This is not a strictly smithing question, but it does have to do with 1911 innards and this forum generally has a higher signal to noise ratio...generally 
I'm curious to know if there is an accepted, historic reason for the 1911's grip safety? Was it a War Department mandate or did Browning just decide that it was important? Did the grip safety have anything to do with the use of a lanyard while on horseback (like where the gun could be accidently dropped while the thumb safety was off but the gun would still be thwacking around on the lanyard enough to get caught on gear and potentially go off)
I'm curious to know if there is an accepted, historic reason for the 1911's grip safety? Was it a War Department mandate or did Browning just decide that it was important? Did the grip safety have anything to do with the use of a lanyard while on horseback (like where the gun could be accidently dropped while the thumb safety was off but the gun would still be thwacking around on the lanyard enough to get caught on gear and potentially go off)
