"The machine gun is one of the iconic weapons of the Great War -- indeed of the twentieth century. Yet it is also one of the most misunderstood. During a four-year war that generated an unprecedented number of casualties, the machine gun stood out as a key weapon -- in the process taking on an almost legendary status that persists to the present day. Paul Cornish, in this authoritative and carefully considered study, reconsiders the history of this extraordinary weapon, and he describes in vivid detail the role it played throughout the war. He also explores the symbolism of the machine gun and dispels the myths and misconceptions that have grown up around it ... He traces the early history of the weapon, from Hiram Maxim's invention of the first true machine gun, through pre-war experiments with lighter automatic weapons -- culminating in the widespread use of light machine guns and even the first assault rifle during the war itself. He argues that the Great War set the technological and tactical agenda for infantry firepower for the remainder of the twentieth century"--Jacket.

Prologue : taking aim -- A revolution in Infantry firepower : 1883-1914 -- The search for superiority of fire : 1914-1915 -- The little gunners -- Walking fire -- 'Like the whistle of a great wind' -- From Triumph to dissolution -- Epilogue : the machine gun legacy : reality and myth.