Maximizing firepower has always been a primary goal of firearms designers. For small arms carried by the infantry this can mean weapons firing explosive shells or grenades, but it also means guns capable of firing a lot of bullets in a short space of time. The modern era in small arms commenced in the lattter part of the 19th century. First the metallic cartridge, with a case that held the bullet, propellant and primer in one weatherproof round of ammunition. Next the machine gun, which handled the new cartridges mechanically in a fast-firing weapon. Finally came the advent of 'smokeless' powders and allowed the development of small-calibre, high-velocity ammunition for rifles and machine guns. By the end of the century, the basics of modern small arms had been established. Weapons experts Maxim Popenker and Anthony Williams present a study of the development of the sub-machine gun and its ammunition, before undertaking a country-by-country survey of the weapons designed, built and used across the world. With data tables giving details of ammunition and hundreds of photographs, this is an authoritative account of an essential infantry weapon. AUTHOR: Maxim Popenker is a lieutenant [reserve] in the Russian armed forces. He is the creator and webmaster of the leading internet small arms resource, the 'Modern Firearms' website at www.world.guns.ru. Anthony Williams' particular interest is in the history of automatic weapons and their ammunition. He has written on the subject for several years, culminating in the publication in 2000 of Rapid Fire. SELLING POINTS: A comprehensive study of the development and use of the sub-machine gun since World War I Will be of great interest to weapons collectors, military historians and anyone concerned with arms and armour Includes a country by country survey of equipment used and data tables giving details of ammunition 550 colour & b/w photographs