View source for Maxim gun

{{Lead too short|date=September 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2017}}
{{Infobox weapon
| name               = Maxim gun
| image              = Maxim gun, Georgian national museum.JPG
| image_size         = 300
| caption            = 
| is_ranged          = yes <!-- Template control parameter -->
| type               = [[Heavy machine gun]]
| origin             = United Kingdom
| service            = 1886–present
| used_by            = See ''[[#Users|Users]]''
| wars               = <!-- In chronological order -->{{Tree list}}
* [[Mahdist War]]
* [[Emin Pasha Relief Expedition]]
* [[Yoni Expedition]]
* [[Samoan Civil War]]<ref name="German Colonial">{{cite web | url=http://germancolonialuniforms.co.uk/hist%20machine%20guns.htm| title=Machine Guns of the Schutztruppe and Overseas Forces| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420014810/http://germancolonialuniforms.co.uk/hist%20machine%20guns.htm| archive-date=20 April 2021}}</ref>
* [[Abushiri Revolt]]
*[[Ijebu Kingdom|Jebu War]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Soldier's Burden |url=http://www.kaiserscross.com/188001/204201.html |access-date=2023-05-06 |website=www.kaiserscross.com}}</ref>
* [[Early history of Uganda#Long-distance trade and foreign contact (1800s)|Buganda civil wars]]
* [[First Matabele War]]
* [[First Sino-Japanese War]]
* [[Chitral Expedition]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.britishempire.co.uk/forces/armyunits/britishinfantry/krrcchitral.htm| title=The King's Royal Rifle Corps Maxim Gun Section| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002040642/https://www.britishempire.co.uk/forces/armyunits/britishinfantry/krrcchitral.htm| archive-date=2 October 2022}}</ref>
* [[Japanese invasion of Taiwan (1895)]]
* [[Anglo-Ashanti Wars#Fourth Anglo-Ashanti War, 1895–1896|Fourth Anglo-Ashanti War]]<ref>Raugh, Harold E., ''The Victorians at War, 1815–1914: An Encyclopedia of British Military History'' (2004)</ref> 
* [[Jameson Raid]]<ref name="Davis-21">{{cite book|last=Davis|first=Richard Harding|title=Dr. Jameson's raiders vs. the Johannesburg reformers|publisher=R. H. Russell|location=New York| year=1897 |url=https://archive.org/stream/drjamesonsraider00davirich#page/21/mode/1up/search/maxim}}</ref>
* [[Second Matabele War]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.today/20230224071950/https://www.historynet.com/second-matabele-war/| title=Second Matabele War}}</ref>
* [[Dervish State|Dervish Resistance]]
* [[Philippine Revolution]]
* [[Benin Expedition]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://beninexpedition120yearson.weebly.com/beninpunitiveexpedition/monday-15-february-1897| title=Extract from A DIARY OF A SURGEON WITH THE BENIN PUNITIVE EXPEDITION' By FELIX N. ROTH, M.R.C.S., and L.R.C.P.}}</ref>
* [[Spanish–American War]]
* [[Adamawa Wars]]
* [[Philippine–American War]]
* [[Second Boer War]]
* [[Boxer Rebellion]]
* [[War of the Golden Stool]]<ref>{{Cite book|last=Montagu|first=Hall Wynyard|url=https://archive.org/details/greatdramaofkuma030748mbp|title=The Great Drama Of Kumasi|date=1939|publisher=Putnam Limited Press|others=Osmania University, Digital Library of India}}</ref>
* [[Bafut Wars]]
* [[Anglo–Aro War]]
* [[British expedition to Tibet]]<ref>Allen, Charles (2015), ''Duel in the Snows''. John Murray Press.</ref>
* [[Russo-Japanese War]]
* [[Herero War]]
* [[Maji Maji Rebellion]] 
* [[Second Melillan campaign]]
* [[Persian Constitutional Revolution]]
* [[History of Honduras#The rise of US influence in Honduras (1899–1919)|1907 Honduran Conflict]]
* [[Sokehs Rebellion]]<ref name="German Colonial" /> 
* [[Mexican Revolution]]
* [[Balkan Wars]] 
* [[Rif War]] (1912-1927)
* [[Contestado War]]
* [[World War I]]
* [[Russian Civil War]]
* [[Finnish Civil War]]
* [[Estonian War of Independence]]
* [[Polish–Soviet War]]
* [[Paraguayan Civil War (1922)]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.histarmar.com.ar/ArmadasExtranjeras/Paraguay/EjercitoParaguayo-breveHistoria.htm| title=AN OUTLINE HISTORY OF THE PARAGUAYAN ARMY | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221201162503/https://www.histarmar.com.ar/ArmadasExtranjeras/Paraguay/EjercitoParaguayo-breveHistoria.htm | archive-date=1 December 2022 }}</ref>
* [[Constitutionalist Revolution]]<ref>Cotta, Francis Albert "as trincheiras da mantiqueira: os embates da Brigada Sul na Revolução Constitucionalista"</ref>
* [[Chaco War]]
* [[Chinese Civil War]]
* [[Spanish civil war]] (1936 - 1939)
* [[Second Sino-Japanese War]]
* [[World War II]]
* [[Indochina War]]
* [[Korean War]]
* [[Vietnam War]]
* [[Russo-Ukrainian War]]
** [[War in Donbas (2014–2022)|War in Donbas]]<ref name="Ukrainian Troops Are Still Using This Pre-World War I-Era Maxim Machine Gun In Combat - The Drive">{{cite web |url=https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/32098/ukrainian-troops-are-still-using-this-pre-world-war-i-era-maxim-machine-gun-in-combat|title=Ukrainian Troops Are Still Using This Pre–World War I–Era Maxim Machine Gun in Combat |date=5 February 2020 |publisher=The Drive|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205153400/https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/32098/ukrainian-troops-are-still-using-this-pre-world-war-i-era-maxim-machine-gun-in-combat |archive-date=5 December 2022 }}</ref> 
** [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]]<ref name="DNR/LPR troops using a technical with a maxim gun">{{cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2022/05/11/why-ukraines-army-still-uses-a-100-year-old-machinegun|title=Why Ukraine's army still uses a 100-year-old machinegun |newspaper=The Economist|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205120845/https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2022/05/11/why-ukraines-army-still-uses-a-100-year-old-machinegun |archive-date=5 December 2022 }}</ref><ref name="Bakhmut: Russian casualties mount but tactics evolve">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64955537|title=Bakhmut: Russian casualties mount but tactics evolve|work=BBC News}}</ref>
{{Tree list/end}}

<!-- Production History -->| designer           = [[Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim]]
| design_date        = 
| manufacturer       = Maxim Gun Company, [[Vickers]]
| number             = 
| variants           = [[Vickers machine gun]], [[MG08]], [[PM M1910]], M32-33, M/09-21, [[Maxim M1895]]
<!-- General specifications -->| weight             = 27.2 kg (60 lb)
| length             = 107.9 cm (42.5 in)
| part_length        = 67.3 cm (26.5 in)
| width              = 
| height             = 
| crew               = 4
<!-- Ranged weapon specifications -->| cartridge          = {{Plainlist|
* [[7×57mm Mauser]]
* [[.303 British]]
* [[.30-06 Springfield]]
* [[7.92×57mm Mauser]]
* [[.577/450 Martini–Henry]]
* [[7.62×54mmR]]
* [[6.5×58mm Vergueiro]]
}}
| caliber            = 
| action             = [[Recoil-operated]]
| rate               = 550–600 rounds/min
| velocity           = 744&nbsp;m/s
| range              = 
| max_range          = 
| feed               = 250-round canvas belt
| sights             = [[Iron sight]]s
}}

The '''Maxim gun''' is a [[Recoil operation|recoil-operated]] [[machine gun]] invented in 1884 by [[Hiram Maxim|Hiram Stevens Maxim]]. It was the first [[automatic firearm|fully automatic]] machine gun in the world.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/370419/Sir-Hiram-Stevens-Maxim ''Encyclopædia Britannica'': "Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim"]</ref>

The Maxim gun has been called "the weapon most associated with imperial conquest" by historian [[Martin Gilbert]],<ref>{{Citation |last=Gilbert |first=Martin |title=A History of the Twentieth Century: Volume One: 1900–1933 |publisher=William Morrow and Company |place=New York |page=11 |year=1997 |edition=1st US |isbn=978-0-688-10064-3}}</ref> and was heavily used by [[Colonialism|colonial powers]] during the "[[Scramble for Africa]]". Afterwards, Maxim guns also saw extensive usage by different armies during the [[Russo-Japanese War]], the [[World War I|First]] and [[World War II|Second World Wars]], as well as in contemporary conflicts.

The Maxim gun was greatly influential in the development of machine guns, and it has multiple variants and derivatives.

== Design ==
[[File:Maxim machine gun drawing - B86 483-1 (cropped).jpg|left|thumb|Illustration of the Maxim Gun in ''[[Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary]]'', 1905]]
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 manually operated rapid-firing guns, such as the manually cranked [[Mitrailleuse]] of 1851, the [[Gatling gun]] of 1861, the [[Gardner gun]] of 1874, or the [[Nordenfelt gun]] of 1873.

The Maxim gun is [[water cooling|water cooled]], allowing it to sustain its rate of fire far longer than air-cooled guns. The extra weight and complexity this added, however, made it heavier and less flexible in use.

Trials demonstrated that the Maxim can fire 600 rounds per minute.<ref>{{cite book |last= Stevenson |first= David |title= 1914–1918: The History of the First World War |year= 2004 |publisher= Penguin Books|isbn= 978-0-14-026817-1 |page= 8}}</ref>{{request quotation|date=September 2024}} Compared to modern machine guns, the Maxim is heavy, bulky, and awkward. A lone soldier can fire the weapon, but it was usually operated by a team of men, usually 4 to 6 in number. Apart from the gunner, other crew are needed to speed reload, spot targets, and carry and ready ammunition and water. Several men are needed to move or mount the heavy weapon.

== Production company ==
In 1884, Maxim began to develop his machine gun in [[Hatton Garden]], London.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last1=Pegler |first1=Martin |title=The Vickers-Maxim Machine Gun |last2=Dennis |first2=Martin |publisher=Osprey Publishing |year=2013 |pages=15–17}}</ref> That November he founded the Maxim Gun Company with financing from {{Interlanguage link|Albert Vickers|la|3=Albertus Vickers}}, son of steel entrepreneur [[Edward Vickers]].<ref name=":0" /> 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.

Finally, the company was absorbed into the mother [[Vickers]] company, leading first to the Vickers-Maxim gun and then, after Vickers' redesign, the [[Vickers machine gun]].{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

== History ==
=== Development (1883–1884) ===
Maxim's first British patents relating to the development of the Maxim gun were granted in June and July 1883.<ref>McCallum, p. 46.</ref><ref>{{cite patent |country=US |number=317161 |status=patent |title=Machine-gun |gdate=1885-05-05 |inventor=Hiram Stevens Maxim |assign1=Albert Vickers |assign2=Robert R. Symon |url=https://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?docid=00317161&SectionNum=1&IDKey=D17BB1BBCCEC&HomeUrl=http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1%2526Sect2=HITOFF%2526d=PALL%2526p=1%2526u=%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r=1%2526f=G%2526l=50%2526s1=0317161.PN.%2526OS=PN/0317161%2526RS=PN/0317161}}</ref> The first prototype was demonstrated to invited guests in October 1884.<ref>McCallum, p. 49.</ref>

=== Use in colonial warfare (1886–1914) ===
[[File:Maxim machine gun Megapixie.jpg|thumb|[[Maxim M1895]] [[.303 British|.303 caliber]] tripod-mounted air-cooled variant]]
[[File:USSVixenMaximMachineGun.1898.ws.jpg|thumb|A large-bore Maxim on the [[USS Vixen (PY-4)|USS ''Vixen'']] c. 1898]]

A prototype of the Maxim gun was given by Hiram Maxim to the [[Emin Pasha Relief Expedition]] in 1886–1890, under the leadership of [[Henry Morton Stanley]]. More a publicity stunt than a serious military contribution, in view of the main financier of the expedition, [[Sir William Mackinnon, 1st Baronet|William Mackinnon]], "merely exhibiting" the gun was likely to "prove a great peace-preserver".<ref>Iain R. Smith: ''The Emin Pasha Relief Expedition'', p. 86.</ref> The weapon was used on several occasions, especially during the expedition's retreat from central Africa, not because of its devastating effects, but as an effective means to scare off attackers. One of the first uses of the Maxim gun by British Forces was in the 1887 [[Yoni Expedition]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Yoni Campaign |url=http://www.kaiserscross.com/188001/231201.html |access-date=2022-09-16 |website=www.kaiserscross.com}}</ref> The same prototype used by Stanley was brought back to central Africa by [[Frederick Lugard]], where it played an instrumental role in the establishment of the [[Uganda Protectorate]].<ref>{{Citation |first=Morten |last=Blaabjerg |title=Uhyret der sagde puh! puh! Maxim maskingeværets logistik i det mørkeste Afrika, fra Gordons fald til slaget ved Omdurman 1885–1898 |publisher=University of Southern Denmark |year=2007 |language=da |url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/14690805/Uhyret-der-sagde-puh-puh-Speciale}}</ref>

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 Empire|German Imperial government]] to [[German colonial empire|its colonies]] in [[German East Africa|East Africa]] to suppress the [[Abushiri revolt]].<ref>G. Richelmann, Schaffung der Wissmanntruppe; in: Becker, Perbandt, Richelmann, Schmidt, Steuber: Hermann von Wissmann, Deutschlands grösster Afrikaner, Berlin 1907, p. 191, [https://archive.org/details/hermannvonwissm00surgoog online at archive.org]</ref> Wissmann was issued one of the first Maxim guns which had reached Germany and used it successfully in his capture of [[Pangani]].<ref>Richelmann p. 236</ref>

The [[Singapore Volunteer Corps]] received a Maxim gun in 1889, but it was never used. This was a civilian volunteer defence unit on the British colony.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Singapore Volunteer Corps {{!}} Infopedia |url=https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1050_2008-10-23.html|access-date=2022-09-11 |website=eresources.nlb.gov.sg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106094706/https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1050_2008-10-23.html |archive-date=6 January 2023 }}</ref>

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 battle]]s in open terrain. As it was put by [[Hilaire Belloc]], in the words of the figure "Blood" in his poem "The Modern Traveller":

{{poemquote|Whatever happens, we have got
The Maxim gun, and they have not.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.colonialwargaming.co.uk/Inspiration/Poetry/Newbolt/Traveller.htm|title=The Modern Traveller|website=colonialwargaming.co.uk|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828003722/http://www.colonialwargaming.co.uk/Inspiration/Poetry/Newbolt/Traveller.htm |archive-date=28 August 2008}}</ref>}}

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|date=March 2021}}

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 [[QF 1 pounder pom-pom|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.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.smallarmsreview.com/display.article.cfm?idarticles=2490|title=South Africa's National Museum Of Military History|author=Rob Krott|website=Small Arms Review|date=January 2002 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qVmbCwAAQBAJ&q=second+boer+war++Maxim+machine+gun&pg=PA57|title=The Vickers-Maxim Machine Gun|author=Martin Pegler|date=20 May 2013|publisher=[[Osprey Publishing]]|page=57|isbn=9781780963839}}</ref>

The Maxim gun was also used in the [[Anglo-Aro War]] (in present-day [[Nigeria]]) of 1901–1902.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/950611553 |title=Encyclopedia of African colonial conflicts |date=2017 |others=Timothy J. Stapleton |isbn=978-1-59884-837-3 |location=Santa Barbara, Calif. |oclc=950611553}}</ref>

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 [[firearm malfunction|jam]]. In the 1906 version of his book ''Small Wars'', [[Charles Edward Callwell|Charles Callwell]] says of machine guns: "The older forms are not suitable as a rule... they jammed at [[Battle of Ulundi|Ulundi]], they jammed at [[Battle of Dogali|Dogali]], they jammed at [[Battle of Abu Klea|Abu Klea]] and [[Battle of Tofrek|Tofrek]], in some cases with unfortunate results."<ref>Callwell, p.&nbsp;440.</ref> However, the Maxim was far more reliable than its contemporaries.<ref name="smallwars">''Small Wars''. 1906. Callwell, p. 559.</ref> 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|date=March 2021}}

The weapon was adopted by the British Army under the guidance of [[Garnet Wolseley|Sir Garnet Wolseley]], who had been appointed Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in 1888. In October that year, he placed an order of 120 rifle-calibre Maxims<ref>McCallum, p. 67.</ref> using the same [[.577/450 Martini–Henry|.577/450]] ammunition as the [[Martini–Henry]] rifles. Wolseley had previously led military expeditions in Africa (the [[Anglo-Ashanti wars|Ashanti war]] and the [[Gordon Relief Expedition]] in 1884–85) and had a reputation for being a strong subscriber to military innovation and reform, which he demonstrated in Africa. There he used machine guns, explored other unconventional ideas, and founded an Egyptian camel corps.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

The gun's design was also purchased and used by several other European countries.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

In January 1899, just before the outbreak of the [[Philippine-American War]], the [[First Philippine Republic|Philippines]] had forty-two Maxim guns. An English observer who had seen one of them described it as being "of the most improved type."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sheridan |first=Richard Brinsley |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924023263100/page/n157/mode/1up |title=The Filipino Martyrs: a story of the crime of February 4, 1899 |date=1900 |publisher=The Bodley Head |pages=133, 153 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Russo-Japanese War ===
In 1895, the [[Imperial Japanese Army]] purchased a number of Maxims and tested them during the [[Japanese invasion of Taiwan (1895)|1895 invasion of Taiwan]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Heath |first=Ian |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/50089869 |title=Armies of the nineteenth century. Asia : organisation, warfare, dress, and weapons |publisher=Foundry Books |year=1998 |isbn=1-901543-01-3 |location=St. Peter Port, Guernsey |oclc=50089869}}</ref> but later decided to standardize on the [[Hotchkiss machine gun]]. The [[Imperial Russian Army]] likewise purchased 58 Maxim machine guns in 1899 and contracted with Vickers in 1902 to manufacture the design in Russia, although manufacturing did not start until 1910.<ref name= Kowner>{{cite book|last=Kowner|first=Rotem|author-link=Rotem Kowner|year=2006|title=Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War|publisher = Scarecrow|isbn= 978-0-8108-4927-3}}, p. 225.</ref> During the [[Russo-Japanese War]] of 1904–1905, the Russian Army employed the Maxim in combat<ref>Gilbert, Martin. p. 93.</ref> and placed a rush order for another 450 units from overseas suppliers, which were mostly delivered to front-line troops before the end of the war.<ref name= Kowner />

=== World War I (1914–1918) ===
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 [[Russian M1910 Maxim|Pulemyot Maxim]] were both more or less direct copies of the Maxim.

It also saw use during the [[Russian Civil War]], which followed the [[Russian Revolution of 1917|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. [[Anarchist]]s attribute this mobile setup to [[Nestor Makhno]].

<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">
File:BASA-1221K-1-61-14.jpg|Austro-Hungarian soldiers with a trophy Maxim machine gun in the High Alps, c. 1916
File:Red army soldiers, end of 1920s-beginning of 1930s.jpg|Red Army soldiers with a Maxim machine gun, c. 1930
</gallery>

=== American use ===
[[File:111-SC-24660 - NARA - 55208931.jpg|thumb|left|A reference photo of a M1904 Maxim]]
[[File:U.S. Army 1911 maneuvers in Texas- Maxim machine gun & crew LCCN2003653480.jpg|thumb|left|American troops with a M1904 machine gun on maneuvers in Texas, 1911]]
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]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.smallarmsreview.com/display.article.cfm?idarticles=2073 | title=U.S. Maxim Model 1904 | date=February 2004 }}</ref> designed by [[Trevor Dawson]] and J. Ramsay of Vickers.<ref>{{US patent|870497A}}</ref>

The first 50 guns and tripods were made by [[Vickers#Vickers, Sons & Maxim|Vickers, Sons & Maxim]] in the U.K. chambered for [[.30-03]]. [[Colt's Manufacturing Company]] was selected to produce it domestically, but challenges with schematics and specifications delayed its introduction. By the time Colt began production in 1908 (which was also the last year orders were placed for the guns), a total of 90 M1904s were made by Vickers. Colt made their machine guns for the new [[.30-06]] caliber, and the ones made by Vickers were re-chambered for the new round. A total of 287 M1904 Maxims were manufactured. The U.S. procured other machine guns after M1904 production ended, including the [[Hotchkiss M1909 Benet–Mercie machine gun|M1909 Benét–Mercié]], the [[Vickers machine gun#Colt–Vickers M1915|Colt–Vickers M1915]], and the [[Browning M1917]].

M1904 Maxims were issued to infantry companies and cavalry. Each company had four guns with associated tripods, ammunition, and 20 [[mule]]s 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.<ref>[http://sadefensejournal.com/wp/?p=265 U.S. Maxim Model 1904] – SAdefensejournal.com, 15 August 2013.</ref>

=== Russo-Ukrainian War ===
The Maxim, in the form of the [[PM M1910]] chambered in [[7.62×54mmR]], 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 [[Technical (vehicle)|technicals]] and the mounting of [[red dot sight]]s.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Why Ukraine's army still uses a 100-year-old machinegun |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2022/05/11/why-ukraines-army-still-uses-a-100-year-old-machinegun|access-date=2022-05-26 |issn=0013-0613|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205120845/https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2022/05/11/why-ukraines-army-still-uses-a-100-year-old-machinegun |archive-date=5 December 2022 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=В РНБО висміяли "новітню" техніку окупантів: смішний перелік |url=https://24tv.ua/rnbo-vismiyali-novitnyu-tehniku-okupantiv-smishniy-perelik_n1920111 |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=24 Канал |date=26 March 2022 |language=uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-03-16 |title=Bakhmut: Russian casualties mount but tactics evolve |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64955537 |access-date=2023-03-16}}</ref> 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{{nbsp}}... then it really works. So we use it every week".<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-03-16 |title= Bakhmut: Russian casualties mount but tactics evolve |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |author=Quentin Sommerville |url= https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64955537.amp |access-date=2023-03-16}}</ref>

== Variants and derivatives ==
[[File:7.5mm MG Maxim.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Swiss Maschinengewehr System Maxim Ord 1894 chambered in the 7.5&nbsp;mm GP11 round]]

* Maxim five-barrel machine gun, fed from overhead inserted magazines and later belt-fed.
* [[Vickers machine gun]]: earlier Maxims had been chambered for earlier British service cartridges, but the Vickers was produced for export available in most of the different calibres and cartridges used by countries around the world, and including a large caliber (.50&nbsp;inch) as used on [[Royal Navy]] warships. The machine gun was {{convert|20|lb|0}} lighter and had been tested by the Army in 1909.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Graham|first=Dominick|title=The British Expeditionary Force in 1914 and the Machine Gun|journal=Military Affairs|date=December 1982|volume=46|issue=4|pages=190–193|doi=10.2307/1987613|jstor=1987613}}</ref>
* [[MG 01|Maschinengewehr 01]], made by [[Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken]] (DWM)
* [[MG 08]] derived from MG 01
** Its export version DWM 1909 commercial, featuring the naval tripod mount of the MG 08 instead of the sled
** German indigenous derivatives (e.g., MG 08/15)
* Type 24 heavy machine gun, Chinese variant of DWM 1909
* [[MG 11|Maschinengewehr Modell 1911]], Swiss variant of the DWM 1909 made by [[Waffenfabrik Bern]]
* Russian/Soviet [[PM M1910|Pulemyot Maxima PM1910]] and lighter variants [[Maxim–Tokarev]] and [[PV-1 machine gun]]
* Finnish [[Maxim M/09-21|Maxim M09/21]] and [[Maxim M/32-33]]
* American M1904
* Romanian-made 6.5&nbsp;mm version, at least 8–12 were produced and were used by the Romanian Danube Flotilla during [[World War I]]<ref>Marian Sârbu, ''Marina românâ în primul război mondial 1914–1918'', Editura Academiei Navale Mircea cel Bătrân, 2002, pp. 144 and 150</ref>
* [[MG 18 TuF]] Anti-tank & Anti-aircraft gun

== Users ==
* {{Flagcountry|Kingdom of Albania}}
* {{Flag|Argentina}}
* {{Flag|Belgium}}
* {{Flag|Bolivia
}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=De Quesada |first=A. M. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/762983384 |title=The Chaco War 1932-35 : South America's greatest modern conflict |date=2011 |others=Philip S. Jowett, Ramiro Bujeiro |isbn=978-1-84908-416-1 |location=Botley, Oxford |oclc=762983384}}</ref>
* {{Flag|Brazil}}
* {{Flag|British Empire}}
* {{Flag|Canada}}
* {{flag|Congo Free State}} Used by [[Force Publique]]<ref>{{cite book |last= Rookes|first= Stephen|author-link= Stephen Rookes|date= 11 December 2024|title= Belgian Military Forces in the Congo Volume 1 Force Publique |publisher= Helion Books|page= 9|isbn= 9781915070548}}</ref>
* {{Flag|Republic of China (1912–1949)|name=China}} 
* {{Flag|Chinese Soviet Republic}}
* {{Flag|Estonia}}
* {{Flag|Finland}}
* {{Flagcountry|French Third Republic}}
* {{Flag|German Empire}}
* {{Flagcountry|Nazi Germany}}
* {{Flagcountry|Kingdom of Italy}}
* {{Flagcountry|Empire of Japan}}
* {{Flag|Kingdom of Montenegro|name=Montenegro}}: By 1912 the army had 12 maxims; 50 more were ordered during the Balkan wars but it is not known if they arrived in time<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jowett |first=Philip |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/842879929 |title=Armies of the Balkan Wars 1912-13 : the priming charge for the Great War. |date=2012 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-299-58155-5 |oclc=842879929}}</ref>
* {{Flagcountry|Kingdom of Romania}}
* {{Flagcountry|Kingdom of Serbia}}
* {{Flagcountry|Korean Empire}}
* {{Flag|Latvia}} (1918–1940, .303 and other versions)<ref>{{Cite thesis|last=Dambītis|first=Kārlis|date=2016|title=Latvijas armijas artilērija 1919.-1940.g.: Vieta bruņotajos spēkos, struktūra un uzdevumi|trans-title=Artillery of the Latvian Army (1918–1940): structure, tasks and place in the Armed forces|url=https://dspace.lu.lv/dspace/handle/7/31857?locale-attribute=en|publisher=University of Latvia|type=PhD thesis|page=225}}</ref>
* {{Flag|Mexico}}
* {{Flag|Nicaragua}}: Used in the Battle of Namasique against the forces of Honduran General [[Manuel Bonilla]]<ref>Jowett, Phillip, Latin American Wars 1900-1941: Osprey Publishing (2018)</ref>
* {{Flag|New Zealand}}: Six 577/450 Maxim guns mounted on Field Carriages Mk I were purchased in 1896; they were converted to .303 after 1899. Two of these took part in the Dog Tax War. 29 .303 calliber guns were purchased from Vickers Sons & Maxim in 1901 on Dundonald Galloping Carriages. In 1910 36 guns were ordered on Mk IV tripods with pack saddlery and stores but only arrived in 1913. When the tripods arrived the carriages were scrapped. However initially due to the delay in converting the guns to tripod mounting only one gun was issued to each of the 29 regiments. The New Zealand Mounted Rifles formed a Maxim Gun Battery with British-supplied guns during the Boer War.  New Zealand Forces entered WW I with older Maxim machineguns and 36 new ones.<ref>{{Cite web |title=.450 Maxim Machine Gun (Martini Henry chamber) |url=http://www.armsregister.com/arms_register/arms_register_documents/nzar_375_450_maxim_mg.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230101043818/http://www.armsregister.com/arms_register/arms_register_documents/nzar_375_450_maxim_mg.pdf|archive-date=2023-01-01 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=.303 Maxim Machine Gun (magazine rifle chamber) |url=http://www.armsregister.com/arms_register/arms_register_documents/nzar_200_303_maxim_mg.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230101043759/http://www.armsregister.com/arms_register/arms_register_documents/nzar_200_303_maxim_mg.pdf |archive-date=2023-01-01 }}</ref>
* {{Flag|North Korea}}
* {{Flag|Ottoman Empire}}
* {{Flag|Pahlavi dynasty|name=Persia}}
* {{Flag|Paraguay}}
* {{Flagcountry|First Philippine Republic}}
*{{flag|Portugal}}: Metralhadora Pesada Maxim m/906; adopted by the Portuguese Army in 1906, chambered for the [[6.5×58mm Vergueiro]] cartridge<ref name=":5">{{Cite book|title=A Nossa Infantaria na Grande Guerra: 1914-1918|last=Marquês de Sousa|first= Pedro|date=2018|page=213 & 214|publisher=Caleidoscópio |isbn=9789896585365|oclc=1057007890}}</ref>
* {{flagicon image| Early_20th_Century_Qajar_Flag.svg}} [[Qajar dynasty|Qajar Dynasty]]: Had a battery of four guns in the 1890s. Also used during the Constitutional Revolution<ref>{{Cite book |last=Farrokh |first=Kaveh |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/651902140 |title=Iran at war, 1500-1988 |date=2011 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-84603-491-6 |location=Oxford |oclc=651902140}}</ref>
* {{Flag|Qing Dynasty}}
* {{Flagcountry|Russian Empire}}
* {{Flag|Second Polish Republic|name=Poland}}
* {{Flag|Soviet Union}}
* {{Flag|Spain}}
* {{Flag|Ukraine}}: Used during the [[Russo-Ukrainian War]].
* {{Flag|United States}}
* {{Flag|Vichy France}}

== See also ==
* [[Caldwell machine gun]]
* [[Fittipaldi machine gun]]
* [[Hotchkiss machine gun]]
* [[Kjellman machine gun]]
* [[M1917 Browning machine gun]]
* [[Nordenfelt gun]]
* [[Perino Model 1908]]
* [[QF 1-pounder pom-pom]]
* [[St. Étienne Mle 1907]]

== Citations ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== General and cited sources ==
* Anon., ''Vickers, Sons and Maxim Limited: Their Works and Manufactures. (Reprinted from 'Engineering')'' London (1898). It gives plates showing the mechanism of the Vickers Maxim gun and numerous plates showing the variety of mounts available at the end of the 19th century. It also includes numerous plates of the factories in which they were made.
* {{cite book |last=Callwell |first=Colonel C.E. |title=Small Wars: A Tactical Textbook for Imperial Soldiers |year=1990 |publisher=Greenhill Books |place=London |isbn=978-1-85367-071-8}} This is a reprint of the 1906 version.
* {{cite book |last=Chivers |first=C. J. |title=The Gun |publisher=Simon & Schuster |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-7432-7076-2 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/gun00chiv }} (See chapter 3: "Hiram Maxim Changes War")
* {{cite book |last=Ellis |first=John |title=The Social History of the Machine Gun |publisher=Pimlico |place=London |year=1976 }}
* {{cite book |last=Ferguson |first=Niall |title=Empire |publisher=Penguin Books |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-14-100754-0}}
* {{cite book |last=Goldsmith |first=Dolf F. |title=The Devil's Paintbrush: Sir Hiram Maxim's Gun |publisher=Collector Grade Publications, Toronto |year=1989 |isbn=978-0-88935-056-4}}
* {{cite book |last=Headrick |first=Daniel R. |title=Tools of Empire. Technology and European Imperialism in the Nineteenth Century |publisher=Oxford University Press |place=Oxford |year=1981 |isbn=978-1-86176-096-8}}
* {{cite book |last=McCallum |first=Iain |title=Blood Brothers: Hiram and Hudson Maxim—Pioneers of Modern Warfare |publisher=Chatham Publishing |place=London |year=1999 |isbn=978-1-86176-096-8}}

== External links ==
{{Commons|Maxim MG}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20220722085023/http://www.allworldwars.com/Handbook%20of%20the%20Maxim%20Automatic%20Machine%20Gun%20Model%201904.html''Handbook of the Maxim Automatic Machine Gun, caliber .30, model of 1904, with pack outfits and accessories''. US War Department, July 1916]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140116101321/http://ru.scribd.com/doc/150309753/The-Maxim-Machine-Gun-Systems-Blueprints-by-1906 The Maxim Machine Gun Systems Blueprints by 1906]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20221221024601/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1SbcZQ0N5A Animation of Maxim's prototype machine gun, 1884]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20221229191155/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiFGKWPSaas Animation of Maxim's second prototype machine gun 1885]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20221012235232/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1CpLaVfnq8 Animation of Maxim's transitional machine gun 1885]

{{VictorianEraBritishWeapons}}
{{WWI British Empire small arms}}{{Maximgunnavbox}}

[[Category:Early machine guns]]
[[Category:Machine guns of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Short recoil firearms]]
[[Category:Victorian-era weapons of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1886]]
[[Category:Weapons of the Ottoman Empire]]
[[Category:World War I infantry weapons of the United States]]
[[Category:World War I infantry weapons]]
[[Category:World War I machine guns]]
[[Category:Maxim family]]