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dh76513 -> RE: Weapons (9/25/2006 2:10:58 PM)
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• Mortars
Mortars were short-barrelled pieces, mostly smoothbore, which fired a shell with a small powder charge at a steep elevation. Shells were usually grapeshot or hollow shells set off by percussion or timed fuses.
• Howitzers
Howitzers fired large projectiles at higher elevations than guns, but lower than mortars.
• Smoothbores
Smoothbores were standard guns at the start of the war, but they were soon outdated by the invention of rifled guns, which added spin to the projectile, creating a longer range.
• Columbiads
Columbiads were large caliber smoothbores which fired a large projectile at high elevation over a great distance.
• Parrott Rifles
Parrott Rifles, as the name implies, were rifled guns made of iron with a strap of wrought iron wrapped around the breech. These guns unfortunately had a tendency to burst at the muzzle.
• Whistling Dick
One of the most famous gun of the war was "Whistling Dick", a banded and rifled 18-pounder Confederate siege and garrison weapon. "Whistling Dick" began life as a iron smoothbore Model 1839 which had been rifled. Because of some erratic rifling all shells fired from the gun made a peculiar whistling sound, thus the name "Whistling Dick." The gun was part of the river defenses at Vicksburg, Mississippi in 1863, and is credited with the sinking of the Union gunboat Cincinnati. "Whistling Dick" disappeared after the surrender of Vicksburg and remains unaccounted for today.
• Brooke Rifles
Brooke rifles were essentially a Confederate version of the Parrott gun. However, the Brooke rifle might have 1, 2 or 3 wrought iron bands around the cast iron breech.
• Dahlgrens
Admiral John A. Dahlgren designed many types of naval guns for use in the war. Of the heavy variety were his large caliber smoothbore shellguns, two of which were the only armament of the Monitor.
• Whitworth Rifles
Due to the lack of sufficient foundries, the Confederacy had to rely on imported guns, run through the blockade, for many of its heavy varieties of guns. The Whitworth rifle could fire a hexagonal bolt nearly 10,000 yards.
• Blakely Rifles
Another import, Blakely rifles came in various calibers with barrells made of cast iron strengthened with steel.
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