Studying the history of other countries can give us the insights on how or what strategy the government often used to regulate gun rights.
In this article, I present the timeline of gun controls for 4 countries (England, Australia, China and Germany) starting from 1900.
Table of Contents
England
Year | Event |
1900 | At the start of the century, any person including convicted felons and the mentally ill can legally acquire any firearms and carry them in open public. |
1903 | Pistols Act of 1903 : Forbade pistol sales to minors and felons. Gun license is required to buy new pistols. These licenses can be acquired at the post office with a fee. |
1914 | Start of World War 1 : Great Britain entered WW1. Comprehensive, stringent gun controls as “temporary” measures to protect national security during the war. |
Defense of the Realm Regulations : A license was required to buy pistols, rifles, or ammunition at retail. | |
1917 | The Bolsheviks : Communist Party, seized power through the October Revolution in Russia. |
1918 | World War I ended : The government noticed the threat of communism. Gun rights were not returned to the people. |
1920 | The threat of Bolshevik revolution had faded as the Communist government of the Soviet Union found it necessary to spend all its energy gaining full control over its own people. |
1920 Firearms Act : Introduced firearm certificate system, Allowed police to deny licence to anyone who was “unfitted to be trusted with a firearm”. In the early years, the Firearms Act was not enforced with particular stringency. | |
1933 | Firearms and Imitation Firearms Bill : Increased punishment for the use of firearms in crimes |
1936 | Outlawed the possession of short-barreled shotguns and fully automatic firearms |
1937 | Raised the minimum age for buying a firearm or an airgun from 14 to 17 |
Granted chief constables the power to add conditions to individual Firearms Certificates | |
Self-defence no longer a suitable reason for applying for a firearm certificate | |
1939 | World War II started |
1940 | Britain found itself short of arms for island defense. To solve this, they bought and acquired arms from United States |
1945 | World War II ended |
The British government confiscated arms from their troops. Guns that had been donated by American civilians were collected from the Home Guard and destroyed | |
In spite of these measures, large quantities of firearms still slipped into Britain. | |
1953 | The 1953 Prevention of Crime Act : Outlawed the carrying of an “offensive weapon”, such as a knife. |
1959 | Ban on self-loading knives. |
1967 | Criminal Justice Act of 1967 : Certificate required for the purchase of shotguns, The certificate process could last several weeks and the police might visit the applicant’s home. |
The public grew accustomed to the idea of rifles and handguns being licensed. | |
1975 | Police began performing home inspections as part of the Firearms Certificate issuance |
1987 | Hungerford massacre |
1988 | The Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 : Confined semi-automatic and pump-action centre-fire rifles, military weapons firing explosive ammunition, short shotguns that had magazines, and elevated both pump-action and self-loading rifles to Prohibited category |
Registration and secure storage of shotguns became required | |
1996 | Dunblane shootings |
1997 | At the range, gun club members must now register and record which particular gun they use every time. If the gun-owner does not use his guns at the range often enough, his permission will be revoked. |
Banned private possession of handguns almost completely. | |
Spot checks and home searches were done by the police. | |
2006 | Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 : Creating minimum sentences for some firearms offences |
2007 | Sale and transfer of new “air weapons”, primers and realistic imitation firearms by mail order became offences. |
Current England Gun Laws
- Outright ban on automatic firearms and many semi-automatic firearms
- Police-issued Shotgun Certificate (SGC) or Firearm Certificate (FAC) required to own firearms. The certificates are hard to obtain.
- Good reason to own firearms required. Hunting, pest control, collecting, or target shooting are ok, but self defence is not.
- Secure gun safe to store firearms required.
- Private ownership of most handguns was banned.
- Shotgun magazine capacity is limited to two rounds.
England Summary
- Government insecurity – After World War I (1918), British government fear Communism, thus they didn’t return gun rights to the people.
- Allowing the police or government to use subjective criteria to authorize gun ownership is usually a bad idea. After a while, gun owners usually suffer from unreasonable criteria. Such as “Self-defence was no longer a suitable reason for a firearm certificate.”
- Sensational events – Even though mass shootings cause relatively little casualties, gun ban laws normally gain a lot of support after such events.
Australia
Year | Event |
1788 | European settlement brought firearms to Australia on 26 January 1788. Since the beginning, there were controls on firearms. |
1901 | Federation of Australia was formed. Gun laws became the responsibility of each state. |
1945 | World War II ended. Handguns were banned in New South Wales. |
1956 | The 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games sparked an interest in pistol shooting and laws were changed to allow the sport to develop. |
1984 | Milperra massacre |
1987 | The Hoddle Street massacre and the Queen Street massacre |
Several states required the registration of all guns, and restricted the availability of self-loading rifles and shotguns | |
1991 | Strathfield massacre in New South Wales |
Tasmania passed a law that required firearm purchasers to obtain a licence. Enforcement was light. | |
1996 | Port Arthur massacre |
1996 National Firearms Agreement and Buyback Program | |
Ban imports and buyback of “semi-automatic, self-loading and pump action longarms”. | |
Separate permit for every guns (28 days waiting period) | |
All gun sales through licensed dealers. | |
Ammo quantity purchase limits. | |
Personal protection not a “genuine reason” for owning, possessing, or using firearms | |
Storage requirements : seperately locked containers for firearms and ammunition | |
2002 | Monash University shootings |
2003 | Ban and buyback on target pistols of greater than .38 calibre and handguns with barrels less than 120mm (semi-automatic) or 100mm (revolvers) |
2014 | Sydney hostage crisis |
2015 | Creating a new offence for the possession of a stolen firearm. |
Ban on the possession of digital blueprints to manufacture arms using 3D printers and milling machines for people without an appropriate license in NSW. | |
2017 | Gun buyback to hand in unregistered or unwanted firearms |
2018 | Osmington shooting |
Current Australia Gun Laws
- Firearms licenses are required for hunting, sport shooting, pest control, collecting and for farmers and farm workers.
- Convicted felons and the mentally-ill are prohibited to obtain firearm licenses.
- Licenses are valid to 3, 5, 10 years depending on each jurisdiction.
- 18 is the minimum age to acquire firearm licenses.
- Restricted weapons include military weapons, high-capacity semi-automatic rifles and pump-action and semi-automatic shotguns holding more than 5 rounds.
- Separated storage for firearms and ammunition required.
Australia Summary
- Mass shootings – Similar to England, mass shootings provide perfect opportunities for gun opposition parties.
China
Year | Event |
1288 | Oldest surviving firearm : The Heilongjiang hand cannon |
1837 | Possession of firearms is altogether forbidden. |
1898 | Boxer Rebellion |
1901 | Late Qing Reform : Civilians can own firearms for self-defense. |
1949 | People’s Republic of China founded. |
1951 | Provisional Measures on Firearms Control : Identified existing gun owners and started permit system. |
Authorization is needed to carry guns. | |
Hunting rifles are exempted from this rule. | |
1981 | Measures on Firearms Control : Extend regulation to hunting rifles and sport-shooting guns. |
Regulated guns brought in and out by foreigners. | |
1996 | Law of the People’s Republic of China on Firearms Control : Prohibit any private possession of firearms in China |
Hunting rifles are restricted to only hunters and herdsman. Furthermore, these guns cannot be brought out of hunting or pastoral areas. | |
Safe storage and safe use are required for evert gun holders. | |
License required to manufacture or distribute firearms. | |
No one may transport firearms in China without approval. | |
2012 | Henan knife attack |
Current China Gun Laws
- Civilian ownership of guns is largely restricted to authorized, non-individual entities, including sporting organizations, authorized hunting reserves, and wildlife protection, management and research organizations.
China Summary
- Late Qing reform in 1901 provides a short-lived example for gun deregulation. In my opinion, China wanted to quickly modernize itself after experiencing crushing defeat from western civilization.
- Government insecurity – The rise of Communism in 1949 prompted gun regulation. Naturally, the government didn’t want the opposition party to possess firearms.
- The ban in China proved successful as the President still comes from the Communist Party.
Germany
Year | Event |
1849 | Possession of guns and weapons was not generally restricted, but regulations about carrying arms in public came into use. |
1914 | Start of World War 1 |
1918 | World War 1 ended |
Disarming of citizens and a generic gun law was imposed by the Allies. | |
Enforcement was not stringent, and there was no general disarmament immediately after the war. | |
1919 | The Treaty of Versailles : Firearm reducing stipulations |
Ban on possession of firearms and ammunition | |
1920 | Kapp Putsch |
1922 | Assassination of Walther Rathenau, Gun law was enforced more strictly. |
1928 | Relaxed gun restrictions |
Separate permits for owning, selling, carrying, manufacturing and professionally dealing with firearms | |
Permits granteed only if “… persons whose trustworthiness is not in question and who can show a need for a (gun) permit.” | |
1933 | Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. And Nazi came to power. |
1938 | Deregulate gun controls : |
Gun restriction laws applied only to handguns, not to long guns or ammunition. | |
Minimum legal age to purchase guns was lowered from 20 to 18 | |
Permits were valid for three years, rather than one year | |
Arms manufacturing permit would no longer be issued to any company even partly owned by Jews. | |
1939 | WW2 started |
1945 | WW2 ended |
Adolf Hitler committed suicide. | |
Banned any person or authority from possessing arms to enforce disarmament. | |
1949 | The Federal Republic of Germany is founded in the west with the promulgation of the Basic Law. |
Sporting long guns were no longer forbidden as long as their magazines do not exceed 5 shots. | |
1950 | Police were allowed to get pistols and revolvers (handguns). |
1956 | German citizens were once again allowed to own firearms. |
1972 | Federal Weapons Act : For formerly freely available weapons, a notification obligation, acquisition certificates and quota system were introduced. |
1989 | The fall of berlin wall |
2002 | Erfurt school massacre |
Weapons Act of 2002 : Increased the age requirements for licensed hunters and competition shooters. | |
People under the age of 25 requires a psychological check to acquire large-bore firearms. | |
Storage requirements have been tightened | |
Every arms sales must be recorded and reported to the authority. | |
2006 | Emsdetten school shooting |
2008 | Ban certain kinds of weapons like airsoft-guns, tasers, imitation firearms (Anscheinswaffen) and knives with blades longer than 12 cm from public places. They may still be carried in sealed wrappings and for professional or ceremonial purposes. |
2009 | Winnenden school shooting |
Introduced routine verifications of safe firearms storage by local firearms control offices | |
The weapons law does not apply to military or the police. | |
Possession of any firearm with a muzzle energy exceeding 7.5 Joule (~5.5 ft·lbf; for comparison, a .22LR cartridge has a muzzle energy of 159 J) requires a icense for that particular weapon | |
Unlawful to use a magazine that can hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition when sports shooting with long weapons | |
Inheritors of legal firearms requires a permit (which can be obtained without having to demonstrate knowledge or necessity) | |
Firearms ownership licenses can be issued on 3 necessities : “Competitive shooting”, “Hunting”, “Collecting and firearms’ experts” |
Current German Gun Laws
- License required to own a firearm.
- 18 is the minimum age to own firearms.
- Automatic firearms are prohibited.
Germany Summary
- Surprisingly, being a country on the losing side of World Wars do not have much effect on gun bans.
- Adolf Hitler came to power with overwhelming support. Thus he did not need to regulate guns. Instead he did the opposite.
- Successful gun deregulation is seen in Germany.
- School shooting seems to be the biggest culprit for gun restrictions in Germany.
Conclusion
In my opinion, the major factors for gun bans can be boiled down to 2 factors, the government and mass shootings.
In a democratic country, other than voting for gun advocate politicians, we can also try to keep/convert our fellow neighbors to support guns. As long as we promote the sport and often invite our friends and their kids to the range or a hunt, we should not have trouble with the government.
Mass shootings, on the other hand, play an outsized role in gun restrictions, but that’s the way it is. If we can somehow reduce mass shootings, it would further support our gun rights. However it is quite challenging to detect a potential mass shooter accurately. My suggestion is to use an anonymous decentralized blockchain to conduct universal background checks. But that’s a future solution with unknown obstacles. Maybe our best option is to increase gun support and ownership.
← Guide to the best scope for your AR-15
Resources and Further Readings
- All the Way Down the Slippery Slope: Gun Prohibition in England and Some Lessons for Civil Liberties in America
- Firearms policy in the United Kingdom
- Gun laws in Australia
- Walk the route of convicts in Sydney
- Gun buyback program
- Firearm ownership law in China
- Firearms-Control Legislation and Policy: China
- Gun legislation in Germany
- NAZI PARTY
- Firearms-Control Legislation and Policy: Germany
- Waffengesetz (Deutschland)
- Adolf Hitler
- Overview of gun laws by nation
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