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21 Deadly Weapons That Changed the Course of the American Civil War

The American Civil War was the bloodiest conflict that America has ever fought and remains one of the most intensely studied (and scrutinized) events in America’s history as well.

While it’s unconfirmed exactly how many people died in the war, most estimates place the number as between 600,000 to 1,000,000 across four years of warfare. This remains a staggering figure even compared to the wars fought with more advanced technology today.

There were two big reasons why so many people were killed during the Civil War: there were several massive battles that each saw tens of thousands (or even hundreds of thousands) of men engaged in each, and these battles were fought with inventive weapons that were designed to increase casualties as much as possible.

The weapons technology and tactics that were seen in the Civil War would foreshadow what would come decades later in the even more brutal World War I.

Here are the 21 most deadly weapons of the American Civil War period:

1 – Springfield 1861 Musket

Springfield 1861 Musket
Image Credit: Horse Soldier

The standard issue Union infantry rifle of the Civil War was the Springfield 1861 Musket, with over 1,000,000 units produced in total. This was a .58 caliber percussion cap muzzleloading rifle that one of the most innovative of its type during its day. This is because the rifle came installed with a rifled barrel and used ‘Minnie bullet’ rounds that allowed soldiers to shoot accurately at longer distances (up to 500 yards) compared to other muskets. The Minnie bullets were also designed to expand upon impact, which resulted in larger wounds and a greater chance of death for any enemy soldiers who were hit.

2 – Pattern Enfield 1853 Musket

Pattern Enfield 1853 Musket
Image Credit: National Army Museum, London

The standard issue infantry rifle of the Confederacy during the war was the .577 caliber Pattern Enfield 1853 Musket. This was also the standard rifle of the British Empire at the time, but the Confederacy managed to get their hands on more than 900,000 of these rifles by importing them via gun runners or private weapons contractors. Like the Springfield, it fired a Minnie bullet for greater accuracy and effect upon impact.

3 – Spencer Repeating Rifle/Carbine

Spencer Carbine
Image Credit: GUNSWeek

The Spencer was a lever action repeating rifle that was offered in both a full-length rifle and shorter carbine versions. It was the first metallic cartridge repeating rifle in the world, with over 200,000 units produced. The Spencer was unique because it accepted seven .56-56 rounds in a tubular magazine that fit into the stock. The Spencer was primarily issued to Union cavalry and was prized for its high rate of fire. It did not replace the Springfield 1861 musket, however, due to the high cost of production and because the U.S. Army feared that soldiers would waste ammunition, which would complicate logistics.

4 – Henry Lever Action Rifle

Henry Lever Action Rifle
Image Credit: Outdoor Life

The Henry Lever Action Rifle was one of the most revolutionary firearms of the Civil War period. This rifle accepted 15 .44 Rimfire rounds in a tubular magazine underneath the barrel. It offered one of the highest capacities and fastest rates of fire of any rifle produced during the Civil War. Like the Spencer, it was very expensive to produce and as a result, it never replaced the Springfield or Enfield muskets and saw limited use. Most soldiers who used a Henry had to buy the rifle and the ammunition using their own funds. The Henry later served as the basis for the famous Winchester rifle, or the ‘Gun That Won The West,’ a few years later.

5 – Sharps Rifle/Carbine

Sharps RifleCarbine
Image Credit: Davide Pedersoli

The Sharps Rifle and Carbine were highly accurate breech-loading rifles that accepted metallic cartridges. They were among the most used rifles by sharpshooters as well as the Union cavalry, who preferred the carbine configuration. After the Civil War, they continued to be extensively used by buffalo hunters across the Great Plains.

6 – Burnside Carbine

Burnside Carbine
Image Credit: Horse Soldier

Another rifle that was widely used by the Union cavalry was the Burnside Carbine, designed by General Ambrose Burnside (hence the name of the gun). It holds the distinction of being the very first breech loading rifle mass produced that could fire metallic cartridges, firing the cone-shaped .54 Burnside cartridge. Several of these carbines were captured and then utilized by the Confederates as well.

7 – Robinson Carbine

Robinson Carbine
Image Credit: Rock Island Armory

The Robinson Carbine was more or less a Confederate clone of the Sharps Carbine. The Confederacy had much less of an industrial capacity to produce weapons throughout the war than the Union did, but Robinson Arms based out of Richmond, Virginia, managed to produce more than 5,000 of these carbines for use by Confederate cavalry. These guns are highly prized by Civil War collectors today.

8 – Smith Carbine

Smith Carbine
Image Credit: Horse Soldier

One of the lesser known and yet more interesting carbines used by Union Cavalry in the war was the Smith Carbine. This gun was unique because when a plunger was depressed the front of the receiver and the barrel dipped almost completely downward to expose the breech to permit the loading of a fresh cartridge. While never as widely used as the Sharps or the Spencer carbines, a decent number of Smith carbines were still used as a supplementary weapon.

9 – Whitworth Rifle

Whitworth Rifle
Image Credit: Davide Pedersoli

Like the Enfield 1853 Musket, the Whitworth Rifle was another British-made firearm that was imported for use by the Confederacy. This was a highly accurate rifle with an effective range of over 1,000 yards, which was incredible for the time. These rifles were issued to Confederate snipers and sharpshooters, who used them primarily to target Union officers and medics. The only downside to them is that they delivered sharp recoil to the shooter when fired.

10 – Joslyn Rifle/Carbine

Josyln RifleCarbine
Image Credit: Horse Soldier

The Joslyn Rifle/Carbine were the first breech loading rifles that were mass produced by Springfield Armory. They initially were chambered to fire a combustible paper .54 or .58 caliber cartridge that needed to be ignited with a percussion cap, but were later modified to fire metallic cartridges. Some were even chambered for the .56-56 round that the Spencer rifle fired, which made the logistics of supplying ammunition to soldiers much easier. After the war ended, many Joslyn rifles and carbines were sold and shipped to military units in South America and Europe.

11 – Colt 1860 Army Revolver

Colt 1860 Army Revolver
Image Credit: Buffalo Bill Center of the West

The Colt 1860 Army was the official standard issue sidearm of the Union during the Civil War, although many other revolvers were used because Colt could not produce enough to meet demands. One of the main features of this elegant-looking .44 caliber percussion cap-and-ball revolver was its longer grip over past Colt revolvers, which allowed the user to get a better hold over the weapon. After the war, many Colt 1860 revolvers were converted to fire metallic cartridges.

12 – Remington 1858 Army Revolver

Remington 1858
Image Credit: Muzzle Loaders

The .44-caliber Remington 1858 Army was one of the primary supplemental revolvers that the Union turned to help meet demand. The Remington was more durable than the Colt due to its solid frame with a top strap over the cylinder. Furthermore, the cylinder could be easily removed and then swapped with another cylinder that was fit to the gun. This meant that a soldier could, at least theoretically, have several pre-loaded cylinders and then swap between them like modern speed loaders for a faster reload. Like the Colt, many 1858 revolvers were converted to fire metallic cartridges after the war ended.

13 – Colt 1851 Navy Revolver

Colt 1851 Navy
Image Credit: RR Auctions

The Colt 1851 Navy was perhaps the most widely used revolver of the Civil War period. Firing a .36-caliber bullet, it was less powerful and lighter than either the Colt 1860 or Remington 1858 Army revolvers. Even though the 1860 Army was the official sidearm of the Union, the 1851 was already in wide use and Colt continued to produce them on a large scale for the Union Army.

13 – Griswold and Gunnison Revolver

Griswold and Gunnison Revolver
Image Credit: Bonhams

The Griswold and Gunnison was essentially a Confederate clone of the Colt 1851 Navy revolver. It can be distinguished from the Colt Navy due to the circular barrel (as opposed to the Colt’s octagonal barrel) and the weaker brass frame. Griswold and Gunnison’s were among the most widely used revolvers carried by Confederate officers and soldiers during the war.

14 – LeMat Revolver

LeMat Revolver
Image Credit: Encyclopedia Virginia

The impressive looking LeMat revolver was designed by a French gun designer named Jean LeMat specifically for the Confederacy. While larger and more unwieldy than the Colt and Remington revolvers of the era, the LeMat was unique because it had a 9-shot cylinder and a single-shot 20 gauge shotgun barrel underneath the main barrel. This offered a soldier or officer who carried the LeMat with substantial firepower, but ultimately, less than 2,000 managed to be imported for use by the Confederates.

15 – Starr Model 1858 Army Revolver

Starr Model 1858 Army Revolver
Image Credit: American Rifleman

Another very unique revolver used during the Civil War was the Starr Model 1858 Army Revolver. This was a double action revolver with a self-cocking mechanism that stood in stark contrast to the single action revolvers of the era. The single action only variant of the Star 1858 was designated as the Star Model 1863. The Starr revolvers became the third most common revolver used by the Union during the war, after the Colts and the Remingtons.

16 – Model 1857 12 Pounder Napoleon

Model 1857 12 Pounder Napoleon
Image Credit: Rock Island Auction

The Model 1857 12 Pounder Napoleon was the most common artillery piece used during the Civil War. This cannon had a bronze, smoothbore barrel and bore a strong resemblance to the cannons used during the earlier Napoleonic Wars, hence the name of the weapon. Each Napoleon weighed over 1,200 pounds and had an accurate range of more than 2,000 yards. It could fire canister (a tin can packed with lead balls), shrapnel, or round shot to devastate the ranks of advancing infantry.

17 – Three Inch Ordnance Rifle

Three Inch Ordnance Rifle
Image Credit: Wikipedia

Another widely used artillery piece used by the Union during the war was the Three Inch Ordnance Rifle. This artillery piece was lighter in weight than the Napoleon cannon and easier to move around. While it was not as effective at firing canister shot at the Napoleon, it was far more effective at firing solid projectiles at longer ranges. The Confederacy made deliberate attempts to capture as many Three Inch Ordnance Rifles as they could, since they were unable to produce them on their own.

18 – 12 Pound Blakely RIfled Gun

12 Pound Blakely RIfled Gun
Image Credit: Civil War Talk

One of the most common artillery pieces used by the Confederacy during the war was another weapon that they imported from Britain: the 12 pound Blakely Rifled Gun. This cannon was very effective at firing solid projectiles and shrapnel, but it was less effective with canister shot. It had an effective range of over 1,800 yards.

19 – Model 1860 Cavalry Saber

Model 1860 Cavalry Saber
Image Credit: American Civil War Museum

The Model 1860 Cavalry Saber was designed as a lighter and more nimble replacement for the 1840 Cavalry Saber that was used throughout the Mexican-American War and was still in use with both the Union and the Confederacy at the start of the war. The 1860 weighed almost two and a half pounds and had a 35-inch blade, and hundreds of thousands of them were produced. They were highly effective at slashing fleeing infantry as cavalry forces would swoop in.

20 – Triangular Socket Bayonets

Triangular Socket Bayonets
Image Credit: Horse Soldiers

The standard bayonet used by both sides in the conflict was the triangular socket bayonet. These were three-sided, 18-inch long bayonets that came with leather sheaths that allowed soldiers to safely carry them on their person before affixing them to their rifles. Contrary to what many people think, however, bayonets actually saw limited use overall and most casualties from battle in the war were inflicted via gun or cannon fire.

21 – ‘Buck and Ball’ Buckshot Rounds

Buck and Ball Buckshot Rounds
Image Credit: Cap and Ball

The ‘buck and ball’ buckshot rounds was a unique type of ammunition developed by the Confederacy that could essentially turn their muskets into shotguns. Each buck and ball round consisted of a paper cartridge with a large lead ball, at least three smaller lead buckshot rounds, and black powder. These were very devastating when fired into the advancing ranks of Union infantry at close ranges, but were much less effective at longer ranges.

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