The boxlock action is a firing mechanism with the lockwork mounted internally, as opposed to being mounted on the side of the weapon. Boxlock actions were common in the 18th and 19th centuries. The action gets its name from the lockwork typically being installed in a box of sort, usually inline behind the barrel.
Most boxlock weapons were flintlock, although though some percussion cap and pinfire boxlocks also existed.
The popularity of boxlock actions declined rapidly after the emergence of percussion cap and pinfire revolvers in the mid-19th century.
