medium machine-gun
Report a Mistake- Object Number 19440025-015
- Event 1914-1919 First World War
- Affiliation --
- Artist / Maker / Manufacturer Vickers-Armstrong Limited
- Date Made 1918
- Place of Use Continent - North America, Country - Canada
- Category Tools and equipment for science and technology
- Sub-category Armament, firearm
- Department Arms and Technology
- Museum CWM
- Earliest 1918/01/01
- Latest 1918/12/31
- Brand Name / Model Mark 1
- Inscription C (BROAD ARROW); H1619; V303
- Pattern Name Vickers
- Materials Steel, Wood
- Service Component Canadian Expeditionary ForceCanadian Army
- Measurements Height 14.2 cm, Length 110.2 cm, Width 13.3 cm
- Related activity Machine-Gunner
- Caption Vickers Machine-Gun
- Additional Information The Vickers Mk.1 water-cooled machine-gun was the primary heavy machine-gun of the Canadian Corps after July 1916. The belt-fed Vickers fired the same .303 calibre cartridge as the infantry's Lee-Enfield rifle. The Vickers' weight made it more suitable for a defensive role, but it could also be used in the attack. By 1916, the Canadians had begun to experiment with indirect machine-gun barrages in which, similar to the artillery, machine-guns fired on unseen targets, often using only map references to determine their targets. The Vickers could also be moved forward in the attack, but because its team of five needed to drag it forward along with sufficient ammunition and water, it was generally part of the second or third assault wave.