Light Artillery Weapons

• Model 1861 Three-Inch Ordnance Rifle

  

  Manufactured primarily in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, this wrought iron, rifled gun could fire eight- or nine-pound Hotchkiss or Schenkel shells nearly 2,000 yards at slight elevation. This was the most prolific Union field piece and, perhaps, the most widely feared by Confederate adversaries. Standard Union batteries consisted of six guns, manned by about 100 officers and men and pulled by about 110 horses.

• Model 1861 Parrott Rifle

  

  Named for its inventor, Robert P. Parrott, the Parrot Rifle was manufactured in Cold Spring, New York, on the banks of the Hudson River. Its barrel contained a mixture of cast iron and wrought iron and it fired 10- or 20-pound rifled shells or bolts (depending on the barrel type) from its 2.9-inch bore. It could also be deployed to fire shrapnel ammunition, spherical case or canister. The Parrott Rifle could be recognized easily by its reinforced band around the breech meant to prevent the rifle from bursting..

• Model 1857 Napoleon

  

  Named for Emperor Napoleon III of France, the Model 1857 Twelve-Pound Napoleon field piece mounted a 1,227-pound bronze tube with a 4.62-inch bore. The wider bore and bronze barrel meant that it contained no rifling. Consequently, it could not match the range of other popular field pieces. However, the Napoleon proved highly versatile, and as such, it made up one third of all light artillery pieces in the Union army. It could fire exploding shell, spherical case, canister, and solid shot. At close range, shrapnel weapons—especially canister or “rotten shot” (shells without fuse)—could be particularly devastating to advancing infantry or cavalry.