Osprey's new Weapon series provides a highly-detailed yet affordable overview of the development, use, and impact of small arms throughout history-from the sword to the machine gun.

Journey back to the time when handguns had no moving parts Variously called handgonnes, hackbuts, coulevrines, pistolas, schiopettos, tyufyaks, and even bombardelles, the first black powder infantry weapons were extremely crude by today's standards. In his new book, Sean McLachlan, author of American Civil War Guerilla Tactics, dispels the myth that these weapons were ineffective on the battlefield...