Arquebus

An early portable firearm, usually fired from the shoulder and ignited by a matchlock mechanism. Its widespread use reshaped infantry tactics and early modern warfare.

Matchlock: A firearm ignition mechanism that lowers a smoldering match into a priming pan to fire a charge. The arquebus commonly used this mechanism to ignite its gunpowder.
Spanish tercios: Early modern Spanish military formations combining pike and firearm troops in a disciplined infantry unit. Tercios integrated arquebusiers into formations protected by pikemen.
Hand cannon: An early portable gun consisting of a metal barrel mounted on a stock or held by hand. The arquebus developed from earlier portable firearms such as hand cannons.
Musket: A shoulder-fired firearm that developed into a heavier, more powerful infantry weapon than the arquebus. The musket gradually replaced the arquebus as military firearms grew in size and power.
Serpentine (firearm mechanism): A pivoting arm that holds a lit match and brings it down toward a firearm’s priming pan. This lever formed the matchlock’s trigger-operated firing arm.
Battle of Pavia: A 1525 battle in which Imperial forces defeated the French and captured King Francis I. Arquebusiers helped deliver the infantry firepower that marked this victory.
Ottoman firearms: Firearms developed, adopted, and used by the Ottoman Empire, including early handguns and matchlocks. Ottoman forces adopted gunpowder weapons early and helped normalize firearm infantry.
Rifle: A firearm with spiral grooves in its barrel that impart spin to a projectile. Most arquebuses had smoothbore barrels and lacked the rifle’s stabilizing grooves.
Gunpowder: An explosive mixture, traditionally of saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur, used to propel projectiles. Its rapid combustion propelled the arquebus’s lead ball.
Battle of Nagashino: A 1575 Japanese battle in which Oda Nobunaga’s forces defeated the Takeda clan. Japanese matchlock firearms were deployed in large numbers during the battle.

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