The Bren is a light support weapon of UK origin and is an icon of British forces in World War 2. . The Bren, most of the time called the Bren gun, was adopted by the British forces in 1935 to increase the firepower of the rifle section. The name Bren comes from the Brno and Enfield. With the former being the Czech place of origin of the original design and the latter being the place of origin of the Bren. The Bren was widely used during World War 2 and subsequent conflicts. The Bren was a weapon that was liked by its users and its long service life is a testament to its quality.

The design of the Bren is based on the Czechoslovak ZB-26 and is a gas operated weapon with a tilting bolt. The Bren differs in a lot of small details, with the most visual being the curved magazine instead of a straight one. A quick change barrel is fitted in order to replace the barrel during prolonged fire. When after World War 2 the UK adopted the 7.62x51mm NATO round the Bren was rechambered and known as the L4. The L4 differs in using a new barrel with slotted flash hider and magazines and some minor other changes. The rimless 7.62x51mm round resulted in a new straight 30 round magazine. The Bren was also used a lot on pintle mounts on all kinds of armored vehicles, most notably the Bren Carrier, but it was not used as a coaxial weapon.

The original Bren fired the British .303 round from a 30 round magazine. The converted models fire the 7.62x51mm NATO round from a 30 round magazine, but can also use 20 and 30 round FAL magazines as used by most Commonwealth forces. The cyclic rate of fire is a modest 500 rounds per minute. The actual rate of fire is much lower due to frequent magazine changes. The maximum effective range is 600 meters.

The main user of the Bren has been the UK. The Bren was adopted by most Commonwealth nations and additionally the Bren was successful on the export market. In the UK the Bren was supplemented with the MAG after World War 2, but it remained in use right up till the end of the Cold War. Currently it has been replaced by 5.56mm weapon systems. The Bren continues to be used throughout the world, although in ever more limited numbers and usually with reserve forces.