yeovil at waR

Vickers Medium Machine gun

Weapons of the Home Guard

 

The Vickers was a tripod-mounted, water-cooled medium machine gun adopted by the British Army in 1912 and used throughout both World Wars. It fired the standard rimmed centrefire .303" (7.7mm) cartridge of the Lee Enfield rifle in 250-round canvas belts. Its rate of fire was between 450 and 600 rounds per minute but actually fired up to 10,000 rounds an hour in combat. Extreme range was in the region of 4,500 yards (2½ miles or 4.1km) but its effective range was closer to 600 yards (550m). Its weight, with water coolant, was some 40 pounds (18kg).

The Vickers was issued to the Home Guard and would have been deployed in the Yeovil Anti-Tank Island. The Vickers Mk I medium machine gun was declared obsolete and removed from British army service as late as 1968.

 

 

Adapted from my e-book "A Photographic Guide to the Taunton Stop Line"

 

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