Civil War Weapons

Weapon Types Artillery Small arms Edged weapons Firearms larger than small arms Small arms Any weapon smaller than a canon and carried by a soldier Edged weapons Bayonets, sabers, swords, short swords, cutlasses, Bowie knives, pikes and lances

Artillery Classification Inventor/Factory Dahlgren/Napoleon Rodman/Parrott Whitworth Weight of Projectile 12/24/32 - pounder Rifled Path of Trajectory Gun = flat Mortar = high arch Howitzer = between Caliber of bore diameter 3/8/10 - inch Smooth bore Tactical Deployment Field Seacoast Siege artillery Method of Loading Breech/muzzle

Weapon Material Depended on material availability Steel Bronze Iron

Napoleon Smoothbore, muzzle loading, 12-pounder “gun howitzer” Favorite artillery weapon for Union and Confederacy offensively and defensively Developed in 1857 under Louis Napoleon of France

Napoleon Made from bronze until South ran out, then iron Max range-1700 yards Most effective at 250 yards Probably caused most causalities of all artillery pieces

Parrott Rifles Model 1861 2.9 inch Model 1863 3-inch Developed in 1859-60 Distinguished by muzzle swell First workable rifled gun for either side Union produced it quickly, inexpensively and in mass quantities Model 1863 3-inch Could use same ammo as 2.9 but 3 inch ammo often jammed the 2.9 guns Phased out mid-way through the war End of the Civil War ended the Parrott’s career

Model 1861 2.9 inch Parrott Rifle Model 1863 3 inch

3 inch Ordinance One of most used guns Most accurate, longer range (up to 2300 yards) Long range meant that the shooter had to see the target to be accurate Rifled cannon was good for knocking down fortifications Key at Vicksburg and Atlanta

Model 1861 3-inch Ordinance Rifle Original was named “Griffin Gun” after John Griffin Found a procedure to strengthen iron and keep the barrel from bursting Lethal under 1 mile; effective at 1 ½ mile 100 pounds lighter than the Parrott Union produced about 1,000 Confederacy lacked the technology

12 pound Mountain Howitzers Manufactured by Armstrong and Whitworth Smallest and most portable Useful in the mountains of the Western theater

Dahlgrens/Rodman Smoothbores Naval and siege cannon Heaviest and most powerful 8-10 inch siege howitzers range was over 2000 yards Fired 45-90 pound shells

Artillery Ammunition Solid shot Grape Canister Shell Chain shot Long range, fixed target Grape Canister Shell Chain shot Used against masts and rigging of ships

Solid shot Shell                               Grape shot Chain shot Canister

Canister Shot Scattershot projectile Small iron balls were incased in a canister, resembling a tin can Upon firing the canister disintegrated Effect was of a sawed off shotgun Lethal at 250 yards or less

Grape Shot Worked exactly like canister shot Only difference, it was wrapped in cloth or canvas Was not very practical for field artillery use

Small Arms Musket Smoothbore Long-barreled shoulder arm Rifle Shoulder gun with spiral grooves cut into the inner barrel Carbine Short-barreled rifle Handguns Pistol Revolver

Small Arms Classified by caliber; mode of loading (breech/muzzle) and maker Most used was .58 cal Springfield Musket and .69 cal Harper’s Ferry Rifle Both muzzle loading and fired mini ball These rifles changed infantry tactics Before, soldiers would be in mass groups and charge the enemy After, with greater accuracy and longer range (lethal at over ½ mile) frontal assaults were very deadly

.58 cal Springfield Musket .69 cal Harper’s Ferry Rifle

Other important small arms Henry Repeating Rifle – 15 rounds of .44 cal cartridges Sharp’s Carbine .44 cal Model 1860 Colt Revolver

Minie Ball Before – use of rifles was impractical because ammo was expensive and loading was time consuming 1848 – French army Capt. Claude F. Minie developed smaller, hollow-based bullet Easier loading, expanded upon firing and spun out of gun barrel. The spin made them more expensive but very accurate and far traveling. 1855 – Harper’s Ferry Armory worker James H. Burton found a cheaper way to make the ball Became the standard bullet for both sides

Minie Ball

Edged Weapons Bayonets Swords Sabres Short Swords Cutlasses Bowie knife Pikes and lances

Edged Weapons Mostly served as decoration Out of about 250,000 wounded treated in Union hospitals only about 922 were injured from an edged weapon; most were from private disagreements Sabre Cavalry sword Lethal with trained mounted soldiers Volunteers created many lop-eared horses Sword Sign of officer’s authority Lance Deadly with trained troops Shortage in the South

North vs South Comparison North had a huge advantage over South in all artillery and higher percentage of rifled cannon to smoothbore cannon. Union had about 1,200 Napoleons produced for them; Confederacy produced between 500-600 on their own. In small arms, the South depended on smuggled imports from England and France. South was at disadvantage in majority aspects of weapons simply because of the lack of material availability and technology.

Bibliography http://www.civilwarhome.com/weapons.htm http://www.civilwarhome.com/artillery.htm http://www.civilwarartillery.com