Warfare – 1700-1900 Flashcards
How was the composition of the army affected?
The composition of the army stayed the same generally.
In 1700, infantry remains dominant parts forming about 75%, cavalry was 20% and artillery remained 5%.
In 1850, infantry grew to 80%, cavalry reduced to 15% and artillery remained 5%.
How was the size of the army affected?
Throughout this period a standing army continued. On average the army was around 50,000 during peace time.
By 1850 the British Army was larger, overall growing slowly.
How were weapons affected?
In 1750, muskets evolved to brown bess. It was flintlock, lighter, more powerful and it could be fitted with a bayonet.
Cavalry mainly used swords. Some had firearms, known as dragoons, they could dismount and fight on foot.
Artillery used cannons with range of about 500m.
Due to the industrial revolution, towards 1800, Britain was producing massive amounts of iron. This allowed for lighter, more accurate, stronger cannons made out of a solid piece of metal. This greatly increased the significance of light field artillery.
How was strategy affected?
Limited warfare continued to be the norm throughout.
Some reasons for this are rulers leading armies, artillery meaning massive loss of troops, transport and communications also slow.
How was recruitment affected?
From 1750, recruitment remained relatively unchanged throughout this period. Being in the army was more like a job now.
Officers continue to be young men from wealthy families who bought ranks.
Enlistees were signing up for short enlistments or life enlistments. He was supposed to be the main incentive but was less than a labourers pay.
This made the army very unpopular and many men were made drunk and enlisted under the influence.
After 1850 it was realised shorted of troops and lowering of quality, realised in the Crimean war. A new secretary for war was appointed, Edward Cardell. He introduced a set of reforms to make recruitment more professional. This consisted of ending the purchase of ranks and regiments re-organised into local regions with local barracks. Minimum time that needed to be served was reduced and pay increased.
How was training affected in this period?
Until the 1790 training remain relatively unchanged.
Pamphlets guides and regulations were sent to standardise training but were mainly ignored.
Some changes instigated after war in France in the 1790s. Standard trials from manoeuvering troops cavalry in the use of weapons were issued, but resistance still by some officers.
In 1800 the Royal military College was established at Santos to improve training of existing officers.
Attitude and society are preventing change. It was thought that officers could hand in basic things such as weapons training and tactics.
How were civilians affected?
Civilians were hardly affected over this period and did not change much at all as there was no fighting in British soil.
Requisitioning was still carried out in the form of wagons needed for the army. In 1700 there were no army barracks so soldiers had to find their own lodging as the size of the army grew. This caused problems, disrupting businesses in town cities.
How are tactics affected during this time?
The technology that proved to weapons from 1850 to 1900 also changed tactics on the battlefield.
The use of rifles and machine guns dramatically increase the power of defence.
This man tactics such as cavalry charges or infantry lines advancing became very dangerous signalling the decline of cavalry. Cavalry was kept for some time due to attitude and society as it was part of valued tradition.
How were rifles developed?
Until 1850 rifle consisted of muskets, difficult to load and heavy. Rifle were approved with a large range of bullets used flying further and making them more reliable in damp weather. The main change was breach loading being able to push bullets into the bottom of the barrel from the side of the rifle making reloading four times quicker than muskets.
How are machine guns developed?
In the 1860s the first machine gun appeared.
The Gatling gun and Mitrailleuse were cannons with 25 rifle barrels which rotated inside the cannon barrel, firing 150 rounds per minute.
In 1890s Maxim guns were introduced. They were much lighter and easily moved into position by men. They were fed bullets from a belt and fired 500 rounds per minute.
How was provisioning affected in this period?
Initially, requisitioning still had a presence but proved very unreliable and inefficient as seen in the Crimean War.
As a result after 1850, what’s the work centralised to the war office, taking over army transport supplies and uniforming. This is a result started a cut back on requisitioning.
