Hotchkiss Mle 14
Hotchkiss M1914
Type	machine gun
Nation	France
Era	World War I
History
Date of design
Production period	1914 - 1920
Service duration	1914 - 40.
Operators	UK (see text), France, Poland
War service	World War I, Polish-Soviet War
Variants
Number built
Specifications
Type
Calibre	8 mm
Barrel length	800 mm
Ammunition	8 x 52 mm R Lebel
Magazine	30 round strip, 249 round belt
Action	gas actuation
Length	1390 mm
Weight	23 kg, 40 kg with stand
Rate of fire	600 round/min
Muzzle velocity	701 m/s
Effective range	{{{range}}}

The Hotchkiss machine gun was the standard machine gun of the French Army during World War I. It was made by the French arms company Hotchkiss et Cie, which was set up by American engineer Benjamin B. Hotchkiss after he moved to France in the 1860s. Image File history File links Machine_gun_Hotchkiss. ... A machine gun is a fully-automatic firearm that is capable of firing bullets in rapid succession. ... World War I was primarily a European conflict with many facets: immense human sacrifice, stalemate trench warfare, and the use of new, devastating weapons - tanks, aircraft, machineguns, and poison gas. ... The word caliber (American English) or calibre (British English) comes from the Italian calibro, itself from the Arabic quâlib, meaning mould. ... A machine gun is a fully-automatic firearm that is capable of firing bullets in rapid succession. ... World War I was primarily a European conflict with many facets: immense human sacrifice, stalemate trench warfare, and the use of new, devastating weapons - tanks, aircraft, machineguns, and poison gas. ... The Hotchkiss Revolving Cannon picture published 1874 Hotchkiss was a French arms and car company established by American engineer Benjamin B. Hotchkiss, who was born in Watertown Connecticut. ... Benjamin Berkeley Hotchkiss (1826–February 14, 1885) was one of the leading American ordnance engineers of his day. ...

Design

The Hotchkiss was based on work by Captain Baron A Odkolek von Augeza of Vienna. It was gas actuated and air cooled, in contrast to the popular Maxim gun and its derivatives (which was recoil operated and water cooled). Although reliable, the feed mechanism at first used metal strips which could only hold 30 rounds of ammunition. While this worked, it was clear that the capacity was too small, so a 249 rounds belt was introduced later. Captain is both a nautical term and a military rank. ... Vienna (German: Wien [viːn]; Hungarian: Bécs) is the capital of Austria, and also one of Austrias nine federal states (Bundesland Wien). ... An early Maxim gun in operation with the Royal Navy The Maxim gun was the first self-acting machine gun. ... Boxes of ammunition clog a warehouse in Baghdad Ammunition is a generic military term meaning (the assembly of) a projectile and its propellant. ... A belt feeding into an M249 machine gun, from an Army training manual A belt feeding into a M1919A4 from a wooden ammo box A belt is an ammunition feeding device for a firearm. ...

The Hotchkiss had rate of fire of 600 rounds per minute, and a maximum efficient range of 3,800 meters (4,150 yards). Though often referred to as the "8 mm" machine gun, it had in fact a calibre of 7.92 mm.

Use

Besides the infantry with the 1914, the lighter Hotchkiss M1909 was used to arm all French tanks of the period (Schneider CA1, St Chamond, Renault FT-17 and Char 2C) and also many British tanks: some of the Mark I-V series; the Whippet, the Medium Mark B and the Medium Mark C. The Schneider CA1 was the first French tank. ... French St Chamond tanks: Note the short tracks and large body, which gave so much trouble crossing obstacles. ... General characteristics Length 5 m Width 1. ... Char 2C Alsace The Char 2C was a super heavy French tank developed, although never deployed, during the First World War. ... A Mark I tank (moving left to right). ... General characteristics Length: 20ft/6. ... General characteristics Length 22 ft 9 in, 6. ... General characteristics Length: (25ft 10in) 7. ...

External link

• The Hotchkiss Gun