The Rifle-Musket did not really influence the Civil War

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I really appreciate Brandon F for organizing this collab and inviting me to be a part of it! Thanks!

The rifle-musket has been called “the first modern infantry weapon” for increasing the range and power of the infantry, but it was very difficult to use effectively. European militaries implemented long, rigorous training systems to teach soldiers how to use the new rifle-musket (and such extensive training is still necessary for soldiers today who also use complex weapons), but soldiers in the American Civil War were not trained. Lacking the knowledge and skill to use the rifle at long distances, Civil War soldiers used it like the old smoothbore it replaced, with combat taking place at frightfully short ranges.

These facts have not prevented the rise of a myth surrounding the rifle-musket’s role in the war. Popular history presents the rifle as an absolute game-changer, with an immediate and profoundly destructive effect that turned the Civil War into an unprecedented slaughter.

In this video, I address this myth and carefully explain (from primary and the best secondary sources) why this myth stands in the way of an accurate, contextual understanding of the tactical realities of Civil War combat.