"A Production Line of Death”: How Volley Fire Changed the Face of Battle (and Where it Originated)

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When firing volleys, all men of the first row of a formation shot simultaneously. Then, they made way for their comrades to fire the next round. Volley fire emerged in the 16th century and fundamentally changed warfare. It enabled infantry with arquebuses and muskets to fire continuously for the first time in history, making fighting in formation more efficient—and battles more deadly. How this firing mode looked in its final form can be seen, for example, in the film Zulu, which depicts the Battle of Rorke’s Drift in 1879. In this battle, 139 British soldiers defended a mission station in South Africa against almost 4,000 Zulu warriors. Thanks to the deliberate use of volley fire, they managed to repel several assaults and hold the station. This video explores how and where volley fire originated, how it worked, and why it was so effective.

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