Africa and India, both of which were part of the British Empire. Before the Second Boer War, the two Boer republics' most common rifle was the .450 Westley Richards falling-block, single-action, breech-loading rifle, with accuracy up to 600 yards. It was similar to the Martini-Henry Mark II used by British troops. A book about the First Boer War, (J. Lehmann's The First Boer War, 1972), offered this comment: "Employing chiefly the very fine breech-loading Westley Richards - calibre 45; paper cartridge; percussion-cap replaced on the nipple manually - they made it exceedingly dangerous for the British to expose themselves on the skyline". In the decades to come, these expansions proved to be vital to the company's global success. Following the establishment of the new type of shotgun mechanism, the company's success in manufacturing both military and sporting weapons saw them move to a new base in 1894. The gun factory in Bournbrook was then established and designed by the architect Charles Bateman. Prior to the turn of the century, Leslie B. Taylor took over the operations at Westley Richards & Co. He was responsible for the ongoing improvement of the boxlock action, In 1898-1903, WR acted as Mauser agents, selling pistols as well as rifles/carbines and their actions to most of the British gun trade. During the next 50 years and two World Wars, the company survived and pressed their skills into the war efforts. Following World War II, there was a decline in the manufacturing of weapons in general. The war efforts over the past decades had changed the organisation into a producer of military weapons, but due to the end of the war, the demand slowed dramatically. In 1957, Walter Clode purchased the company and was responsible for turning around the fortunes of the company. He purchased the company for £2,000 and then invested a further £12,000 to get it back on its feet. During this period, he moved his focus to the United States. He restored many old weapons used in India, reselling them as vintage restorations at shows around the world, including Las Vegas. Shortly after the company announced that it would be expanding its operations into the clothing market. The reason behind the move was said to be down to the large close season for shooting in the United Kingdom, which traditionally runs from January through to August. By launching a clothing brand, it allowed