The Civil War's Weaponry and How it Made it So Deadly

    There is no doubt that the Civil War was the deadliest war in American history and one of the deadliest in World history with over 625,000 men (or around 2% of the national population at the time) perishing in the carnage of its battles. But why was the Civil War so deadly in comparison to wars that had been fought no more than 40 years ago such as the Mexican-American war and why did it seem to produce death so exponentially on a weekly basis? The answer is weaponry. Set during a technological revolution in our nation's history, the Civil War's two sides enjoyed the benefits of advanced weaponry, armor, and artillery that both boosted their strength and effectiveness in battle, and that would lead to the death of so many young men in the line of duty for their army.

   Firstly, possibly one of the most significant inventions of the Civil war was the minie rifle. As a powerful and mobile infantry weapon that replaced the antiquated musket firearm, the minie rifle was a new type of gun that would be loaded with specially designed minie balls (a type of ammunition) which were spun at a high velocity by grooves inside of the barrel when the weapon was fired and could be repeated instead of having to reload after each shot. Such a spinning of the bullet allowed for greater accuracy due to increased protection against air resistance and a higher overall velocity that would almost guarantee a one-hit kill if directed correctly. Such weapons allowed soldiers with good firing accuracy to ping enemy infantry at long ranges and kill them immediately when hit unlike the older musket model that had a very random direction of bullet trajectory and significantly less power behind its shots. Furthermore, the fact that most generals did not update old battle tactics to suit the more advanced weaponry lead to even greater casualty counts, as many armies still used firing lines in battle which exposed most soldiers completely to enemy fire, but were the only hope of hitting the enemy at all with the inaccuracy of musket firearms. However with the new and more advanced minie rifles installed as the new weapon of choice for both sides of the Civil War, firing only aided in marching more soldiers straight to their deaths and causing military reserve numbers to plummet. As for the protection that infantry units had available to them during the war, steps were taken towards making effective products, but unfortunately many would not bear fruit until after the war was done. Many attempts at creating armor were variations of what would be a modern bulletproof vest, but they were often simply regular military vests lined with metal in the plates and were not very effective against armor-penetrating minie ball rounds. Still, it was a first step toward creating more advanced armor in the future. 

    

    As for artillery, the Civil War introduced inventions such as the first ironclad warships, quickly firing cannons that could fire more than once per reload, and even the beginnings of a mounted Gatling gun. As possibly one of the experimental wars in American history, the Civil War's armies got to experiment with the latest and most deadly vehicles and artillery that contemporary technology had to offer, and with the American Industrial Revolution on the bring of its beginning, there was no shortage of weapons for the soldiers to use, and also no shortage of deaths that they would cause either. And while most deaths in the Civil War were attributed to gun on gun infantry battle, artillery played a key role in major battles such as Gettysburg or Malvern Hill where the reason for the victory of the side who won was in great part due to the use of artillery to hold off the charging opposite army. Once again, artillery didn't top mobile weaponry in the field of causing casualties, but it was a sure symbol of technological progress during the Civil War and advancement toward the Industrial Revolution. 

    

    Overall, the Civil War was a time of carnage, loss, and pain for our nation, but was also one that highlighted serious technological advancement in our nation's firepower. From individual rifles to large scale ships, weaponry during this time jumped to a new level of effectiveness as never seen before and climbed over limitations that many thought would be in place forever. A stain on American history it forever may be, but the Civil War time period's contribution to weaponry and its advancements have lead our nation to where it is today and continues to astound the world with its progress. 

Sources: 

http://www.civilwarartillery.com/

www.civilwarartillery.com/basicfacts.htm

http://www.historynet.com/civil-war-weapons

http://guns.wikia.com/wiki/Minie_Rifle