The Times Of Destruction In The Civil War

“Two Wars: Times of Destruction”

The Civil War and World War I were both two very important battles in American history. They formed a lot of our military technology and weaponry during these times. If it were not for these wars and how people and states reacted, we would not be where we are today. There were a variety of weapons in the Civil War. These weapons ranged from knives to swords and even an astonishing amount of firearms, such as pistols, and repeating weapons (Bilby). Cannons were a very important factor during the Civil War. The Union and Confederate forces both used cannons in this war. These consisted of the 12-pound Howitzer, the 10-pound rifle, and the 3-inch Ordnance rifle (Bilby). Union and Confederate forces used
an amazing amount of ammunition. Even though they had accurate weapons and opposing troops were very close together, most of the shots fired by both sides missed their marks. Usually, a close range musket ball would initially follow its path, but a slower shot caused a curving path (Lanham). Most people think that soldiers on a battlefield would be able to fire a weapon like they do on a shooting range.
That statement is very untrue. When people on a battlefield are loading their rifle, it takes a long time. When they go to shoot they are usually in a rush to fire so they do not aim properly and miss the target they were aiming for. Another reason for the soldiers to miss their target is, even if they do take their time and aim, they still have to estimate how far the target is (Lanham). Slavery was one of the major reasons for the Civil War. The North wanted to abolish every part of slavery. In Washington, political power brokers were planning to abolish all slavery in the
South. The North was trying to keep all states in the Union and was trying to stop division. While the North was doing this, the South was fighting to keep a system of government that would allow slavery to remain in the south. The North and the South were looking at things completely oppositely (Trueman). South Carolina passed an act that demanded that federal tariff legislation of 1828 and 1832 could not be demanded onto states and that after February 1st 1833 tariffs would not be recognized in the state. Just after that, states rights and slavery began to mix up together. Another issue was that if slavery would be allowed in the new states being created and joined to the Union. War was becoming closer and closer because slavery was now combined with states rights.
Threats started to become stronger because the South believed the North would try to force their values into the South (Trueman). South Carolina decided to secede from the Union on December 20, 1860. It was a very bad sign for all the states, showing that South Carolina no longer felt part of the United States of America. It also showed that the United States of America as a federal government was destroying an existence of people settled in a comfortable place in the eyes of the north (Trueman). World War I was a very deadly and dangerous battle. There were many different and more deadly weapons in World War I than the Civil War. These more deadly weapons caused more deaths and fatalities (Davidson and Stoff 686) One of the most useful weapons was the new and improved rifle. This weapon cost very little, was not as heavy as many other weapons, and was very accurate. Another useful weapon was the bayonet. This weapon had a dagger at the end of its barrel to thrust into people in close combat. One problem with this gun was that it was very tough to thrust at people with small arms and machine guns
(Llewellyn). Machine guns were not very commonly used during World War I. They were very heavy and took three trained men to setup properly. This gun was able to fire 500 rounds a minute. Machine guns were one of the deadliest guns on the battlefield (Llewellyn). Mines were very dangerous during the war. They were planted bombs in the ground that blew up when sensor was triggered. The Australian tunneling specialist destroyed 450,000 kg of underground explosives used to kill people in the war (Llewellyn). Germany started the Triple Alliance with two different countries, Austria-Hungary and Italy. France got mad and decided to join with Russia and Britain forming a Triple Entente (Davidson and Stoff 687). When the war started, The United States was determined to stay neutral and not fight with anyone. The US claimed that if they were neutral in the war, they had the right to trade with either side in this war (Davidson and Stoff 689). During the next three major months in this battle, it would takeout Austria to an annual depth of 20 miles, take 450,000 prisoners from them, and be the reason for 250,000 more casualties and revolutionary fervor the year coming after. By order, Brusilov took 450,000 prisoners and 500 guns (Turner). These wars were very dangerous and had many casualties, but without them, our country, weapons, and military technology would not be where it is today. I thank God for all the children, women, and men in these wars, because believe it or not, these people are the true heroes in this world.