Its hard to imagine fighting war like our forefathers did . . .?

Question

Lining up in neat rows and marching head to head against large calibre rifles, never leaving formation in the hopes that your mass will outlast the enemies mass. That was bravery. Could you imagine being in the front line of a squads formation? You know you're going to get shot with a fat hunk of soft lead. Does anyone know what the rules of that kind of battle were? Im quite curious because apparently it was a very disciplined and honorable set of rules.

Answer 1

Once rifled barrels were introduced that type of fighting was no longer the standard.

Fighting a war like that was supposed to concentrate firepower, which before the rifled barrel was very inaccurate.

Answer 2

The American weapons were actually superior to those of the British and Hessian troops. The "Tower Breach" Brown Bess was only accurate for a short range. The cry of "don't fire till You see the whites of their eyes...." gives You some idea as to the closeness of the combat. British musketry drill did not allow for independence of thought or fire. Volleys were fire "en mass". It has often been argued that the best marksmen in the British Army were the 60th Rifles, the only (all American) Colonial Regiment to serve as a permanent part of that Army. The Fire power of a fusillade was measured in 'weight' of fire, rather that by rate of fire. Smokeless powder was unheard of, and the Corned powder would disintegrate during a days march and break up into it's constituent components. Flints where often good for no more than 12 shots and then had to be replaced. Weapons weighed 10 to 15 pounds each and had to be fired from the shoulder at the standing ready.
Yes. Life was good in those days. A one ounce projectile (16 gauge) traveling at around 700 ft/sec did not ricochet off a bone. It just tore the entire limb off. Image being hit in the shoulder with a house brick which had just been thrown at You from a distance of 6ft by the opening pitcher for the Yankees? Get the idea?
If You were wounded and survived the initial injury, the wait on the battle field and the journey back to the Surgeon's tent then You were still in for a great time. Surgeons in back then had to pay for Their own equipment, and in many cases, even Their own bandages and supplies. Reusing the same, unwashed blood soaked bandage was the norm rather than the exception. There were no germs in the operating theatre, because they had not yet been discovered. After surgery You either lived or died depending on how resiliant You were. It was not the Doctors fault.
The good old days. Don't You wish You could have been There?

Answer 3

Most definitely. It had to be pure horror to know your chances of survival were slim and none.

Answer 4

You were either shot from the front or back.