#sten mki

STENs On Parade

In this picture of British troops on parade they're accompanied by a well trained German Shepherd standing to attention. What is also interesting about the photograph is the sergeants in the foreground are both armed with MkI STEN Guns.  

Both men port their weapons in slightly different ways, with one using the extended forward handgrip and the other not. With submachine guns being radically different to the standard rifles that they supplemented it was sometimes a bone of contention of how best to hold them while on parade and during squad drill.

The MkI was the first generation of the famous submachine guns with about 100,000 being made before manufacture of the more refined MkII began in 1942. The men in the photograph look to be members of the Home Guard, their mix of age ranges and the men in the background look to be armed with Enfield Rifle No.2 Pattern '14s, or possibly American .30-06 M1917s.  It is probable that these older STENs have been replaced in front line service by newer weapons and they have then been reissued to the Home Guard. 

Follow this link for more on the STEN Gun

Sources:

Image One Source

Image Two Source

Jane's Guns Recognition Guide (1996) - Ian Hogg