| | | Civil War Snipers |  When the subject of snipers of snipers is brought up,
most people think of the sniper against sniper battles
of Vasily Zaytsev in World War Two. While his feats
were impressive, the history of snipers does not begin
with Vasily Zaytsev. In truth, the idea of using
snipers in combat occurred to British troops after
observing the way games keepers used camouflage to
track game. American forces were not hesitant to use
this new form of combat against their own countrymen
during the American Civil war.
During the civil war , Confederate armies commonly
dispatched snipers armed with accurate rifles to
travel on the outskirts of moving troop formations as
scouts. These early American snipers were called
"skirmishers" and they were closer in operation to a
scout or sharpshooterthan what we recognise as a
modern day sniper. While they did employ camouflage
and natural cover to accoplish their goal, the
primitive sharpshooters of the Civil War had none of
the extensive training available to modern day
snipers. Their job was to engage the enemy and protect
the troop formation. These scouts were chosen on the
basis of skill and/or experience. Older, more
experienced men were preferred, but young men were
also selected on the basis of talent and fieldcraft.
There are specific examples of civil-war-era snipers.
One of these is Colonel Hiram Berdan who commanded the
first and second US sharpshooters. He trained them and
equipped his Union soldiers with a fifty caliber
Sharps Rifle. It is rumored that the unit commanded by
Berdan's killed more confederate troops than and other
other regiment in the Union Army. |
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