Invented at the eve of the American Civil War, the Gatling Gun was a hand-cranked multiple-barrel gun loaded by a gravity hopper system. Though not automatic in operation, it was a direct ancestor of today's machine guns. Dr. Richard J. Gatling's eponymous design is still used in weapon systems such as the M-61 Vulcan, the GAU-8, and the M134 (more popularly known as the Minigun). Use this tag when the weapon in question has more than two or three barrels. Gatling Guns have since been redubbed rotary cannons.
See also
- Wikipedia: Gatling Gun