A brief history on the invention of the luger hand gun from our friends at wikipedia

The Pistole Parabellum 1908 or Parabellum-Pistole (Pistol Parabellum), popularly[1] known as the Luger, is a toggle-locked recoil-operated semi-automatic pistol. The design was patented by Georg J. Luger in 1898 and produced by German arms manufacturer Deutsche Waffen- und Munitionsfabriken (DWM) starting in 1900; it was an evolution of the 1893 Hugo Borchardt designed C-93. It would be succeeded and partly replaced by the Walther P38.

The Luger was made popular by its use by Germany during World War I and World War II. Although the Luger pistol was first introduced in 7.65x22mm Parabellum, it is notable for being the pistol for which the 9x19mm Parabellum (also known as the 9mm Luger) cartridge was developed.