Can someone tell me about or a short history of the company, I don't have any books on double rifles or British rifles. I see them mentioned here from time to time in regard to double rifles.

Army & Navy CSL (Cooperative Society Limitied) - a group of British military officers who formed a buying group somewhere in the 1870's (I think) for the purpose of purchasing fine guns & liquors at a discount (volume buying) for it's members; they contracted various British gunmakers to build shotguns & rifles so their members could buy them. Apparently some of their contracts were with top tier makers like Westley Richards and William Evans, and some were with lower tiered makers maybe like Cogwell & Harrison. I think the group continued until the mid-1930's. Probably most (maybe all) the companies that marketed guns with this name were considered fine makers - obviously some a little better than others. This is what I THINK I know about the Army & Navy brand, but others here may correct some of what I've said - feel free to amend any of my info, because I have a couple of Army & Navy firearms, and would be interested in learning more about the brand.

A & N was originally established by British military officers to buy tea at a volume discount, and quickly expanded. Their gun department opened in 1873.

Army & Navy was strictly a retailer, not a gunmaker. The guns that bore their name were made by a wide variety of suppliers over the years. Most of the Nitro double rifles came from Webley & Scott, but others came from Westley Richards, Osborne, Wilkes, etc. They generally bought solid quality.

No, Evans never made guns for Army & Navy. Yes, some Army & Navy guns are identical to what appear to be the same models from Evans, right down to the engraving - because they are. In those days, Evans was actually a retailer as well, and most of their guns came from Webley & Scott also.

Most of the Army & Navy records survive, so it's a simple matter to determine who actually made a specific gun for them.
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"Serious rifles have two barrels, everything else just burns gunpowder."

The University of Glasgow has A&N records, with an order form accessible from the web. I got a copy of the records of my 1898 12 bore shotgun, and the manifest included the army officer who bought it (whose initials are on the stock ovel) and the maker (Saunders), as well as cost to them and purcase price. A neat way of tracing the lineage of an old gun. Bob

Because Army & Navy never pretended to be anything but a retailer, unlike others, their ledgers contain a lot of information. Date ordered, identity of the trade maker, trade maker's serial number, cost, sales price, date sold, etc. The guns sold through the outlets in Bombay, Calcutta, Delhi, and Karachi were shipped out on the P & O liners plying that route, and the individual ships are named in the records. The A & N records are a valuable source for researchers.
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"Serious rifles have two barrels, everything else just burns gunpowder."

That is quite interesting thanks

How do I get a hold of them(University of Glasgow)? Thanks!

quote:

Originally posted by bobc:
The University of Glasgow has A&N records, with an order form accessible from the web. I got a copy of the records of my 1898 12 bore shotgun, and the manifest included the army officer who bought it (whose initials are on the stock ovel) and the maker (Saunders), as well as cost to them and purcase price. A neat way of tracing the lineage of an old gun. Bob

Do a google search, that's how I found it.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by SAFARIKID:
How do I get a hold of them(University of Glasgow)? Thanks![QUOTE]

Here is the web site

http://www.archives.gla.ac.uk/collects/guides/armynavy.html

Thank You!