Gaston Glock

Gaston Glock (19 July 1929 – 27 December 2023) was an Austrian engineer and businessman. 

He founded the company Glock, and developed the Glock pistol in 1982, which became one of the most influential and popular light firearms of the 20th century.

Early life

Glock was born in Vienna on 19 July 1929. He was conscripted into the Wehrmacht as a teenager near the end of World War II, after which he graduated from school as an engineer and joined a hand drill company.

Manufacturing

Glock began as a manufacturer of curtain rods in the 1960s, and knives for the Austrian military in the 1970s, and did not design or manufacture a firearm until he was 52 years old. He already had experience with polymers from his previous business ventures. In 1980, he bought an injection-moulding machine to manufacture handles and sheaths for the field knives he was making for the Austrian army in his garage workshop. His earliest employees were from the camera industry and experienced in producing polymer components. His first production pistol was the Glock 17. It took one year to design and produce, and he applied for its Austrian patent in April 1981.

Robert McFadden of the New York Times wrote that Glock's pistol:

[...] became a phenomenal seller, especially in the United States. It arrived in the mid-1980s, when crime rates were soaring and police officers felt outgunned. New models and calibers with extended clips were introduced. Two-thirds of America’s police forces, including New York City's, adopted the Glock, as did many federal, state and county agencies ... He [Glock] was vilified by gun-control advocates and hailed by gun aficionados. Despite the Glock's popular depiction as a criminal's weapon and its use in some of America's most spectacular mass shootings, Mr. Barrett, the author of "Glock", said the gun had not commonly been traced to crime scenes — indeed, far less so than other firearm brands."

Murder attempt

In July 1999, Glock suspected that Charles Ewert, one of his closest financial advisers, had been embezzling funds. Glock confronted Ewert, who hired a French mercenary (aged 67) to murder Glock with a rubber mallet in a car park in an attempt to make it look like an accident.Glock was hit in the head, but was able to fight back, punching the man until he collapsed on top of Glock. Both Ewert and the assassin were convicted of attempted murder and sent to prison.

Personal life

Glock married Helga Glock in 1958, and they co-founded the family business in 1963. They divorced in 2011 and entered litigation over accusations that Glock engaged in racketeering. The lawsuit was dismissed in 2017.

Glock donated over one million euros to Austrian charities. He also gave funds to the Freedom Party of Austria. Glock was described as a "reclusive Austrian billionaire" who avoided publicity and valued his privacy despite his famous invention.

Glock died on 27 December 2023, at the age of 94.