Warfare today is largely driven by one type of weapon. This weapon is not a tank or a plane; instead, it is much smaller. This weapon is the assault rifle. Introduced in World War Two, the assault rifle revolutionized warfare and has since developed into the two main firearms today.
The first assault rifle, and the father of all others, was the Sturmgewehr 1944, or the STG 44. This rifle started the evolution of warfare in the year 1942. Hugo Schmeisser first thought of the concept of this rifle in this year while working for the C. G. Haenel Waffen und Fahrradfabrik Company. .
This rifle was developed for a number of reasons in late World War Two. The first reason this firearm was developed was to defeat the seemingly endless Red Army who came from the Eastern Front, the Soviet Union. In the later stages of the war when Germany tried to invade Russia there was a massive shock to the Germans. The Red Army that the Soviets had fielded seemed to have endless numbers, and the Germans began to take heavy losses in battle. Because of this the German Nazis needed a weapon that was reliable and easy to use in combat and that was easy to make for rapid mass production. They wanted to place these guns in the hands of their infantry to replace the slow operated standard 7.92x57 caliber bolt-action rifle. .
Furthermore reasoning behind needing a new type of weapon was evident. The German's had done studies and research, revealing that most engagements in modern warfare happen within 300 meters. This meant that the soldiers were carrying rifles that fired ammo much heavier and more powerful than needed. This provoked the Germans into researching a new type of ammo that would be lighter and had power more suited to the normal engagement. .
This led to the development of the 7.92x33 caliber or 7.92 Kurz (short). Some research and development had looked into the use of 7 millimeter or 7.5-millimeter calibers; but the Germans decided against these calibers because it would be too costly and time consuming to develop the new equipment to make these new caliber bullets.
