A Howdah Pistol was a large-calibre handgun, often with two or four barrels, used in India and Africa during the period of British Colonial rule in the mid-to-late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, typically for defence against tigers, lions, and other large, dangerous animals that might be encountered in the jungles or remote areas. Multi-barrelled designs were initially favoured for Howdah pistols because they offered faster reloading than was possible with contemporary revolvers[1], which had to be loaded and unloaded through a gate in the side of the frame.
The name "Howdah pistol" comes from the sedan chair- known as a Howdah- which is mounted on the back of an elephant; hunters, especially during the period of the British Raj in India used howdahs as a platform for hunting wild animals and needed large-calibre side-arms to protect themselves, the elephant, and their passengers from animal attacks at close range.[2]
The first Howdah pistols were little more than sawn-off rifles[2], typically in .577 Snider[3] or .577/450 Martini-Henry calibre, but later on English firearms makers did manufacture specially designed Howdah pistols[3] in both rifle calibres and more conventional handgun calibres such as .455 Webley and .476 Enfield[2]. As a result, the name "Howdah pistol" is often applied to a number of English multi-barrelled handguns such as the Lancaster pistol (available in a variety of calibres from .380" to .577")[4], and various .577 calibre revolvers produced in England and Europe for a brief time in the mid-late 19th century[5].
Even though Howdah pistols were designed for use in the “gravest extreme” against dangerous game (such as tigers), British officers adopted them in other far-flung outposts of the British Empire[3], although by the late 19th century, top-break revolvers in more practical calibres (such as .455 Webley) had become much more widespread,[3], removing much of the traditional market for Howdah pistols.
In the movie The Ghost and the Darkness the character Remington (Michael Douglas) carries a unique superposed double barrel Howdah pistol.
