Because of its narrow line of fire, solid shot was not always particularly effective against infantry or cavalry making a frontal assault. In such a situation the guns were loaded with canister or caseshot, which consisted of a tin container of the same size as the bore, filled with cast bullets. The case burst open as it left the muzzle of the gun, allowing the bullets to spread out in an arc over the frontage of the gun from which it was fired. The size and number of bullets used in caseshot varied considerably and by 1850 the caseshot of the field pieces contained: 9 pdr gun - 41 5 oz bullets. 6 pdr gun - 41 1.25 oz bullets. 24 pdr howitzer - 100 .2 oz bullets The efficiency of caseshot were determined in trials by firing at a screen as high as a man's head and about 120 feet wide, representing the frontage over which a single battery would develop its fire when in action. At 250 yards range 75% of the 9 pdr and 30% of the 6 pdr bullets hit the target and at 150 yards the 9 pdr scored 65% hits and the 6 pdr 55%. As enemy troops closed in on the final stages of an attack, it was possible to fire two charges of caseshot simultaneously from a single gun. It was most effective at close ranges up to about 300 yards so that it must be classified as a defensive weapon. Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 122 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1972 by Donald Featherstone. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com