Beretta: History and Where Its Guns Are Made

Beretta is Italian. Beretta Holding ties the company story to Bartolomeo Beretta’s 1526 sale of harquebus barrels to the Venice Arsenal. Today, the Beretta name is connected with Beretta Holding and with U.S. operations associated with Maryland and Tennessee.

Is Beretta Italian?

Yes. Beretta is Italian, and Beretta Holding’s international footprint includes Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A. in Gardone Val Trompia.

That Italian identity is central to the company’s history, but Beretta is not only an Italian operation today. Beretta USA is part of the company’s present footprint in the United States. Beretta Holding includes Beretta USA Corp. in Accokeek, Maryland, and Beretta activity is also associated with Tennessee.

For a buyer or researcher, the important point is model specific: Beretta’s corporate history is Italian, but the company has operations in more than one country. Do not assume that every current Beretta firearm is made in the same place. Check the firearm’s markings and current manufacturer information for the exact model.

Beretta history begins in Gardone Val Trompia

Beretta Holding traces the company story to Bartolomeo Beretta in 1526. Bartolomeo Beretta sold 185 harquebus barrels to the Venice Arsenal for 296 ducats, and the record is preserved in Venice’s state archives.

That 1526 record is the anchor for Beretta’s history. Family history remains a visible part of the company identity.

Gardone Val Trompia remains part of Beretta’s modern footprint. Beretta Holding includes Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A. in Gardone Val Trompia.

Family leadership and Beretta Holding

Family leadership is a recurring part of Beretta’s identity.

The wider corporate structure is Beretta Holding, a corporate group associated with the Beretta name.

Beretta Holding describes a broad portfolio. The group covers small arms, ammunition, optics, clothing, accessories and electro optics.

Beretta Holding brands readers may recognize

Beretta Holding’s brand portfolio includes several names firearms readers may recognize.

Here is a quick orientation to several of those brands, using Beretta Holding’s own descriptions:

1. Benelli: Beretta Holding says Benelli firearms are conceived and produced in Urbino, Italy.
2. Franchi: Beretta Holding says Franchi was founded in 1868.
3. Sako: Beretta Holding says Sako was established in 1921.
4. Tikka: Beretta Holding says Tikka rifles are engineered and manufactured by Sako in Finland.

Beretta Holding’s portfolio is broader than these four names. The group spans small arms, ammunition, optics, clothing, accessories and electro optics.

The U.S. M9 contract

Beretta’s name is especially familiar to many U.S. shooters because of the M9 pistol. The Army awarded Beretta an April 1985 contract for 315,930 M9 pistols with an estimated value of about $75 million.

The M9 became a major part of Beretta’s history with U.S. military procurement.

For Beretta’s history in the United States, the M9 contract is a major milestone because it placed Beretta pistols in U.S. military procurement at large scale. The basic contract history can be separated from later opinion, nostalgia or product debate.

Where Beretta guns are made today

Beretta’s current manufacturing and corporate footprint includes Italy and the United States, but the exact origin of a firearm should be checked model by model. Beretta Holding includes Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A. in Gardone Val Trompia, Italy, and Beretta USA has activity associated with Tennessee.

In the United States, Beretta Holding includes Beretta USA Corp. in Accokeek, Maryland. The Gallatin, Tennessee, site is also part of Beretta USA’s U.S. presence.

Beretta USA held a ribbon cutting for its Gallatin manufacturing and R&D facility on April 22, 2016. The Gallatin site was described as a 156,000 square foot facility on 100 acres, with production involving six handguns, one shotgun and one sporting rifle.

What this means for shoppers and researchers

If you are trying to understand Beretta as a company, start with three points. First, Beretta is Italian by origin, with historic roots tied to Gardone Val Trompia and the 1526 Bartolomeo Beretta record. Second, family history remains central to the company’s identity. Third, the modern Beretta name is associated with a wider Beretta Holding portfolio.

If you are trying to identify where a particular Beretta firearm was made, be more specific. Beretta’s corporate footprint includes Italian operations and U.S. operations, including the Gallatin site in Tennessee. That does not mean every model comes from the same factory.

Check the firearm’s markings, product information for that exact model, and any documentation that came with the firearm. Corporate history and service history can change by topic, so match the question to the exact model, company unit or military program.