Hand Cranked Machine Guns Go Back to Machine Guns Montigny mitrailleuseThe Montigny mitrailleuse is an early rapid-fire weapon developed in Belgium, capable of firing multiple barrels simultaneously. Pre-dating modern machine guns, it saw limited use during the Franco-Prussian War.Reffye mitrailleuseAn early type of volley gun used by the French military in the late 19th century. It featured multiple barrels and was capable of firing volleys of projectiles simultaneously, serving as a precursor to modern machine guns.Bira GunA hand-cranked multi-barrel machine gun developed in Nepal in the late 19th century. Similar to the Gardner gun, it was unique to Nepal and used for local defense, demonstrating the spread of machine gun technology beyond Europe.Nordenfelt GunA manually operated, rapid-firing gun with multiple barrels that fired in succession. Invented in the late 19th century, it was used by various navies for anti-torpedo boat defense and could fire rifle-caliber rounds at a high rate.1874 Gardner GunAn early American machine gun designed by William Gardner in 1874. The Gardner gun was manually operated, with a crank that fired rounds through two barrels alternately. It was adopted by several armies, including the British, and was an important step in the development of fully automatic weapons.Billinghurst Requa Battery gunThe Billinghurst Requa Battery gun was an early volley gun used during the American Civil War. It consisted of multiple barrels mounted together, capable of firing in a simultaneous burst. Though innovative, its practical battlefield use was limited due to its cumbersome size and setup requirements.M1903 Gatling GunAn early type of hand-cranked machine gun, the Gatling gun was one of the first to solve the problem of providing sustained rapid fire. The M1903 version featured ten barrels and was used by the U.S. military during the early 20th century.Agar GunThe Agar Gun, nicknamed the "Coffee Mill Gun," was an early crank-operated machine gun used during the American Civil War. It demonstrated the potential of rapid-fire weapons but was limited by overheating and logistical challenges.