Artillery

(Boom Booms)

 The American Revolution’s artillery and tactics were much different than today’s modern warfare.  The strategy of war and the weapons have changed in many ways over the years.  We can look back to reflect on the changes and advances made in the basic weapons of war.

            First, the revolutionary war battles took places in open fields and valleys making soldiers very vulnerable.  A battle would often start out with the two opposing forces marching directly at each other in parallel lines.  Muskets and cannons would be loaded and at the ready.  The general rule was don’t fire unless fired upon.  When the first shot was fired, all heck would break loose.  The most effective combat shooting style was to utilize way of firing by groups of soldiers who fire in turns through the ranks.  The order would usually consist of three groups.  The first would move to the front and fire and then move to the back and reload.  This would then be repeated by the other two groups.  This would repeat as the first group would be reloaded and ready to repeat the sequence.  It is believed that the colonists had a great advantage by taking a different approach to this shooting strategy.  The colonist would hide behind trees for cover, and fire at the dumbstruck British.  The colonist didn’t learn take this new tactic into battle until late in the war.  The British were then forced to adopt a similar tactic.

            The musket was a primary weapon used during the Revolutionary war.  Rifles were also used but, the muskets were most popular because they were much easer and faster to reload even if they were a bit less accurate.  The British used a musket called the Brown Bess and the colonists favored the Charleyville.

            Lastly, in the Revolutionary War, the cannons played a major role.  The cannons used accounted for more kills than all other weapons combined.  The heavy cannons were usually mounted on wheels to be moved from battlefield to battlefield.  They were often made of bronze to help with mobility.  The shells were typically a ball filled with gun powder and a fuse.  Sometimes a shell that blew up mid air and shot several lead balls could be used.

            Artillery was, and almost certainly will be a core part of military operations.  Looking back upon the Revolutionary War era demonstrates the great shifts in war tactics and artillery that have occurred in the last 200 plus years.