1904 Maxim

[Brigitta Martini]

TheMaxim gun has been called "the weapon most associated with imperial conquest" by historian Martin Gilbert,[16] and was heavily used by colonial powers during the "Scramble for Africa". Afterwards, Maxim guns also saw extensive usage by different armies during the Russo-Japanese War, the First and Second World Wars, as well as in contemporary conflicts.

The Maxim gun featured one of the earliest recoil-operated firing systems in history. Energy from recoil acting on the breech block is used to eject each spent cartridge and insert the next one. Maxim's earliest designs used a 360-degree rotating cam to reverse the movement of the block, but this was later simplified to a toggle lock. This made it vastly more efficient and less labor-intensive than previous rapid-firing guns, such as the manually cranked Mitrailleuse, Gatling, Gardner, or Nordenfelt.

Trials demonstrated that the Maxim could fire 600 rounds per minute.[17] Compared to modern machine guns, the Maxim was heavy, bulky, and awkward. A lone soldier could fire the weapon, but it was usually operated by a team of men, usually 4 to 6. Apart from the gunner, other crew were needed to speed reload, spot targets, and carry and ready ammunition and water. Several men were needed to move or mount the heavy weapon.

In 1884, Maxim began to develop his machine gun in Hatton Garden, London.[18] In November of that year, he founded the Maxim Gun Company with financing from Albert Vickers [la], son of steel entrepreneur Edward Vickers.[18] A blue plaque on the factory where Maxim invented and produced the gun is located in Hatton Garden at the junction with Clerkenwell Road in London.

Albert Vickers became the company's chairman, and it later joined hands with a Swedish competitor, Nordenfelt, to become Maxim Nordenfelt Guns and Ammunition Company. The Post Office Directory of trades in London of 1895 lists its office at 32 Victoria Street SW (London) on page 1579.

The first unit in the world to receive the Maxim was the expeditionary force led by Hermann Wissmann which was sent in 1888 by the German Imperial government to its colonies in East Africa to suppress the Abushiri Revolt.[25] Wissmann was issued one of the first Maxim guns which had reached Germany and used it successfully in his capture of Pangani.[26]

The Maxim gun was first used extensively in an African conflict during the First Matabele War in Rhodesia. During the Battle of the Shangani on 25 October 1893, 700 soldiers fought off 5,000 Matabele warriors with just five Maxim guns. It played an important role in the "Scramble for Africa" in the late 19th century. The extreme lethality was employed to devastating effect against obsolete charging tactics, when African opponents could be lured into pitched battles in open terrain. As it was put by Hilaire Belloc, in the words of the figure "Blood" in his poem "The Modern Traveller":

However, the destructive power of the Maxim gun in colonial warfare has often been embellished by popular myth. Modern historical accounts suggest that, while it was effective in pitched battles, as in the Matabele wars or the Battle of Omdurman, its significance owed much to its psychological impact.[citation needed]

A larger-calibre version of the Maxim, firing a one-pound shell, was built by Maxim-Nordenfeldt. This was known in the Second Boer War (in South Africa) as the Pom-Pom from its sound. The Boers' "one-pounder" Maxim-Nordenfeldt was a large-caliber, belt-fed, water-cooled "auto cannon" that fired explosive rounds (smokeless ammunition) at 450 rounds per minute.[29][30]

National and military authorities were reluctant to adopt the weapon, and Maxim's company initially had some trouble convincing European governments of the weapon's efficiency. Soldiers generally held a great mistrust of machine guns due to their tendency to jam. In the 1906 version of his book Small Wars, Charles Callwell says of machine guns: "The older forms are not suitable as a rule... they jammed at Ulundi, they jammed at Dogali, they jammed at Abu Klea and Tofrek, in some cases with unfortunate results."[32] However, the Maxim was far more reliable than its contemporaries.[33] A more immediate problem was that, initially, its position was easily given away by the clouds of smoke that the gun produced (although the same was true of artillery pieces and units of troops that the machine gun was intended to replace or supplement, so this wasn't viewed as a particular drawback by the early users). The advent of smokeless powder (developed by, among others, Hiram's brother Hudson Maxim), helped to change this.[citation needed]

In January 1899, just before the outbreak of the Philippine-American War, the Philippines had forty-two Maxim guns. An English observer who had seen one of them, described it as being "of the most improved type."

By World War I, many armies had moved on to improved machine guns. The British Vickers machine gun was an improved and redesigned Maxim, introduced into the British Army in 1912 and remaining in service until 1968. Production took place at Erith in Kent, and some models were fitted to early biplanes also fabricated there. The German Army's Maschinengewehr 08 and the Russian Pulemyot Maxim were both more or less direct copies of the Maxim.

It also saw use during the Russian Civil War, which followed the Revolution in 1917. A picture of the period depicts a Maxim gun mounted on a tachanka, a horse-drawn carriage, along with the gunner, firing backwards at a pursuing White Army regiment. Anarchists attribute this mobile setup to Nestor Makhno.

The United States Army had shown interest in the Maxim machine gun since 1887. Model 1889 and Model 1900 Maxims were used for testing, which lasted for years but not continuously. The gun was finally adopted in 1904 as the Maxim Machine Gun, Caliber .30, Model of 1904 as the first rifle-caliber heavy machine gun for standard service in the U.S. Army. The design was characteristic for its visually distinctive cage-like muzzle recoil booster[38] designed by Trevor Dawson and J. Ramsay of Vickers.[39]

M1904 Maxims were issued to infantry companies and cavalry. Each company had four guns with associated tripods, ammunition, and 20 mules to transport the heavy guns. The M1904 was deployed in operations in the Philippines, Hawaii, Mexico, and Central and South America, but never saw much combat use. During World War I, it remained in the U.S. for training.[40]

The Maxim, in the form of the PM M1910 chambered in 7.6254mmR, has been used by both sides of the Russo-Ukrainian War of 2022. Many Maxim guns were retrofitted to suit the nature of modern warfare, including its installation on technicals and the mounting of red dot sights.[41][42][43] At least one documented Maxim gun used by the Ukrainian Ground Forces in the Battle of Bakhmut still had its original iron wheels with no visible modifications. A Ukrainian soldier told BBC News in March 2023: "It only works when there is a massive attack going on ... then it really works. So we use it every week".[44]

History

2004 marked the one hundredth anniversary of the adoption of the U.S. Maxim Machine Gun, Caliber .30, Model of 1904. This was the first rifle caliber heavy machine gun approved for use as the standard service type by the United States Army.

The army was interested in the new Maxim gun as early as 1887 and procured examples of the World Standard Maxim machine gun Model 1889 and Model 1900 for testing purposes. It took another seven years of sporadic testing with fits and starts before the Chief of Ordnance finally gave approval for adoption in 1904. An agreement was reached with Vickers, Sons & Maxim, Ltd. (VS&M) and an initial order was placed for 50 guns and tripods to be produced at the VS&M Erith Works facility in England in the U.S. caliber .30-03.

The Colt company had no desire to produce tripods or wheeled mounts for the Maxim and all of the tripods produced for the 04 Maxim were produced in England by VS&M. All of the wheeled carriage mounts were produced by Rock Island Arsenal (RIA). Tripods and wheeled mounts were ordered and purchased separately from the guns and, though serial numbered, they were not numbered to a specific gun

The last order of guns was placed in 1908 and in 1909 the U.S. adopted the Bent-Merci Machine Rifle Model of 1909. That was superseded in 1915 by the adoption of the Colt Vickers Model of 1915 and then in 1917 by the Browning Model 1917.

Accessories

Accessories for the Model 1904 Maxim included a tin lined wooden water box denoted by a 1-inch white stripe painted longitudinally around the box, a wood tool and spare parts box denoted by a light blue stripe and a wood belt filling machine box denoted by a red stripe. All these boxes were of the same size and dimensions as the wood ammunition box with sides and ends dovetailed together and the bottom secured by screws. All parts (hinges, handle and clasp) of the boxes are recessed so as to be flush with the surface. 04 Maxim boxes all had a fold down metal carrying handle as opposed to the later same size and color coded wood boxes of the Colt Vickers Model of 1915 which had leather handles. The ammunition box contained one 250-round belt made of a composition of linen and flax. The pockets being formed by brass strips securely riveted to the web portion of the belt. Ordered accessories included a total of 6,434 ammo boxes, 1,344 water boxes and 7,144 ammo belts. The one piece brass and steel cleaning rod was mounted under the trailing leg of the tripod. Originally, there was no steam condensing hose for the gun as it had not yet been determined that a large white steam plume emitting from the water jacket steam escape port would be a problem in combat situations as it was envisioned that the guns would be placed at the rear by artillery units. By 1913 that need was recognized and a rubber tube device was developed that was held to the water jacket by means of a supporting leather band. The tubing is connected to the band by a chain and holder. A nozzle at one end of the rubber hose fit into the steam escape port in the water jacket cap. Seldom used, this device can be seen in a few rare photos.

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