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The 1907 United States Army pistol trials and the eventual 1911 pistol contract resulted in the adoption of the Colt M1911, which continues to influence pistol design and development today. However, the trials were quite competitive. For example, the Webley-Fosbery Automatic Revolver scored higher on the dirt and rust tests than the automatic pistols, and had the advantage of being a revolver during a period in which automatic pistol technology wasn't as developed. Also, the Colt design was one of three automatic pistol designs selected for further evaluation, with the Luger pistol and Savage Model 1907 being the other two competitors. Although Luger decided not to pursue further development after the 1907 trials and dropped out of the evaluations, Savage continued to develop its design and was in close competition with Colt.
What if one of the other designs had been selected by the United States Army? While I don't think the Luger would have had a service life as long as the other designs, might the Webley-Fosbery or Savage have had a life as long as the Colt M1911 and have been as influential? Also, given the historical role the military has played in the development of commercial small arms technology and the historical preference of revolvers for police and civilian users, might the selection of the Webley-Fosbery have led to the design becoming dominant in the American market?