The First Sub-machine Gun: The Officine di Villar Perosa Machine Gun of 1915 (Part I)

Abstract

This article aims to present a detailed and more nuanced examination of the development, production, and military application of the Pistola Mitragliatrice OVP (‘OVP Machine Pistol’), a unique and unusual twin-barrelled, pistol-calibre machine gun introduced in Italy during the First World War. The design process which led to the OVP machine gun is first described, followed by an assessment of its rapid adoption by the Italian Army and subsequent deployment as both an infantry support weapon and an aerial weapon fitted to military aircraft. Its efficacy in combat and impact on infantry tactics of the period are reviewed, in addition to its influence on the design of similar Austro-Hungarian small arms, and finally, its evolution into both a single-barrelled automatic carbine and a rifle-calibre light machine gun are described, along with its post-war legacy.