During the Rev. War and even the Civil War why did soldiers....?

Question

line up in rows and shoot as opossed as to taking cover? I understand the Revolutionary War was fought as a "Gentlemans War", but it doesnt make sense to stand there and in the open and get shot.

Answer 1

Well, the Revolutionary War was definitely not a gentleman's war by any definition. There was a lot of hate and deception and bad things done, especially against the colonists who remained loyal to the crown.

During that war the British fought as they always had and as European campaigns had been fought, in lines, or, if under attack, in the British Square. The colonists however, who lived at a remove from the old country learned fighting tactics in some part from the Native Americans and frequently fought guerrilla style, hit and run and hide and fight again later. No doubt these tactics helped in the beginning, but the success of the war ultimately also depended in part upon French support and England's fear that France would take the opportunity to seize English colonies in the Indies, thus causing them to divert resources to other theaters.

During the War Between the States I don't think anyone stood out in the open. There was a lot of shooting from behind trees and hills, etc. and lots of cannon were used, and occasionally when ordered to advance one side or another would advance on an entrenched enemy, but that also happened in WWI and WWII. You don't make progress and win a war by sitting still and waiting for the enemy to die of old age or get bored and go home.

Your ideas are more true of the Revolutionary War, at least in part, but not at all true for the War Between the States.

Good question. I am glad to see someone interested in these things.

Answer 2

That was the way wars were fought back then. EXCEPT, you got your history wrong. The Americans during the Revolutionary War used techniques taught to them by the Indians, namely, guerrilla warfare and hiding behind barriers, like trees, for protection. The British deemed that "unfair." The Revolutionary War was far from being a "Gentlemen's" war. The Americans were considered scruffy rabble and untrained ruffians by the Brits. Big mistake on their part!!

Chow!!

Answer 3

There is actually many reasons for this one being that the musket of that time had very little distance for a kill shot, two being that once you ran out of shots or your gun jammed you had the bayonet, three being it was the only way to keep control of your troops as a commander because there were no walkie talkies or anything like that so you could not go guerrilla style because you could not receive a command and that would cause chaos(not that war is not chaos to begin with), and last off was that good old honor a man back then would rather die with honor the live with shame.

Answer 4

I agree, and that is why the American Indians were great fighters and warriors; many used what we commonly refer to as guerrilla warfare.
During the Revolutionary War it was standard warfare to square in battle and fire away.

However, with the American Civil War, Napoleonic and linear tactics were inferior; they were quickly outdated by advances in weapons technology.
In other words, technology advances in firearms allowed the mini ball and buck and ball to fire at much greater distances.

The Napoleonic and linear tactics had soldiers march about 50 yards from their targets, and then fire. By the 1860s, this tactic was so greatly flawed because firearms were lethal at 100 yards or more. In summary, technology made Napoleonic tactics obsolete. Unfortunately, many Civil War commanders applied linear tactics during most of the war; this is a major reason why the death toll was so high. Henceforth, commanders adapted to their new and more lethal firearms.

Answer 5

The chief reason was that the smoothbore muskets used had an effective range of about a hundred yards and maximum range of perhaps 300. Tests conducted in the early nineteenth century by prussians showed that even at this close range over fifty percent os shots would miss the longbow used at Crecy & Agincourt was actually a better weapon in terms of range, accuracy, and rapidity of fire. As a result of this and the relatively slow re-loadtroops spread out taking cover would soon be either ridden down by cavalry or dispersed by an infantry charge. They gathered in line to withstand such a charge and to concentrate their fire in the hope that they'd actually hit something.

Answer 6

It was more about an honorable war than tactics. It was more this is everything I have, do you really think you can beat me vs. tactics to make the fighting more effective. During the Revolutionary war, we actually abandoned the old line style fighting due to lack of man power in addition to a lack of supplies.

Answer 7

Napoleonic assaults were common until trench warfare and high-volume rifle and artillery fire made that tactic obsolete. You're right tho, it doesn't make sense to stand in the open and get shot. I consider it a tactical blunder on Lee's part for crossing 1 1/2 miles of open ground against entrenched musketry and massed artillery fire at Cemetery Ridge, Gettysburg........

Answer 8

because of the type of weapons used is one reason. prior to the invention of the rifled musket the weapons were smooth bore and they were not accurate. therefore the soldiers had to shoot
" volley fire " in order to kill the enemy in any great numbers. after the rifled musket allowed more accurate firing of weapons the tactics changed, especially toward the latter years of the American Civil War.

Answer 9

The idea was to send a volley of bullets down range as the weapons were notoriously inaccurate.

The firing sequence had to be coordinated due to the long reload period. If troops didn't have a bi-level synchronization of their fire (someone by you loading while you fired) the enemy could over run your position while all or most of your side re-loaded.

If everyone was scattered in the trees no one would know who was able to fire and who was reloading. Also the firing sequence was ordered by an officer who needed to be able to see his troops.

Answer 10

one time they stopped and played soccer on a holiday in a war