The Most Important New Weapon of the American Civil War

Led by Mark Hubbs

Little Round Table - December 12, 2019

Here are some questions for folks related to how the advancement of weapons influenced the prosecution of the war. I will have some thoughts to share on each of these points, but I'm hoping the collective knowledge of the group will keep the discussion going.

1. What innovation(s) or patents in the 1850s and early 1860s had the greatest impact on the development of firearms that were used in the War?

2. How much did the introduction of the expanding base bullet (Minnie Ball) have on the tactics used during the War?

3. How did other countries employ the new expanding ball technology for infantry arms? Was it different or better?

4. What would have been different if the war had been fought only with Smooth bore muskets?

5. Describe the training (or lack thereof) of Marksmanship that was conducted by the Regulars and Volunteer regiments.

6. Did the introduction of rifle cannon affect the employment of artillery? If so, how?

7. Was the American Civil War the last of the old wars, or the first of the Modern wars?