Hotchkiss M1922 machine gun

M1922 machine gun
A Greek Hotchkiss M1922 chambered for 6.5×54mm Mannlicher–Schönauer at the Israel Defense Forces History Museum
Type	Light machine gun
Place of origin	France
Service history
In service	1922–1950s
Wars	Rif War[1] Constitutionalist Revolution[2] Spanish Civil War[1] Second Sino-Japanese War World War II Greco-Italian War First Indochina War
Production history
Designer	Hotchkiss et Cie
Manufacturer	Hotchkiss et Cie
Specifications
Mass	8.5 kg
Length	1216 mm
Barrel length	600 mm
Cartridge	Several, including 6.5×54mm Mannlicher–Schönauer, 7×57mm Mauser, 7.5×54mm French, .303 British, 7.92×57mm Mauser, 8×50mmR Lebel[3]
Action	Gas operated
Rate of fire	450 rounds/minute
Feed system	20 round overhead box magazine (Spanish pattern) 15 round feed strip (Officially issued and produced) 24-30 round strip from "Hotchkiss M1914" 30 round strip from "Hotchkiss M1909 Benét–Mercié"
Sights	Iron

The Hotchkiss M1922 was a light machine gun manufactured by Hotchkiss.

It was never adopted in large numbers by the French Army; nevertheless, it was exported to many European and Latin American countries under the names Hotchkiss M1926 or Hotchkiss M1934.

Description

The Fusil-Mitrailleur (FM) Model 1922 is a classic weapon with a fixed stock, pistol grip, and wooden handguard. It has a non-telescopic folding bipod. Both the cocking handle and ejection port is located on the right side. The FM's caliber varied with the user, being chambered in a wide range of calibres and fed from either 20-round overhead magazines (Spanish model) or an extended^[citation needed] feed strip. Its maximum range is 2,000 meters, and it had a regulator mechanism that would allow the user to adjust the rate of fire.

Use

The Hotchkiss M1922 was used with great success by the Greek Army during Greco-Italian War during the fight against the Royal Italian Army.[4] It was also used by the Chinese Nationalist Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War to fight against the Japanese Imperial Army and was frequently used in the Spanish Civil War by the Nationalist and in small numbers, the Republicans.[5]

Versions

There were several versions with different feed systems, calibers and improvements, among which were the Hotchkiss M1924 and M1926, the last of which spawned the Greek EYP Hotchkiss.[6]

Users

Two Chinese soldiers using a Hotchkiss M1922 machine gun

•  Brazil - M1922 in 7×57mm Mauser[7]
•  Czechoslovakia - received 1000 M1924 (vz. 24) in 7.92×57mm Mauser[8]
•  France - Mitrailleuse légère Hotchkiss type 1934, used in French colonies : Liban and French Indochina[9]^[better source needed]
•  Greece - 6.5×54mm Mannlicher–Schönauer,[3] 6000 used^[citation needed]
•  Republic of China - ~3,500 in 7.92×57mm Mauser between 1931-1939[10][3]
•  Spain - 3,000 Hotchkiss Model 1922 O.C. (Oviedo and A Coruña), in 7×57mm Mauser[11]
•  Spanish Republic - from Spanish Army and Czechoslovakia[1]
•  United Kingdom - .303 British, only for evaluation[6]
•  Turkey - 7.92×57mm Mauser[6]
• Viet Minh - used during First Indochina War[12]^[better source needed]

References

1. "Fusil Ametrallador Hotchkiss Mod.1922". historiadelasarmasdefuego.blogspot.com (in Spanish). 13 March 2009.
2. Jowett, Philip (28 Jun 2018). Latin American Wars 1900–1941: "Banana Wars," Border Wars & Revolutions. Men-at-Arms 519. Osprey Publishing. p. 33. ISBN 9781472826282.
3. "Hotchkiss Model 1922 light machine gun (France)". 2010-10-27. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
4. Athanassiou, Phoebus (2017). Armies of the Greek-Italian War 1940-41. Vol. Men-at-Arms 514. Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. p. Weapons and personal equipment. ISBN 978-1-4728-1917-8.
5. Heinz, Leonard R. (10 December 2016). "Small Arms of the Spanish Civil War" (PDF). Retrieved 7 September 2021.
6. McCollum, Ian (May 24, 2013). "Hotchkiss M1922/24/26". Forgotten Weapons. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
7. McCollum, Ian (October 4, 2014). "Vintage Saturday: Pipe-Smoking Snakes". Forgotten Weapons.
8. "Francouzský kulomet Hotchkiss vz. 24" [French machine gun Hotchkiss vz. 24]. vhu.cz (in Czech). Vojenský historický ústav Praha [cs].
9. http://atf40.1fr1.net/t6276-mitrailleuse-legere-hotchkiss-1934 Archived 2019-02-13 at the Wayback Machine
10. Shih, Bin (2018). China's Small Arms of the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945).
11. Howson, Gerald (1999). Arms for Spain: the untold story of the Spanish Civil War. St. Martin's Press. p. 28. ISBN 978-0719555565.
12. Marina Berthier. La bataille de Na San Indochine : novembre-décembre 1952 (PDF) (Report) (in French). ECPAD Fonds Indochine. p. 8.