grape-shot

Grapeshot is a type of artillery round invented by a British Officer during the Napoleonic Wars. It was used mainly as an anti infantry round, but had other uses in naval combat.

In artillery, a grapeshot is a type of ammunition that consists of a collection of smaller-caliber round shots, which in most cases are about the size of a golf ball, packed tightly in a canvas bag and separated from the gunpowder charge by a metal wadding, rather than being a single solid projectile. Grapeshot also comes packaged in clusters of three by iron rings, and in three tiers, with the shot being held in by cast iron rings. When assembled, the shot resembled a cluster of grapes, hence the name. Grapeshot was used both on land and at sea. On firing, the canvas wrapping disintegrates and the contained balls scatter out from the muzzle, giving a ballistic effect similar to a giant shotgun.

Grapeshot was devastatingly effective against massed infantry at short range and was also used at medium range. Solid shot was used at longer range and canister at shorter. When used in naval warfare, grapeshot served a dual purpose. First, it continued its role as an anti-personnel projectile. However, the effect was diminished due to a large portion of the crew being below decks and the addition of hammock netting in iron brackets intended to slow or stop smaller shot. Second, the shot was cast large enough to cut rigging, destroy spars and blocks, and puncture multiple sails.

Canister shot, also known as case shot, fired a larger number of smaller projectiles loosely packaged in a tin or brass container, possibly guided by a wooden sabot. The later shrapnel shell contained similarly smaller projectiles, and used a timed bursting charge to expel those projectiles from the front of the container. So, unlike grapeshot, canister shot is more precise and could be more deadly, as grapeshot wasn't guided, nor did it have a timed bursting charge.

Langrage is a type of improvised round that uses chain links, nails, shards of glass, rocks or other similar objects as the projectiles. Although langrage can be cheaply made, its ballistics are inferior to grapeshot's.

Even though grapeshot, canister shot, and langrage are three different types of shot, the idea behind them remains the same; anti-infantry. That is because at the time in history grapeshot was around, which was during the Napoleonic Wars, line infantry was heavily used. With grapeshot, a handful of soldiers manning the artillery could kill dozens of infantry with one round of grapeshot.

File:Grape shot.JPG, An example of grapeshot
File:CSS Georgia cannonball and holder.jpg, A small cannonball and holder for a grapeshot recovered from the CSS ''Georgia'' in 2015
File:Munitions at Fort McAllister, GA, US.jpg, Munitions at Fort McAllister, showing a grapeshot projectile

See also

* Beehive anti-personnel round
* Chain-shot—a shot consisting of metal chains
* Salvo
* Shotgun shell, functionally identical small arms ammunition
* Swivel shot

References

External links

{{commons category, Grapeshot

Artillery ammunition
Projectiles