Under the Manual of Arms from 1764, the Georgia Continentals lacked uniformity and discipline. The Continentals changed to Von Steuben's manual in 1777 and it improved their combat effectiveness. Steuben’s hands-on style of training helped the army become a more skillful fighting force and at the same time gave the army new life. Von Steuben’s manual stream lines the 1764 Manuel to make the doctrine more effective and efficient. The Georgia Continentals utilized three types of infantry. Light infantry assaults were used to demoralize the enemy. Rangers were used to spy upon the enemy and harass the enemy when the opportunity seemed suitable. Rifle units were effective at long range killing but ineffective to bayonet assaults.
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The style of the period was for the men to move together like a chorus line. This kept the men from interfering with each other’s movements, and was the safest way to handle black powder. One of the fundamental differences Von Steuben introduced into the drill was for the American Officers to give the commands directly to the men. In the past, they had followed the British, where the British officers directed their Sergeants to command men. Better results were obtained after using Von Steuben’s method. Von Steuben’s manual consisted of various sections including uniforms and equipment, organization of the army, training and drills, field maneuvers, march of an army, camp regulations, inspections, and …show more content…
Throughout the war smoothbore muskets were the armament of the troops of the line. The rifle and the musket were quite different. At 100 yards the best musketeers could hit a man only about four shots out of every ten. In contrast, expert riflemen, could kill a man every shot at 100 yards, and do good execution at twice that range. The chief limitations on the use of riflemen were the scarcity of expert shots and the fact that the rifle was not made to carry a bayonet. Even with their knives and tomahawks, riflemen were vulnerable to a determined bayonet assault. Accordingly, riflemen were not useful in the line, but both sides made extensive use of them as sharpshooters ahead of and around the main fighting force. The difficulties of finding trained riflemen and the dangers involved in serving with such a unit had quite an effect on
The style of the period was for the men to move together like a chorus line. This kept the men from interfering with each other’s movements, and was the safest way to handle black powder. One of the fundamental differences Von Steuben introduced into the drill was for the American Officers to give the commands directly to the men. In the past, they had followed the British, where the British officers directed their Sergeants to command men. Better results were obtained after using Von Steuben’s method. Von Steuben’s manual consisted of various sections including uniforms and equipment, organization of the army, training and drills, field maneuvers, march of an army, camp regulations, inspections, and …show more content…
Throughout the war smoothbore muskets were the armament of the troops of the line. The rifle and the musket were quite different. At 100 yards the best musketeers could hit a man only about four shots out of every ten. In contrast, expert riflemen, could kill a man every shot at 100 yards, and do good execution at twice that range. The chief limitations on the use of riflemen were the scarcity of expert shots and the fact that the rifle was not made to carry a bayonet. Even with their knives and tomahawks, riflemen were vulnerable to a determined bayonet assault. Accordingly, riflemen were not useful in the line, but both sides made extensive use of them as sharpshooters ahead of and around the main fighting force. The difficulties of finding trained riflemen and the dangers involved in serving with such a unit had quite an effect on