For a war that was primarily decided on who had the better firearms and ammunitions, one may have thought twice to understand the significance of Civil war swords. But, they did play a significant part in the outcome of the war itself. While the cannons and the rifles did most of the damage for long distances, the sword did its bit on catapulting the enemy to submission on shorter distances.
Civil War Swords – A decorative element on the military dress
Even in the Civil War days, the military dresses used to be all-useful. Every component and ingredient of the dress had its own use. Amidst all of them, Civil war swords could be considered one aspect, which did not have much use. At best, the top ranking generals of either armies, used to carry swords with them.
And not that they put it to use extensively at all! In fact, for them, the Civil War Swords were more of an indication of their ranks and their status.
Swords on the battlefield
On the battlefront though, things were slightly different. Swords were used mainly as an aggressive weapon for neutralizing enemy threat on short ranges. Imagine if an enemy is standing a couple of yards from you. Using a rifle to shoot him down may not have been a good idea, considering the olden days’ rifles did take some time to reload or recoil.
In all such scenarios, soldiers used their swords to good effect. Civil War nurses who were on duty in various military hospitals then would attest the fact that some gashes on soldiers’ bodies took a long time to heal, and were absolutely convinced that these gashes were caused by the Civil War Swords.
Soldiers used these swords as their last line of defense. In most cases, the rifles and cannons did their job really well to neutralize enemy threat when possible. Considering the terrain though, on which the Civil War was fought, swords came into play when there was a guerilla attack by the enemy. On all other cases, the swords were at best just accompanying partners to the soldiers.
This is one part of the military dress that has carried on as a tradition to present day armies. You would still see some top generals in leading armies across the world carrying a sword with them. For them, these swords are merely a symbol of their rank! But in the Civil War days, it was more of a last line of defense for soldiers!
