The "great debate" goes on was ACW period artillery effective at long ranges or was it only effective when spouting forth canister at a charging enemy wavering a few yards away? In my conversations with Civil War gamers, it seems that many discount the accuracy and effectiveness of guns during the War Between the States. I will present my own views, vehemently defended with quotes from published sources. My hope in doing this is to bring a bit -nore accuracy to the wargame table. Where is it written that artillery was only effective at close range? I don't find reference to this in regimental histories or in specialized works regarding the war. I have found certain "hints" of artillery being ineffective at long range in general works covering the entire war or in some articles which speak about artillery. When looking up the references used in these articles or books, they seem to always go back to manuals or government reports - poor choices in my opinion. One should seldom listen to the thoughts of bureaucrats when learning about war. Rather, it is the soldier who experiences first hand the grim realities of conflict that presents the ultimate truth to the historian. It is these sources, many being quotes of common soldiers or officers who served in our national conflict, that represent "truth". They experienced fear and mutilation. Their statements may be somewhat skewed by emotion, but the words do represent what was "experienced". Perception IS truth to the person who experiences war first hand. Whole regiments melted away when their perception of battle was one of a losing cause. When enough people perceive things in the same way, this then becomes "truth". The folLowing represents a majority view on artillery in the Civil War, and by the very numbers, these soldiers offer us in their writings perceptual truth. They give us lessons in history! Rifled Guns The untruth that I wish to address in this short article concerns rifled guns. A number of historians seem to believe that rifled guns were not very accurate during the ACW period. They ignore the facts surrounding the 3 inch ordnance rifle. I will admit that Whitworths and Parrott rifles had their problems, both in accuracy and from bursting, but the 3 inch rifle was king of the hill as regards long range artillery marksmanship. These guns, pets of Eli Lilly's 18th Indiana Battery, were used to great effect at long range. A wonderful illustration of this can be found in the book, YANKEE ARTILLERYMEN, By John W. Rowell (the history of the 18th Indiana Battery), on page 27: 'With reference to the accuracy of the guns, Henry Campbell told about artillery practice in November: "The target was 3/4 mile distant and consisted of an old wheat sack hung in a fence corner. The practice was excellent, two center shots, one from each gun under charge of Corpls. Evans and Crouse." A few days later he reported another practice session: "They fired down the river at a white Sycamore tree, distant two miles. The firing was splendid. The gun corporals seem to understand their business without any drilling whatever. None of the shells hit the tree .... that wasn't expected, but some very close indications were made near it. Corporals Corey and Evans put a shell through a stump in the river 1/2 mile distant at the first shot." A Confederate artilleryman also attested to the accuracy of the Rodman guns: "The Yankee three-inch rifle was a dead shot at any distance under a mile. They could hit the head of a flour barrel more often than miss, unless the gunner got rattled." He told how three shells hit one gun of their battery and destroyed it when a Federal battery fired the projectiles through an embrasure only one foot in width from one-half mile away." A report in the Lilly Archives, written by Eli Lilly on September 1, 1863 mentioned the battery's experience at Chattanooga, where his rifles destroyed a 15 pd. James Rifle, sunk a steamboat called "Paint Rock", seriously damaged another steamer called the "Dunbar", and did a lot of damage inside of the Confederate forts at a range of about 4000 yards. Other rifled guns were known to produce miraculous results as well. The September 1987 issue of CIVIL WAR TIMES ILLUSTRATED contained a lengthy article on ACW ordnance. I am quoting the following from page 44 of that magazine regarding a feat performed by Capt. Robert A. Hardaway's Alabama Battery: "The battery mounted watch over Virginia's Shenandoah Valley from the slopes flanking Ashby's Gap. There one day, Hardaway personally laid the sights of a breechloading Whitworth rifle on some Federals traveling below and then gave the order to fire. The English gun cracked and leaped back in recoil as its solid hexagonal bolt began a three mile flight. Fifteen seconds later the tiny knot of blue-clad men and horses erupted in panic and confusion. The Rebel projectile dropped from the sky, ripped through a horse's flanks, and killed a nearby Union rider." Another example of rifled guns doing service as "sharpshooter" weapons can be found on page 45 of the same magazine: "During Longstreet's seige of Federal-held Knoxville, Tennessee, in November 1863, Lt. Samuel Benjamin of the 2nd U.S. Artillery directed his battery's fire from a defense point called Fort Loudon. A party of Confederate snipers had taken position in the tower of the nearby Bleak House, and were picking off Federals with their telescopic-sighted rifles. Lieutenant Benjamin was ordered to drive them away. He personally sighted a 20-pounder Parrott on the slim target of the tower, which stood 2500 yards away. The Parrott cracked and its shell ripped through the open portals of the tower, killing three Rebels while leaving the cupola untouched." There are many more examples I could quote just from my own library of Civil War books. The reader will hopefully take it upon himself to research the subjects covered in this short article to remedy the fallacies that still seem to exist about our war between the states. Rules sets are merely guidelines as to how to reconstruct an ACW battle. If the rules, or any portion of them are proven false by historical fact a gamer has the right to make changes. Don't be afraid to read: knowledge is the father of enjoyable miniatures afternoons! Back to The Zouave Vol I No. 6 Table of Contents Back to The Zouave List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 1987 The American Civil War Society This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com