BSA GUNS

In just over a hundred years, BSA has grown from a small syndicate of gunsmiths to one of Britain's largest industrial groups. The story is not entirely one of constant progress and expansion; There is also drama and excitement. And because BSA has served its country more directly than most private companies, its history is also part of Britain's history. To start at the very beginning, however, it is necessary to go back much further than a century – to the year 1689, in fact, at the court of William and Mary. King William III, worried about threats of invasion, sharply criticized the practice of obtaining military arms from Holland. He was heard by Sir Richard Newdegate, an MP for Warwickshire, who immediately spoke on behalf of his Birmingham constituents – among whom were many excellent gunsmiths. The result was a trial order for five of Birmingham's leading blacksmiths. It was carried out satisfactorily and a firm contract was made between the government and the quintet for the supply of 200 muskets a month "at seventeen shillings a piece, money ready".