Truth is, duels were genuinely serious business and at one stage during the Napolenic War it was said that more British Officers were killed in duels amongst themselves than actually by the French! Such was the seriousness of the situation that duels were banned by Wellington himself who later became one of the chief proponents in the outlawing of the practice in Britain. Duelling in Britain finally came to an end in the mid 1800's.
To anyone who has ever handled a duelling pistol it cannot go without notice how beautifully balanced and well made the pistols are. They can often at first appear heavy and slightly unbalanced in the hand but as you draw them up and line the sights up you really appreciate just how well balanced and steady they become. You would certainly not want to be on the receiving end!
Importantly with duelling pistols they had to be identical in every way so that no one duellist had an advantage. As such they are some of the finest quality firearms built by British makers of the flintlock and percussion era. Most British made pistols were built as smooth bores in calibres from .40 to .65, but for the more cunning barrels might be part rifled or 'scratch' rifled to aid accuracy.
Westley Richards has an outstanding reputation for supplying a comprehensive selection of pre-owned guns and rifles. We pride ourselves on our in depth knowledge of the many sporting arms built over the last 200 years, placing particular emphasis on big game rifles, like the 577 Nitro Express, 505 Gibbs and 425 Westley Richards. Whether looking to grow or sell your collection of firearms, or simply require a trusted evaluation, our team from the sales department would be delighted to hear from you. To view the latest available, head to the used shotguns and used rifles pages, and for those interested in new firearms, explore our custom rifles and bespoke guns pages.
