Rapid clamping device

A clamping device, particularly a machine vice (1), having a body element (2), a jaw (3) immovably attached thereto, and an oppositely placed movable jaw (32), displacement of which is assured by a drawbar (4), which drawbar (4) is furnished with a bearing member on which the movable jaw is supported by means of a compression bar (7), and the movable jaw (32) is configured so that it may be arrested with the compression bar at varying distances from the fixed jaw, and in which a force amplifying arrangement is provided, characterised in that the force amplifying arrangement (5) includes at least one cylindrical tube (9) and at least two plungers that are movable in concentric cylinders, an outer compression plunger (10) and a clamping plunger (11) attached to the drawbar (4) by a plunger rod, and that two compression chambers (12, 14) are provided, an outer, low-pressure chamber (12) and a high-pressure chamber (14) acting on the clamping plunger (11) from the direction of the drawbar, wherein a functional connection is established between the two plungers (10, 11) in such manner that at least one rod (18) having a smaller diameter than the diameters of the plungers and which is connected to the outer compression plunger (10) acts on the high-pressure chamber (14), which is filled with pressurizing medium.