gatling gun
Noun: A rapid-fire, multiple-barrel firearm from the late 19th century. It is an early type of machine gun where a hand-crank mechanism rotates a cluster of barrels, allowing each barrel to fire, eject its spent cartridge, and reload in sequence as it cycles through a single firing position.
The term "Gatling gun" specifically refers to the historical weapon invented by Richard Jordan Gatling. It is used to describe the weapon itself, its mechanism, or its historical role. * The Gatling gun was a significant advancement in firearm technology during the American Civil War era. * Museums often display a Gatling gun to illustrate the evolution of automatic weapons.
- The inventor hoped the Gatling gun would reduce the number of soldiers required on the battlefield.
- Despite its effectiveness, the Gatling gun was heavy and required a crew to operate it.
- In many Western films, a Gatling gun is mounted on a stagecoach for defense.
- The term is sometimes used metaphorically to describe anything that delivers a rapid, sequential series of things.
- The reporter faced a Gatling gun of questions from the press corps.
- Gatling (noun, informal): A shortened, informal reference to the Gatling gun.
- They wheeled out the old Gatling for the historical reenactment.
- Machine gun (noun): A broader, modern term for a fully automatic firearm that fires rounds in rapid succession. The Gatling gun is a historical precursor to modern machine guns.
- Early machine gun
- Rotary cannon (Note: This is a more modern term for electrically or hydraulically driven rotary barrel weapons, which are the direct descendants of the Gatling principle.)
The "Gatling gun" refers strictly to the original, hand-cranked, multi-barrel design. While the basic rotating barrel principle is used in modern aircraft cannons (like the M61 Vulcan), these modern systems are not typically called "Gatling guns" in casual usage but rather "rotary cannons" or "Gatling-type guns." The core defining feature of the original is its sequential firing via mechanical rotation.
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an early form of machine gun having several barrels that fire in sequence as they are rotated
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