The shooting of game in general remained fairly rare until the end of the 17th century. High-angle shots were impossible with the matchlock weapons of the time, and many sportsmen fiercely opposed the use of guns for hunting as the noise and smoke scared off any remaining game. The development of he wheel lock, although first depicted by Leonardo De Vinci 1500, gained steam in the 1600s. The wheel lock, however, was very expensive to make and complicated. It involved a spring-driven wheel that released the trigger and struck sparks from a shard of iron pyrites. Only the royal, noble and rich could afford wheel lock weapons, so most examples we have today are amazingly ornate. This advancement eventually allowed hunters to take …show more content…
The Brown Bess musket, a long-stranding British army’s favorite was sometimes used as a following piece. In fact multiple shot were also used for warfare. Militaries would often combine a musket ball with buckshot to get damaging results. In 1776, the first recorded use of the “shotgun” arose in Kentucky publication called “Frontier Language of the West” by James Fennimore Cooper. Although still used for hunting, shotguns played a more significant role in warfare, law enforcement and defense during the 1800s. During the Civil War, both the Confederate and Union armies used shotguns with their cavalry divisions. These mounted shooters preferred shotguns for their close-range power and effectiveness at hitting moving targets. During the Indian Wars, the shotgun was again a very integral part of the success of the U.S.