The British Bulldog
Apr. 18th, 2020 09:44 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
poliphiloYou learn things from crosswords.
For instance, I solved a clue yesterday by guessing there is or was a gun called a Bulldog. This morning I confirmed the guess by checking with Wikipedia.
The British Bulldog was a small, stubby revolver, designed for use by The Royal Irish Constabulary and manufactured by Webley's of Birmingham from 1868 until 1917. The design was popular and much imitated. General Custer may have taken a pair of Bulldogs to the Battle of Little Bighorn and it's a fact that Charles Guiteau used one to kill President Garfield. Guiteau's Bulldog was acquired by the Smithsonian but it's not there now because somebody nicked it.
For instance, I solved a clue yesterday by guessing there is or was a gun called a Bulldog. This morning I confirmed the guess by checking with Wikipedia.
The British Bulldog was a small, stubby revolver, designed for use by The Royal Irish Constabulary and manufactured by Webley's of Birmingham from 1868 until 1917. The design was popular and much imitated. General Custer may have taken a pair of Bulldogs to the Battle of Little Bighorn and it's a fact that Charles Guiteau used one to kill President Garfield. Guiteau's Bulldog was acquired by the Smithsonian but it's not there now because somebody nicked it.
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Date: 2020-04-18 09:59 am (UTC)Guiteau chose a .442 caliber British Bulldog revolver with an ivory handle because… he thought it would look good in a museum exhibit after the assassination! But the guy had bad luck.
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Date: 2020-04-18 12:44 pm (UTC)