Civil War Firearms: Their Historical Background and Tactical Use

Reader Reviews
Civil War Firearms is a excellent, comprehensive and detailed study of the handguns and shoulder-fired weapons used by both Federal and Confederate soldiers during the American Civil War.Bilby's expertise on the small arms, research and anecdotal narrative style are demonstrated to the reader as he covers everything from smoothbores, rifle-muskets and sharpshooters to breechloading carbines, handguns and repeaters.The Union and the Confederates aremed their forces as best they could during the war, resulting in a wide variety of firearms appearing on every battlefield. Many weapons were provided through haphazard government contracts, while many others were privately purchased by soldiers and officers. With so many different American and European made firearms in service, the lack of uniformity for maintenance and resupply of ammunition was a nightmare for ordnance supply officers. Of particular note was General Grant had the various Federal units turn in their weapons after the battle of Shiloh and the weapons were given back to the units organized by the weapons's caliber. Additionally, the Confederates were initially blessed with their higher number of .69 caliber muskets because it put less of a strain on their logistics system.The typical Federal and Confederate soldiers and officers knew or understood little about their firearms. Loading and massed-volley firing were normally the extent of their expertise. With few exceptions, there was no required marksmanship training for either army. And while tactics might not have changed much since the Napoleonic era, firearms and their employment had. The rifled muskets had three times the range of the smoothbore muskets used by Napoleon and in the American Revolutionary war.One particular story of note is infantrymen found that firing "buck-and-ball" loads, one round ball and three buckshot, greatly increased the destructive power of each cartridge. Indeed, it could be argued that both sides would have been better served to have had just .69 caliber muskets with buck-and-ball issued rather than the rifled muskets which were employed merely as smoothbore muskets, anyway. The Confederate cavalrymen favored revolvers and shotguns for the close-quarters combat. The Confederates were superior in that combat. Some snipers armed with the Whitworth rifle were so troublesome with their long-range fire that whole artillery batteries often concentrated their fire on the snipers to silence them. If the Confederates had made more use of the Whitworth rifles - a mechanically fitting .45 caliber bullet into a musket that looked just like an Enfield then this weapons could have seriously pinned down Union forces and would have predated the problems the British Army was to face in South Africa 30 years later.Bilby presents the complete spectrum of firearms, including the best of Colt, Henry, Spencer, Sharps and Springfield arms, as well as such failures as Cosmopolitan, Starr, Joslyn, Gibbs and Gallager. In addition, the author provides a guide to collecting and safely firing relics and reproductions. Furthermore, a list of supply and information sources is given for shooters of Civil War weapons. Last, the book is illustrated with period and modern photographs which will be of great value to a historian or Civil War Reenactor. This books gives a valuable, useful, well researched and entertaining history of the American Civil War firearms heritage.


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