Sadly, this was the only lecture I attended out of all the War College lectures. I wanted to attend more, but the priority was the MagWeb.com booth. I didn't even take notes, so this is done from memory. I can say I came away from this fine presentation with new information and insight.

The two-trail carriage of a Napoleonic era 12-pounder weighed (with barrel) about 5,000 pounds. It took a considerable number of men to manhandle it back into place once fired, for the recoil would kick the entire carriage backwards. Musketry range was so limited, roughly 100 to 150 yards that cannon could park themselves within cannister range of 500 yards and fire away at infantry without much hazard. At the same time, cavalry could park themselves at a safe distance of 900-1000 yards without much chance of being shelled, as artillery wasn't especially accurate at that range and most artillery men would not take, or waste, a shot.

For long shots with ball, the ideal place was to bounce the ball just in front of infantry and skip it through the ranks. Too long a range and it would pass over. Too short and the ball would skip over the target's heads. A good gunner was constantly doing mathematical calculations based on range (powder charge), wind direction, ground conditions (mud, etc), and other factors for the best shot.

In many battles, Napoleon already knew where the artillery would be placed, and his reserve would be gathered into a grand battery for maximum effect. Usually, his horse batteries would be a final reserve, because they had mobility over foot batteries, but they'd be mixed as necessary. The early battles saw grand batteries of 19 or 20 guns (Castiglione and Marengo), while later battles like Leipzig could see over 200!

The French never quite figured out how to duplicate the idea of shrapnel, where the ball is filled with gunpowder and smaller balls and a fuse governs when it will explode. Although the fuse was primitive, British artillerists eventually could dial in the time in seconds and fore the shell with a reasonable expectation of it bursting at that time. There were premature explosions and duds, but it as the dawn of a more lethal form of ordinance delivered at a greater distance.

In the American Civil War, metalurgy advances lightend the weight of the barrel, and thus the single trail carriage needed to carry it. The 12-pounder Napoleon smoothbore cannon of the ACW (named, incidently for Napoleon III, not Napoleon I) weighed only 2,000 pounds. There are accounts of a single soldier picking up the back end of the trail and turning the cannon. This was something that could never be done in Napoleon's time because it was too heavy. So, staffing requirements were also reduced.

Rifling made its appearance in ACW cannons, and a 3-inch rifled cannon could roughly double effective range. Although the rough forested terrain of North America didn't exactly allow maximum range fire, in at least one place, Gettysburg, the Union artillery had a clear field of fire for a mile distance. That famous charge by Pickett found less than 1/3 of his men reaching anywhere near the Union line, in part due to casualties, and in part from Confederates figuring out the suicidal nature of the charge and "helping" their wounded buddy get back to a field hospital. And of course, only a few hundred managed to get to the low wall with Armistead.

Origins 2001

Convention Introduction and Overview
Historical Boardgames
Historical Miniatures
Richard Borg's New Ancients Game
Frank Chadwick's New Campaign Idea
Artillery Evolution from Napoleon to American Civil War

Previous Origins

Origins 2000
Origins 1999
Origins 1998

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