The invention of a military firearm that could produce rapid, repeating fire had been sought for nearly 900 years. This guide comprises digital resources and print materials related to the history of the machine gun. Learn about the evolution, classification, and role of machine guns in warfare and culture. Explore the history of machine guns from WWI to WWII, the types of machine guns, and the legal status of machine guns in the U.S. There have been two main machine gun eras: The era of manual machine guns and the era of automatic machine guns. The technical development itself is marked by a series of developments of specific automatic features, as well as technical developments (such as linked ammunition). A machine gun (MG) is a fully automatic and rifled firearm designed for sustained direct fire. Automatic firearms of 20 mm (0.79 in) caliber or more are classified as autocannons rather than machine guns.
