This video provides an overview of artillery tactics during the Napoleonic Wars, focusing on field artillery and excluding siege and fortress artillery. The primary type of artillery used during this period was cannons, with howitzers being relatively new and used primarily for siege warfare prior to the Seven Years War. Howitzers were able to fire explosive shells called "Common Shell," which cannons were not typically used for.
The primary ammunition used by all armies was roundshot, used against fortifications, people, and equipment. The common shell was a hollow-cast shell filled with a bursting charge, which could be used similar to a roundshot but was also a psychological threat since the charge inside it could detonate even after losing kinetic energy. Mortars were primarily used in siege operations and rarely in open field battles. Moving the heavy artillery required horses, with a British Royal Horse Artillery 6-pounder troop in 1813 requiring a total of 185 horses and mules.
