The Adam Park Project

Item Information:

Catalogue Number: 08/01/012, 08/01/10, 08/02/25f Source: TAPP Archaeology Surveys Location: No.8 Adam Park Report No: Report No.8 Artifact Type: Ammunition Production Date: 2011-02-17 00:00:00 Dimensions of Item: various Copyright with The Adam Park Project

Other Description:

125 cartridges and 85 bullets were recovered during the survey at No. 8 Adam Park. A number of individual rounds and cartridges demanded a second look. The two .45ACP rounds were in particularly good condition. The Webley revolver round was misidentified at first as .45ACP but was properly identified when once cleaned and measured.

Historic Context:

Junior officers and some NCO’s were equipped with a Thompson sub-machine gun. There were two military types of Thompson SMG by the outbreak of the war. The .45in Thompson Sub machine was issued in large quantities to allied troops in the Far East and its stopping power was welcomed by those who used it5. It was however prone to jamming. The official service pistol for the British military during the Second World War was the Enfield No. 2 Mk I .38/200 calibre revolver, but owing to a critical shortage of handguns, a number of other weapons were also adopted (first practically, then officially) to alleviate the shortage. As a result, both the Webley Mk IV in .38/200 and Webley Mk VI in .455 calibre were issued to personnel during the war. 5 Sgt Baynes noted in his correspondence that his Platoon CO took off with the sections Thompson early on in the fighting much to his disgust.