Matchlock

A firearm ignition system in which a lever lowers a smoldering cord onto priming powder. The name also applies to early guns using this mechanism.

Serpentine (firearm): A pivoting arm on a matchlock that holds the smoldering match and lowers it toward the priming pan. This lever carries the match from the shooter’s grip to the pan.
Hand cannon: An early handheld gun in which a burning fuse or other flame was applied directly to a touch hole. Matchlocks replaced the hand cannon’s awkward manual ignition with a trigger-operated match holder.
Musketeer: An infantry soldier armed with a musket, especially in early modern European armies. Musketeers trained to handle the match, load the gun, and fire in coordinated ranks.
Wheellock firearm: A firearm fitted with a spring-driven wheel that strikes pyrite to produce ignition sparks. The wheellock avoided the matchlock’s need to keep a cord burning between shots.
Slow match: A cord treated to smolder steadily and serve as a firearm’s ignition source. The matchlock depended on a continuously glowing cord rather than a spark-producing lock.
Arquebus: An early shoulder-fired firearm, commonly fitted with a matchlock, used in Europe and elsewhere from the fifteenth century. It became the characteristic long gun built around the matchlock mechanism.
Musket: A long-barreled shoulder firearm, historically loaded at the muzzle and used by infantry. Many early muskets used matchlocks before flint ignition became widespread.
Flintlock: A firearm ignition system in which flint strikes steel to produce sparks that ignite priming powder. Flintlocks were more convenient to carry and use than matchlocks, especially in wet or active conditions.
Priming pan: A small, exposed receptacle holding fine powder that ignites the main charge in a muzzle-loading firearm. The serpentine lowered its ember into this pan to start the shot.
Muzzleloader: A firearm loaded through the open end of its barrel rather than from a breech or cartridge. Matchlock guns were muzzle-loaders, requiring powder and projectile to be loaded separately.

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