Gatling gun
The Gatling gun is a rapid-firing multiple-barrel firearm invented in 1861 by Richard Jordan Gatling. It is an early machine gun and a forerunner of the modern electric motor-driven rotary cannon.
"Gatling" redirects here. For other uses, see Gatling (disambiguation).Gatling gun
Rapid-fire gun, hand-cranked machine gun
1862–1911
See Users
American Civil War
Boshin War
Indian Wars
Franco-Prussian War[1]
Anglo-Ashanti War
Ethiopian-Egyptian War
Haw Wars
Satsuma Rebellion[2]
Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878)
Second Anglo-Afghan War
Anglo-Zulu War
War of the Pacific
Argentine Civil Wars
Russian conquest of Central Asia
Kiriji War
Mahdist War
Anglo-Egyptian War
Colombian Civil war of 1884-1885[3]
Northwest Rebellion
Italo-Ethiopian War of 1887-1889[4]
Revolution of the Park[5]
Argentine Revolution of 1893[6]
Revolta da Armada[7]
First Sino-Japanese War[8]
Second Matabele War[9]
Spanish–American War
Philippine–American War
Boxer Rebellion
Colorado Labor Wars
Russo-Japanese War (limited)[10][11]
1907 Honduran Conflict
Mexican Revolution[12]
Battle of Blair Mountain
1861
Eagle Iron Works
Cooper Firearms Manufacturing Company
Colt Manufacturing Company
American Ordnance Company
1862–1903
170 lb (77.2 kg)[13]
42.5 in (1,079 mm)
26.5 in (673 mm)
Four-man crew
The Gatling gun's operation centered on a cyclic multi-barrel design which facilitated cooling and synchronized the firing-reloading sequence. As the handwheel is cranked, the barrels rotate, and each barrel sequentially loads a single cartridge from a top-mounted magazine, fires off the shot when it reaches a set position (usually at 4 o'clock), then ejects the spent casing out of the left side at the bottom, after which the barrel is empty and allowed to cool until rotated back to the top position and gravity-fed another new round. This configuration eliminated the need for a single reciprocating bolt design and allowed higher rates of fire to be achieved without the barrels overheating quickly.
One of the best-known early rapid-fire firearms, the Gatling gun saw occasional use by the U.S. forces during the American Civil War, which was the first time it was employed in combat. It was later used in numerous military conflicts, including the Boshin War, the Anglo-Zulu War, and the assault on San Juan Hill during the Spanish–American War.[16] It was also used by the Pennsylvania militia in episodes of the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, specifically in Pittsburgh. Gatling guns were also mounted aboard ships.[17]
A modern reproduction of the Gatling gun
