978-1-4222-3353-5

Times That Try Men’s Souls

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WEAPONS AND TACTICS All the firearms used in the Revolutionary War fired a single shot and were loaded from the muzzle (the front end of the barrel). Rifles were quite accurate. A skilled rifleman could reliably hit a man at a distance of 200 yards. But rifles could take a minute or more to reload. That’s why most infantrymen were equipped with muskets. A well-trained soldier could fire a musket three or four times in a minute. The effective range of a musket was about 100 yards. But consistently hitting a specific target beyond about 75 yards was nearly impossible. For that reason, lines of closely grouped soldiers fired together. This concen- trated fire, called a volley, was bound to hit some enemy soldiers. A few

volleys, fired while advancing, might break up the enemy’s line enough to overwhelm it with a bayonet charge. The bayonet was a blade of about 18 inches in length, which could be fitted into a metal sleeve on top of a musket barrel. Early in the war, many American soldiers didn’t have bayonets. That put them at a distinct disadvantage. Artillery was used on the battle- field in several ways. For example, iron cannonballs ranging from 3 to 12 pounds could be fired up to 800 yards into the ranks of approach-

During the 18th century, the limited range and accuracy of muskets required armies to stand together and fire volleys at enemy forces.

ing soldiers. A cannonball would kill or mangle anyone in its path. At a couple hundred yards or less, grapeshot could be used to devastating effect. Grapeshot was a packet of small iron balls that dispersed when fired.

The American plan was to stop the British along a line of hills south and east of Brooklyn Heights. But the Continentals had left a pass through the Heights of Guan undefended. Loyalists informed the Brit- ish of this fact. Ten thousand redcoats marched through the Jamaica Pass, east of