Military Ballooning During The Civil War

The military ideally strives to protect its nation and continuously improve its technology to better suit the conditions of the era. During the Civil War, the amount of developed and improved technology was massive. Although there are many, there are certain ones that are highly significant or frequently used. For example, the gatling gun. Similar to present day machine guns and was used often on the battlefield to cause damage to multiple soldiers in a quick instance. On the other hand, there were aquatic and aerial improvements at this time as well. There were ironclad battleships for attacking ports and other ships as well as ballooning for reconnaissance and a birds-eye-view. During the civil war, many different military technologies were
During the Civil War, few aerial advancements were made, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t any. Ballooning was popular for a while before it wasn’t. Ballooning during the Civil War was mainly for reconnaissance and a birds-eye view. Using ballooning, “.surveillance allowed the Union Army to protect the capital from any attacks by the Confederacy.” (Chan). Chan illustrates the importance of ballooning as during the Civil War, protection was important as without protection, artillery could be destroyed, people could be killed and most importantly, damage would be taken and the funds necessary may not be available. Using ballooning during the start of the Civil War greatly assisted in the protection of gatherings of both the Union and the Confederacy. Rockets on the other hand, were also great assets, the downside though, was because the rockets weren’t as developed as other weapons, they weren’t used as much however, rockets like the Hale rocket were used a bit more than others. The Hale rocket looked similar to a cannon, but thinner and smaller. The rocket’s impact varied depending on which side was using the rocket: the Confederacy or the Union. When using the rockets, “The Confederacy never achieved battlefield success as a result of employing rockets. However, one Hale rocket and launcher in Federal hands almost inflicted a mortal wound in
The Union were the ones mainly blocking off ports in the south using ironclad warships. Something the Union had a greater advantage in was naval technology as “the South didn't have a dedicated Navy. Both recognized the importance of armor-cladding their ships.” (Civil War Innovations). After ironclad warships were fully in the war, the ports near the south got blocked. The Confederates however, found a way to combat the blocked ports; they used torpedoes, what is presently known as sea mines, to sink the ships docked there. In addition to the torpedoes, the first fully submerged submarine came and assisted with the use of torpedoes. This is because “Torpedo boats were designed low in the water so that they presented a low profile.The first successful submarine attack was carried out by the Confederate submarine.it sank the USS Housatonic.” (Changes in naval technology.). By successfully sinking one of the Union’s ships, the Confederacy had a working method of getting rid of most of the ships blocking the ports. The development of torpedoes and submarines, also could be used for underwater reconnaissance or sneaking onto enemy ships. Using the submarines and torpedoes, the amount of assistance it gave to the Confederacy was great and without them, the Confederacy may have been worse off than they were. All in all, the naval weapons, despite not being