07/17/2024
Soldiers writing about their experiences at the battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, the Wilderness, and Spotsylvania Court House often referred to enduring “grape and canister” from enemy artillery. For example, at Fredericksburg, Sgt. George Washington Whitman, 51st New York, explained his regiment saw “the most terrific fire of grape, canister . . . that I ever saw.” Capt. Alfred Lee, 82nd Ohio, after Chancellorsville wrote that, “canister shot sung, whistled, and howled about our heads. . . .”
Known as the “King of Battle,” Civil War artillery proved quite intimidating, bringing an unprecedented level of destructive power to the battlefield. Field artillery had several types of ammunition to choose from depending on tactical situations. However, when things got desperate, artillerists often turned to canister. Canister was particularly effective when used in the 12-pound smoothbore pieces common to the artillery forces of both sides.
For a 4.62-inch diameter smoothbore Napoleon, a canister round consisted of a thin cylindrical tin container that held 27 iron balls packed in sawdust. Each ball measured almost 1.5 inches in diameter and weighed about a half pound. When fired from the artillery piece these projectiles spewed with tremendous force, traveling at about 1,260 feet per second. At discharge, the tin container and wood sabot base flew apart from the explosive force of the black powder and sprayed the 27 iron balls outward. In effect, canister rounds transformed a cannon into a giant shotgun. Artillery pieces were capable of shooting double loads of canister, making it highly effective in defensive situations.
https://www.cvbt.org/