Field Fortifications

During the winter of 1864-65, both armies at Petersburg constructed long lines of field fortifications designed by engineer officers using standard manuals. Civil War earthworks basically consisted of a parapet and a ditch. The parapet was a dirt embankment raised high enough to protect soldiers from enemy cannon and rifle fire, and most of its dirt came from the ditch, which also served as an obstacle to attack. A row of logs or boards formed the revetment, holding the parapet in place as it was thrown up from the ditch. At the base of the revetment stood a firing step, or banquette, from which soldiers stepped up to fire their weapons over the top of the parapet, known as the superior slope. Artillery positions were placed at intervals along the lines, usually projecting from the main line so cannon could fire along the front of the fortifications and to either side, creating enfilade fire that increased the earthworks' defensive strength. Depending on their shape, these positions were called redans, redoubts, or lunettes. Openings called embrasures were cut into the parapets so cannon could fire without unnecessarily exposing their crews, and although embrasures could be lined with various materials for strength, Confederates generally used sandbags. Because cannon in field works had to fire repeatedly from the same spot, engineers built wooden platforms to support the guns, prevent them from sinking into soft soil, and keep them from cutting ruts as they recoiled.

Virginia · United States