Tyler's+Weapon+Technology

= = =Civil War Weaponry and New Technology=

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[[image:gatlinggun.jpg align="right" caption="A picture of Gatling's Gatling Gun"]]
Before the Civil War, Richard J. Gatling wanted to invent a weapon so powerful that it would end all wars through its cataclysmic destruction and devastation. Gatling’s invention did achieve insurmountable devastation, but it only made battles bloodier with record numbers of fatalities. Instead of ending all wars, it became a standard in future wars; creating a desire to develop ever more destructive weapons. The Gatling Gun was usually mounted on a tripod and was used to defend bunkers from assaults. They were also used on gunboats because of their rapid fire capability, in contrast to the slow loading of artillery shells and cannons. The gun would fire when hand cranked, causing pistons to move and push the bullets through one of the five to six barrels. Each barrel fired approximately 100 rpms (Rounds Per Minute) making the entire gun capable of firing roughly 500-600 rpms. The benefit of having separate barrels makes the gun harder to overheat compared to a single barreled machine gun firing at the same rate. The gun's rapid fire also caused problems; the gun would often jam because of the inaccuracy between the barrels and the pistons firing the bullets. This gun is considered one of the first machine guns and it sparked the machine gun industry that followed.

2) Naval Inventions
The Civil War is also responsible for making the wooden battleship obsolete. In 1862, the Confederates made the first iron covered ship, The Merrimack. The North combated The Merrimack with its creation, The Monitor, however neither side emerged victorious. This marked the beginning of ironclads, ships made entirely of metal. In the Civil War, battleships were covered with an iron coating and the sails were stripped and replaced with a motor on the back. The number of cannons also dropped and the remaining ones were not placed on the side, but rather in the front where the sails once were. The first submarine, the H.L. Hunley was also invented during the war. It was a Confederate ship and it successfully sank a Union warship before sinking itself; from damage caused by its own torpedo. This occurred because of the way Civil War submarines would launch torpedoes, which was different from today’s version. The ships would attach the torpedo to a rope, string or chain and would ram the submarine into the warship, and hope that the torpedo would also impact. Like many of the weapons invented during the Civil War, the invention of the submarine, would change warfare forever.

3) The Sky Is the Limit
The Civil War was one of first wars to expand on the idea of espionage and the ways to spy on the enemy. Some spies would photograph the other side’s Generals in order to create battle plans and pinpoint enemy camps. Others would bribe enemy soldiers to release information and give away battle plans. However, the Civil War would be the first war to use the idea of making a hot air balloon to spy on the enemy. These hot air balloons would float high above in the clouds, allowing the flyer to make notes on a map to identify where the enemy camp was located. The balloon would then return to its base and the maps would be given to the Generals and the controllers of artillery cannons, so that they could fire exactly where the main concentrations of enemy forces were. This was a much more efficient way of pinpointing enemy locations, be cause hot air balloons have the advantage of having good views of the ground, yet are less visible themselves due to their height and their use of clouds for cover. Hot air balloons were not only used for spying purposes, but they could also send telegraphs via a wire. Abraham Lincoln was given a demonstration of a telegraph being sent from a hot air balloon to the White House and he immediately ordered for more to be made for the Union forces.

4) New Uses To Rifles
Before the Civil War, soldiers used conventional weapons or muskets that would fire inaccurately, take too long to load and would only fire 1-3 shots per minute. The inaccuracy was due to the barrel being too big to harness the bullet or ball. As the rifle was fired the ball would bounce up and down in the barrel, causing the ball to fire from the rifle while traveling upward or downward. It was rare that these guns had any precision, which explains why up to this point; the concept of the sniper was never considered. By the 1860s, new and improved model designs, like the Smoothbore Musket were created. They could usually fire 4 shots, with greater precision and a range of up to 150 yards. Throughout this time, people were trying to figure out ways to increase the range while decreasing the reload time. A French soldier named Minie came up with a solution when he invented the Minie ball; a type of ammunition in the shape of a ball. It fit easily in the barrel of the rifle, but would expand afterwards. Also, when fired, the ball would have a spin that would increase its range. Rifled muskets, like the Springfield, were also invented during the Civil War; however these weapons were mainly used by sharpshooters, who shot from greater distances.

5) Making Use of Old Inventions
During the Civil War, conventional weapons like muskets were still effective, when used in moderation. While the Civil War was responsible for the development of new weapons and inventions, it also expanded the use of existing technologies like the railroad. The railroad was important to both the North and the South; it was used to transport troops, ammo, supplies and ordinance to the front of the battlefield. In the South, it helped expand the South's railroad system, which also boosted the economy in the after-years of the war. The telegraph was also used in moderation to report the results of battles and provide news and other information. The telegraph was ideal fort use by spies, since it could be coded and sent covertly and quickly from great distances. Also, old artillery batteries were still used to suppress enemy forces and were often placed on warships, giving it the capability to sink other warships. The Confederates used land batteries to break through the Union forces blockades.

6) The Effects of New Technologies Today
Some of the new technologies invented during the Civil War would have a lasting effect on our technology today. Since so many supplies were transported by railroad, finding a system to stop traffic jams was required and the solution would be the basis for the traffic light used today. The Civil War creation, the Gatling Gun is still used today, and out of hundreds of revisions to the original model, the jamming problem has never been fixed. The newly conceived of and inspired use of weaponry would lead to massive losses of life and the Civil War would come to be known as the ‘bloodiest war’ ever. Its numerous technological advancements and superb use of military tactics, also gave the Civil War the distinction of being considered ‘the first modern war’. These catastrophic weapons helped spark the next generation of technology and became the basis for today’s rifles and machine guns, changing the face of war forever.

7)Assassination Technology
The Philadelphia Derringer Pisto l is a pocket pistol that is small and easily assembled pistol. This pistol design became infamous when John Wilkes Booth used it to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln on April 14,  1865. This weapon is a small percussion hand-gun and it had a length of about 6" with .41" rifled bores. It was made by an American gunsmith, Henry Derringer and was produced from 1852 through 1868. A total of 15,000 Derringers were made during the Civil War. About 15-25 grains of black gunpowder would be needed to fire a lead bullet. The .41 Derringer had a muzzle velocity of about 400 fps (feet per second), and could accurately and easily crack someone skulls. Accuracy was needed to shoot these guns, because the short barrels did not allow as much firing support. The picture shown to the above-right is a replica of the Derringer used by Booth to kill President Abraham Lincoln. These guns usually sold for a price of around $15 to $20, with the silver-inlaid and engraved models selling at higher prices. It was considered the ‘perfect assassination weapon’, because it was lightweight, durable and small enough to be hidden almost anywhere.

Sources:

 * //Facts On File Online Databases//. Web. 30 Apr. 2010. .
 * __"The Civil War as Photographed by Mathew Brady." //National Archives and Records Administration//. Web. 03 May 2010. .__
 * "Civil War Weapons." //The American Civil War Home Page//. Web. 30 May 2010. .
 * "Philadelphia Derringer." //Cheaper Than Dirt//. 2010. Direct Investment, Ltd. May 11, 2010. <http://www.iwww.cheaperthandirt.com/MediaPages/ArticleDetail.aspx?mediaid=700>

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