Machine gunners take up a position in a ditch in France, 1914 (c)

Photograph, World War One, Western Front (1914-1918), 1914 (c).

The water-cooled .303 inch Vickers was the British Army's standard heavy machine-gun of the war. Famed for its reliability, it could fire over 600 rounds per minute and had a range of 4,500 yards. With proper handling, it could sustain a rate of fire for hours, providing a necessary supply of belted ammunition, spare barrels and cooling water was available.

One of 193 British and Allied official photographs.