A quick-firing or rapid-firing gun is an artillery piece, typically a gun or howitzer, that has several characteristics which taken together mean the weapon can fire at a fast rate. Quick-firing was introduced worldwide in the 1880s and 1890s and had a marked impact on war both on land and at sea.
Woodcut depicting Royal Navy gunners in action with the 1-inch Nordenfelt gun, the first practical QF gun
Royal Navy deck mounting of the QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss, the first modern QF gun, 1915
Quick-firing 4.7-inch gun on "Percy Scott" carriage at the Battle of Colenso
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes.
Confederate torpedo boat CSS David
HMS Lightning, the first modern torpedo boat, built in 1876
Chilean torpedo boats in Valparaíso, used during War of the Pacific
HMS Havock the first modern destroyer, commissioned in 1894