Civil War Field Artillery: Weapons, Ammunition, and Tactics

Introduction

In many ways, the Civil War was the first modern war. The scorched-earth policy implemented during Sherman's March to the Sea introduced "total war" to the world (Cummings, 2012). It also involved the use of weaponry that would come to define the modern age of warfare: advanced, technological, and devastating. As Gen. Hunt put it, artillery should be "a separate arm" — a specialized force of the army that could be used to maximum advantage (Hazlett, Olmstead & Parks, 2004).

Field artillery weapons included the 6-pounder gun made of bronze, which shot a 6 lb. projectile at a speed of 1,400 feet per second with a range of 1,500 yards; the M1857 12-pound "Napoleon" made of bronze, which weighed 1,227 lbs. and shot the 12 lb. ball at a speed of 1,440 feet per second with a range of 1,600 yards; the 24-pounder Howitzer made of bronze, which shot the 18 lb. cannonball at a speed of 1,060 feet per second with a range of 1,300 yards; and many others (Cole, 2002). All in all, the field artillery used during the Civil War was a force of destruction — big, slow, heavy, and capable of removing limbs and heads before a body had time to duck. This paper discusses and describes the field artillery used during the Civil War and shows how it was put to use in America's first exercise in total war.

Smoothbores

Artillery in the Civil War consisted of two types: smoothbores and rifles. Smoothbores were the howitzers and guns. Smoothbores had been around for some time and were older than the rifle, which had only recently begun to be mass-produced by the time war broke out in 1861. Guns and howitzers were typical of the battery going back a century, but it was the way they were used in conjunction with the rifle in the artillery — and the Napoleon 12-pounder in particular — that changed the face of war.

Howitzers were short-barreled and guns were longer. Guns used higher powder charges and ranged from 6-pounders to 12-pounders. The 6-pounder guns used in the early parts of the war had been produced as early as 1835. Some older cannon were even 40 years old when armies became desperate for materiel. The Union opted for the bigger guns by the end of the war, but the smaller ones remained popular in the South (Ripley, 1984). The 12-pounder Model produced in 1857 was, however, the best — light, versatile, and capable of being pulled by a team of six horses rather than eight. The "Napoleon," as it was called, could deliver a heavy load upon the enemy thanks to the large bore it possessed.

The howitzer had the shorter barrel and was primarily used with exploding shells and case shot. When the enemy was sheltered within a fort, the howitzer was used to destroy the fortification and drive the enemy into the open. The cost of a single howitzer was approximately $500 at the time (Ripley, 1984) — roughly $15,000 in today's money, accounting for inflation. The 12-pounder, 24-pounder, and 32-pounder were all used during the Civil War. 24-pounders were commonly found in both the Northern and Southern reserve batteries, but by the end of the war the guns were doing most of the work. Woolfolk used the 24-pounder in his battery in the Army of Northern Virginia; however, he was the exception — for the most part the Union did not put these weapons into the field. The 24-pounder and the 32-pounder were mainly used as fixed cannon to defend fortifications, though they could still be found in the field from time to time (Ripley, 1984).

The 12-pounder mountain Howitzer also enjoyed considerable popularity, especially in the Western Theater. It was light, versatile, and could be pulled by a single horse or even deconstructed and packed onto the backs of animals. Both the North and the South produced hundreds of these light cannon, and the 12-pounder mountain Howitzer proved essential in the Union's victory at the so-called "Gettysburg of the West" — the Battle of Glorieta Pass in the Western Theater (Hazlett et al., 2004). They allowed for fast-moving operations and were extremely effective at destroying the enemy at close range.

The most popular 12-pounder of them all, however, was the "Napoleon." Safe, effective, consistent, and trustworthy, the cannon named after France's own Napoleon III packed a punch at close range, obliterating everything in its path. The cannon was distinguished by its muzzle swell in terms of appearance, and in terms of weight it was heavier than most field artillery. The Napoleon was so well-regarded that Gen. Lee had all of the Army of Northern Virginia's 6-pounders melted down and recast as Napoleons in 1863, at a point when the outcome of the war had not yet been determined. Lee wanted the most powerful and deadly weapons he could field, and the Napoleon was the best when it came to maximizing killing power. Its accuracy was believed to hold for up to a mile.

Rifled Guns

The rifled gun was the other option for field artillery. The 76mm rifle was the most common field artillery weapon of this type. Made of wrought iron, it was nearly indestructible compared to the inferior cast iron weapons of the day. It was accurate, deadly, and mobile, and was genuinely believed to be the most accurate rifle on the field. However, it was not the only rifled gun in use. The Parrott rifle also saw service in all the major engagements. Because it was made of both wrought and cast iron, though, it was not as safe as the 76mm wrought iron rifle, and the men working the cannon did not favor it. Following the fight at Fredericksburg in 1862, Henry Hunt of the Union Army attempted to have the Parrott removed from service, arguing that it was heavy, cumbersome, and altogether unsafe (Hazlett et al., 2004). The James rifle and the Whitworth rounded out the complement of rifled guns used in the conflict.

Conclusion

The field artillery of the Civil War was a mixture of machines capable of destroying forts, fortifications, guns, carriages, men, and earth. These cannon were heavy and cumbersome — yet their power to annihilate anything in their path was unrivaled. The more versatile and lighter they could be made, the more beloved they became. However, what commanded the most respect among the men who used them was their ability to deliver round after round without exploding and injuring their own crews. Wrought iron guns like the Napoleon were the most favored: they could scatter case over the heads of enemy soldiers and bury them beneath a hail of lead balls raining down from the burst of a shell. They literally delivered death with each announcement of their arrival. Thanks to these weapons, the era of modern war had arrived.

References

Cole, P. M. (2002). Civil War Artillery at Gettysburg. New York: Da Capo Press.

Cummings, A. (2012). Was the American Civil War the First "Total War"? Retrieved from https://tropicsofmeta.com/2012/10/04/was-the-american-civil-war-the-first-total-war/

Daniel, L. J. & Gunter, R. W. (1977). Confederate Cannon Foundries. Union City, Tennessee: Pioneer Press.

Hazlett, J., Olmstead, E. & Parks, M. H. (2004). Field Artillery Weapons of the Civil War. University of Illinois Press.

Ripley, W. (1984). Artillery and Ammunition of the Civil War (4th ed.). Charleston, SC: The Battery Press.