INTRODUCTION
Since the beginning of the American Army in 1776, officers including Generals were required to furnish their own side arms and long arms. They purchased sets of flintlock pistols, single pistols, muskets, rifles and sabers as their duties required. Some officers wished to use standard government issued weapons and turn them back in when their service had expired or the weapon was no longer needed.
A select few officers and Generals carried no weapon on themselves going into battle and openly boasted about such daring. General Douglas McArthur was one such officer. Others purchased extravagant pistols to suit their taste and stature in the service. General George S. Patton, Jr. was such an officer. His ivory gripped Colt single action .45 is a legend.
Times change, as did warfare and the way wars were fought. By World War II, no longer did Generals sit on horses watching the battle progress. To be an effective and successful General they were required to move around and stay with the flow of the battle. Often the line between Allied and Axis forces was thin and at times obscure. All of this called for a change in the General's "code of dress." The practice of issuing pistols began in 1943, not that the Generals didn't carry some sort of firearm prior to 1943. This marked the start of issuance of a standard pistol as a badge of rank to the General Officers. The pistol of issue was the Colt 1908 Hammerless .380 pocket pistol. The .380s were issued until exhaustion and then the .32 caliber pocket model was issued. Not all Generals carried the new issued .32 and .380 Colt automatics, but continued to carry the 1911 Colt .45 automatic pistol.
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GENERAL OFFICER'S HANDGUNS
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