How Much Do You Know About the History of Firearms?

The Chinese invented gunpowder by accident. It was invented by 9th century alchemists who were trying to create an immortality potion and instead created an explosion.

Winchester rifles were introduced in 1873. They were so affordable and made in such large numbers that they became known as the generic rifle.

In the late 1800s, a bunch of small manufacturers churned out cheap but usable tiny single-action spur trigger revolvers. Firms like Iver johnson and Hopkins and Allen produced millions of guns which were mockingly called "Suicide Specials."

The fire lance is the ancestor of all modern firearms. It was invented in 10th century China.

Historic accounts show that Eurasia began utilizing firearms more widely in about the 14th century. It is thought that this is due to either gunpowder and firearms spreading along the silk road, or Mongol invasion bringing it to Europe.

The vast majority of early guns were muzzle-loaders, which meant that powder and bullets had to be dropped down the muzzle and stuffed into the rear of the gun before firing. Breechloading guns are loaded directly from the rear of the barrel instead.

Before guns, men dueled with thrusting swords called rapiers. Dueling with guns became so popular that a dueling pistol became standardized as having certain characteristics in 1777.

Early firearms needed a flame to work. Burning wicks would be touched to either a fuse or pan filled with gunpowder.

Colt revolvers were far more accurate and reliable than many guns of the time, as they were mass-produced to be identical. Those who bought a Colt generally knew what they were getting.

Springfield armory was the main center where US military firearms were made from 1777-1968. Located in Springfield, Massachusettes, many of the guns made there are known as Springfield rifles.

Early guns could only be aimed with one hand while a prop steadied it and the other hand held a candle to the touch hole to ignite the powder. This made aim quite bad. Matchlock guns appeared in the 1400s, which were ignited by a wick in a movable clamp, rather than one held by hand.

In the early 16th century, the wheel lock or rose lock was invented, which generates a mechanical spark. However, matchlocks were half the price, so they remained the common gun of choice.

Before flintlocks, the lid which exposed and protected gunpowder on a gun had to be moved by hand. These guns moved that lid and ignited them at once in a single step.

Dueling pistols sometimes had unusual decorative details. In 1777, they were standardized as having a 9- or 10-inch barrel.

Samuel Colt was the first to apply the technology of the industrial age to producing guns. The first Colt revolver was created in 1835.

Flintlock is a term used to describe any firearm that has a flint striking ignition mechanism. These guns were popular from the 1500s through the 1800s.

In the 1700s, specialized firearms for specific purposes were made. The fowling piece was one gun made to hunt birds.

Spencer repeating guns, innovative for their use of cartridges, could fire 7 shots in 15 seconds. These were the main repeating guns used during the Civil War.

Winchester introduced the first popular automatic rifle in 1903. It was known as the Winchester Model 1903.

The matchlock was the first early gun to combine all 3 of these components. These guns were popular for about 2 centuries.

Matchlocks required the burning wick of a candle or other flame to set off gunpowder. Flintlocks make use of flint against steel to provide the proper spark.

The design of flintlock guns was perfected in the early 1600s. It was originally known as the French lock.

Archers discovered that angled fletching feathers on the rear of the arrow caused an arrow to rotate in flight and hit targets with more accuracy. This was applied to gun barrels, which were built with slowly twisting grooves inside to rotate the bullet. These grooves were called rifling and rifled firearms, or rifles became widely used due to their accuracy.

This was the gun used by early American pioneers. It was probably a descendant of the German Jaeger, which was commonly used in Europe as a hunting rifle.

Eliphalet Remington produced barrels as early as 1826, as many country folk would build their own guns, but always buy the barrels. Remington remains one of America's premier gun manufacturers to this day.

As early flintlock guns relied on two types of powder and a flame, it could be difficult to use them in the rain. Wet powder and a wet wick rendered the guns basically useless.

Colt's revolvers addressed the problem of guns that were either awkward and cumbersome to reload or had so many barrels that they were too heavy. Colt had a monopoly on revolver manufacture for years.

Other firms and companies jumped into the revolver business and began making their own models. These include manufacturers like Starr, Whitney and Remington.

Smith & Wesson designed a small .22 revolver, which used a revolutionary cartridge. It is the ancestor of all modern traditional ammunition and they held a patent on it until 1869.

Introduced in 1873, this Colt handgun was famously reliable and effective. It is the most famous handgun of the old West.

The American military of the past was reluctant to embrace changes in technology. Despite repeating rifles with 16 rounds or more being available, the late 19th-century American soldier was still using single-shot guns because his superiors didn't want him to go through ammunition too quickly and cost money.

Black powder would make a cloud of dark smoke when used to fire a gun. This would reveal the position of the shooter and also make it hard for them to see.

Smokeless powder was a major innovation, which allowed for better use and more effective guns. It allowed smaller bullets to do as much damage as larger ones.

Germany largely dominated in early European firearms design. The Luger pistol was introduced in 1900 and adopted as a military pistol by many countries.

The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire and several European kingdoms. It was fought from 1853-1856.