Location: Herstal, Belgium

In 1889, Fabrique Nationale (or FN) was founded by a group of Belgian investors for the purpose of manufacturing Mauser rifles for Belgian army. This was to be accomplished under the license from Mauser, with technical assistance of Ludwig Loewe of Berlin. A few years later, in late 1890s, John Browning arrived in Europe seeking a manufacturer for his semi-automatic shotgun. He had severed his ties with Winchester, after a disagreement. This led to a long association that worked out extremely well for both parties. Later Browning became associated with Colt and the world market was divided—with Eastern Hemisphere going to FN and Western Hemisphere to Colt. In this section, we list arms that bear the FN banner. FN-manufactured firearms produced under the Browning banner, are listed in Browning section of this book.