Also known as: light artillery.
| Role | Mobile artillery serving with the armies in battle |
|---|---|
| Guns | Light field pieces: Napoleons, 3-inch Ordnance Rifles, Parrotts |
| Organization | Batteries of several guns with limbers and caissons |
The mobile arm
Field artillery was the branch that moved and fought with the marching armies. Its guns were light enough to be drawn at speed by horse teams, unlimbered, and served in the open, and its batteries maneuvered on the battlefield to support the infantry and cavalry.
The standard field pieces were the bronze Napoleon and the rifled 3-inch Ordnance Rifle and Parrott, organized into batteries with their limbers, caissons, forges, and battery wagons.
On this site
Sources & further reading
- United States Army, Ordnance Department. The Ordnance Manual for the Use of the Officers of the United States Army. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1862.
- Gibbon, John. The Artillerist's Manual. New York: D. Van Nostrand, 1860.