When the weapon is cocked, the bolt remains at the rear of the weapon. The design that they came up with was a submachine gun using a blowback mechanism and firing from an open bolt. magazines from the MP-38 and MP-40, so that they could use captured German ammunition and equipment if needed. The Sten was also deliberately designed to fit German 9 mm. Parabellum Luger cartridge, which was also used by the Germans. It also had to be capable of single shot and automatic fire and designed for close range fighting. It had to be capable of being manufactured in small workshops and produced as quickly as possible. The "S" and "T" in the name came from the first letters of the designers last names (S from Shepherd and T from Turpin) and the "EN" came from the first two letters of "Enfield".įrom the beginning, the aim was to design a cheap gun that could be manufactured with a minimum of machining operations.
The design they came up with was called the STEN. Turpin, of the Design Department of the Royal Small Arms Factory, Enfield. Shepherd of the Design Department at the Royal Arsenal, Woolich and Mr. The task of designing this new weapon fell to Major R.V. Therefore, a decision was made to design a submachine gun that could be made in England quickly and cheaply.
The British were buying Thompson submachine guns from the United States, but the factory could not keep up with the demand (and after 1941, many of those Thompsons went to the US military, so they couldn't supply anyone else anyway). As a result of all this, there was a shortage of small arms in Britain. Shortly after that, the Battle of Britain started and many factories in England were bombed. However, this rapid evacuation also resulted in soldiers leaving their equipment behind and large amounts of firearms fell into the hands of the Germans. The British deployed every boat and ship available to rescue the stranded Allies and in nine days (27th May - 4th June), over 300,000 soldiers (British, French, Polish, Belgian, Dutch etc.) were evacuated to England.
German soldiers were sweeping through Belgium and France and allied troops were in a desperate situation and trapped in the tiny port of Dunkirk. Click on the image to enlarge.įirst, we must go back in history to Europe in the summer of 1940.
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