototypes were pistols with the possibility of automatic firing and using a rigid holster instead of a butt and self-loading carbines for a pistol cartridge. Some of this was also produced at Theodor Bergman's factory, where their designer, Louis, the father of the Schmeisser brothers and sisters, worked.
These samples had no relation to military affairs, but were intended mainly for sports and hunting.
Turning now directly to the design of the MP-18, which uses patents 319035 and 334450, the authorship of which is attributed to Schmeisser and the applicant is Theodor Bergmann.
In the claims of patent 319035, two features are claimed. The first one touches the bolt device, in which the movable striker is located and against which the reciprocating combat spring rests. The second is a method of locking the bolt in the extreme rear position by engaging the bolt handle in the cutout in the receiver. There is clearly a prototype here - a typical window or door latch. From the point of view of genius, nothing has been observed so as not to bypass this patent with little blood.
Briefly about patents as such
Briefly about patents in general. The value of a patent is determined by how difficult and expensive it is to get around it, and you can always get around it. Everything is decided by the market, if there is a designer who will offer a similar solution, for example, to hook the handle not to the cutout in the receiver, but to the cutout in the forend, then the price of such a patent you yourself understand what. Another thing, for example, a hole at the end of a needle in a sewing machine or in the blade of a Spiderco knife. No matter how hard you try, it will turn out more complicated and not more technologically advanced, it is easier to pay the author here.
In the patent 334,450 describes a method of locking a hinged bolt box with a latch, for the operation of which the force of a reciprocating mainspring is used. This is already an invention from the category of a very high category. One part is used for three functions. Those familiar with TRIZ will understand me right away. A similar solution is used in the Kalashnikov assault rifle, the difference is that it locks the receiver cover, while Schmeisser has an entire box rotating on a hinge.
But. Using spring force for three functions is great, but the detailed drawing in the patent is unnecessary. So when Bergmann refused to allow Schmeisser to manufacture the MP-18, Schmeisser simply changed the shape of the spring and the latch assembly in the MP-28 to get around the limitations of his own patent (if he really was the author).
Of course, one cannot ignore the delicate question about the superiority of the MP-18 or the Beretta M1918. I'll say right away: it doesn't make sense. What moment will we designate primacy? Date of adoption? But the two samples, taken with a difference of several months, speak only of the promptness of the staff workers, who completed the documents a little faster. The filing date for patents for the individual components used in the final product? In this case, the Italian wins, since it uses solutions patented in 1915.
Summarize
The appearance of submachine guns is a natural round of evolution in technogenesis. Conceived as a defensive trench, the weapon has made its way as a police officer, an assault gun, and a personal compact like the MP-40. The role of Hugo Schmeisser (as a designer) in the creation of one of the first prototypes is well deserved. In general, the development, successful in simplicity, guaranteed victory in the competition and its acceptance into service in the German army.
This achievement turned the head of the young inventor. The glory of Ilona Mask of Isaac Merrit Singer loomed on the horizon. Get away from Bergman, create your own production, patent your developments, crush your competitors with them and live happily ever after in the glory of a brilliant inventor. Is this not a desirable goal, as the Danish prince said? In fact, everything turned out to be much more complicated. Attempts to create their own company "Industriewerk Auhammer Koch und Co." on the management of the rights to the patents of Hugo and Hans Schmeisser led to the fact that it worked at a loss and went to actual bankruptcy, threatening to strip the brothers of the rights to all of their patents. I had to create a new one, "Gebrüder Schmeisser", and transfer the rights to it.
New developments did not find buyers, simply did not represent any commercial interest or did not bring the expected profits. The case ended with the raider takeover of Karl Gottlieb Hänel's firm after his death. His young son, not having the ability either for technical creativity or for administrative affairs in managing the enterprise, followed the lead of the two brothers, giving them a third of the shares in his father's enterprise. At the same time, the brothers recouped Bergman's work to the fullest. In addition to official salaries, they began to receive interest for the use of their inventions, the size of which they themselves established, so the income of the brothers was many times higher than the income of the owners - the Henele family.
