The Bren gun is a British light machine gun adopted by the British Army in 1937, developed from a Czechoslovak ZB vz. 26 design purchased and adapted by the Royal Small Arms Factory at Enfield, with its name combining the Czech design origin at Brno and the British factory at Enfield. Distinguished by its curved, top-mounted box magazine and quick-change barrel, the Bren became the standard light machine gun of British and Commonwealth infantry squads throughout the Second World War, valued for its reliability, accuracy and relatively light weight compared with belt-fed machine guns, giving an infantry section its own sustained automatic firepower rather than depending on heavier crew-served weapons held further back. The Bren remained in British and Commonwealth service, through successive caliber conversions, for decades after the Second World War, and its basic magazine-fed light machine gun layout influenced the design of later infantry automatic weapons.
Facts
Classification
Service Status Weapon Class Introduced YearThe cited source dates the licensing and adoption of the design under the Bren name to May 1935; formal British service is separately given as running 1938 to 1992. Caliber Class Weapon Class
Weapon Class (category) FAQs
Did the Bren gun change cartridges during its service life?
Yes. In the 1950s many were re-barrelled for 7.62 by 51 millimeter NATO and became the L4.
Yes. In the 1950s many Bren guns were re-barrelled to take the 7.62 by 51 millimeter NATO cartridge and modified to feed from the magazine of the L1 rifle, the Commonwealth version of the FN FAL, becoming the L4 light machine gun. The British Army later replaced it as the section light machine gun with the L7 general-purpose machine gun, a belt-fed weapon.
How did the British Army come to choose a Czechoslovak design for the Bren gun?
It won the first round of the 1930 British light machine gun trials.
In 1930 the British Army organized comparative trials for a new light machine gun that included both domestic and foreign designs: the American Browning Automatic Rifle, the French Darne, the British Vickers-Berthier, the Swiss KE-7, the Danish Madsen and the Czechoslovak ZB-26. In the first round of trials the ZB-26 came first and the Vickers-Berthier second. The ZB-26 was the only entrant chambered in a non-standard caliber, 7.92x57 Mauser rather than .303 British.
Connections
Operated By
Source MilitaryFactory.com: BREN (BRno ENfield)
Source MilitaryFactory.com: BREN (BRno ENfield)
Source MilitaryFactory.com: BREN (BRno ENfield)
Used In
Source Wikipedia: Bren light machine gun
Source Wikipedia: Bren light machine gun
Source Wikipedia: Bren light machine gun
Source Wikipedia: Bren light machine gun
In the Other Atlases
Manufactured By
Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.
Source Wikidata: Bren Gun
Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.
Source Wikidata: Bren Gun
Originated In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.
Source Wikipedia: Bren light machine gunLeadtier 4Quote, Lead
The Bren gun (Brno-Enfield) was a series of light machine guns (LMG) made by the United Kingdom in the 1930s and used in various roles until 1992.
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Bren light machine gun
WikipediaLead section, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bren_light_machine_gun
The Bren gun (Brno-Enfield) was a series of light machine guns (LMG) made by the United Kingdom in the 1930s
Development section, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bren_light_machine_gun
on May 24, 1935, the licence for British manufacture was finally acquired, and the design was adopted under the Bren name
service status
62mm 1B" before it was discontinued in 2012
caliber
In the 1950s, many Bren guns were re-barrelled to accept the 7.62×51mm NATO cartridge and modified to feed from the magazine for the L1 (Commonwealth version of the FN FAL) rifle as the L4 light machine gun
Infobox: type
Light machine gun
Lead and body text
In the 1950s, many Bren guns were re-barrelled to accept the 7.62×51mm NATO cartridge and modified to feed from the magazine for the L1 (Commonwealth version of the FN FAL) rifle as the L4 light machine gun.
- Infobox: cartridge
Lead and body text (.303 British)
27 was also sent in 7.92 Mauser instead of .303 British, but ZB already held a patent for a staggered magazine for rimmed rounds).
Lead and body text (7.92x57mm Mauser)
Production started in 1940; by August 1942, the Inglis plant was averaging 10,000 Brens per month, and produced 186,000 Bren guns of all variants by the end of the war, including 43,000 chambered in 7.92×57mm Mauser for export to the Chinese National Revolutionary Army.
Infobox: service
1938-2012
Used In: Falklands War, Wikipedia article text
While best known for its role as the British and British Empire forces' primary infantry LMG in World War II, it was also used in the Korean War and saw service throughout the latter half of the 20th century, including the 1982 Falklands War.
Used In: Korean War, Wikipedia article text
While best known for its role as the British and British Empire forces' primary infantry LMG in World War II, it was also used in the Korean War and saw service throughout the latter half of the 20th century, including the 1982 Falklands War.
Used In: South African Border War, Wikipedia article text
The South African Defence Force deployed Bren guns during the South African Border War alongside the more contemporary FN MAG as late as 1978.
Used In: World War II, Wikipedia article text
While best known for its role as the British and British Empire forces' primary infantry LMG in World War II, it was also used in the Korean War and saw service throughout the latter half of the 20th century, including the 1982 Falklands War.
View the Source Wikidata: Bren Gun
Wikidata Q482428, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source MilitaryFactory.com: BREN (BRno ENfield)
MilitaryFactory.comOperated By: Australian Defence Force, Operators
[ Australia; Bangladesh; Barbados; Belize; Botswana; Bulgaria; Canada; Democratic Republic of Congo; France; Gambia; Ghana; Greece; Guyana; India; Ireland; Israel; Italy; Jamaica; Kenya; Lesotho; Luxembourg; Malaysia; Mauritius; Nepal; Netherlands; Rhodesia; Seychelles; South Africa; Suriname; Swaziland; Taiwan; Tonga; Trinidad and Tobago; Uganda; United Kingdom; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe ]
Operated By: Canadian Armed Forces, Operators
[ Australia; Bangladesh; Barbados; Belize; Botswana; Bulgaria; Canada; Democratic Republic of Congo; France; Gambia; Ghana; Greece; Guyana; India; Ireland; Israel; Italy; Jamaica; Kenya; Lesotho; Luxembourg; Malaysia; Mauritius; Nepal; Netherlands; Rhodesia; Seychelles; South Africa; Suriname; Swaziland; Taiwan; Tonga; Trinidad and Tobago; Uganda; United Kingdom; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe ]
Operated By: French Armed Forces, Operators
[ Australia; Bangladesh; Barbados; Belize; Botswana; Bulgaria; Canada; Democratic Republic of Congo; France; Gambia; Ghana; Greece; Guyana; India; Ireland; Israel; Italy; Jamaica; Kenya; Lesotho; Luxembourg; Malaysia; Mauritius; Nepal; Netherlands; Rhodesia; Seychelles; South Africa; Suriname; Swaziland; Taiwan; Tonga; Trinidad and Tobago; Uganda; United Kingdom; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe ]
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