The Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta is a major Italian gun manufacturing company. Their weapons are used extensively by civilians, police and militaries all over the world. Beretta is the world's oldest corporation, and has been owned by the same family for nearly half a millennium. The Beretta company was founded in 1526 when a Venice gunsmith, Mastro Bartolomeo Beretta received a large order for musket barrels for the city's arsenal; the payment receipt for this order still exists in the company's archives. Today, generations later, the company is owned by Ugo Gussalli Beretta, a direct descendant of the original Bartolomeo, and is run by him and his sons, Franco and Pietro.
Beretta is famous for its large product range that includes side by side shotguns, over and under shotguns, self-loading shotguns, hunting rifles, express rifles, assault rifles, sub-machine guns, lever action rifles, single action revolvers, double action revolvers and pistols. Not only does Beretta have a very broad product range, but Beretta also owns Benelli, Franchi, SAKO, Stoeger , Tikka, and Uberti and is a partner of Fabrique Nationale de Herstal. Beretta products are generally well made, durable and reliable.
Beretta is famous for their 92FS 9 mm Luger pistol, which has seen much exposure in American action movies, such as the Lethal Weapon series. That gun has at various times been the official sidearm of several first world armies.
In 1985, Beretta was chosen during a controversial selection process to produce the M9 9 mm Luger sidearm for the United States military. They won a contract for 500,000 units.
Beretta pistols
Beretta is also well-known in hunting circles for their shotguns, often embellished with exquisite handcarved stocks and frames.
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