Mr. Clark,

A couple of things to remember while you study General Officer (G.O.) casualties.

1. They are high priority targets therefore a more promient target set. Take out the decisionmaker and you will effect the outcome what happens or fails to happen. In history, the more promient the target the greater note in the historical record. It is less likely to note that Private Levi's horse took a cannon ball as he rode it in a Cavalry charge against a Federal battery on the Nashville Turnpike.

2. G.O.'s are easy targets. What does a G.O. have around him when he is on the battlefield? His staff, his flag, couriers. He has to stay in relatively the same position because his subordinates and his couriers and their couriers have to know where to return to in order to command and control his command. Most of the time, they were not in line of sight of one another.

A good gunner and alot of other soldiers in the battery could estimate range. A necessary task when calculating the time for a shot fuze to be cut. Even with reloading, a battery of four guns could put a number of rounds in a target area within a short period of time. If you give the battery the command to fire two rounds: each gun fires two round (4 X 2= 8). From the time you fire the first round and the fuze is already cut for the second round and the number five man is showing the round to the Gunner then that round could be loading it into the muzzle so: time of flight is X, in theory you can be loading round number two while the first round is still in flight. Now correct initial range estimation is critical and as the Confederates often found out, having good fuzes that give you a higher probability of correct range burst is a bonus too.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Respectfully,

Gerald D. Hodge, Jr.
War Between the States Historian
Historian: 39th Georgia Volunteer Infantry Regiment
http://39thgavolinfrgt.homestead.com/39thHomepage.html