“Wars and warfare changed very little in response to the Atlantic Revolutions and the Industrial Revolution”

In response to the Atlantic Revolutions and the Industrial Revolution, wars and warfare have changed significantly. Each revolution changed not only how war and warfare was conducted but had a remarkable impact on the character of war itself. Both of the Atlantic Revolutions and the Industrial Revolutions shaped warfare by instigating the implementation of a sense of nationalism, advanced technology, and tactics. The Napoleonic Wars, American Civil War, and the Crimean War are very good examples of how the Atlantic Revolutions and the Industrial revolutions influenced wars and warfare. Nationalism, an emerging movement, became increasingly noteworthy throughout the Napoleonic Wars, which was derived from the Atlantic Revolutions. The industrialization period prominently impacted on the American Civil War by bringing about vast improvements in technology and transportation, which deemed to have a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the time. Enhanced technology and the evolution from pre modern warfare tactics are evident in Russia’s defeat by the British in the Crimean War. This again shows a direct correlation on how each revolution had a significant impact on how warfare is conducted.

Throughout the Napoleonic period there was an immense surge in the numbers that armies were yielding. The growth in armies is parallel to the sense of nationalism and patriotism that was flooding through society. This explosion of recruits was due to idealistic propaganda but also the inevitable product of war psychology that arises in people is similar to the French revolution where large recruitment rose through idealistic change. Through the use idealistic propaganda we also see the change in attitude within society to conscripting to serve your country. Armies became forges of national identity. The vast size of this modern army facilitated the evolution of warfare in Corps. The specialization of Corps emerging in the French armies with infantry, artillery and cavalry made these great forces considerably more controllable. During the Napoleonic Wars these mass armies applied new modern warfare tactics and seized ground by advancing in either their specific corps, or designated sections rather than as a mass. The ideologies such as nationalism, and the use of propaganda, which significantly impacted on the size in armies were derived from the Atlantic Revolutions. This is a clear notion of how the Napoleonic Wars were influenced by the by the Atlantic Revolutions.

The American Civil War shows how the Industrial Revolution brought about enhancements in technology and transportation that essentially aided in the growth of warfare. Through the improvements in technology we see the implementation of the telegraph. With the electric telegraph comes the tactical positioning of troops to specific identified positions. The telegraph allows officers to transmit a fast effective message about either tactics or strategies, or to send and receive important information. With such large armies and massive distances to cover, the duration of war would seem to increase along with the use of land but instead these were significantly decreased as we see the exploitation of railways. The strategic use of a non-militarized way of transport gave the British much greater mobility in war. Throughout the American Civil War we see the concept of total war emerging. The notion of total war was not in terms of just centering on military targets but more so on demoralizing civilization itself by destroying homes, crops and railways. The industrialized North had a vision of unifying with the agricultural South, however this conflicted with the South’s vision of parting as two individual countries. The famous Sherman’s march led by General William Tecumseh Sherman is an example of the Scorched Earth tactics and civilian affecting character of war. Under his command United States soldiers marched through 600 miles of Carolinian and Georgian country destroying and confiscating agricultural produce, crops and livestock. They destroyed railway lines and burning down warehouses and factories depriving the Southern armies and civilians of feeding and supplying their forces essentially lowering the Southerners moral. The American Civil War can also be seen a prelude to World War 1 with the practices of trench warfare taking place. The use of technology, transport and tactics by the North show the change in the character of war that was evident in the Industrial Revolution.

The Crimean War is another example of how technology and transport essentially aided in the development of warfare. The Crimean War was the first war to use railways, the telegraph, rifled muskets, artillery, ironclad steamships, and to use fossil fuels. The infantry troops of this war showed if increasing dominance in warfare by using the increased, much more lethal rifled musket. This increase in accuracy and range was what caused the creation of rifles. Soldiers could more accurately target enemy soldiers instead of firing into lines of troops with a chance of hitting the target. However, during the Crimean War this was not fully exploited as some armies were still marching as close as 30 meters before firing at each other. Artillery was another specialization. However, with this new Industrial age of warfare the ancient slow loading large units were replaced with more powerful and accurate units. This demonstrates how a military revolution occurred to shape a new age or war by creating new tactics. The Crimean War with these new improvements in warfare proved to be worse than the American Civil War with countless causalities. The major advancement in production and industry came throughout the war came with a whole new source of power. Coal fired steam power revolutionized they way society and transport was shaped. Iron is another resource that was very necessary in the Industrial Revolution. Navies consumed unprecedented amounts of iron and steel for shipbuilding and of coal to keep these ships going. Iron was not only used in shipbuilding but also in the inventions of the steam engine, machinery, railways and bridges. The Crimean War saw the implementation of these new technologies and inventions that witnessed British’s triumph over Russia. Russia failed to apply these new technologies and inventions to their warfare. This saw them walking hundreds of miles to battle with ever lowering moral whilst the British troops were conserving energy getting transported to battle by railways and ships. When battle day arrived the British had all ready won the psychological war, which was a considerable factor in the overall triumph.

The Atlantic Revolutions and the Industrial Revolution formed core values and modern technologies, which can be seen in the Napoleonic Wars, American Civil War and The Crimean War. Each of these revolutions transformed not only the character of war, but immensely impacted on how warfare was conducted and war itself. It can clearly be seen through the three wars discussed previously that society was becoming, as Fernandez-Armesto claims, more militarized. Within the Napoleonic Wars we see how the Atlantic Revolution had a major influence on warfare by the increased sense of nationalism and pride for their country. This aided in French creating mass armies by the mounting enlistment numbers, which were an extraordinary force that were not to be engaged lightly. The American Civil War shows a direct link to the core values and technologies that the Industrial Revolution brought about. The telegraph for communication, railways for transport, and the concept of total war were all influenced by the Industrial Revolution. The improved weaponry, the use of fossil fuels as a source of power, and the use of iron in society all show how new technology can change warfare so dramatically. It is evident now that wars and warfare changed a vast amount in response to the Atlantic Revolutions and the Industrial Revolution.

Bibliography

1. Mark Neely, Jr., Was the civil war a total war, in S. Forster and J. Nagler, On the road to total war, Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom, 1997, pg. 50

2. James M. Mcpherson, This Mighty Scourge: Perspectives on the Civil War, Oxford University Press, USA, 2007, pg. 126

3. Mcpherson, This Mighty Scourge: Perspectives on the Civil War, pg. 127-128.

4. Paddy Griffith, Battle tactics of the Civil War, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1989, pg. 73-74

5. Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, The World: A History, pg. 784 - 786, Pearson Education Inc. United States of America

6. Alan Forrest et, al., Soldier, citizen and civilians: Experiences and perceptions of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, Palgrave Macmillan, United Kingdom, 2008, pg. 1-19

7. Beck B., Roger, 1999, World History: Patterns of Interaction. Evanston, Illinois: McDougal Littell

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[ 1 ]. Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, The World: A History, pg. 784 - 786, Pearson Education Inc. United States of America
[ 2 ]. Mark Neely, Jr., Was the civil war a total war, in S. Forster and J. Nagler, On the road to total war, Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom, 1997, p50
[ 3 ]. James M. Mcpherson, This Mighty Scourge: Perspectives on the Civil War, Oxford University Press, USA, 2007, p126
[ 4 ]. Mcpherson, This Mighty Scourge: Perspectives on the Civil War, pp. 127-128.
[ 5 ]. Paddy Griffith, Battle tactics of the Civil War, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1989, pp. 73-74
[ 6 ]. Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, The World: A History, pg. 784-786, Pearson Education Inc. United States of America
[ 7 ]. Beck B., Roger, 1999, World History: Patterns of Interaction. Evanston, Illinois: McDougal Littell
[ 8 ]. Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, The World: A History, pg. 786, Pearson Education Inc. United States of America