The presence of Lego guns in the history of the company can be traced back to the immediate post-war years, following World War II.
[1] When Lego was first introduced in the United States through a deal with Samsonite in 1962, the company's advertising rejected military themes, due to the increasing anxiety in the population over the Vietnam War.
A promotional Lego System Assortment 1968 UK catalogue stated, "A good toy is one which gives free reign [sic] to a child's natural creativity and does what he wants it to do.
The Star Wars films clearly featured numerous weapons and parents raised concerns about its level of violence.
On balance, the report also noted, "It is unlikely that the LEGO company is the only toy manufacturer whose products have become increasingly violent; for instance, Oppel has already provided initial evidence that Playmobil has followed a similar trajectory...
[7] Gary Cross, a professor of history at Pennsylvania State University remarked that Lego's expansion of weaponry in its products was the result of direct competition following a surge in the popularity of action-figure toys in the 1980s and also from video game companies, such as Nintendo and Sega.
A British teenager named Jack Streat built a series of working Lego guns, including a replica Lee–Enfield bolt-action rifle.