Stunned fisherman reels in World War Two Nazi sub-machine gun from Gloucestershire river
- The astonishing discovery – in murky depths of River Frome in Stroud – has left experts scratching their heads
- Weapon appears to be an MP40, a sub-machine gun developed in Nazi Germany and used by Axis soldiers
- 1.1million produced by manufacturer Erma Werke from 1940 to 1945, with modern features making it popular
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A fisherman was left stunned when he reeled in a World War Two Nazi sub-machine gun from a river in Gloucestershire.
The discovery – in the River Frome in Stroud – has left experts scratching their heads as to how a German gun ended up in a sleepy part of England hundreds of miles away from Germany.
The weapon appears to be an MP40, a sub-machine gun that was developed in Nazi Germany and used by Axis infantrymen and paratroopers.
The discovery – in the River Frome in Stroud – has left experts scratching their heads as to how a German gun ended up in a sleepy part of England hundreds of miles away from Germany
It was nicknamed ‘the Schmeisser’ by Allies after armaments developer Hugo Schmeisser, who created a similar weapon although he was not actually involved in the MP40 itself.
An estimated 1.1million were produced by manufacturer Erma Werke from 1940 to 1945, with its modern features making the gun popular with soldiers.
The one recovered from the River Frome was found with several bullets still attached to it and handed to police.
A spokesman for Gloucestershire Police’s Specialist Ops unit, which attended the river bank, said: ‘We were called to help out a fisherman today who pulled something a bit different from the river.
‘This German sub-machine gun is a piece of history, which could be as old as 1940.
‘We wouldn’t advise eating this one. The weapon is going to be examined by our force armourer.’
The weapon appears to be an MP40, a sub-machine gun that was developed in Nazi Germany and used by Axis infantrymen and paratroopers (pictured is an intact version)