Also known as: pack artillery.
| Role | Artillery for rough and mountainous country |
|---|---|
| Transport | Broken down and carried on pack animals |
| Chief piece | The mountain howitzer |
Guns over the mountains
Mountain artillery was the lightest branch of the guns, made for country too rough for wheeled field artillery. Its pieces, above all the small mountain howitzer, could be taken apart and carried, gun, carriage, and ammunition, on the backs of mules.
This let a mobile column bring artillery into the mountains and over difficult ground, and mountain guns saw much service on the frontier and in broken country.
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.