Beretta M1918
- Category
- Submachine Gun
- Barrel
- 305 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.30 kg
- Introduced
- 1918
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Beretta M1918 was an Italian submachine gun designed by Tullio Marengoni and adopted by the Royal Italian Army in the final year of World War I. Developed from the twin-barrelled Villar Perosa, it mated a single Villar Perosa action to a wooden Carcano-style rifle stock and a top-mounted box magazine, firing the 9mm Glisenti cartridge. It is widely regarded as one of the first true submachine guns, alongside the German MP18.
By splitting the twin-barrelled Villar Perosa volley gun in half and bolting one half to a rifle stock, Beretta turned a fixed aircraft and trench weapon into a shoulder-fired arm, producing what many historians count among the very first submachine guns.
The original M1918 used a single trigger for semi-automatic fire; the M1918 'due grilletti' (dual-trigger) variant added a second trigger for full-automatic fire. The M1918/30 was a 1930 redesign that moved to a bottom-mounted magazine and was offered in 9x19mm Parabellum.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Beretta
- Category
- Submachine Gun
- Country
- Italy
- Status
- Discontinued
- Produced
- 1918 to 1930
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 305 mm
- Overall length
- 1090 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.30 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Blowback
- Firing mechanism
- Striker fired
- Trigger
- Single action
- Capacity
- 25
- Magazine
- Detachable box
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Slide
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- Blued
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 381 m/s
- Effective range
- 150 m
- Rate of fire
- 900 rpm
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Top mounted magazine
Wooden rifle stock
Fixed sights
Bipod
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 282 submachine guns | 3.30 kg | 3.15 kg | Heavier than about 60% |
| Overall lengthAmong 281 submachine guns | 1090 mm | 737 mm | Among the longest tenth |
| Barrel lengthAmong 282 submachine guns | 305 mm | 213 mm | Longer than about 90% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 287 submachine guns | 25 | 32 | Holds fewer rounds than about 90% |
Answers
Questions about the Beretta M1918
How much does the Beretta M1918 weigh?
The Beretta M1918 weighs 3.30 kg (7.28 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Beretta M1918?
The Beretta M1918 is chambered in 9mm Glisenti.
How many rounds does the Beretta M1918 hold?
The Beretta M1918 holds 25 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the Beretta M1918?
The Beretta M1918 is 1090 mm (42.9 in) long overall, with a 305 mm (12.0 in) barrel.
Who makes the Beretta M1918?
The Beretta M1918 is made by Beretta (Italy). It was designed by Tullio Marengoni.
When was the Beretta M1918 introduced?
The Beretta M1918 was introduced in 1918 and discontinued in 1930.
How does the Beretta M1918 operate?
The Beretta M1918 uses a blowback action, and its firing mechanism is striker fired.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- Royal Italian Army
- 1918
- Argentine Army
- Argentina
- Albanian Armed Forces
- Albania
Provenance
Confidence in this record
78%
Stockists
Where to buy
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No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/beretta-m1918' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "beretta-m1918", "name": "Beretta M1918", "manufacturer": { "id": "beretta", "name": "Beretta", "countryCode": "IT", "foundedYear": 1526, "website": "https://www.beretta.com", "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-02-11 23:44:38", "updatedAt": "2026-02-18 03:43:40", "version": "8b9fe1893419c995aa99c862828f03dd5729ecd351a2fed53e95d04b9a47918f" }, "category": { "id": "submachine-gun", "name": "Submachine Gun", "description": "Automatic firearms chambered in pistol calibers" }, "country_of_origin": "IT", "year_introduced": 1918, "barrel_length_mm": 305, "weight_empty_g": 3300, "action_type": "blowback"}