The side-by-side double rifle as we know it came about as a result of the search for a dangerous-game rifle that could discharge two shots in succession as quickly as the second trigger could be pulled and then reloaded quickly again to provide additional backup shots, if needed. They are direct descendants of earlier muzzle-loading designs that went through a gradual process of evolvement that ended by the late 1890s with what was basically the perfected double rifle as we know it today. The large-bore cartridges designed for use in double rifles are, with a few exceptions, still with us today, and while action designs may be different in many instances, the image of the side-by-side double rifle remains by and large the same.
The first decades or so of the 1900s were without doubt the bloom period for British gunmaking. The big-name makers enjoyed well-earned reputations for inventiveness and quality and were kept constantly busy crafting beautiful new inventions for their wealthy clients. World War I was a major distraction, however, and the manufacture of sporting firearms took a distinct back seat in favor of war production. After World War I, many of the British makers found themselves on the horns of a dilemma: many of their
