Editing General-purpose machine gun (section)

==History==
The general-purpose machine gun (GPMG) originated with the [[MG 34]], designed in 1934 by [[Heinrich Vollmer]] of [[Mauser]] on the commission of [[Nazi Germany]] to circumvent the restrictions on [[machine gun]]s imposed by the [[Treaty of Versailles]]. It was introduced into the [[Wehrmacht]] as an entirely new concept in [[Automatic firearm|automatic]] firepower, dubbed the ''Einheitsmaschinengewehr'', meaning "universal machine gun" in [[German language|German]].<ref>Jane's Guns Recognition Guide. Ian Hogg & Terry Gander. HarperCollins Publishers. 2005. page 375</ref><ref name="autogenerated326">Military Small Arms of the 20th Century. 7th Edition. Ian V. Hogg & John S. Weeks. Krause Publications. 2000. page 326</ref><ref name="autogenerated245">The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II. Chris Bishop. Sterling Publishing Company. 2002. page 245 & 246</ref> In itself the MG 34 was an excellent weapon for its time: an [[air-cooled]], [[recoil-operated]] machine gun that could run through belts of [[7.92×57mm Mauser]] ammunition at a rate of 850 [[rounds per minute]], with lethality at ranges of more than 1,000 [[meters]].<ref name="autogenerated326"/><ref name="autogenerated245"/> The main feature of the MG 34 is that simply by changing its mount, [[Gunsights|sights]] and feed mechanism, the operator could radically transform its function: on its standard [[bipod]] it was a [[light machine gun]] ideal for [[infantry]] assaults; on a [[tripod]] it could serve as a sustained-fire [[medium machine gun]]; mounting on [[aircraft]] or [[vehicle]]s turned it into an [[air defence]] weapon, and it also served as the [[coaxial machine gun]] on numerous German [[tank]]s.<ref name="autogenerated326"/><ref name="autogenerated245"/>

During [[World War II]], the MG 34 was supplemented by a new GPMG, the [[MG 42]], although it remained in combat use.<ref 
  name="autogenerated376">
  Jane's Guns Recognition Guide. Ian Hogg & Terry Gander. HarperCollins Publishers. 2005. page 376
</ref><ref name="autogenerated329">
  Military Small Arms of the 20th Century. 7th Edition. Ian V. Hogg & John S. Weeks. Krause Publications. 2000. page 329
</ref><ref name="autogenerated247">
  The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II. Chris Bishop. Sterling Publishing Company. 2002. page 247
</ref> The MG 42 was more efficient and cheaper to manufacture, and more robust, as well as having an extremely high [[Rate_of_fire#Cyclic_rate|cyclic rate of fire]] of 1,200 to 1,500 rounds per minute.<ref name="autogenerated376"/><ref name="autogenerated329"/><ref name="autogenerated247"/> One of the ''Einheits Maschinengewehr'' GPMG roles was to provide low level anti-aircraft coverage. A high cyclic rate of fire is advantageous for use against targets typically exposed to fire for a limited time span, like aircraft or targets minimizing their exposure by quickly moving from cover to cover. It was nicknamed "[[Hitler]]'s [[buzzsaw]]" by [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] troops, and alongside the MG 34 it inflicted heavy [[casualties]] on Allied soldiers on all [[European theatre of World War II|European]] and [[North African Theatre (World War II)|North African]] fronts of World War II.<ref name="autogenerated376"/><ref name="autogenerated247"/><ref>
  Military Small Arms of the 20th Century. 7th Edition. Ian V. Hogg & John S. Weeks. Krause Publications. 2000. page 328 & 329
</ref>  Following the war the victorious Allied nations took an interest in the MG 34 and MG 42, influencing many post-war general-purpose machine guns, many still in use today. They lent design elements to the Belgian [[FN MAG]] and the American [[M60 machine gun|M60]], while spawning the Zastava M53, Swiss M51, and Austrian MG 74. The MG 42's qualities of firepower and usability meant that it became the foundation of an entire series of postwar machine guns, including the MG 1 and [[MG 3 machine gun|MG 3]]; the latter, {{as of|2023|lc=y}}, is still in production.<ref 
  name="autogenerated376"/><ref 
  name="autogenerated329"/><ref name="autogenerated247"/><ref>
  MG 34 and MG 42 Machine Guns. by Chris McNab. Published by Random House Publishing Group. Oct 23, 2012. Quote taken from leaf.
</ref>