Free Combat Revolver manual

[lklawson]

Those of you who know me on Facebork may have seen this timeline post just go up.

I have completed the republishing the rare WWI combat revolver manual "The Service Revolver and How to Use It" by Captain Charles D. Tracy.

Tracy explodes some myths about skills and knowledge that we now have concerning early combat handgunning. His text includes instruction on aimed fire, "snap shooting," shooting in the dark, dry fire practice, active drills, reactive targets, safety, cover vs. concealment, semi-auto vs. revolver, eye dominance and two-eye shooting, and even the classic "caliber wars!"

Every time I see these sort of things, I think, "dude was way ahead of this time," but the truth may be more accurately that our forebearers were not even "cutting edge" for the time, we just forgot how much they knew and busy ourselves by congratulating our own awesomeness.

The PDF is, of course, available for free from my Lulu site. A print edition available as well, though I can't make Lulu send you one of those for free, it's still pretty cheap. And will try to get a ePub version ready for those of you who prefer eReaders.

Special thanks to Lawrence Skuse for making the text available to me for this project.

Here is the free download:
The Service Revolver and How to Use It by Charles D. Tracy (eBook) - Lulu

Paperback tree-ware for your bookshelf:
The Service Revolver and How to Use It by Charles D. Tracy (Paperback) - Lulu

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[lklawson]

I have a favor to ask.

If you downloaded this book and like it, I'd sure appreciate a 5 star review. This helps others interested in the topic to find, and decide to download, this book. If you bought the tree-ware, I'd ask the same. Please give it a review. For that matter, if you downloaded any other of the free content from my Lulu site, please give it a 5-Star review. I'd really appreciate it!

Here's the link to review The Service Revolver and How to Use It:
The Service Revolver and How to Use It by Charles D. Tracy (eBook) - Lulu

Thanks!

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[lklawson]

Karl Rehn of KR Training reviews the manual:

Book Review – The Service Revolver and How to Use It (C.D. Tracy, 1917)

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[Tez3]

King's Own Royal Regiment Museum

 

[lklawson]

King's Own Royal Regiment Museum

Good call. That was his first book. It is significantly shorter with a lot less information and less detailed information. It really cuts down to the bare bones.

I contacted KO last year and paid for digital photos when I found out they had that book in their inventory. Cornell Publications has a physical reprint of Revolver Shooting in War. The text seems to be all there but the photos are not good quality. Usable, but just barely.

It is not the book The Service Revolver and How to Use It. I tracked down that book the hard way. I stumbled across a old post on a military interest photo site where the user uploaded a single pic. Even though it was several years old, I took a gamble and PM'ed the gentleman and asked if I could purchase the book or purchase digital photos. I explained that I wanted to republish the work, with a free PDF. I was tremendously pleased when Mr. Skuse replied and then volunteered to send me pics at no cost. I thank him in the foreword and sent him the first PDF before anyone else.

There is some stuff in Captain Tracy's system which has been discarded but there's even more which is still valid in a modern context. The dude was way ahead of his time. Or maybe he wasn't all that cutting edge and we back-slid, forgetting what we knew. He talks about Texas style gunslinging skills and has a holster he designed which he calls a "cowboy holster." There's some speculation based on some vague historic military references and his family lore that he visited/saw/trained-with Buffalo Bill Cody in the U.S. (ims).

In any case, you're right. Same guy. Apparently he was a painter of some note in his lifetime as well.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[Tez3]

Good call. That was his first book. It is significantly shorter with a lot less information and less detailed information. It really cuts down to the bare bones.

I posted it up as information on Capt. Tracy as I thought people might like to know he survived the war. The Regt. amalgamated with another to become the King's Own Royal Border Regiment who I worked with a few years ago before they in turn were amalgamated with the King's Regiment ( who I've also had dealings and are the worst scoundrels going) to become the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment. The School of Musketry is now the Small Arms School Corps, my husband did a course there and knew about the Captain's books. Bisley of course is hugely famous. History - Bisley Shooting

 

[lklawson]

The School of Musketry is now the Small Arms School Corps, my husband did a course there and knew about the Captain's books.

Then he is among the rarefied few.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[Tez3]

Then he is among the rarefied few.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

Probably not in the British military, regiments here value their history, names and deeds are remembered ( and drunk to in the messes) so nothing ever goes away. More especially regiments are families, literally most personnel in a regiment are actually related with ancestors in the regiment as well, there's also regimental organisations, Corps and regimental days etc to keep remembering. The Small Arms School didn't leave Hythe until 1969, it took it's history with it which is where my OH learnt about it. The army forgets nothing ( sadly, ) lol.

 

[lklawson]

Probably not in the British military, regiments here value their history, names and deeds are remembered ( and drunk to in the messes) so nothing ever goes away. More especially regiments are families, literally most personnel in a regiment are actually related with ancestors in the regiment as well, there's also regimental organisations, Corps and regimental days etc to keep remembering. The Small Arms School didn't leave Hythe until 1969, it took it's history with it which is where my OH learnt about it. The army forgets nothing ( sadly, ) lol.

Fair enough.

Nevertheless, my primary point there was that no one seems to be talking about Tracy, his system, what we think he got right, what we think he got wrong, if it was cutting edge or standard practice or something else. I've bumped up the conversation a bit, but prior to this, if you looked really hard, you could find a few mentions of Tracy here and there but usually in the broader context of "what 'they' did back then."

To a certain degree, that is because the instruction and innovation of WWI is greatly overshadowed by interest in WWII. You can easily find reprints and digital copies of most WWII "combat" manuals and book after book followed by web page after web page on WWII "combat" systems ranging from unarmed to small-arms. And there are still legions of self defense, martial arts, and small arms advocates and preservationists writing treeware and online about these topics. While there are some for WWI, it is an order of magnitude or two less. WWII is considered the defining conflict of multiple generations and more than a century while The Great War is typically considered a great mistake and seems to be misunderstood by most.

I believe that Tracy was hugely influential in the development of handgun fighting, particularly in GB. He wrote (uncredited) the revolver section of the Musketry regulations manual and trained untold numbers of officers in revolver fighting. But his name is practically unknown in the handgun community, overshadowed by people like his contemporary W.E. Fairbairn. Tracy has become a footnote, at best, and that is certainly unfair to the contributions he's made, many of which we still view as applicable today. Among other things, I hope that by republishing his fine manual that he gets a little bit more of the spotlight that he clearly deserves.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[Tez3]

To a certain degree, that is because the instruction and innovation of WWI is greatly overshadowed by interest in WWII

At the moment the interest in all aspects of World War One is at the forefront of a huge amount of things here. It started in 2014 and will culminate in November this year. We have various history programmes on television, films, books, plays etc as well as museum displays, sculptures, interactive displays, you name it we have it on all aspects of the war from women's suffrage to weaponry, descriptions of battles and religious services. Schools are doing projects and the War Museums are doing special displays. More people are researching the Great War than ever before, that includes everything about the war so there should be plenty to interest you. The Lancaster Regimental Museum will be having a special display you can be sure and the books will be there.
A guide to the WW1 battlefields and home to the Poppy Umbrella

The There But Not There campaign is heart breaking quite honestly when you see the figures. Life size world war soldiers in outline places around the UK. There But Not There - There But Not There

What you need is to be over here visiting the British Legion clubs where the old guys tell war stories ( we say 'pull up a sandbag lol) and reminisce. I will also ask my father, he is in his nineties and was in two Scottish regiments, The Highland Light Infantry and The Gordon Highlanders as a professional soldier since he was 16. See what his weapons training was like.

 

[Tez3]

My husband has just pointed out that one of the reasons the book may seem more obscure is that only officers ever had a handgun, ordinary soldiers didn't so training was confined to those officers. In the First World War and previous to that a revolver was a 'posh weapon' and of course the officers were always 'posh'. One of the things that continues to a large extent in the Army now is that one has to come from a certain background to be an army officer in a regiment, Corps were something else, not so posh. Iraq and Afghanistan however sorted a lot of the young officers out one way or another.

 

[Buka]

My dad fought in World War 1.

Damn, I'm old.

 

[Tez3]

My dad fought in World War 1.

Damn, I'm old.

Is the USA doing anything about commemorating the war? As I said it's a huge thing here, France and Belgium.

 

[lklawson]

My husband has just pointed out that one of the reasons the book may seem more obscure is that only officers ever had a handgun, ordinary soldiers didn't so training was confined to those officers. In the First World War and previous to that a revolver was a 'posh weapon' and of course the officers were always 'posh'. One of the things that continues to a large extent in the Army now is that one has to come from a certain background to be an army officer in a regiment, Corps were something else, not so posh. Iraq and Afghanistan however sorted a lot of the young officers out one way or another.

I recently listened to an interview with a nice lady from The Shotgun & Chelsea Bun Club. According to her, the general populace more-or-less sees any interest or use of firearms, recreationally or otherwise, as "posh." Apparently they're working to change that perception.

I do find it interesting the different ways that the word "posh" is used. From what I can tell, over there it is descriptive of an aflluent lifestyle or person immersed in affluence. Here it is most often used to describe an inanimate item or place as being, very well appointed, elegant, sumptuous, or even ostentatious. A home or vehicle could be "posh" but not a person.

Two cultures separated by a common language.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[Tez3]

I recently listened to an interview with a nice lady from The Shotgun & Chelsea Bun Club. According to her, the general populace more-or-less sees any interest or use of firearms, recreationally or otherwise, as "posh." Apparently they're working to change that perception.

I do find it interesting the different ways that the word "posh" is used. From what I can tell, over there it is descriptive of an aflluent lifestyle or person immersed in affluence. Here it is most often used to describe an inanimate item or place as being, very well appointed, elegant, sumptuous, or even ostentatious. A home or vehicle could be "posh" but not a person.

Two cultures separated by a common language.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

In the cities and towns there is little interest in any sort of firearms, they don't have much use for them but us country yokels have shotguns as standard because we shoot things to eat ( not at the moment though we are out hunting for sheep and dragging them out of snow drifts, I'm knackered).

Posh hasn't much to do with affluence here but all to do with the class one is. We have quite poor aristocracy and rich working class people but only the aristocrats are posh. The seven rules of being posh
Posh ( port out starboard home from the Raj days of sailing to India) hasn't anything to do with affluence or even wealth though things described as posh are often expensive but mostly not, it also has to do with the words you use and the accent you speak with. For example, when eating in McDonalds and one uses the napkins you would be described as posh! Notice the word 'napkin' because that is posh, serviette isn't. (Using 'one' is also posh.)

So now you come to the First World War, you have all these officers at the beginning who are the products of Public Schools ( the posh schools you have to pay lots of money to go to and be on the waiting list since you were born, daddy went there, as did grandfather, great grandfather x 5), who were mostly in because again daddy had been in the regiment, as had the whole line going back to William the Conqueror. They'd do a few years in a posh regiment ( Guards and Calvary), they'd escort the debs to balls, ride to hounds and generally enjoy their lifestyle then came the war. The military training they did have was all charges on horseback, shouting 'I say lads, such fun' when charging at the enemy. It was frankly a romantic view of honour and glory on the battlefield as written by writers not soldiers. 'Playing the game', 'doing the right thing' and all the principles drummed into them at Eton etc. got them and their men wiped out quite often. fighting tactics had to be 'fair', one respected the opponent and played fair. All ideals that sound good but the common soldier had little time for, they'd come from poor hard backgrounds, the mines, mills and factories and knew life wasn't fair.

The men in the ranks however were, apart from the few professional soldiers who had mostly served in the colonies and the insurgencies there, 'oiks'. Common men who didn't expect much more than 'having an adventure' and would be home before Christmas. Hence the lions led by donkeys quote.

Not to say that the young officers weren't brave of course and as they died officers were commissioned from lower classes who had intelligence and tactic but so many dies because of this class structure. However the senior officers were basically murdering bastards.

The details of Capt. Tracey give the impression that while he advanced pistol shooting ( all officers had 'service pistols') he was one of those taking the war as a game, a very common attitude among the upper classes...well it wasn't them dying usually, this may have been the first war after Agincourt when so many aristocrats actually died with their men.

The Chelsea Bun club is frightfully (that's a posh word) posh btw, just the word Chelsea says that lol.
Their website screams posh. It says all backgrounds but it you have the wrong clothes, accent or address you won't last long. If you want to shoot here you join your local club or farmers shoot or go out with your local lord as we do.......

 

[lklawson]

The details of Capt. Tracey give the impression that while he advanced pistol shooting ( all officers had 'service pistols') he was one of those taking the war as a game, a very common attitude among the upper classes...well it wasn't them dying usually, this may have been the first war after Agincourt when so many aristocrats actually died with their men.

While that may be true, the content of his books do not seem to support that. It's surprisingly good and mostly still applicable. Not much of "fair fighting" in them. It's mostly just good, practical, advice.

I am curious now as to whether or not he has an aristocratic lineage.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[lklawson]

I am curious now as to whether or not he has an aristocratic lineage.

Here's what bio I could find on him, from the Suffolk Painters website:

TRACY, Charles Dunlop
1870 - 1948

Charles Dunlop Tracy was born at 9 St John's Street, Chichester, Sussex on 28 May 1870, son of Revd Frederick Francis Tracy (1829-1888), rector of St Pancras, Chichester 1865-1872 and Beccles, Suffolk 1872-1881, and his wife Adelaide née Borrer, who married at Steyning, Sussex in 1857. Educated at King William's College, Isle of Man and at Cloford House School, Kirkley near Lowestoft, Suffolk and in 1901, giving no occupation, was boarding at 9 Colisseum Terrace, St Pancras, London. In October 1905 he had a solo exhibtion at the Clifford Gallery 'Paintings of West Coast and Deep Seas' he also exhibited at the London Salon, the Royal Society of Marine Painters and the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, from Kingston Buci, Shoreham-by-Sea, Sussex (1908-1912) and in the 1911 Show Day at St Ives, Cornwall he exhibited three paintings, all of which were seascapes, also showing at the Peasenhall Art & Antique Gallery in Suffolk. He married at Kensington, London on 15 January 1909, Rosita MacAndrew (14 August 1866-1957) and spent sometime in America, before 1914 when he enlisted in the Royal Artillery. Rising to the rank of Captain during which time he wrote 'Revolver Shooting in War' (1915) and was awarded an O.B.E. By 1932 he was living at Reed House, Holbrook near Ipswich, Suffolk and later they lived at Ipswich. A painter in oils and a member of the Ipswich Art Club 1932-1947 and exhibited from Reed House, Holbrook in 1932 'A Moonlight Memory' and 'The Timber Ship', in 1933 five works 'The Evening Flood, Westward Ho', 'A Labrador Berg', 'The Barque, Winterhude', 'Bargaining for the Tide' and 'In Company', in 1937 four works 'Wind Hounded', 'The North Atlantic', 'With the Tide' and 'Up Channel', four in 1943 'The Grain Ship', 'Silver Lining', 'Moonlight Melody' and 'An Iceberg of Labrador', six in 1944 'Barges on the Orwell', 'The Prelude of the Night', 'Cornish Fishermen', 'Silver Lining', 'Their Guiding Light' and 'Moonlight, Cornish Coast' and was a regular annual exhibitor with Mrs. C. Tracy (late Charles D. Tracy) exhibiting from 'Holt', 33 Jupiter Road, Ipswich in 1948 his three oil paintings 'Silver Symphony', 'Evening after the Storm' and 'Memory' and at their centenary exhibition in 1974 his 'Evening after the Storm' was again on show. He died at Ipswich in 1948.

Mrs Rosita Tracy (14 August 1866-1957), was an hon. member of the Ipswich Art Club 1948-1957 but only exhibited her late husband's works. As Rosita MacAndrew, she was born at Stoke-by-Nayland, Suffolk, daughter of wealthy bank director William MacAndrew, born Elgin, Scotland and his first wife Maria Rachel née Matthews (1834-1873), who was born in El Sagrario, Arequipa, Peru on 11 December 1834, daughter of Diego Guillermo Matthews, an Englishman, and his wife Maria Mercedes Sanches Cosio, a Peruvian, who married at El Sagrario on 2 January 1830. William and Maria married at St Bride's, Liverpool in October 1855. William's second wife was Mariana née Birch of Wiston, Suffolk but had no further issue. The MacAndrew's were landowners of Westwood House, Great Horkesley, Essex but Rosita Tracy was still giving her address as Jupiter Road, Ipswich in 1956. The Tracy's only son Geoffrey Borrer Matthews (1910-1913) died in 1913 aged just 3 years.


Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[Tez3]

While that may be true, the content of his books do not seem to support that. It's surprisingly good and mostly still applicable. Not much of "fair fighting" in them. It's mostly just good, practical, advice.

I am curious now as to whether or not he has an aristocratic lineage.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

which is another reason it may be 'forgotten', it didn't gel with the times. Good and practical it may be but that's not the point to people who thought spying, spies, and other non gentlemanly warfare was just not on, old boy! His artistic background would have made him suspect in a lot of ways though having exhibited in the BA, he would have been considered 'serious' not a dilettante. His 'show business' links would also make him look like he was just playing around. He sounds as if he was quite non stuffy for the age but while the people who understood would have appreciated his books I can imagine they were almost ignored by the staff officers.

Looking at the bio, he's Upper Middle class, in the powers that be's view he was a gentleman (didn't work, had a private income, went to private schools though not Public ones) however his wife's family were in trade albeit banking so they weren't Upper Middle class, just Middle Class. Her father's first wife was 'foreign' so not entirely acceptable. Mrs. Tracey as they say married up. It depends on who Capt. Tracey's father was, it's common in the landowning classes for the first son to inherit everything, the second to go into the Church and the third to join the army.

My daughter lives in Suffolk, not far from Ipswich so when we are down there next I may have a wander and check out the address though she's waiting for a phone call to pack up and fly off to Dubai then onto Sydney for a couple of months!

 

[lklawson]

which is another reason it may be 'forgotten', it didn't gel with the times. Good and practical it may be but that's not the point to people who thought spying, spies, and other non gentlemanly warfare was just not on, old boy! His artistic background would have made him suspect in a lot of ways though having exhibited in the BA, he would have been considered 'serious' not a dilettante. His 'show business' links would also make him look like he was just playing around. He sounds as if he was quite non stuffy for the age but while the people who understood would have appreciated his books I can imagine they were almost ignored by the staff officers.

hahaha Awesome.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[Brian King]

Thanks for making this available.
Regards
Brian King