The Deadly Weapons That Changed History | With Jonathan Ferguson

History Hit teams up with Jonathan Ferguson, Keeper of Firearms & Artillery at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, to test out the firearms that changed the course of history. From the arquebus, a 16th century smoothbore matchlock and one of the earliest guns fired from the shoulder, to the devastatingly powerful First World War Vickers machine gun, we witness the frightening effects of these weapons. In the first episode of the series, History Hit presenters Louee Dessent and Luke Tomes head to the firing range in Leeds to test their accuracy with three British weapons: the arquebus, Brown Bess musket and Lee Enfield rifle (SMLE). Next up, it’s a deep dive into the history of the Martini-Henry rifle and its precursors. This weapon was used by the British Army when the British Empire was at its height, famously featuring in the Boer War and Zulu Wars. Dan Snow then joins Jonathan to fire the Vickers machine gun - a weapon which proved so deadly during the trench warfare of the early 20th century. Finally, we head to the American Old West, to shoot some of the weapons made famous by outlaws like Billy the Kid and Jesse James. Louee and Luke go head-to-head with Jonathan in a test of marksmanship, firing the Colt SAA, the Colt Navy 1861, Winchester rifle 1873 and sawn-off shotgun. #historyhit #firearms #weapons Sign up to History Hit now and get 14 days free: And remember, as YouTube subscribers, you can sign up to History Hit today with code YOUTUBE and enjoy 50% off your first 3 months! For more history content, subscribe to our History Hit newsletters: 00:00:00 Introduction 00:02:03 16th century arquebus 00:10:34 Brown Bess musket 00:18:04 Lee Enfield (SMLE) 00:26:36 Martini-Henry 00:50:50 Lee Enfield (gel block test) 00:55:18 Vickers machine gun 01:03:11 Wild West weapons 01:09:05 Colt revolvers 01:18:49 Winchester rifle 01:26:43 Shotguns