W.W. · Shotgun
Greener GP
Falling block · 12 Gauge · introduced 1922
Also known as Greener Police Gun, Greener Martini Shotgun, Greener EG
About the Greener GP
The Greener GP is a single-shot, falling-block (Martini-action) shotgun produced by the British gunmaker W.W. Greener. Chambered in 12 gauge, it uses a hinged breechblock operated by an underlever to extract the fired shell and reload one round at a time. Introduced in 1922 as a general-purpose sporting and pest-control gun after the success of Greener's Egyptian police shotguns, it earned a reputation for rugged simplicity and was widely used across the British Empire.
Designed around the Martini falling-block action, the Greener became the archetypal colonial police shotgun. Its purpose-built non-standard ammunition meant a stolen Police Gun was useless without Greener's own shells, making it as much a tool of gun control as of policing.
Greener GP specifications
General
- Type
- Shotgun
- Action
- Falling block
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer-fired
- Trigger
- Single action
- Calibres
- 12 Gauge
- Magazine capacity
- 1 rounds
- Magazine
- Internal
Dimensions
- Barrel length
- 762 mm (30.0 in)
- Overall length
- 1175 mm (46.3 in)
- Weight (empty)
- 3.50 kg (7.72 lb)
Barrel
- Rifling
- Smoothbore
Materials
- Barrel
- Steel
- Receiver / frame
- Steel
- Stock
- Walnut
- Finish
- blued
Performance
- Muzzle velocity (typical)
- 400 m/s (1312 fps)
- Effective range
- 40 m
History
- Introduced
- 1922
- Discontinued
- 1980
- Production status
- Discontinued
- Country of origin
- GB
- Designer
- William Wellington Greener
Features
- Martini action
- Single shot
- Full choke
- Bead front sight
- Straight grip stock
The military and law-enforcement Police Gun variant (notably the Mark III) was chambered for a proprietary bottlenecked 14-bore brass shell and used a trident-shaped striker so that ordinary commercial 12-gauge ammunition could not be fired in it, an early example of engineered ammunition control for colonial police service.